Getting Pulled?

we take turns. whoever gets floated gets marked on a list and we go through each person so everyone gets their turn. people can also volunteer. if we float out of our specialty we get paid extra money.

I work critical care, but a lot of my friends work L&D and they float between NICU, antepartum, post partum, and newborn nursery when census is low.

At my old job, it was who ever was next. Had nothing to do with part time, full time, per diem, permanent or shift. We also kept a list. But if you were mandated (old days) you had the option of staying on your old floor. If you were on overtime, you had to float first.

At my new job, it is crisis pay first, overtime next, agency, corporate, per diem, part time...and then whomever is next. Doesn't happen often since we are usually short.

We never floated at my first job and never had 0 census. At my second job we staffed 3-4 RNs on days and 3 RNs at night. We had to always have 2 RNs and one med tech in house at all times. So if the rest of the hospital was staffed well one nurse or tech could stay home on call. Some bed managers felt that pulling to float anywhere but MBU was pointless so they left us alone, some would pull us wherever, Med Surg, ICU. The Army nurses felt ok about Med Surg since they had to do a year of med-surg prior to going to the OB course. However, I was a civilian and I was pulled to the ICU one night. I have only ever worked in L&D. Initially it was just to sit with a patient, but then they got busy and the charge nurse was telling me to take a fresh admit from the ED. I told her that was not gonna happen. I told her I would runs labs, put in orders, draw labs, IVs anything at all. I will NOT take a pt assignment, let alone a fresh admit. Suffice to say that did not go over well with her, but before I had to get more people involved she decided to get a nurse who would take an assignment and I went back to L&D.

As far as turns we had a float book and it listed the names and dates of who floated last, you went when it was your turn. Every once in a while there would be a volunteer. This hospital did about 1000 deliveries a year.