Just wondering....

[SBarn]

I have read and posted on the thread Snow Days and it got me thinking. Is it standard to expect nurses and other healthcare workers to pay for hotel rooms and spend possibly days away from their families in cases of inclement weather? Does your facility have an inclement weather team that reports to cover shifts in cases of unsafe travel for employees? I understand that hospitals are 24/7 facilities and patients need good care regardless of what the weather outside is. It just seems to me like there has to be a better way and, until tonight, was not something I considered as a student about my chosen career.

[nursemike, ASN, RN]

In my state, nurses cannot work more than 16 hours consecutively, even voluntarily. I've also learned, since doing charge, that when we declare a snow emergency, we are effectively saying we can't operate safely. So, while our normal maximum ratio is 6:1 (hospital policy, not law), if there are 24 pts divided among four nurses and only three oncoming nurses to replace them, the oncoming nurses would have 8:1. I've not actually seen that happen, though.

My facility does some good things when storms are known to be on the way. A big one: look real hard at which patients really need to be there. A patient due to be discharged on the morning of an impending blizzard might be given the option to get out of town before the snow comes. Electives get postponed. So we do usually have some empty beds where staff can sleep. The hospital will also often foot the bill for staff (mainly nurses) to stay in nearby hotels. You can't be forced to do so, but if an inclement weather emergency is declared, call offs from home due to weather don't count against you. Unless you live

Gotta say, though, I've had all-wheel drive since I've worked in healthcare. Back when cleaning toilets was part of my routine duties, I missed work once or twice because my old Subaru wouldn't start, but I've never missed for snow, and never had to stay over. (I live 3 miles from work. But those who live 50 miles away, in the mountains, made a choice to live where they do and work where they do. Not saying they should risk their lives to get to work, but when they say I have it easy, well, they could have it easy, too.)

I am amazed how many people are amazed when it snows in the winter.

[bjaeram]

If we go into code white we HAVE to stay. I do believe we get paid the entire time we are on duty. We take shifts working and sleeping. Usually there is plenty of staff because everyone that is there stays and the oncoming shift has at least some people that make it in.