Low census?

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Hi all!

I was just wondering...has anybody else had a low census lately? My hospital has been struggling to get pts for a few weeks now. My unit normally has 30 - 35 pts. Lately as soon as we build back up to 25, the docs discharge everyone and we go back to around 19. We've all been pulled and sent home so much lately that we're getting a bit paranoid. Normally getting called off (or even being on call) is awesome! However lately, it's been happening so often that we are all getting tired of using our time off pay. This happens on an off all the time, but it seems to be extended lately. Has anybody else experienced this lately? It's probably about the same number of admissions as we usually get, they're just not staying very long, so we have a lot of empty beds!

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Specializes in Med/Surg, Ortho.

We have had periods of low census lately also, but people are jumping at the chance for time off. We arent required to use our benefit time to cover it if they dont need us. We just dont get paid unless we are on call and then its call pay only. We dont get docked for benefit time off of next year if it is the hospitals call off. It's actually nice, if you time it right and ask for it at the right time you can get a pretty long spread off work without missing pay.

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Yup. I am sitting at home today enjoying call pay due to low census. Not sure what's going on, but here (Eastern North Carolina) we have had several beds closed for over a month now when usually we are pushing to move pt's to an intermediate bed so we can take new ICU admissions.

Terri in Greenville, NC

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Specializes in Med/Surg, Perinatal, Float.

We have been pretty low census too but when we are full it is 14 pt so we are usually 10 pt or under. I just checked to day and this last month the day shift people all had almost 40 hours of call-off time! We hope to pick up soon!

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Our census has also been low lately. Several nurses are starting to get a little nervous.

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Specializes in MSICU starting PICU.

We are slow as well, however, we see this in the summer on a regular basis. Unfortunatley it is starting much sooner now and it is REALLLY REALLLYYY dropping.

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Specializes in Cardiac.

Drastically low. Out of the last 24 hours, I've only had 6 that involved a patient. The rest I sat around at stared at the wall.

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I don't work as a nurse yet but I do intern and I haven't heard anything about being really low lately. Maybe we don't experience that. Its possible, since we are in the Stroke Belt. Maybe you should move here, lol! Just kidding.

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Specializes in Oncology/Haemetology/HIV.

This is par for the course in many sunbelt states. Once the snowbirds fly home, census drops.

For a long time, FL facilities would drop to half of the winter census. Now, because of the rapidly increasing COL in FL - snowbirds are making their winter nests in GA, SC, NC and they are seeing more of the annual migration.

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Specializes in ER.

WOW, now I know where all of our patients are coming from! We are packed to the rafters in all units, and routinely hold patients in the ER because we have no beds, and we have 800+ beds!

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Hey Dixie! Send us some!! In our ICU's we get pulled to other units (except OR and psych) when census is low. Shoot! If they knew i had psych experience I'd get pulled there too!! Will probably combine CCU with MICU eventually if this keeps happening :p

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Low census doesn't matter much where I work. We have 'no cancellation' in our union contract. They pay me if there isn't a single patient. I have been the 2nd or third 'break relief' nurse on occasion, but not lately.

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