On responsibilities to fulfill schedule

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Specializes in Med-Surg, Home Health, LTC.

Just wondering how it is for other nurses working agency. If you accept shifts in advance, say like for the next week or even month ahead, and then find out you do not want to work there anymore for fear of your license, for being scapegoat, for under staffing, for unsafe patient situations and reasons 1-100....

what is the proper legal professional way to get out of working the shifts? My agency says once we accept shifts

we are bound to them unless it is an emergency.

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Specializes in Trauma-Surgical, Case Management, Clinic.

Most agencies have policies on canceling shifts. I think my agency has a policy that after so many canceled shifts they can terminate you. The sooner you tell them that you can't work, the sooner they will be able to find someone else to cover the shifts. That's really all they care about is covering the shifts so they get paid. It would be best to talk to them about your concerns regarding the unsafe environment but most recruiters in nursing agencies have marketing and business backgrounds and really don't understand when we have concerns like that. They will just find someone else who will take every shift they call them for and not complain so they get paid.

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Specializes in none.

Talk it over with you supervisor. She may re-leave you or my not but at least you made her aware. I had one home case where the wife was a fruit cake, she was stealing the drugs, the patient's son came for a visit, the wife called her friend, I heard on the front lawn what sounded like a Kung-Fu movie. The wife's friend, who we will call Bruce Lee, attacked the son's wife, the son crash a trash can over Bruce Lee's head. It went on and on. My supervisor came to the house, after I called her, had to step over Bruce Lee to get into the house. All the wife said to her was "I'm a born again Christian" My supervisor pulled me off that case that minute.

I guess the whole point of this story is to always let your supervisor know how you feel and maybe you might not have to put yourself in danger.

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After you have dealt with your agency staffing coordinators for some time, you will be able to gauge your standing with the agency as far as calling off shifts and other matters. It is up to you to decide where your personal line is regarding your need for work versus not working for this agency. On more than one occasion I have been made aware that my agencies have no problem giving the work to others with no regard for me. While I do not consider myself one who jumps at every chance to work, I weigh my options carefully when deciding whether to stand my ground with my employer.

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Specializes in Postpartum, Antepartum, Psych., SDS, OR.

It is a good idea never to burn a bridge behind one, unless one never wants to return.

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