Per Diem Floating

Nurse A is core employee of hospital who works evening shift and stayed over in same department to work double. Nurse B is per diem and been scheduled to work in same department as Nurse B. Who gets to float to another department Nurse A or Nurse B?

Remember in California state law requires that hospital policies and procedures must be based on current standards of nursing practice and must be consistent with the nursing process which includes: assessment, nursing diagnosis, planning, intervention, evaluation, and, as circumstances require, patient advocacy.

Policies and procedures which contain competency standards for staff performance in the delivery of patient care must be established, implemented, and updated as needed for each nursing unit. Standards shall include the elements of competency validation for registered nurses.

The RN's yearly evaluation must include measuring individual performance against established competency standards.

https://govt.westlaw.com/calregs/Document/IE9B3EF70D4BB11DE8879F88E8B0DAAAE?viewType=FullText&originationContext=documenttoc&transitionType=CategoryPageItem&contextData=%28sc.Default%29

Also state law states that hospital may assign a nurse to a nursing unit or clinical area unless that hospital determines that the nurse has demonstrated current competence in providing care in that area, and has also received orientation to that hospital's clinical area sufficient to provide competent care to patients in that area.

The policies and procedures of the hospital must contain the hospital's criteria for making this determination.

https://govt.westlaw.com/calregs/Document/I8612C410941F11E29091E6B951DDF6CE?viewType=FullText&originationContext=documenttoc&transitionType=CategoryPageItem&contextData=%28sc.Default%29

No hospital policy or union contract may require a hospital to float a nurse to an area where his or her competency has not been validated.