Taking the assignment or dispute it???

MunoRN, RN · Mar 11, 2017

You're always free to dispute staffing assignments, including how fairly the 'high maintenance' and higher acuity patients are divided up, but your employer is also free to terminate your employment. Unfortunately not every work environment is open to feedback about this sort of thing.

DNTcode · Mar 11, 2017

LOL, I love your response!!! I guess it precisely reflects upon current trends in nursing

Sour Lemon · Mar 11, 2017

I am sure we all had a day when we are like whaaaat is this? You got this call light abuser, the drug addict, the end of life withdrawal, admission and discharge. Or vise versa.
I always try to accommodate, as I feel it is unethical to argue.
Even though I see someone else is having just one stable patient...while I am getting tripled.
On the other hand, it is not the best for the patient, if I am constantly taking everything, and then I am in haste and ... I just recently did not mark a field in charting on patient whom I sent home... and OMG it back lashed on me.
What do you think? Stick up or suck up?

I speak up occasionally, but I do it in a diplomatic way. Unless you're very hated, you probably weren't meant to have every horrible circumstance on the unit in your lap. If I have multiple super-high maintenance patients or multiple discharges/admits at the beginning of a shift, I'll ask if they can be split up. A lot of times the person who made the assignment just wasn't aware of all the fine details.

I can't think of a time when I haven't been accommodated, but I always approach my charge respectfully and in a calm manner. I have never outright refused and assignment or thrown a tantrum.