Weather Policy

Nurses General Nursing

Published

Does your hospital have a weather policy? If so, is it lenient? Do you ever feel like you have really sacrificed your safety to make it into work out of guilt?

I've never heard of any med/surg floor 1 aving a 12:1 ratio and if they do then there's more issues there then I can tackle on here. What I'm saying is you suddenly have 1.5 times as many pts because of your coworkers calling out due to weather, then it puts the pts in danger. I'm sorry if you can't see that.

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12:1 is common on med Surg floors in NY. If they hired twice as many nurses it would 6:1 as it should be. If a few nurses called in the ratio would go up to 8:1, totally manageable and still below current standards. Do nurses advocate for that? No they'd rather yell at the call outs. Unproductive and not helping the profession at all. But whatever, good luck to all of you. You've made this career into what it has become due to lack of respect for yourselves. I'm out of here.

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Specializes in Med/Surg/ICU/Stepdown.
12:1 is common on med Surg floors in NY. If they hired twice as many nurses it would 6:1 as it should be. If a few nurses called in the ratio would go up to 8:1 totally manageable and still below current standards. Do nurses advocate for that? No they'd rather yell at the call outs. Unproductive and not helping the profession at all. But whatever, good luck to all of you. You've made this career into what it has become due to lack of respect for yourselves. I'm out of here.[/quote']

Definitely this. I have seen a 1:8 and no NM even bat an eye at it. But, it's on us 'cause we keep accepting it.

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Specializes in Pediatrics, Emergency, Trauma.
12:1 is common on med Surg floors in NY. If they hired twice as many nurses it would 6:1 as it should be. If a few nurses called in the ratio would go up to 8:1, totally manageable and still below current standards. Do nurses advocate for that? No they'd rather yell at the call outs. Unproductive and not helping the profession at all. But whatever, good luck to all of you. You've made this career into what it has become due to lack of respect for yourselves. I'm out of here.

While you're out of here; please look up your states' nursing org as well as the current safe staffing bills that are being discussed in nursing activism forum.

Being there for the pts is what our business is about; just FYI there are MANY nurses fighting the good fight; your peers are FAR from doormats; you are always welcome to get involved.

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Specializes in Emergency Room, Trauma ICU.
It isn't about me vs anyone else. I'm not bothered by anyone disagreeing with me in case you haven't noticed. I simply state why I feel how I feel and counter what it said. I'm not off on a tirade or insulting anyone else. Nor am I storming off like a child. Soooo ...[/quote']

Really? Because sadly your posts don't show that. I know it can be hard to change your opinion but that's part of living. To be so adamant about something without even admitting the other side has a point is...sad. You don't have to agree with them but being open to others ideas is always a good thing.

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Specializes in Emergency Room, Trauma ICU.
12:1 is common on med Surg floors in NY. If they hired twice as many nurses it would 6:1 as it should be. If a few nurses called in the ratio would go up to 8:1 totally manageable and still below current standards. Do nurses advocate for that? No they'd rather yell at the call outs. Unproductive and not helping the profession at all. But whatever, good luck to all of you. You've made this career into what it has become due to lack of respect for yourselves. I'm out of here.[/quote']

That's horrible. Sounds like you seriously need to get the union in there to help make things safer. I just moved from a non-union state to a union state and the change in quality of pt care is huge.

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Specializes in Oncology; medical specialty website.
On the surface it may be a nurses' "choice" to live far away from their hospital, but you need to get over that and move on. In my town, there are two hospitals. Two. And neither one was hiring. The nearest from that are over an hour away and WE OWN our home. So when an offer presented itself for me to work for a hospital with a less than desirable commute, as a new nurse with LOAN DEBT, I thought: "Gee, can I really afford to be picky right now?" And ultimately, no. I couldn't.

And as a result, if weather conditions are so dangerous that I can't even safely do 5MPH to work, I shouldn't be browbeat for it. End of story.

No one is going to browbeat you for it. But you were offered many constructive options on how to deal with inclement weather and fulfill your obligations to work. If you're unwilling to do any of them, then it shouldn't come as a surprise to you if your employer takes measures. Because it's not just you. Units often have many nurses who don't live close to work. So if most of them stay home, patient care suffers, and unit morale is affected.

I haven't always lived close to work. I've also had jobs with hospice and home care; when patients need you in the middle of the night, they don't care about your commute.

I have to wonder why none of your co-workers who live close to the hospital is willing to let you bunk with them. I did that several times with my first job, and again when I worked for hospice.

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Specializes in Oncology; medical specialty website.
No one is saying that about YOU...the point being, expecting ones nursing peers to exercise accountability and responsibility in making shift or plan ahead significantly-nurses plan for their pts btw-in order to make their shift; that is NOT bashing or being "insensitive" as another poster is implying :no:

I worked with a nurse who would travel 3 hours to work weekends; she would find a way when snow hit our area to make it to work AND stay at a hotel on her dime; I'm in a tourist area and where I worked at the time the hotels are at a ritzy and touristy (if this is a word) part of the city; she knew staying made up for the hours that she worked; plus it's tax deductible, so the money, including mileage, would be recouped. She stayed during a major snowstorm and made it; most of us made it, except for one who lived the closest; some brave waiting in below freezing for public transportation for and hour-2 hours, which can be just as unsafe as driving in snow.

I make it through snow; even if my intentions are good, I rather be late and relieve the person working than not come at all-I pack what I need-including change of clothes and always carry travel items just in case. I also pack snacks, food and beverages (water) so in case anything happens, I'm hydrated and fed. I have a big enough bag to carry the essentials and walk when necessary.

Tiny disasters such as snowstorms are a fact of life; there will be situations where the knowledge and use of disaster-planning techniques can go a long way in order to remain safe. :yes:

I'm not that far from you, and I also live in a HUGE tourist area, where people come in throngs "to see the Ayyymish." If I'd had to stay in a hotel, I would have; YOU CAN DEDUCT THE COST ON YOUR TAXES, AND YES I MEANT TO USE ALL CAPS.

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Specializes in Emergency Room, Trauma ICU.
No one is going to browbeat you for it. But you were offered many constructive options on how to deal with inclement weather and fulfill your obligations to work. If you're unwilling to do any of them then it shouldn't come as a surprise to you if your employer takes measures. Because it's not just you. Units often have many nurses who don't live close to work. So if most of them stay home, patient care suffers, and unit morale is affected. I haven't always lived close to work. I've also had jobs with hospice and home care; when patients need you in the middle of the night, they don't care about your commute. I have to wonder why none of your co-workers who live close to the hospital is willing to let you bunk with them. I did that several times with my first job, and again when I worked for hospice.[/quote']

I rented out my spare room to a coworkers husband. They lived about an hour and a half from the hospital he worked at so it was easier to stay at my place two days a week. Coworkers are here to help each other, that's what this profession is all about!

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Specializes in Oncology; medical specialty website.
Well, what a superhero he is.

A patient would not hesitate to call out of a surgery if it meant saving their asses from going off the road and/or getting into a deadly accident.

​You obviously never worked in Day Surgery or outpatient infusion therapy. People will come.

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Specializes in Med/Surg/ICU/Stepdown.
I rented out my spare room to a coworkers husband. They lived about an hour and a half from the hospital he worked at so it was easier to stay at my place two days a week. Coworkers are here to help each other that's what this profession is all about! Sent from my iPhone using allnurses.com[/quote']

While that may have been a realistic option for your coworker's husband, it isn't a realistic option for many other people.

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Specializes in Oncology; medical specialty website.

To sum up:

1. The only viable option for you when it comes to inclement weather is to stay home.

2. Your co-workers should have to shoulder the burden of your decision.

3. There should be no consequences for your decision to stay home.

4. If someone dislikes your decision (likely because it has negatively impacted him/her), that person is being unsupportive, dare I say, "NETY, NETY, NETY!!!"

5. There's a vast conspiracy of AN members out to get you. (So. not. true.)

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Specializes in Med/Surg/ICU/Stepdown.
To sum up: 1. The only viable option for you when it comes to inclement weather is to stay home. 2. Your co-workers should have to shoulder the burden of your decision. 3. There should be no consequences for your decision to stay home. 4. If someone dislikes your decision (likely because it has negatively impacted him/her) that person is being unsupportive, dare I say, "NETY, NETY, NETY!!!" 5. There's a vast conspiracy of AN members out to get you. (So. not. true.)[/quote']

Wow, reaching a bit far, aren't you? I didn't say (directly or indirectly) any of that.

1. I asked what other hospital's policies are.

2. Staying home is an option as a last resort. Staying in a hotel is not an option (for me and me alone--I speak only for myself). Renting a room from a coworker is not an option (again, I speak only for myself). I did not (directly or indirectly since you like to make inferences) say that "staying home is the only option."

3. I did not say that my coworkers should shoulder the burden. I did, however, state that if I needed to stay early to cover someone that couldn't make it in, I'd be sympathetic to that. That is not at all in any way assigning responsibility of any and all coworkers to respond the way I would, have, and do.

4. I did not ever say that the unsupportive environment had anything to do with nurses eating their young. I didn't even infer it. You brought it up.

5. Conspiracy? When did I even mention anyone was out to get ME specifically? I made a generalized statement. You're the one that took it and ran with it.

Now THAT about sums it up. ?

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