Weather Policy

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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?

Specializes in Critical Care, Float Pool Nursing.

No, it's not lenient, and I feel as if we deserve disaster pay: a premium upon our regular wage in times of snowstorms and such.

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Specializes in Med/Surg/ICU/Stepdown.

Oh, nurses and their sense of empathy and compassion. ?

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Specializes in Complex pedi to LTC/SA & now a manager.

My empathy and compassion toward my patients enabled me to spend 60 minutes making a normally 10 minute drive to work while crazy minivan drivers thought it was a luge run.

I arrived intact & in one peace to find my toddler patient cracking himself up at the world ready for me to start working. He needed me. I was empathetic to his stressed parents needs for a competent nurse to shoe up to work on time and ready to go so they could start their day. My compassion for my medically fragile complex patient that desperately needs skilled, competent nursing care on 16hr per day basis was fully intact.

My mother left 90 minutes early to meet my son who had a delayed opening and ultimately no school so that I could safely fulfill my work obligations.

Just like when I did EMS I do not expect thanks for showing up (though it's nice to be appreciated and I received a lot of thanks yesterday) as it's my obligation to safely get to work and be ready to accept assignment. I've lived in the northeast long enough to learn how to safely navigate the roads in a snowstorm of not make alternative arrangements in advance. I figured out how to navigate an area totally devastated by hurricane Sandy to get to work also (and learned how to manage a back- up gas powered generator to keep my patients supplied with the electricity needed to power their life-sustaining technology)

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Specializes in Oncology; medical specialty website.
Oh, nurses and their sense of empathy and compassion. 

What do you want people to say? "Oh, yes dear. You just stay at home, snug as a bug in a rug. We don't mind working another 12h shift after finishing our own shift."

Most of these big snows are not a surprise, unless you live in an area near the Great Lakes, where you can get a freak lake effect storm. Nurses are adults and professionals. (Well, usually.) Do what you have to do to get in there safely so your co-workers and patients don't suffer. If that means going in the day before, so be it. I've bunked in less than desirable conditions (a cold floor in a conference room) because of snow.

​The empathetic and compassionate nurses are the ones who take their responsibility to their patients and co-workers seriously and don't put their co-workers in the untenable position of having to work many, many extra hours because people didn't show up.

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Specializes in Med/Surg/ICU/Stepdown.

What do you want people to say? "Oh, yes dear. You just stay at home, snug as a bug in a rug. We don't mind working another 12h shift after finishing our own shift."

Most of these big snows are not a surprise, unless you live in an area near the Great Lakes, where you can get a freak lake effect storm. Nurses are adults and professionals. (Well, usually.) Do what you have to do to get in there safely so your co-workers and patients don't suffer. If that means going in the day before, so be it. I've bunked in less than desirable conditions (a cold floor in a conference room) because of snow.

​The empathetic and compassionate nurses are the ones who take their responsibility to their patients and co-workers seriously and don't put their co-workers in the untenable position of having to work many, many extra hours because people didn't show up.

No, I don't expect it. At all. Hence my statement.

But, if I examine this from a "what would I do?" perspective, I disagree. If I were the nurse residing 20-30 minutes away, working a 0700-1930 shift with the brunt of the snowstorm hitting during the PM commute, and I anticipated call-outs, I would really take the nurses' individual situation into consideration. I believe things operate on a case-by-case basis. We had a nurse call out last night because, in her area, the storm had rendered her sans power and the roads unplowed. Her commute was over an hour away, just like mine. I felt for her. And so did some of the other nurses and so because of that plus their short commute time, they offered to stay on call until we could reassess the float pool/staffing needs. *That* is the sense of empathy and compassion I'm looking for. Nurses can have empathy and compassion for their patients ALL they want, but they also need to have empathy and compassion for their fellow nurses.

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Specializes in family practice and school nursing.

What do you want people to say? "Oh, yes dear. You just stay at home, snug as a bug in a rug. We don't mind working another 12h shift after finishing our own shift."

Most of these big snows are not a surprise, unless you live in an area near the Great Lakes, where you can get a freak lake effect storm. Nurses are adults and professionals. (Well, usually.) Do what you have to do to get in there safely so your co-workers and patients don't suffer. If that means going in the day before, so be it. I've bunked in less than desirable conditions (a cold floor in a conference room) because of snow.

​The empathetic and compassionate nurses are the ones who take their responsibility to their patients and co-workers seriously and don't put their co-workers in the untenable position of having to work many, many extra hours because people didn't show up.

That is exactly where I do live, our forecasted 3-5 inches overnight became 14-16 " . I am at work.

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Specializes in Cardiac Care.

I live 20 minutes from work so I never get the option of calling out due to weather but I live in Canada and life doesn't stop for snow so I've driven in plenty of snowstorms. What I wonder is if it wasn't work, if it was something personal something fun would you make more of and effort?

What if you had tickets to a concert in another city would and a big storm was predicted would you go the night before to avoid the storm. would you still complain about paying extra money for a hotel room?

What if it was Christmas and you whole family was getting together grandma, grandpa, mom, dad, brother, sister, nieces, nephews, aunts, uncles and cousins and the driving was bad. Would you drive slowly and carefully and try to make it or would you call and say maybe next year the weather's too bad.

What if your dad had a heart attack and wasn't doing well would you drive to the hospital then? And when you did would you be glad that the nurses in the unit made the effort to get in to work and the unit wasn't dangerously short staffed?

I've driven in all these situations and my thinking is if the weather isn't bad enough to make you miss something that is important to you personally, something you want to do, then it's not bad enough to let you out of your responsibility to make it in for your shift.

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Specializes in Med/Surg/ICU/Stepdown.
I live 20 minutes from work so I never get the option of calling out due to weather but I live in Canada and life doesn't stop for snow so I've driven in plenty of snowstorms. What I wonder is if it wasn't work, if it was something personal something fun would you make more of and effort?

What if you had tickets to a concert in another city would and a big storm was predicted would you go the night before to avoid the storm. would you still complain about paying extra money for a hotel room?

What if it was Christmas and you whole family was getting together grandma, grandpa, mom, dad, brother, sister, nieces, nephews, aunts, uncles and cousins and the driving was bad. Would you drive slowly and carefully and try to make it or would you call and say maybe next year the weather's too bad.

What if your dad had a heart attack and wasn't doing well would you drive to the hospital then? And when you did would you be glad that the nurses in the unit made the effort to get in to work and the unit wasn't dangerously short staffed?

I've driven in all these situations and my thinking is if the weather isn't bad enough to make you miss something that is important to you personally, something you want to do, then it's not bad enough to let you out of your responsibility to make it in for your shift.

1. If I had tickets to a concert *and* it was a snow storm that I thought I couldn't feasibly drive safety to see said concert, then I'd elect not to go and take the consequences of not having my money refunded and/or missing a concert I wanted to see. I would not pay extra money for a hotel room if I didn't have it. However, this example doesn't make much sense, and I'll tell you why. Asking an employee to pay out of their pocket for a hotel room simply so they can work their shift is ridiculous. First of all, the hotel room that I'd pay for far exceeds what I'd make in that shift. Let me repeat it: FAR EXCEEDS. I don't have a job because I can afford to have a job. I have a job because I cannot afford to not have a job. If I choose to go to a concert, I obviously could afford the ticket. This means I likely could afford a hotel room too if I decided to brave the drive. Your example isn't lateral at all.

2. I'd likely say, "let's make plans to meet on a different day. The holiday will be the holiday, but this year, we can make a new tradition. No one's safety is worth traveling in the snow simply for this day!" Again, your example is invalid.

3. Now *this* is an example that has some validity, and so I'll address it as such. If my father had a heart attack and wasn't expected to live, this is an extenuating circumstance. Yes, of course I'd travel, but likely not alone. I'd ask someone to either a) transport me or b) travel with me. Would I be glad the nurses made an effort to get in? Sure, except … let's consider that. If 1-2 nurses living over an hour away call out, am I to understand that you think those positions wouldn't be filled and the NM would allow the floor to go dangerously understaffed? That doesn't happen. There's a float pool, per diem, and call system in place for a reason. No NM in her right mind is going to allow a patient ratio of 1:8. No house supervisor would allow it. The hospital would NOT STOP just because a nurse, living > 90 minutes away, called out because of weather. There are precautions in place (in most acute care hospitals) for a reason.

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Specializes in LTC,Hospice/palliative care,acute care.
What do you people do with your kids and pets?

I LITERALLY do not have a single friend or family member within 1,000 miles of where I live right now.

If you have no support you need to find a job in a setting where you won't have to work weekends,holidays and through bad weather or you have to find yourself support. You did make the choice to go into healthcare (vs teaching) and the rest of us don't feel sorry for you because we have ALL had challenges, too. You find a kennel for the pets (ask your vet) You make friends and share childcare. Start that at work-I know many single mothers who have made arrangements with single mothers on opposite shifts-it can be done. Church is another good way to build relationships in your community,go to the local schools,college,etc.I have found tutors and babysitters that way. I had a neighbor who was a radiology tech,she worked evenings and I worked days.She put the kids on the bus in the morning and I was there to pick them up after sholl and kept them until her husband came home.It worked out well.

The month I found out I was pregnant with my son I interviewed caregivers and put him on the waiting list for daycare. As someone else said this is critical thinking. My mother and in laws were older and we just took for granted that WE would be responsible for raising our child and that included finding appropriate care when needed. Even though we lived near them all I never assumed they were at our beck and call. There were times they felt a thousand miles away to be truthful but we managed.

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Specializes in Oncology; medical specialty website.
No, I don't expect it. At all. Hence my statement.

But, if I examine this from a "what would I do?" perspective, I disagree. If I were the nurse residing 20-30 minutes away, working a 0700-1930 shift with the brunt of the snowstorm hitting during the PM commute, and I anticipated call-outs, I would really take the nurses' individual situation into consideration. I believe things operate on a case-by-case basis. We had a nurse call out last night because, in her area, the storm had rendered her sans power and the roads unplowed. Her commute was over an hour away, just like mine. I felt for her. And so did some of the other nurses and so because of that plus their short commute time, they offered to stay on call until we could reassess the float pool/staffing needs. *That* is the sense of empathy and compassion I'm looking for. Nurses can have empathy and compassion for their patients ALL they want, but they also need to have empathy and compassion for their fellow nurses.

​And that particular circumstance is far, far different from not driving to work because there is snow/inclement weather.

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Specializes in Med/Surg/ICU/Stepdown.
​And that particular circumstance is far, far different from not driving to work because there is snow/inclement weather.

Except it isn't, because the snow/inclement weather caused the power to go out, and the roads to be unsafe. I'll say it before and I'll say it again--not every single county plows accordingly. Not everyone's route to work is direct or safe. I understand getting there, driving slow, taking your time, snow tires, safe car .. blah, blah, blah. But, again, if there is that one individual who DOES live that far from the hospital and the commute is going to be far too treacherous, then there shouldn't be the browbeating and the guilting/consequences that come along with a nurse throwing up her hands and saying, "You know what? I'm sorry. I'm going to have to take a personal day/come in late/find coverage because this is going to be too dangerous a trip given the snow circumstance." I'm not sure when it became customary to question everyone's intentions, but it's almost as if NM's don't trust the nurses to know their commute enough to know when it's going to be impassable. And that's really sad.

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Specializes in LTC,Hospice/palliative care,acute care.
We had a nurse call out last night because, in her area, the storm had rendered her sans power and the roads unplowed. Her commute was over an hour away, just like mine. I felt for her. And so did some of the other nurses and so because of that plus their short commute time, they offered to stay on call until we could reassess the float pool/staffing needs. *That* is the sense of empathy and compassion I'm looking for. Nurses can have empathy and compassion for their patients ALL they want, but they also need to have empathy and compassion for their fellow nurses.
Sorry-I just don't feel compassion or empathy for that same nurse who calls out each and every storm event while most of the rest of us make the effort to meet our obligations and end up working back to back doubles because of her and coworkers like her.I have NO compassion for those who just don't care. Our admin is rewarding the staff who made the effort,spent the night and worked OT by giving them an extra day off (a long weekend or a few days next week if they wish) A co-worker called out last week because she had no power. Really? I had everything ready,lanterns and flashlights,,uniform laid out, bag packed so I could take a hot shower at work.Buck up,buttercup.
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