Highway Hypodermics

Becky Sullivan

Question 1:

In a large metropolitan area, Nurse Floating Flo contracts to float between three hospitals within a 10 mile radius of her housing. Starting in the 6th week, the company ask her to float to a hospital 15 miles away, the 7th week she goes to one on the other side of the city, that is 30 miles away, plus one that is 17 miles away. The nurse is willing to take the first few, but after the behavior continues, she has had enough and voices this to her recruiter.

Answer 1:

I would speak with the facility and her manager to discuss the change. I would ask why she is being asked to float further than what the contract has specified. I would inquire about extra compensation for Nurse Floating Flo, for the extra work she is doing outside of her agreed upon contract. If the facility can offer nothing extra, I would suggest to Flo that she return to her agreed upon 10 mile radius. At this point, if the facility continues to push her to float to hospitals outside the 10 mile radius, I would have a conversation with Flo about the two choices that are left, which are a) Agreeing to take on the extra work with no additional compensation to complete the assignment in good standing, b) to walk off the contract and no longer be eligible to work with Cariant Health Partners on future contracts. I would also explain to her that sometimes assignments can have changes to them. We do not want that to happen, but it can and does sometimes occur while out on an assignment. I would also express sincere appreciate for her diligence and thank her for doing a great job and being willing to help the facility up until now, if she chooses to walk.

Question 2:

Baby Nurse Betty is a skilled labor and delivery nurse, who also can float to post-pardum care after the delivery as well as the well-newborn nursery. At 7:30pm, the staffing company hotline gets a call stating that they want her to float to the NICU, which is beyond her competency level. What is your company’s response?

Answer 2:

That is beyond her competency level and it jeopardizes her license as an RN. I would then reach out to the Facility letting them know that this is over her Skill level and she does not feel comfortable in doing it and she will not be in to the do the position.

Question 3:

Nurse Roach is all excited about her first travel nursing assignment. She drives 750 miles to her new assignment housing. After getting the keys from management, she opens the door and three cockroaches scurry across the floor. After further investigation, she also finds a ring of mold in the shower. She can’t stand it and immediately texts you with pictures. How do you respond?

Answer 3:

Call your recruiter right away when something like this happens. From there I would immediately talk to the Cariant housing coordinator about the problems. If we are unable to reach the landlord, I would find Nurse Roach a hotel for the evening or until the situation is resolved with the landlord and an acceptable room is provided. We do not want you living in a terrible situation.

Question 4:

You have worked with Nurse Asthmatic for 3 years now and she has done a great job for you, when she takes an assignment in Southeast Colorado. She envisions magic mountains that reach to the sky, only to find that she has landed in wheat country. Not wanting to cause problems she continues to work and everything is fine, until harvest. She has an asthma attack, ends up in the hospital, and is told that she is going to miss at least 2 weeks of work related to asthma induced pneumonia. How do you work things out?

Answer 4:

I would speak with the facility about the fact that the asthma attack is affecting her ability to work until she is over the pneumonia. Ideally I would negotiate with the facility to continue the contract and extend it for two weeks to cover the missed weeks of work. My goal is to find a situation where both parties are satisfied. Illnesses come up during a contract, and it’s important that all parties work together on a resolution to any missed hours. And if the facility will not compromise and tries to break contract, Cariant will be there working to find a new contract ASAP so Nurse Asthmatic is set up with work after her recovery.

Question 5:

You have worked hard to find Nurse Roulette a job in Las Vegas. You send the nurse a contract that she readily accepts, signs, and sends back. The next morning the bags are packed and Nurse Roulette is on the way to the assignment of her dreams. At 0800 she is out the door and to the hospital. Checking in with HR, they inform her that there is no contract between the hospital and the company, related to the fact that it has not been approved by HR. About the same time, the recruiting manager comes to you and tells you not to send Nurse Roulette on the assignment. This shouldn’t have happened, but unfortunately it does happen. What do you do?

Answer 5:

First I would apologize to her about what has happened and go over options. Then I would call the facility and see if there is anything we can do to get Nurse Roulette on assignment there since she is at the hospital. Sometimes the facility will work with us to find out where things fell apart, and agree to bring on the nurse. Ideally we can get things worked out before Nurse Roulette walks off the facility. But I would never send a nurse to a facility without having an overall contract signed by all parties.

Question 6:

What would you like travel nurses to know about being a great traveling nurse and making your job easier?

Answer 6:

Be flexible with people and focus on helping the facility where you are contracted. Help them when it is slow. Find things to do and when it is busy put a smile on your face. Help out in any way that you can. Your patients need you. Stay out of the politics and do the job you are hired to do. Nurses who can do that make the best travelers. Remember, this is a time away from home, time for you to see some sites, make some memories, and friendships that will last a lifetime. Traveling can become your home away from home, so make the most of it once you are out there working. Take in the local culture and learn new things from the places you work. You can completely hone your skills as an RN by seeing how facilities in different parts of the country handle the same situations differently.

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