Highway Hypodermics

Heather Myers

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:

My first suggestion will always be for the traveler to speak directly with their manager, in order to come to a solution more expediently. If this option fails or the traveler isn't comfortable doing so, one of our client managers would reach out to the facility. Flo's contract is very clear that her float assignments must be within 10 miles of her housing, so we would make sure that this stipulation is honored by the facility. I would work closely with my traveler and the client manager to come up with a solution that everyone is happy with.

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:

Betty should not operate outside of her scope. I would advise her to decline the float and have the client manager reach out to the facility. I do not want any of my travelers taking on an assignment that they feel is outside of their scope or which could endanger their licensure. I encourage my travelers to always reach out to me immediately any time they have urgent concerns like this. My phone is on 24/7!

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:

I would find her alternative temporary housing immediately. I can look for a hotel or Airbnb while the nurse phones the property manager of her housing. If the manager is not helpful, I will offer to speak with them directly, while also keeping my team leads and client manager apprised of the 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:

There's nothing to work out. We cannot (and would not) ask this nurse to continue her assignment at risk to her own health. When she has recovered and is ready for a new assignment, I will be happy to find her one in a different location. (And I will ask lots of questions about what her asthma triggers are!)

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:

I will reach out to the nurse to clarify and apologize that she is stuck in this situation. I would ask her to hang tight while we try to fix the situation. I would partner with my client manager to see if we can work something out with the hospital. I feel that there is a good chance that we can work something out with this facility - after all, her compliance is already finished and she is ready to go!

Question 6:

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

Answer 6:

My only request is just to please be very clear with me about all of your expectations and hopes for your assignment! I want to make sure that you have a wonderful experience while you are on assignment with me, and while I will ask you a great deal of questions while we're getting to know each other, please don't hesitate to add anything that you might have forgotten to tell me or which I maybe forgot to ask! Even a quick text or email is fine. I am a great problem-solver and love a good puzzle, so no request is too niche for me!

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