When a nurse is asked to function outside of the terms of their contract, it must be addressed. It’s challenging for a traveler to orient to one facility. Orienting to three would be especially stressful. Extra driving would add extra stress for this traveler. First, it’s important to assess the traveler’s situation. Specifically, how is the additional distance when floating effecting them?
I would find out how often the situation is occurring, whether the nurse is being required to change shifts, and whether there is a negative impact on the traveler’s finances due to the extra mileage. After I have obtained that information, our company would then work with the facility to assure the terms of the contract are met, or if necessary, provide additional resources and support as necessary to accommodate our traveler.
Every traveler’s contract at The Right Solutions states, “The healthcare professional agrees to float only to units where they are experienced and proficient.”
The Right Solutions has a manager on-call during after hours, so there is someone available 24/7 for our travelers. Nurses are instructed to call TRS immediately if they are floated to a unit that is out of their scope of practice. Our company would immediately address the issue with the facility’s acting supervisor at the time to address the situation.
It is important that a traveler feels their housing is safe, clean, and comfortable. In the rare case that a traveler arrives at their assignment location and finds housing conditions unacceptable, the issue is addressed immediately. Our housing department works together with the landlord to correct any issues such as insects or uncleanliness. If the housing conditions are still unacceptable to the traveler, or if the negative conditions can not be fixed, we offer to find alternative housing for our traveler. Fortunately, this a rare occurrence at The Right Solutions. We encourage our travelers, if at all possible, to arrive on assignment a day early so that they can inspect each housing option that has been given to them. Housing preferences are different with each individual, and this process allows the nurse to choose the housing option that best meets their needs.
TRS is RN owned and operated, so it’s only natural that the health of our travelers is a company priority.
Most often, if a nurse has an accident or is ill, the facility is willing to work with the nurse as long as they can return to work in a reasonable amount of time. This particular situation is unique, because the illness was caused by an environmental factor that most likely will not change.
A physician would be needed to determine the likelihood of the asthma reoccurring once the nurse is released to work.
Due to the severity of the traveler’s reaction to the wheat, it is possible the nurse would need to be put on a different assignment unless medications could be taken to keep the asthma under control.
This nurse becomes a top priority, for myself as well as the rest of the TRS team. My first action is always to check to see if other assignments are available in the same approximate location. If not, we would evaluate what support and resources this traveler needs until their next assignment is found. This traveler is part of the TRS family, and will have our support.