Highway Hypodermics

Lindsay Graves

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 start by going back to what was discussed in the interview and what is in the contract. If the original expectation and agreement is being neglected, then we would address this with the hospital on behalf of my nurse. Many times I will ask my nurse to talk with her superiors about expectations and what's required because more can be accomplished directly than going through 5-6 different "middle men" to get an answer. If the hospital isn't willing to budge and there's something PPR can do help "ease" the pain, we could try to work in a little extra compensation for extra travel, and as a last resort consider giving a 2 week or 30 day notice (depending on the contract) and focus on finding another contract.

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:

We require some kind of orientation to the unit before that nurse is willing/able to float there - we would also ask that they not be responsible for patients outside of their scope. If they are asking for her to help out, and be an extra hand, that is usually doable, but I usually defer to what the nurse tells me she is comfortable with.

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:

It goes without saying that we take pride in the housing we provide for our nurses and we always prefer to use apartment complexes, realtors, landlords that are proven. It's important that our nurses are in safe, clean housing relatively close to the hospital. We would probably start by asking for pictures of the roaches so we could send this to the management company or leasing office. If the problem is something we can fix via fumigation or cleaning we would do that immediately and of course cover the cost. We would do everything possible to make things comfortable for the nurse to stay, and if that is not an option, we would more than likely find a way to break the lease and help the nurse move to a better 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:

Unfortunately things like this can happen all the time and PPR has always been incredibly supportive of their nurses. We always ask that communication happens between the nurse and their manager - this usually helps to keep them in the loop on what's happening and typically they are very sensitive to the situation. In most cases, they let the nurse take the time they need and will have them report back to work when they are cleared and able, and will often just add a few weeks to the end of the contract. If this is a situation where it won't get better and she needs to leave the contract, we would find a way to do so. If the nurse is keeping their recruiter & the manager in the loop, we always come up with a solution that works for all parties.

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:

This is a very tough situation and a hard question to answer... first off, it doesn't happen very often. I've been doing this for 13 years and can't think of any time that someone has showed up to the hospital and they have said "there is no contract, it wasn't approved" - It typically happens that we accept a contract, and we get things moving and within a few days of accepting (long before they have hit the road and walked into the hospital) that something has changed with census or approvals or whatever. That happens, but again, it's not common and typically in those situations it's early enough that we find another contract.

Question 6:

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

Answer 6:

I love nurses! I truly mean that. I've personally been admitted into the hospital twice and quickly realized that the MOST vital role in your hospital experience comes from your nurse. From OR to MS to L&D, they are responsible for so much of your care, and act as your advocate in many ways. And when the hospital treats their nurses well, and they aren't overloaded, what a wonderful experience that is for the patient. So knowing how much I love nurses, talking to them about their travel nursing dreams has made me love my job for the last 13 years. My favorite calls are from first time travelers who truly want to hit the road and see the country. They make my job a lot of fun because we can explore all kinds of cities and states and let fate determine where they will end up. So many of my nurses have started out this way, wanting to go and see and do and within their first year, they find the city they love, meet the love of their life, and settle down. This is incredible for me! I love knowing my nurses on a more personal level because I am not super "business-y" - I would rather talk about kids and dogs and adventures than the nitty gritty contract details. Obviously contracts and pay and details are important (I promise you, I know this!!), but having a knowledgeable recruiter that you like and trust is key in this business. It's definitely ok to work with multiple recruiters, but please don't work with 10! Pick your top 2-3 and communicate where you're being submitted, interviews & offers you're receiving and keep your recruiters in the loop. We all want your business but we know that you'll be looking again in 3 months! Looking forward to meeting you!

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