O C T O B E R 2 0 1 8 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y. N E T • 1 7
T
ired of hearing
staff complain
about their
assignments the
minute you post the
monthly schedule?
Here's a simple solu-
tion: Put them in
charge of deciding
who works when. We
formed a 4-person
scheduling committee
whose job is to collect shift requests from their colleagues and draft
monthly OR assignments. We post their suggested schedule 2 weeks
before it goes live so staff have time to work with the committee to
suggest shift changes or work through concerns about their assign-
ments. How can staff complain about a schedule they helped create?
Or grumble that the favored nurses get preferential treatment while
certain others always seem to cover holidays? It also helps that lots of
nurses can serve on the scheduling committee, as staff serve on a
rotating basis. Perhaps the greatest benefit of all? You no longer have
to deal with the headache of making the monthly schedule — and
then listening to the complaints.
Patricia Vassell, DNP, RN, CNOR
Riddle Hospital
Media, Pa.
patvass62@gmail.com
MONTHLY ASSIGNMENTS
Put Staff in Charge of Their Own Schedule
• JUGGLING ACT Staff members take turns serving on the schedule-making committee at
Riddle Hospital in suburban Philadelphia.
Riddle
Hospital
