Self Scheduling
PDSA
Self-scheduling with hospital nurses:
A literature review and proposal for change
Recently, there has been a great deal of frustration amongst both nurses and patients about the strict, inflexible, and counterproductive schedules nurses are forced to adhere to regarding the planning of their shifts. As a counterweight to this trend, there has been a movement which advocates the practice of nurses self-scheduling their hours, versus adhering to a predetermined, set formula. Frustration with scheduling, including back-to-back shifts and frequent night shifts has been linked to nursing burnout and a higher risk of medical errors. That is why determining solutions to the problem is such a critical component of alleviating the nursing shortage and creating a wholesome and more sustainable environment for nurses on the front lines of care.
One institution which has had notable success with self-scheduling is St. Francis Hospital in Columbus, Georgia. "St. Francis was having staffing problems that forced their own nurses to float between units when they didn't want to. The hospital also had to pay a lot in incentive payments to cover extra shifts and rely on expensive agency nurses to fill in the gaps" (Pecci 2012:1). Self-scheduling has reduced the need for 'floating' nurses and reduced costs as there is no need to support the wages of expensive temporary workers. The system used by St. Francis is not unique, and it could be adopted by a wide variety of institutions. Software is used to give nurses greater autonomy and agency over their actions yet still coordinate their shifts with the needs of patients in an efficient manner. "There are several different self-scheduling software options for hospitals to choose from -- St. Francis uses one that not only allows for...
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