These are the steps you should follow to address staffing ratio violations in your unit:
1) Report the staffing ratio violation directly to your charge nurse/ANM and use the RN union contract (Article XXXII) on staffing ratios to support your position. If the assignment is not a violation, explain why it is an unsafe assignment in your professional opinion. If the charge nurse/ ANM doesn’t fix it, call your nurse manager who has a 24/7 responsibility for your unit. Ideally, you should be doing this at the beginning of your shift when the assignment is made.
2) If the violation wasn’t fixed after you contacted your charge nurse/ANM and nurse manager, call your union representative. They will work with nursing leadership to fix the violation.
3) Fill out the SEIU Local 1991 Patient Safety & Staffing Discrepancy Report. Hard copies are available from your steward and your representative.
4) Fill out an incident report if, in your professional opinion, the assignment is unsafe, and file it via Quantros. Record the report number on your SEIU staffing form.
STAFFING COMMITTE
If you want to join our Staffing Committee, please contact our office at 305-620-6555 or email us at union@seiu1991.org.