THE POSTSCRIPT
Introducing a new system for collecting shift preferences will save time and money, and will reduce the chance of errors. Increased access - being available from home or work and being available to multiple staff at the same time - will be an advantage to the staff. Despite these advantages staff are likely to be resistant to change. Unfreezing staff by using good communication tactics - sharing information, disconfirming currently held beliefs, & providing psychological safety - will help overcome this resistance.
Google sheets meets the needs of the scheduling team, addresses the concerns of the staff, and has the tools needed to manage the data. Additionally, new functions can be included in the spreadsheet to aid the scheduling process, ensuring equity in assigning shifts and further reducing the time needed to create the schedule. Implementing the use of technology in this way allows technology to work for us - for the staff and for the unit - while still allowing for the all important human element that technology can never replace.
A FINISHED SCHEDULE!
THE PARTICULARS
I commented on the blog posts of Peter Vath (Dec 3, 9:30pm) and Alisa Asif (Dec 3, 10:33pm).
Anne,
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading your blog! Music to my ears! I am the RN scheduler on my unit as well, and I completely understand the struggles. After doing it for almost 5 years, I have learned along the way, the importance of having an organized system, and that not only is scheduling vital for the safety of the floor, but also for the job satisfaction of our nurses. But I am completely amazed that your unit still does it on the paper! When I started working on my unit, close to 10 years ago, I remember that we did it by paper in my first few months, it looked so confusing to me! I know that I was new, and probably many procedures were confusing to me, but this one definitely have it. It just seemed like a huge headache for the scheduler at the time. Shortly after, we transitioned to a computerized system (Workforce), and I could not imagine it any other way. It is definitely a lot of work, does not compare to "paper and pencil". As great as it is, it still not perfect. I wish it did tell me the nurses who do not meet the requirements, such as 2 Monday's and 2 Fridays and 2 "off-shift (evening/night) Fridays. This would be so helpful. Staring at those cell blocks for hours is exhausting, and requires breaks. I even believe that my eyes are affected from it. In order to do it and not get a headache, I have started to use blue-light eyeglasses, and that has seemed to help. But even with all of this, I prefer computer, a million times. I am sure your crew could also grow to love it, with more education, and experience. It's 2020, they can do it :)