WSNA continues to hear from nurses who are having annual leave requests denied due to staffing concerns. While we understand that safe staffing must be maintained, ongoing denials may indicate broader staffing issues that deserve attention.

When annual leave is denied because there is insufficient staff to cover the schedule, we encourage nurses to document the impact by completing an Assignment Despite Objection (ADO) form. This is the tool for us to be able to track and trend the data of leave coverage. 

ADOs are not just for concerns that occur during a shift. They can also help demonstrate when staffing levels are inadequate to support nurses' contractual rights, including the ability to utilize earned paid time off.

Why complete an ADO for a denied annual leave request?

The goal is not to challenge every individual annual leave denial. Instead, WSNA is trying to identify broader trends and determine whether annual leave is being awarded fairly, consistently, and in accordance with our contract.

When nurses complete ADOs for denied leave requests, we can begin tracking data across departments and dates. This helps identify staffing hot spots, recurring coverage challenges, and periods when nurses may be experiencing unusual difficulty using their earned leave.

One denied request may appear to be an isolated incident. However, when multiple nurses document similar concerns, the data can reveal larger staffing or scheduling issues that need to be addressed. Information from ADOs helps WSNA advocate for solutions, improve staffing practices, and ensure nurses have meaningful access to the leave benefits they have earned.

Break Buddies and Safe Staffing

At our recent drop in meeting, WSNA received multiple concerns regarding the use of "break buddies" in situations where nurses are expected to assume responsibility for additional patients while already carrying a full assignment.

While nurses routinely help one another throughout a shift, assigning nurses as break buddies can create safety concerns when they are expected to effectively manage two assignments at the same time. Covering another nurse's patients while maintaining responsibility for your own can increase workload, contribute to interruptions, and delay recognition of changes in patient condition.

Your unit staffing plan exists for a reason. Staffing plans are developed to promote safe patient care, support meal and rest breaks, and provide appropriate relief coverage. When break buddies are used in place of staffing resources identified in the staffing plan, nurses should consider whether the practice is creating patient safety concerns or impairing their ability to provide safe and timely care.

If you experience concerns related to break buddy assignments, please consider completing an ADO.

Suggested ADO Language

Concern:

Assigned as a break buddy while maintaining responsibility for my own patient assignment. Per the staffing plan we should have had ___ nurses but during the break coverage there were only ____ nurses on the floor. Covering additional patients with fewer nurses results in increased workload and reduced the ability to safely monitor all assigned patients, respond to changes in patient condition, and provide timely care. Additionally, this could be a violation of the staffing plan. 

📋 Contract Fact

Did You Know?

Article 7.14 of the SRH-WSNA contract recognizes that scheduling should involve reasonable efforts to accommodate nurses' scheduling requests and preferences while balancing operational needs. Schedules are intended to support both quality patient care and nurses' ability to utilize the benefits they have earned. This concept is reflected within the current contract.

Paid time off is more than just hours in a leave bank. Time away from work allows nurses to rest, spend time with family, attend important events, and return refreshed. Effective scheduling practices help ensure that earned leave remains a meaningful benefit rather than simply an accrued balance.

When nurses encounter recurring difficulties using accrued leave, documenting those experiences helps identify trends and opportunities for improvement.

🎉 Save the Date: WSNA Social Gathering

Mark your calendar for the evening of October 26 and join your fellow SRH nurses for a fun, informal gathering.

This will be an opportunity to step away from work, connect with colleagues from across SRH, share stories, laugh, enjoy some food, and strengthen our nursing community. Whether you're a long-time member, a new nurse, or simply looking to meet coworkers from other units, we'd love to see you there.

More details, including time and location, will be coming soon.

Save the evening of October 26 and plan to join us!

In Solidarity,

Liz Rainaud, Co-Chair
Kyla Malean, Co-Chair
Kim McCann, Secretary
Rachel Yates, Treasurer
Mackenzie Anderson, Grievance Officer
Crissi Franulovich, Grievance Officer

Robin Cully, WSNA Nurse Representative