State nurses working too much overtime, auditors warn
LANSING - Nurses at at least one of Michigan's state-run psychiatric hospitals are working too much overtime, auditors warned in a report Tuesday.
Dozens of nurses at the Walter P. Reuther Psychiatric Hospital worked more than 1,000 hours of overtime between October 2014 and September 2016, auditors said, including one employee who worked an average of more than 45 hours of overtime per week. Auditors found 164 nurses who worked a total of 1,709 double shifts between Sept. 25, 2016 and Dec. 3, 2016.
The problem is not limited to the Walter P. Reuther hospital. Nurses across Michigan's five state-run hospitals say they work too much overtime, risking fatigue that can put patients or themselves at risk, according to a 2015 State Journal investigation. The same is true in many private hospitals and lawmakers have repeatedly introduced legislation to regulate overtime, but the bills have repeatedly stalled.
Michigan Department of Health & Human Services officials told the State Journal in 2015 and told auditors for their Tuesday report that shifts are mandated only when necessary. They said they struggle to recruit and retain nurses, which can lead to staff shortages that make overtime necessary.
Read more: http://www.lansingstatejournal.com/story/news/local/watchdog/2017/11/14/state-nurses-working-too-much-overtime-auditors-warn/861505001/