- It has been tough to have all the lines covered week by week as we need to have our basic staff and can not have gaps in it.
But somehow we have solved it together, says Anna Nordin, acting unit manager at the emergency department.
The solution has been, among other things, that the staff has voluntarily gone in and worked extra shifts and that extra help has been taken from staffing nurses.
All managers have also worked clinically and not taken four consecutive weeks off.
Better working environment
The staff also testify to a tough situation, but at the same time believe that the work environment has improved since last spring.
- There are a lot of patients in the summer and I think it has been worn out for many, but we have stood up for each other and solved the situation, says Stefan Sandman, lead nurse at the emergency department and elected representative at the Healthcare Association.
One change that has been made is that the management has introduced a test period where staff who want to have been able to work 12-hour shifts in exchange for being able to be off for several days in a row.
- I see it as very positive.
Working 12 hours is strenuous, but you get more coherent free time and a better opportunity for recovery, says Sandman.
"Looks brighter now"
Even during the last holiday period, it is hoped that the situation will continue to be stable.
- The coming weeks look better than at the beginning of the summer, then we had a lot of training and now those who were trained can work on their own. So it looks brighter now but at the same time it must not happen too much because then we get a difficult situation again, says Anna Nordin.