Optimal Home Care & Staffing, LLC
Office: 951-837-4703 ~ Fax: 951-837-4702

Policies for Independent Nurse Contractors and Employees

1. Phone lines are open from 6:30am to 12:00am (midnight), 365 days-a-year. Office hours are from 9:00am to 5:00pm, Monday through Friday. If you have any concerns or problems that might affect your work performance, notify Kelly Smith—Director of Nursing Services at 951-796-4207.

2. You must maintain a current Mantoux/X-Ray certification; otherwise you will not be able to work.

3. You must maintain a CPR license at all time. CPR classes are offered by the Red Cross.

4. Uniforms are required unless prior approval is given by the Director of Nurses. Cleaned, ironed, and properly fitted scrubs, along with tennis or nursing shoes, must be worn with the company name tag. A transfer belt is also required when working in a skilled or acute nursing environment.

5. Be on time! If you are late, call us. If you did not call, rescheduling privileges will not be applied. These privileges will also not be applied to contractors and employees who are continually late. No call and no show lead to an automatic termination.

6. Late Cancellation Guidelines: 8 hours notice must be given in order to cancel a shift. If you do not cancel with 8 hours notice or do not show up during your scheduled shift, 4 hours will be deducted from your paycheck.

7. Payroll: Time cards are due on Monday by 2:00pm. Please fill out a time sheet before presenting it to the client for approval. Falsification of hours is grounds for automatic termination. A delay in receipt of time cards leads to a delay in the receipt of your paycheck. Most companies have set invoice distribution, so don't hold your time cards more than a week; otherwise delayed payment from the facility will occur.

8. Holiday Rates: Holiday shifts are paid time-and-one-half the regular rates. Holidays begin the shift the night before (11:00am–7:00am) and end the day shift of the actual day (3:00pm–11:00pm), with the exception of Christmas and New Year's, which begin the day shift of the day before (3:00pm–11:00pm) instead of the night shift. Those two holidays still end at the day shift of the actual day. We recognize these holidays for holiday pay: New Year's Eve, Easter, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas.

9. You must update us if you change your contact information.

10. Insurance: We require professional liability insurance from all our employees' independent contractors. If you do not have professional liability insurance, we will purchase it for you, and the cost will be deducted from your first paycheck.

11. Please conduct yourself in a professional manner at all times. No use of slang, gossip, profanity, or slander is to be used or performed on company time.

12. Remember you are not only representing yourself; you are also representing Optimal Home Care & Staffing, LLC, and we pride ourselves on bring number 1 in quality care, commitment, and professionalism. If you look bad, we look bad.

13. Independent staffing arrangements are to be made with clients, family, or facility. All staffing arrangements must go through the office.

14. It is unprofessional to meet with the client and/or the family members outside of the work environment. Please respect professional boundaries.

15. It is unacceptable to bring your spouse or significant other, children, or pet to the client's home.

16. Sleeping on the job is never acceptable—even if the client tells you it is okay.

17. Accepting money or gifts is not ethical and should be graciously refused.

18. Not rendering care to a patient is unethical and not acceptable. Not taking vitals, not doing ROM, not repositioning a patient, not passing all of the patient's medication, and not performing all of the prescribed treatments are examples of common nursing violations and are not permitted by our agency. As a registered nurse, you may not have the same supervision as you would in a hospital, but you are still held to the same strict standards of following the physician's orders.

19. It is unethical to complain to the client, family members, or caregiver regarding the agency, office staff, or fellow nurses. If you have concerns, please discuss it with the Director of Nursing.

20. It is unethical to refer a client of Optimal Home Care & Staffing, LLC, to another agency, regardless of incentives offered to you by another agency. This can lead to immediate termination and may be pursued in a court of law.

21. It is strictly forbidden to provide client information, employee information, or management-designated confidential/proprietary information to anyone outside of Optimal Home Care Administration or the client's physician. Violations can lead to immediate termination and will be pursued in a court of law.

22. Universal precautions are to be followed at all times.

I, ______________________________________________, have reviewed and understand the policies, procedures, and ethical concerns discussed above. I acknowledge my duty in upholding the Code of Ethics of Optimal Home Care & Staffing, LLC. I also understand that any of my actions that may compromise the above stated ethics will lead to disciplinary actions and possible termination of employment.

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Nurse's Signature

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Date of Signature


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Director's Signature

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Date of Signature