[Adams_Mommy_07]

I was wondering if anyone here is at Craven Regional? Do you know if there are Advanced Practice Nurses needed, at all? Or if living in the New Bern area would I be able to find employment at the hospital as a CNS? I figured advanced practice nurses would be considered profitable but I see no vacancies for APNs anywhere on the website!!!

[Sandwitch883]

I've posted asking about Craven regional several times and gotten no reply from anyone. Some of the past threads about Craven have had a few replies and they werent very positive. I've applied there but havent interviewed. It's about 45 min. from where I live. I'm still considering interviewing though. The one concern I had about Craven is that they always have a large number of vacancies. As large as New Hanover is they rarely have more than 30-40 positions listed at any time. I do know that on the website for Onslow Memorial they have jobs posted for Nurse practioners for the minor emergency care. You didnt say what your area of specailty is.

[Adams_Mommy_07]

Well I am applying to a direct entry MSN program and since I want to stay in my area (Craven is about thirty minutes from me) while PCMH is over an hour, Onslow is probably close to an hour... so I want to choose an APN concentration that will allow me to stay in my area or at least not have to travel an hour and fifteen minutes one way to PCMH.

I've lived in this area since I was six and have never heard anything bad about Craven. With that said, that is in comparison to Carteret usually so...

[StephaleighRN]

Hi guys I'm new to the forum but just saw this thread and hope I can help with your questions.

I currently work at Craven and the information avaliable about APN positions is a bit shoddy without digging a little. There are currently no CNS positions mainly because no one has presented a real need for them yet. From those I've spoken with, especially around the more rural parts of Eastern NC, it really takes convincing (with hard evidence of course) that your CNS specialty would benefit the hospital more than the person they have in place who currently oversees the specialty. Rarely are they out there actively searching for a CNS since they can usually employ an existing RN in that postition and not pay them quite as much as they would an APN. For instance, I know PCMH has a wound care/ostomy CNS but Craven relies on two RNs to perform the role.

As far as other APN roles such as NP there are quite a few employed by both the hospital and private physicians. The main groups here are ECIM and CCHC, both have multiple NPs that round in the hospital.

Hope this helps a little and if you have any other questions, please feel free to ask. If I don't know the answer I can usually find out somehow.

[nuberianne_RN]

StephaleighRN,

What is the overall work environment like at Craven? I have not heard positive things about the hospital. To be fair, most of the negative comments were about the ER. I'm interested in working in the ICU or CCU. Do you know how the conditions are in those units?

[StephaleighRN]

I have very little to complain about, sure there are things that get irritating, but they're really just the same things you'd find anywhere. There are some managers who are better than others and there are some hoops to jump through that are sometimes daunting, but again I think you find this anywhere.

Right now we're going through a pretty major growth spurt considering the size of the hospital and community. Some units are "phasing out" travelers (aside from those that have longer contracts) and are making stirdes to hire full time employees mainly by offering a pretty substantial sign on bonus to new grads and critical care nurses. The administration seems to be taking more of a nurse friendly stance in general. I've not spent much time in the ED so I can't speak to the atmosphere there.

I work on a tele/intermediate unit and just in the limited interactions I've had with nurses from the ICU and CCU, the staff seem happy. Granted, I've never worked on either, but the impression I get is one of satisfaction.

Sorry I can't give you more specific information about those units but again, I honestly can't complain and am certain there's no other hospital in Eastern NC that I'd rather work. (I sound like a recruiter, but I swear I'm just a satisfied employee)

[Sandwitch883]

Thanks so much for the information. It's really nice to hear positive things from people that work in a facility. I am going to interview for SNP for L&D, PP and nursery. It's a tough decision to start over in a new place. You always wonder if you're jumping from the frying pan into the fire. Nice to hear that you like where you work! Again thanks for taking time to respond. Take care