[annab]

I work and live in SW Florida, where we, like much of the country, are being hit hard by the economic downturn. The Hospital I work for recently became the monopoly employer in our county and there are not many other options for acute care employment.
The problem, my employer is experiencing tremendous loses due to the economic troubles of the time. They are attempting to cut costs wherever possible in order to save the system. Nurses hours are being cut. Overtime is outlawed, travelers are gone. Many nurses are being e-conned and if they don't have pto to cover, then they just don't get paid. Administrators are encouraging nursing staff to take contracts for the summer and come back next year when , maybe, things are getting better. There is complete hiring freeze. Lay-offs cant be far away.
So much for the nursing shortage, huh? All the sudden nursing doesn't seem like a stable career choice at all.
Please, someone tell me that this is not the situation around the country. So, if lay-offs do happen I can move somewhere else to get a job (even though I wouldn't ever be able to sell my house here in the horrible market and would have to settle for foreclosure.)
Are people hiring where you are? Does nursing seem like a stable career choice in your neck of the woods?

[BearyPrivate]

I live in Mo, and the facility I work at is LTC. We are currently looking for LPN's, RN's, and CNA's d/t increase in admits. You are the first I have heard of that is having difficulties such as that. Sorry to hear about the possibility of lay off.

[barefootlady]

Another hospital is closing here, economy is bad. No surprise to me about these conditions. Friends have moved from Florida to S.C., Ohio, N.C., and Nevada for work. Nursing is biggest drain on facilities, so they cut when they can if economy is bad. What are your plans?

[ocankhe]

Don't equate one hospital systems economic woes with a disappearrance of the nursing shortage. The shortage is real and there will continue to be a shortage for years to come. Whenever there is a slow down in the economy,however, nursing shortages do decrease but they haven't yet disappearred.
Locally there can be a surplus for many reasons but there are plenty of unfilled positions out there.
Also it is not unheard of for employers to over play bad economic times and cut back even more then they need to in the name of more profits. (not saying this is the case with the OP). With the changes in CMS reinbursements and never pay looming, those institutions that severely cut back RN staffing are only going to get into worse financial shape in the long run. Of course some very highly placed managers don't care as long as they have a nice golden parachute.
Economies go bad but they do reound. Look back at what happened in the 1970 at Cape Canaveral area when NASA shut down the Apollo space program. People walked away from their house, let the banks take them. A number of years latter the area was booming again. So will SW Florida.

[locolorenzo22]

There will ALWAYS be nursing jobs....but you may have to go to where the jobs are. Certain markets will be boons for geriatric, trauma centers, etc. I live in the midwest...in a mid-size city. We have 2 hospitals...and both are hiring. However, the floor I will be working on is the only local neuro center....my hospital has the ONLY neurosurgeons in the area, and we get cases from all over the bottom half of IL.
Bottom line? You may have to find the jobs, or do one that you may not be happy with until things pick up again. It's a cycle and the economy can't stay down forever.

[TheCommuter]

Originally Posted by ocankhe

The shortage is real and there will continue to be a shortage for years to come.

Actually, there are nursing surpluses in certain regions. The shortage is not for real in every part of the country.

[Medic04]

Originally Posted by TheCommuter

Actually, there are nursing surpluses in certain regions. The shortage is not for real in every part of the country.

Where are the surpluses?

[pagandeva2000]

My hospital is attempting to reapply for Magnet Status (after a failure just a few months ago). There is a rumor in the mill that if we don't get it this time, there will be a 2% decrease in staff. This news has not been clarified, however, it does make me wonder if part of this will include the nursing department.

[Toquay]

The Lee County Florida hospital system will hurt itself in the long run. The rate of foreclosures with no work/employment is driving many people from the SWF area at this time. Eventually, they will burn through the the long term employees (already many have left already) and then chew up the new nurses. The newer younger nurses will move away or go back to school for different or higher degrees and Lee County Healthcare will suffer.

The system you speak of is very top heavy in management but smacking the hand that feeds them by cutting actual patient care laborers. Is funny how management forgets that without nurses, THEY HAVE NO BUSINESS. The CEO bonus of 78k on top of his 6 figure salary, a mere few months ago, was utterly ridiculous with the state of things. What can nurses in SWF expect? Well come season expect to work with short staff and more overtime (possibly mandatory). When one is a monolpoy and the only game in town its easy to have a "there's the door philosophy". Of course until the meltdown, management will be able to pay themselves even more huge bonuses until they burn up their nursing resources.

Toq

Will be interesting to watch, meanwhile keep those Press Gainy scores up!!

[caliotter3]

I was downsized about 15 years ago and didn't get another health care job for a couple of years and until I moved out of the area. And that health care job was CNA, not licensed nurse. My suggestion for anyone whose employer is on the downslide: get part time work elsewhere. Home health is a good option due to the scheduling flexibility. If you do get a pink slip, it is sometimes easier to pick up more hours at your part time job while you look for something new. Working at your part time job keeps some kind of income coming in and provides an avenue for networking that might not otherwise be available. Another thing to consider is upgrading your education level. This is particularly helpful to LPNs. Fewer RNs get canned in the overall picture and it is always easier to find work when you have an RN license.