Here's how stupid the nursing situation is getting here in TX...

[Hellllllo Nurse]

Anyone who has read my recent posts knows that I am very frustrated with the lack of jobs, due to the SURPLUS of nurses in the panhandle.

Well get this... I got a card in the mail from a local university informing me that the school just received a 2 million dollar grant from The Dept of Labor as part of Bush's Nurse Reinvestment Act.

I attended the college's informational seminar about the grant program

The grant will pay all tuition, books, fees, and childcare for 20 diploma or ADN RNs to get a Masters in Nursing Education.

Each of the 20 students also gets a free laptop computer AND a $60,000. stipend to be dispersed over the course of the 3 yr program.

Each student must sign an agreement stating they will pursue employment as a nursing educator in the State of Texas for 3 years after graduating.

The college plans to expand their nursing program to accept more students and kick out more new grads. The college expects to hire 4 or 5 of the grads to be instructors in their expanded program. The Nursing program director said that nurses who graduate from the program may be required to leave the area to become nurse educators in other parts of Texas, as they do not anticipate that there will be enough educator jobs for all the grads.

Several hundred nurses attended the seminar. The talk among the nurses was about how there are already no jobs in the area, due to too many nurses, now the college is going to expand so there will be even more nurses here, when there are already too many.

Several nurses were saying how they had been trying to get in to the local hospitals, but could not get hired. One said to me "Since I can't get a job here, I've become a traveler. Have you ever considered traveling?"

I had to laugh when I told her that I also became a traveler, because I couldn't get a job here.

Other nurses spoke about how they had to commute 100 or more miles to other towns to work, since there are no jobs here.

Part of the application requirements for the grants require that applicants submit 2 letters from supervisors. Several nurses spoke up saying "I'm not employed; I can't find a job. Can I submit a letter from a former supervisor?"

Others who did have jobs were talking about how they were only getting 20-30 hrs of work a week, as all the local hospitals and nursing homes have too many nurses on staff.

So, this is how our government is is using our tax dollars to address the nursing "shortage."

Only 16 colleges/universities in the nation will get grants in this program. And they picked the nurse-overloaded panhandle as one of the 16 locations?

2 million of our tax dollars are going to be used to expand nursing programs and create more nursing instructors and new grads in an area that is saturated with nurses.

Good goin' Bush!

[Hellllllo Nurse, BSN, RN]

Yea no LIE. I would take FULL advantage, if I lived there.

And then I would RELOCATE to a place where that MASTERS could be put to good use! I agree w/the "glass half empty/full" post....how you see it really affects what you do next. I would leave the TX panhandle in a heartbeat to find better opportunities, if need be. Been there------living in OK I have a pretty good familiarity w/the Tex Panhandle and how it is-----you are right. The area is depressed in a lot of ways.

But you know, Sometimes, we have to make our own opportunities. I would get that education, opening up some more doors for myself....and then MOVE ON to where it worked best for me.

Hell, I wish I could see a program like that come HERE. I would love to get my MSN and have someone else foot that bill!

I would love to leave Texas. Dh's job is here and he has been looking elsewhere for a couple of years. We both want to leave. The program requires that graduates work in TX for 3 years.

The program is a good idea, just that the location for it is a poor choice.

One poster said they'd better screen the applicants carefully, or risk wasting tax-payer monies due to failure rates. They really don't have time for careful screening. they just found out they got the grant on Oct 16, just announced it to the public on Nov 15, and must have all applicants chosen by Nov 29.

I was interested, but each semester requires students to take 18 credit hours during regular semesters and 9 during the summer semesters.

My math skills are very poor, and I personally do not feel I would be successful taking college algebra and statistics within a 17 credit hour load.

As I said, the program is a good idea- the location is bad.

It will only exacerbate the nursing surplus and lack of jobs in this area.

[gauge14iv, MSN, APRN, NP]

I doubt Bush actually chose the schools, or designed the program but you can blame him if it makes you feel better

:chuckle

[gutym]

Why don't you think our congress had more to do with it than Bush? Everyone finds it so easy to blame one person, but maybe your blaming the wrong person. These bills are out of congress and called PORK, and the congressmen bring them home for their states, call them and complain first....if we do not address who really is at fault then it will never get fixed.

[RN34TX]

For those of you wanting to pursue higher degrees and having someone else flip the bill or at least help out, there are hospitals that will do this.

You just have to look for them.

I work for less than what hospitals in Houston would pay but I have my eyes on a bigger prize. It's a trade off.

My hospital (big university teaching hospital) pays up front (I'm not talking about that stupid tuition reimbursement crap) books, tuition, fees, and even gives time off with pay for everyone from CNA wanting to become an LVN to the masters nurse wanting a PhD (yes they offer it here.)

The CNA's and LVN's going through clinical rotations to be RN's only have to work weekends and still get a 40 hour paycheck while in school.

ADN RN's getting their BSN's, masters, etc. get 24 hours of paid time off per class per semester until they graduate.

The price?

18 months of work upon graduation, that's it.

Degrees can be financed and goals can be met, you just need to look beyond your home town hospitals and make it happen.

[Hellllllo Nurse, BSN, RN]

I hold Bush partially responsible because the Nurse Reinvestment act is his baby.

As I keep saying, this scholarship program is a good idea, but the location they chose is totally stupid.

The program is a federal program through The Dept of Labor.

My dh has worked for the State of TX and and now for the feds in TX. The congress and Bush just keep throwing money at TX.

The budget my dh has to work with keeps getting bigger and bigger.