Med-Surg Interview

allnurses Guide · Aug 16, 2007

:icon_hug: ohmygosh, girl! I really can't give you any advice at the moment.. will try again later when I'm not holding my own squirmy little baby. =)

Okay, I've put him down for the moment. =) Okay, first of all if you can get a decent amount of work, you might be able to clear quite a nice amount working agency, but remember that it's hard to get good benefits when doing full time agency work. Actually, it really depends on the agency though, so do some shopping around for an agency that offers good benefits to their employees who work a certain amount of hours per month. Sometimes though, it's hard to get enough hours unless you sign a contract.

Most agencies want about a year of experience in whatever area you want to work in.

What I might recommend to you, is to try to do your full time job with benefits working 12 hour shifts at a hospital, and then maybe do one 8 to 12 hour shift a week for an agency, at another hospital or nursing home. That's hard work though, but maybe you won't have to do it for long before you have enough money for your down payment on the farm.

And I know how you feel, regarding the husband. My husband does work, but not a whole lot, and I've actually tried talking him into just quitting his job before and being a stay-at-home dad, that way I can change my tax status and have less money taken out of my checks, and also maybe have a little time to work a little more for a little bit more money. He refuses to do that though; he still wants to work at least a little bit.

:icon_hug: again. =)

Sorry this concern seems so self-centered but I need a place to let this out....
Late last night I emailed my resume to one of the local hospitals and this morning I got a call from the HR department wanting me to come down today
for an interview.
At first, they wanted to know if I could come right now...are they desperate?
This woman's tone was more like when can you start? than we'll see if you're suitable for this job.
I'm supposed to come down this afternoon but now I'm wondering what I've gotten myself into, especially since I am making as much money (I'm sure) sitting on my butt doing private duty as I would working 10x harder at this hospital.
I wonder if I should cancel the interview, would that spoil my chances of ever getting a job there in the future? My husband doubts I should take the job but he says I still need to go to the interview to see what it's about. I don't want to waste anyone's time, though.
Originally, the idea was to get some experience in med surg then go working agency so I could basically work whenever without being saddled with a schedule and the drudgery of one place (and from what I understand making decent money). I eventually need to start clearing about $1500 a week so I can save up for a down payment on a farm in Arkansas so I can live closer to my family---can you clear $1500 weekly doing agency?Anyway, I'm grieving over this whole deal, it sucks when you have a newborn baby and you're pregnant again yet you can't plan on staying home to take care of them (translation: you don't have a husband who WORKS.)
On top of that I am supposed to start a BSN program really soon (I was going throuh Excelsior but I couldn't devote the time and mindpower to set up my own lessons--yes, distance learning really IS harder. I've been in the classroom and I've gone through distance learning and it is much harder) so I'm set to start at the university over here, most of that is done online so the travel to class will not be a problem...but I'm supposed to start doing that IF the pell grant I've applied for takes.
Anyway, I've come to a Y in the road and I don't know which road to take.
Can someone shed some light? Am I better off at this leisurely sitting job even though I'm a private contractor with no benefits of any kind and even if I work OT it's straight pay...or should I go for this med surg job where they take out taxes (and where I guess you get some form of benefits)? Is 6 months in med surg considered valuable if you want to go to agency, or do they only want people with YEARS of experience? Thing is, I'm a very hard worker but I burn out quick (especially under pressure) and I don't know if I can stand it for a year or more.
I'm so sick of this wishy washiness but I can't make up my mind.
What if I go to that interview and be brutally honest rather than try to sugar coat anything. For example, rather than say, I resigned from my home health job because it just wasn't a good fit for me at the time what if I said, I left the home health job because I hated running the roads seven days a week and destroying my car and anyway, I sucked at it, too because I didn't have the skills I needed to be efficient. Do you think they would value that honesty or is it more likely to turn them off?

RNperdiem, RN · Aug 16, 2007

Have you seen the floor they are interviewing you for? Don't turn down a well paying job sight unseen unless you know what is is all about. Introduce yourself to the nurses working there and ask them about the work they do.

Most agencies want at least a year's experience. A year shows you can stick it out, that even though the work is hard and stressful you did not give up. Experience matters. There is no easy way out.

It does sound that you have a tremendous amount of home and family responsibility that would require enough energy left over after work to manage. Your previous job sounded ideal.

Jo Dirt · Aug 16, 2007

My job now is ideal but is it really taking me anywhere and preparing me to work somewhere I can make real money.

I guess I'll just go there and see what happens, I feel pretty ambivalent right now. I'm going to the interview in my scrub top and denim skirt and crocs and my missing front tooth and I'm going to tell them dirty truth about why I left home health(I'll be Frank and Earnest both--ha,ha, get it?) and if that turns them off so be it. That's the real me, better they find out now than later.

RNDreamer · Aug 16, 2007

Go to the interview, get a feel for the place and see what they have to offer you. (You never know, it may end up being a position that you can't pass up!) From there, you can make a decision on what you want to do. Keep us posted.

Jo Dirt · Aug 17, 2007

I don't think they were too interested. The interview only lasted a few minutes. The lady was really nice and everything, but when she asked me if I had ever put an IV in and I said no she looked a little surprised and asked, "never?" Then, she told me she had gotten some pretty good respnses from the ad (I could read between the lines on that statement) and she would do a criminal background check which would take about 10 days and would be getting back to me.

I'm fairly sure that was the end of that.

Back to square one...I'm still holding out for those work from home jobs I keep hearing about but never find...

RNDreamer · Aug 17, 2007

are you referring to telephone triage home based jobs? I've read of "Intellicare" being mentioned in the Telephobe Triage forum

I don't think they were too interested. The interview only lasted a few minutes. The lady was really nice and everything, but when she asked me if I had ever put an IV in and I said no she looked a little surprised and asked, "never?" Then, she told me she had gotten some pretty good respnses from the ad (I could read between the lines on that statement) and she would do a criminal background check which would take about 10 days and would be getting back to me.
I'm fairly sure that was the end of that.
Back to square one...I'm still holding out for those work from home jobs I keep hearing about but never find...

Jo Dirt · Aug 17, 2007

are you referring to telephone triage home based jobs? I've read of "Intellicare" being mentioned in the Telephobe Triage forum

I went to their website. Absolutely nothing in the way of triage jobs.

I've looked on search engines and can't find anything, either.