Alberta Nurses

petethecanuck · Nov 15, 2009

I'm in the program now, started in Sept and yes you heard right, it's not the greatest.

*disclaimer* I'm seriously reconsidering a career in nursing and may apply to SAIT for the Med Lab Tech program next Sept so my personal opinion may be a tad biased.

I'll give you the facts as I know them.

The program was designed and has the resources for 70-80 students. For some reason "they" accepted 160 students for Sept 2009 entry. The faculty frantically called all the students in Aug just to make sure we were for sure coming.

They had to completely rearrange our classrooms and lab sections due to the large enrollment number and it remains to be seen the impact these numbers will have on clinical.

The faculty sent our Spring/Summer schedule and we're dividing into 2 groups of 80. One group will do clinic in May, the second group in June, group 1 in July, group 2 in Aug.

It's a bit of a gong show and coupled with the hiring freeze currently implemented by AHS, you have many many unhappy and angry students.

We had a "town hall" meeting the other day (students and faculty talking about the program etc). I spoke with a girl who is graduating in April and she was almost in tears over her educational experience thus far and her future job prospects in Alberta.

Moral is very low at the U of C.

Hope this helps you.

Best of luck

Peter.

Beebop25 · Nov 15, 2009

Wow I am sorry to hear that. I heard from a friend who goes to U of C and a girl who is now a cop that did that program that it was not the greatest so i wanted to ask because i already have a degree and would like to not be in scool for another 4 years but wow. My husband lives in Calgary ill be moving there in the spring, are the job prospects not good for nurses in Alberta?

Well thanks for your response and I wish you the best of luck

Silverdragon102, BSN · Nov 15, 2009

Moved to the Canadian forum

there are a couple of threads discussing Alberta and job situation may be worth a read

Pediatric Critical Care Columnist · Nov 15, 2009

If you read all the posts in this thread you'll have a fairly good grasp of the situation in Alberta right now:

Alberta Health Services

back2bRN · Nov 16, 2009

As far as the job situation, yeah it pretty much is awful. The UofC accelerated degree program....seems to be lackluster at best. There is a low focus on clinical and while the students have life experience,there is a direct correlation between their lack of clinical experience and their performance. Just as a preceptor mind, and the students themselves are identifying this as a big lack. Low morale is common with the various nursing students at this university, both tracks.

Beebop25 · Nov 17, 2009

I do not understand how the job market for nurses can be poor in Alberta. I lived in Calgary this summer, and avoided going to the doctor because i knew it as a 12 hr wait everywhere you go. Only three hospitals for a huge city, i would imagine they are extremely understaffed. Not good!!!!!

RGN1 · Nov 18, 2009

Understaffed? In reality yes, however, the new & wonderful health superboard thinks not!!

They have an horrendous budget deficit that they managed to create from a service that was in the black before. Their Ozzie chief is in for a huge bonus (on top of his already huge salary) if he makes the necessary cuts. He thinks RNs are expendable to lower paid staff & he's on a mission to replace as many of them as he can get away with to meet his targets.

I read in the paper today that in Calgary region alone there are 550 vacancies that are not going to be replaced & that they are looking for a total of 1000. That includes all areas I have to add & not just nursing. They are hoping their early retirement package will tempt staff but Jan (or was it Fiona - sorry if I wrongly credited) has a nice detailed analysis of just what a whopping payout that would be on another thread (I think it's on the Alberta Health Services thread) it sure wouldn't tempt me!!!

However, I'm sure, as in other years, it will blow over eventually & they'll be clamouring for nurses again............until the next economic $@!* up!!

Fiona59 · Nov 18, 2009

Yup, Duckitt is reported to be cutting 1100 jobs in the near future. He claims "clinical services" won't be affected. Hm, don't fill food services or housekeeeping vacancies, that WILL affect patient care. We already don't have housekeepers (other than the bed team) after 1600. Guess who mops, cleans, and serves if required? Yup, nurses.

Pediatric Critical Care Columnist · Nov 18, 2009

RGN1, you're right, the overview of the oh-so-tempting voluntary exit plan is on the Alberta Health Services thread.

I wonder just how much of the deficit is money wasted on the whole We-Are-One AHS amalgamation. New letterhead, new stationery, new signage, new website, severance packages, travel for meetings, new video teleconferencing equipment, new advertising... it all adds up.

Dr Duckett talks about revenue-generation in his blog. First he deleted the generous 10% staff discount on the highly-overpriced cafeteria food (yummy... dried out chicken fingers - my favourite!). Then he announced that AHS would no longer subsidize staff Christmas parties (usually amounted to an urn of coffee, an insulated jug of hot water, a handful of teabags and a basin of "punch") or provide coffee for meetings. Now he's going to jack up our parking rates. The staff parkade at my hospital has spaces so narrow that you can park a compact car exactly in the centre but will still need to turn yourself into a pretzel to get out of the car! (Great for the back, that!) A friend who is in management has parking at the new Jubilee parkade but she can't park there after hours or on weekends. She was called in for an evening shift in one of the flu-filled ICUs and couldn't get into the staff parkade... her swipe card doesn't work there... so she was forced to park underground - and someone hit her car! There are no alternatives to parking on company property so they're going to screw us again. Our parking rates have already gone up substantially this year so STD is waiting until January 4 to push this new increase through. Nice of him.

back2bRN · Nov 19, 2009

I'm still pondering the disappearing trick that happened with the positions AND the budget surplus. Perhaps the people in charge should go on a trip as magicians...there is a revenue generating idea!!!

How can clinical positions not be affected when nurses have to take care of non nursing tasks? Then no parking....or an increase in fees.... salt in the wounds. Just b/c Calgary city council wants to maintain their stellar reputation of having the highest parking fees in Canada (they claim) should not mean that public servants have to pay that too.

RGN1 · Nov 19, 2009

I hope the UNA factors these increased charges into the pay negoitiations! :-) Along with the 5% property tax increase etc :-D

I noticed that parking authority quotes a per hour parking price so I now need to go ask them that if they are indeed charging per hour how come my parking fees didn't drop when I went to a .81 from my full time??

I have to park in a gravel pit, unlit, no plug-ins & be bussed into the hospital in a yellow school bus!!! They want to charge me MORE for this!! Not to mention the fact that the shuttle time tables are specially created to ensure that the bus leaves before you can get down from your shift -the times being such that the bus leaves the hospital 5 mins before the end of the various shifts so you end up waiitng at least 10 - 20 mins for the next bus!!!

We used to be able to park on-site from 14:30 & the bus ended around 21:00 but now they have parking from 17:00 & the bus is supposed to run until 01:30. Well I can tell you that it sometimes doesn't materialise & security have to drive you (happened to my colleague last week) plus who wants to go to an un-lit lot at midnight in -20 something!!

What actually happens is that most of us either park on the street in the 2 hour spots & rush in our 1st break to bring in our cars after 17:00 or use our breaks to get our cars from the lot & bring them in. That means that the shuttle bus is usually empty, or has 1-2 passengers after 20:00 (& is pretty empty from 18:00 onwards). Well do the math..... it costs them a fortune in gas & wages running those empty buses, not to mention the environmental damage as they NEVER turn off their engines when idling - they'd freeze in winter if they did. Well go figure - wouldn't it make more sense to bring back the recipricol parking after 14:30?? Most people work 12 hour shifts so the number of us actually parking on-site for evenings really is miniscule - you can see that by the numbers returning to their cars at 23:30!

In my book it's a no-brainer!!