The DON told me she feels like full-time is "too much for me"...

1fastRN · Feb 12, 2014

Only 3 days orientation as a new nurse... Hmm whole thing seems strange. I think a loner orientation would benefit you but the fact they want to pull you from FT is weird. Is it sort of a probationary period to see if you make the cut? Were you struggling or making errors?

It could also be possible they dont want to pay you for FT hours and benefits buw who knows.

kakamegamama · Feb 12, 2014

The orient you when they have admissions statement waves as a red flag to me......Just at face value, without knowing if you made errors, etc., it sounds to me that she is, in effect, letting you go without being official about that. I'm wary of jobs like that, having once had one in which I was told I would be trained for a particular area when the census allowed, and interestingly enough, the census never allowed. Hmm....

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Feb 12, 2014

The problem is at this facility, they believe that 3 days of training is enough. This was my 1st job out of nursing school (they knew that) so while I was able to figure out the med pass fairly well, I wasn't the best with calling med orders in and things yet.

LTC/SNF/nursing homes in the large metro area where I live typically offer a 3-day orientation period to all new hires, even new grads. They will laugh at anyone who requests a fourth day. It is basically baptism by fire. Nursing homes generally operate on a smaller profit margin, and therefore, do not have the money in their educational budgets to train new grads for extensive time periods.

Your DON didn't fire you because the facility apparently has issues with staffing, so if you remain on the payroll as a contingency (PRN / per diem) nurse, she can call you to work the shifts that they are desperate to fill when someone calls off or goes on vacation.

However, I suspect she doesn't want you as a full-time staff nurse anymore because perhaps she no longer likes you that much and prefers someone who is less likely to complain. When I worked in LTC, my nurse managers would cringe every time they heard a new grad say, "I am not familiar with the residents." You can get to know them through the chart, experienced CNAs, etc.

The 'losing my license' mantra is overexposed. Most nurses have action taken against their licensure for issues such as impairment, drug diversion, etc. My advice is to keep looking. Good luck!

Mn nurse 22 · Feb 12, 2014

My guess is your position about refusing all mandates is a lot of the problem. Why would she want to keep a nurse who is creating more work for her AND I can only imagine what the rest of the nurses are saying when they find out the new hire doesn't have to be mandated.

Mandates are hard and no one likes them, but if they are expected as part of your job then please don't come up with all sorts of reasons why YOU can't work them. We all have families, jobs, life, worries about how hard it is to work for 16 hrs. I plan my life so that I could work for 16 hrs if mandated. For me that means going to bed early, leaving my friends, family out having fun so I can be ready for work. It is frustrating, hard, and no fun but I like my job and want to keep it, and know there are plenty of other nurses who would love to get hired at our facility.

caliotter3 · Feb 12, 2014

I would resume my job search. Circumstances here have soured and this job may not be salvageable or desirable to salvage.

motherof3sons · Feb 12, 2014

Are you sure you don't work at my facility?? Our admin/owner is like this..says one thing this week, next week whole 'nother story. Not nurses but dietary has had a revolving door and when asked we hear "oh they resigned" in fact they were given the boot. I expect that if I said what was on my mind, I would be getting the boot too.

Best of luck in this sticky situation.

macenroe · Feb 12, 2014

Well, you still have a job there, so I would use that to my benefit. I would be available anytime that they needed me. That way, you can show them that you are a valuable employee, while gaining experience with each shift that you work. In the near future, they may decide to put you back into a full time position. However, I would keep my options open, just in case that doesn't happen. I would keep looking elsewhere for something that may be more to your liking/financial needs. At least this is a paycheck and experience, until something better comes along.