Re: To NJ Nurse Recuriter and Nurse Manager!
I am soooo sorry you all are having to experience this. You are caught in a horrible situation. I hope things change for the better - quickly.
That being said -- I want to step up and defend HR & Nurse Managers. They are not in the driver's seat here. Each facility has a position control proces that is directly tied to patient volume and overall financial performance. Each department has a specific number of positions. Many hospitals also have specific guidelines on the ratio of inexperienced:experienced nurses in any one department. Managers cannot hire if they have no open positions.
This leaves the HR folks in a bind -- should they accept applications when they are not hiring? There is of underlying (federally mandated) paperwork that has to be completed for applications even if they don't even get to the interview stage. Most HR departments have also been downsized, so they don't have the resources to take care of a lot of unnecessary work... so they just don't accept applications until they need them.
The real culprit is the economy. We're all in the same boat here. Most of us old-timers have been through this type of 'downturn' before, and know how awful the outcome can be. My heart just breaks at the thought of losing a generation of nurses because they had to turn away from nursing before they even get a chance to start their careers. There could be huge negative consequences not only for our profession, but for health care as a whole.
I haven't been keeping up with all the 'healthcare reform' blather - but I would bet that it doesn't have any 'stimulus' for hospitals who hire new graduates or jobless new grads who are stuck with student loans they can't repay. That could make a real difference in the immediate future - otherwise, we have no choice but to wait it out and hope everyone can make it through.
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