Unemployed New Nurses Would Be Wise To Remember These Equations

TheCommuter, BSN, RN

As a newer nurse (RN or LPN / LVN), you should feel very proud of the milestones that you have worked tirelessly to achieve over the past year. For starters, you have successfully completed a challenging program of study that would perplex the majority of adults in the United States. Moreover, you have passed the NCLEX and attained professional licensure that allows you to lawfully practice as a nurse. After all the hurdles you have jumped, I am assured you are excited to begin your career in the vast field of nursing.

Many new grads dream of landing their first positions in certain nursing specialties. Labor and delivery, postpartum, the intensive care unit, the emergency department, and pediatrics seem to be popular specialties where numerous new nurses would like to work. Also, countless new grads are willing to start on medical / surgical floors to establish the foundation upon which the rest of their careers are built. Anyhow, you are eager to start working, so you begin submitting employment applications to various hospitals in the area where you currently reside.

Six months have elapsed since you first received your nursing license. You have submitted so many applications, resumes and cover letters that you do not have enough fingers and toes to accurately keep count. Not one single callback. You might have thought aloud, "What is going on? I heard there was a critical nursing shortage!"

At this point you might be feeling a little sick to your stomach because the student loans will be due for monthly repayments rather soon. Even though deferment is a possibility, this option will only add more interest and slowly increase your overall balance. Preferably, you need a licensed nursing job. After all, you graduated from nursing school because you wanted to actually work as a nurse. Right?

Meanwhile, a company that hires new grads into private duty nursing cases is constantly advertising on websites such as CraigsList, Monster, CareerBuilder and Indeed. A home health company has placed an ad in the local newspaper for nurses (no experience necessary). An assisted living facility within reasonable commuting distance seeks a full-time RN to complete tasks such as wound care, assessments and taking call every four weeks. A local nursing home has a permanent sign in the front window that reads, "Now hiring LPNs, RNs and CNAs!"

As tempting as these job openings look, you are feeling leery about applying because you are still clutching onto your dream of securing employment at an acute care hospital. You might fear that you will become a less attractive applicant in the eyes of recruiters and hiring managers if you take a nursing job outside the hospital setting. My advice is to remain cognizant of the following equations:

Nursing job outside the hospital = Licensed Nursing Pay + Licensed Nursing Experience

Waiting for the acute care hospital job of your dreams = Zero Pay + Zero Experience

As a newer nurse, the worst thing you can do is become an 'old' new grad who has never held a nursing job more than one year since passing NCLEX. Some experience is better than none at all. I know multiple nurses who were offered the hospital jobs of their dreams after starting at a nursing home, private duty case or home health company. Personally, I was offered a job at a major county hospital and another position on the floor of an outlying suburban hospital after having spent four years in the long term care setting.

Furthermore, the 'losing my license' mantra is grossly overrated. I pay close attention to the disciplinary action pages that my state board of nursing regularly posts. The majority of nurses in my state of residence whose licensing has been censured were working at hospitals, not nursing homes, home health, or other areas outside the hospital.

One more thought. . .hospital employment is on the decline as more patient care is pushed outside the inpatient setting to cut costs.

RESOURCES

Hospital Jobs in U.S. Decline for Second Straight Month - Bloomberg

Unemployed New Nurses Would Be Wise To Remember These Equations

About TheCommuter, BSN, RN

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