Agency?

psychnurse1998 · Mar 9, 2008

Just wondering what its like to work for/with an agency....?
Is it really as bad as some people say? And are there any GREAT ones in the bay area?
:icon_roll

I have worked for agencies as an Lvn, the biggest problem I have, is they give you little or no orientation. One place I worked if the other Lvn doing her own assignment hadnt not helped me know where everything was, I would have never gotten through the shift. One assignment did give about 4 days of orientation. The other problem is often times, regular employees figuire agency nurses are earing big money, so why should they help them. I hope its different when you work as an Rn throuogh a registry.

elkpark · Mar 9, 2008

There are good and bad agencies, same as anything else. If you're going to work as a temp or traveler, it is very important (IMHO) to be a seasoned, experienced "pro," because the whole point of the role is that you're going to be repeatedly dropped into unfamiliar settings, with possibly v. negative working conditions/staff morale/etc., and be expected to hit the ground running and be able to do the job with little or no orientation and/or support/supervision. It's also v. important (again, IMHO) that you be experienced and savvy enough to be able to look out for your own best interests and the safety of your license, because the agency certainly isn't going to. If you crash and burn, they have plenty of other nurses, but you only have you ...

psychnurse1998 · Mar 9, 2008

There are good and bad agencies, same as anything else. If you're going to work as a temp or traveler, it is very important (IMHO) to be a seasoned, experienced "pro," because the whole point of the role is that you're going to be repeatedly dropped into unfamiliar settings, with possibly v. negative working conditions/staff morale/etc., and be expected to hit the ground running and be able to do the job with little or no orientation and/or support/supervision. It's also v. important (again, IMHO) that you be experienced and savvy enough to be able to look out for your own best interests and the safety of your license, because the agency certainly isn't going to. If you crash and burn, they have plenty of other nurses, but you only have you ...

Thanks Elk Park, I am not seasoned and experienced, and have turned away asssignment from facilities that did not offer orienation, because I could lose my licence working like that. I am thinking of filing for unemployment but not sure if I can get any for turning away those type of jobs.ie without orientation. Maybe this belongs on another thread

elkpark · Mar 9, 2008

Thanks Elk Park, I am not seasoned and experienced, and have turned away asssignment from facilities that did not offer orienation, because I could lose my licence working like that. I am thinking of filing for unemployment but not sure if I can get any for turning away those type of jobs.ie without orientation. Maybe this belongs on another thread

I am certainly not qualified to offer any legal advice regarding unemployment, and am not doing so here, but it does seem unlikely, just in terms of "common sense," that you could qualify for unemployment compensation when you're choosing to turn down jobs that are being offered to you ... (Please note that I'm not saying you're wrong to do so ...) For better or worse, the whole point of having the license is that the state regulatory agency (in our case, the BON) has deemed you competent to practice -- the state and law do not differentiate between a new grad and someone who's been practicing for 20 years; licensed is licensed -- and there is no rule or law (that I'm aware of, anyway) obligating any agency or facility to give you any orientation at all; that is left to their discretion and judgment. That's why I made the comments I did initally -- it's up to the individual nurse to be experienced and savvy enough to be able to practice safely and to look out for her/his own interests. If you're not there yet, maybe another employment option (besides agency/traveling) would be a better choice (again, just MHO, for what it may be worth) ...

psychnurse1998 · Mar 9, 2008

I am certainly not qualified to offer any legal advice regarding unemployment, and am not doing so here, but it does seem unlikely, just in terms of "common sense," that you could qualify for unemployment compensation when you're choosing to turn down jobs that are being offered to you ... (Please note that I'm not saying you're wrong to do so ...) For better or worse, the whole point of having the license is that the state regulatory agency (in our case, the BON) has deemed you competent to practice -- the state and law do not differentiate between a new grad and someone who's been practicing for 20 years; licensed is licensed -- and there is no rule or law (that I'm aware of, anyway) obligating any agency or facility to give you any orientation at all; that is left to their discretion and judgment. That's why I made the comments I did initally -- it's up to the individual nurse to be experienced and savvy enough to be able to practice safely and to look out for her/his own interests. If you're not there yet, maybe another employment option (besides agency/traveling) would be a better choice (again, just MHO, for what it may be worth) ...

I think you are probably right. I just think even a seasoned and experience nurse needs at least a certain minimum of orienation to a unit to practise safely. If law does not require that of an agency or employer, I think its unsafe nursing practise. I think there used to be community college refresher courses for nurses reentering nursing after a long period of inactivity, I think those courses should also be available. In practise I may have to take a non nursing job, to protect my nursing license.

suzanne4, RN · Mar 10, 2008

As an agency nurse, you are expected to be a seasoned nurse and able to just jump into the situation. You do not need days of orientation to learn the paperwork, and where things are kept.

You should already have the nursing skills to be able to function in any job when you do agency work. They are not required to provide orientation for you.

If you need the orientation, etc., you may find that you would be better off working as a per diem for a specific facility.

Just noticed after reviewing some of your other posts that you have on this thread, and there are very few LVN jobs via agency here in the Bay Area that are in hospitals, more than likely you are getting jobs in nursing homes and that is something else entirely. And yes, they do have large med passes that you are responsible for. LTC is known for only giving a couple of days of orientation to even their fullt-time staff.

But doubt if you can get un-employment based on not being able to get orientation that you desire.

And the refresher courses are there for those that have not worked in years as a nurse, not just for someone that feels that they need orientation to something. Completely different.