BRAND new lpn, correctional nursing like community health?

tirzo13 · Dec 1, 2007

I have worked 2 years CDC.

As a LVN you will simply give out alot of pills, in fast order.

spend 2-3 hours packing, and do 2 med passes that take 30 minutes to 2 hours each.

thats it.

Nothing at all like community health that i did for 5 years.

I hear of people who say they love corrections.

i did not, nor have i actually met any of these people.

Everyone i know, its only for the pay.

If the pay on the outside was equal, we'd be out in a minute.

I'm taking a drop in pay big time to go to state hospital.

As a Rn you would do more actual patient care.

Get your RN.

If you stay an LVN, corrections is clearly your best pay.

I'd say move to SALINAS or Vacaville for the Dept. Of Mental Health within the prisons there.

They still use MTA's.

$7000 a month as a LVN/Cop.

akwesook · Dec 4, 2007

They are not using LVN-cop anymore (7000 mo) now it is just LVN at between 3300 to 4100 (depending on facility location) and not all that easy to get

akwesook · Dec 4, 2007

Just re-read TIRZO13's post - I was invited to interview at Salinas, they were hiring for LVN, not MTA---I would have loved to go for MTA

tirzo13 · Dec 4, 2007

A little secret that alot of people don't know, even some of the MTA's that had to become CO's when the CDCR phased them out.

The DMH, dept. of mental health has 2 sections in Salinas Valley and Vacaville.

The DMH is still using MTA's and has no plans of getting rid of them.

So all the MTA's at those prisons, simply walked over and became employees of DMH, and are still MTA's.

Its the best route for a LVN, if you want to live in vacaville or salinas.

tirzo13 · Dec 4, 2007

Don't be an LVN at Salinas, you will take home like $2200 a month.

Go to Dept of Mental Health webpage, and get the application for MTA.

Don't worry about what the MTA pay says, its never updated, most are doing about $7000 a month, as LVN, many are making well over $100,000 a year as LVN/MTA with OT.

More than the RN's.

akwesook · Dec 4, 2007

thank you for your advice and i followed it.i guess they changed. i sent the following to their job site since there were no mta listings. i would like to know if you use mta's anymore. i have wanted to do that for several years and now am available. i have been an lvn/lpn since 1980, have a background in both mental health(locked unit) and county jail nursing and am bilingual spanish/english

thank you,

i received the following :

good afternoon,

we no longer employ an mta classification, however some mtas have also qualified for our clinical social worker positions. we also employ lvns. if you are interested in an lvn position, please contact the plata (medical) recruitment unit at 1.877.793.4473 or

[email protected]. you can also access the online examination at:

http://www.cdcr.ca.gov/career_opportunities/hr/ops/exams/exams_medical/index.html

if you are interested in any of our mental health postitions, you can obtain job descriptions and applications from our website as well:

http://www.cdcr.ca.gov/career_opportunities/hr/ops/exams/exams_mental/index.html

robyn j. lee

field recruitment unit, office of workforce planning

california department of corrections and rehabilitation

1.888.232.4584

[email protected]

http://www.cdcr.ca.gov/career_opportunities/index.html

i think they stopped last summer. unless i am missing something?

tirzo13 · Dec 5, 2007

duplicate post. delete

tirzo13 · Dec 5, 2007

Thats because you contacted CDCR.

They got rid of MTA's earlier this year.

you need to contact DMH, as i stated in my earlier post, NOT CDC.

the prisons no longer use MTA's.

DMH at Vacaville and Salinas still use MTA's, but they are not the prisons, so do not contact the prisons.

DMH rents space within the prisons at Salinas and Vacaville, but the prisons won't tell you anything, as they want you to be a 2000 a month LVN as they can't recruit anybody, and when they do, the LVN's march right over to DMH when they find out they can be an MTA for 7000 a month.

http://www.dmh.ca.gov/Services_and_Programs/State_Hospitals/Salinas/Human_Resources/default.asp

http://www.dmh.ca.gov/Jobs/Recruitment_Information.asp

it can be tricky to find things at the government site, if still having problems, pm me, i will give you the senior MTA phone number, i used to work at Salinas Valley, its what i was going to do if i did not pass the RN boards.

tirzo13 · Dec 5, 2007

Actual DMH bullitin with the MTA job and pay.

http://jobs.spb.ca.gov/wvpos/more_info.cfm?recno=323851

$7300 for a LVN, thats more than i'm getting as a RN for the state!!!!

plus MTA gets better retirement.

3.0 and can retire at 50.

I as a RN get, 2.5 and can retire at 55.

It takes along time to get hired as a MTA, because its a peace officer position, so you may want to take a state LVN job, even for the low pay, just to get some state time on the books.

dockp · Dec 6, 2007

I start working for the CDCR on the 14th in S.D. as an LVN. Can you tell me what to expect as far as overtime. The only info I have receved is from RN's. I have applied for an MTA position, but I realy want to stay in So Cal. I have been told that we can still make 5000 to 7000 a mo with over time. Is this true or am I just getting smoke blown up my a**?

tirzo13 · Dec 9, 2007

I start working for the CDCR on the 14th in S.D. as an LVN. Can you tell me what to expect as far as overtime. The only info I have receved is from RN's. I have applied for an MTA position, but I realy want to stay in So Cal. I have been told that we can still make 5000 to 7000 a mo with over time. Is this true or am I just getting smoke blown up my a**?

I hated Donovan (SD), maybe you will like it.

The Senior RN's there are pathetic, and there are 7 of them.

Salinas is the best prison to work at, just 1 Senior, and he is good at his job.

At San Diego they screw the LVN's, LVN's that have been there the longest still have bad days off, called RDO in prison terms.

If you go to Salinas, which still uses MTA (in DMH section) the prison will give you weekends off right off the bat because they do that to recruit.

San diego gives you bad days off, and the LVN turnover is really high, and the morale is very bad, course it is san diego.

Salinas will work with you for school, San diego will not.

OT, you will work doubles on the weekends at San Diego, you can count on it.

Salinas, the choice to work OT is up to you.

They don't make you like San DIego does.

If you want alot of OT, you can get it at Salinas.

At San Diego, you have no choice, you will do it.

San Diego is my home, but i left that prison twice.

New Folsom/Sac is also a better prison to work at.

Why do you think turnover is so high for LVN's at San Diego.

San Diego, registry gets better days off than State LVN.

Salinas, state gets better days off than Registry LVN.

If i was you i'd go back to school for RN.

VA, Pendelton, Balboa, California Veterans Home in Chula Vista all will work with you better to go to school, and they also have govt. pension.

Donovan will not work with you for school at all.