New Grad as a Clinical Liaison

Nurses New Nurse

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Hey all.

So I am a new grad as of May just passed the boards in July have been interviewing at all different types of places. I was just offered a job as a Clinical Liaison for a nursing home. The job sounds wonderful. Small travel area, good pay, phone, travel reimbursement, and benefits. My question is this a good job for a new grad right out of school. I am told I will still be using my assessment skills, as well as some clinical skills. Do you think this is wise as a new grad to take a position like this? I was never crazy about being in a hospital, and was even thinking of taking a psych nursing job since I was 100% on doing patient care all shift. Any words of advice???

That's why I am asking for help. I am always looking for what is wrong with the situation before I jump into anything. My interviewer told me she called me as a new grad because of my lpasr experience. I am a second degree nurse with my first one being in accounting. In addition to having worked in bars, and being administrative assistant I have with all three of those jobs been able to fine tune my communication skills. Which is why she said she even called me as a new grad to begin with. She likwnall of you was questioning my assessment/bed side skills but she quickly dismissed them when she met me. I would be the first new grad she has hired for a position like this. I'm so confused as to what to do. I have interviewed for a ton of jobs and only been offered a PRN and a part time. I really need full time for my family and the benefits but I don't want to kill my career at the same time.

I fail to see how working in bars and accounting could qualify you for a NURSING position that requires years of clinical assessment and hands on skills.

This corporation wants to use your nursing license to somehow make money for THEM. Most likely covering ALL of the facilities.

Did you ask what happened to the previous Liaison nurse?

Communication skills is what I gained from working in bars and restaurants. Accounting the paperwork side of it. And nursing to access. I'd cover 3 hospitals for one of the area nursing homes they own. I'm not saying I'm taking the Job or not I'm trying to gain insight into the job itself

Specializes in Med/Surg, Ortho, ASC.
Communication skills is what I gained from working in bars and restaurants. Accounting the paperwork side of it. And nursing to access. I'd cover 3 hospitals for one of the area nursing homes they own. I'm not saying I'm taking the Job or not I'm trying to gain insight into the job itself

Bars and restaurants communications in no way prepare you for nursing liason positions. The more you say, the more you frighten me in this position.

I would hesitate if I were you. This will be your first nursing job and it does not have the direct care component to it. Essentially you may have a hard time moving on from this position in the future. I would wonder that if this position doesn't work out, or you choose to leave it in a few years where does that leave you for future nursing employment options? I don't think a nurse manager would want to consider you if you have been practicing in a nurse capacity that has never involved direct patient care. That is up to you if you are willing to take that chance in your career. I would also ask their retention rate for this job. I know of facilities that constantly hire Clinical Liaisons and there has to be a reason for it. I am sure it is stressful job. I would ask you to reach out to someone that has or is currently working in that type of position.

Specializes in Med/Surg, LTACH, LTC, Home Health.
Communication skills is what I gained from working in bars and restaurants. Accounting the paperwork side of it. And nursing to access. I'd cover 3 hospitals for one of the area nursing homes they own. I'm not saying I'm taking the Job or not I'm trying to gain insight into the job itself

In addition to being able to assess the residents/patients, you will need to be able to determine how your facility/facilities can adequately provide the necessary care. You will need to know the regulations regarding what types of residents can reside in those homes; you will need to know the residents' behaviors and tendencies; AND believe me when I tell you that if a hospital has begun to eat the care costs of certain patients, they WILL NOT tell you that they are going to remove the 4-point restraints, private sitter, and security guards as soon as the paramedics arrive to transport that resident to your facility. They will simply say whatever they have to, to relinquish the responsibility...not all times, but whenever the situation presents itself.

You will need to have the critical thinking skills to take your assessment a little deeper than what's documented in the record or spoken to you. You will need to know when to ask "why" with situations that 'appear' to be black and white. Sometimes, there is absolutely no wiggle room for trial and error. Coherent patients during your assessment can quickly become incoherent, wandering residents later in the evening. Behavioral interventions and medication patterns, combination therapies, etc., are just 'some' of the areas that you would need to have knowledge of.

These are things that we (nurse surveyors) look for whenever we go out to investigate complaints, injuries, and even deaths that occur in community healthcare environments. Do you honestly feel that you have what you need to make the appropriate selections? Because if something happens (such as a fall w/fracture, or an elopement with subsequent injury) to one of those residents soon after admission, you will be one of the first ones to be called in with the "Did you know", or the "how could you have not known", or the "did you even bother to check". They are not going to accept the "I wasn't familiar with that drug" or "I must have missed that diagnosis", etc.

I feel that if you accept this position, you are setting yourself up to be put in the position of 'I won't lie, but it's up to you to ask the right questions' to those individuals who really need to 'get rid' of certain responsibilities.

My advice? Don't take the job. If they are hiring new grads into this position, they will still be hiring for this same position after you've gotten a couple of nursing years under your belt.

You really have no idea. I've seen some unscrupulous behavior from hospitals (well, hospitals and nursing homes) to try to get rid of challenging patients. You really need some experience to recognize when something is "off."

I'd also be wondering, as a PP said, why an internal applicant wasn't chosen.

If you can hold out for a better offer, please do.

Specializes in retired LTC.

Hospitals are notorious for trying to pawn off problematic pts as fast as poss. Those are pts with high costs for care (read expensive meds, IVs, treatments), behaviorial issues (read psychoactive meds, med/alcohol dependencies), frequent flyers (revolving door non-compliance), dysfunctioning families, and a whole myriad of other issues.

Are you familiar with Medicare, Medicaid and insurance requirements that will mandate how you respond when trying to manage these pts? So you know how to manage your costs and long-term placements.

What about social and community networking options for referrals and discharges you'll need to make?

Etc etc etc.

Your loyalties will be strongly tied to answering to your ADMIN/CORP for the pts you accept and those who will present with cost containment issues (this is the bottom line in Corp).

I think they're sugar-coating this position for you. And it may seem rather glamorized for someone new as yourself who is inexperienced not only in the clinical end, but also in the fine art of finessing.

Don't be fooled (also known as SNOOKERED).

How did you learn of this position? The fact that there are some 30 sister Corp affiliated facilities makes me ask this. There's also a title (NOT a popular one, AKA "Corp Nurse"). Was this open to nurses within your Corp? Really, like why wasn't someone else interested? Lots of travel to your sister facilities and LOTS & LOTS & LOTS of Corp reports. (You mentioned travel with reimbursement and a phone - I asked about a laptop).

We respondents all see your inclination to accept this 'glamorous' position for a newbie such as yourself. But we're all less rose-y about it and are cautioning

you.

Specializes in Psychiatry, Community, Nurse Manager, hospice.

This is directly from my own experience as a new grad in an unconventional position for a new grad.

An admissions nurse who comes from years of experience on the floor of the facility has a certain perspective. She knows how to identify patients that are going to be a ton of work for the floor nurses. She knows which patients are going to be easy. It's impossible for her to separate this knowledge from herself, and especially if she has felt overwhelmed in the past (maybe she has lived through severe shortages and staffing issues) that perspective can cause her to deny patients who should have been admitted and accept patients who should not be admitted.

A new grad is much more likely to follow the criteria for admission as her guideline, not her understanding of what it is like to have a patient like this one on the floor.

So this is a possible reason for why a manager might want to hire a new grad for this kind of position. It's not a bad reason. Some facilities get stuck in bad habits and new grads are a way to bust out of those habits.

A 22 year old, fresh out on her own in life, is not the right kind of new grad for this position; even if you do want a new grad here. You need someone secure in herself. Age and life experience does that, so I can see how your former degree and experience mean something here.

To be sure that this is the reason, I think you need to have a frank conversation with the manager. Why are they looking for someone new?

If it's for the reasons I have stated, be prepared that if you take the position feathers will be ruffled. You need to be okay with that. Are you the kind of person who wants to go in and effect change or would you rather fit in? If the latter is more important than the former, you need to turn this down as you will be unhappy.

You can do this job if you are well trained with a good orientation. That is not going to happen if you are paired with a nurse who doesn't believe you can do the job, or someone who has the philosophy the facility is trying to correct. So your next question needs to be, "What would my orientation look like?" If the one who interviewed you is the one training you, you are golden. She sees the potential. If you get put with someone else you could be potentially thrown to the wolves. You could be eaten alive. I am using metaphor, but I am not kidding. Also, you need a long orientation; like at least 12 weeks full time, with the opportunity to take more orientation if needed and a resource person for a long time after that to whom you can go for questions and support. If you get all that (and facilities around me are doing this sort of thing) you can do this job.

Specializes in Pedi.

I am a clinical liaison and no way do I feel it is an appropriate position for a new grad. I was a nurse for 8 years, with 3 past Nursing Jobs (5 years in a hospital, 3 years in home health and 1 1/2 per diem at a school) before I took this position. AND the hospital I had worked at for 5 years is the one I liaise at so I went in knowing how they operate and I knew all of their Case Managers from my home health position/it's the hospital that was our main referral source.

OP,

Please research the nursing home.

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Thank you this is the type of information I wanted!!

I am a clinical liaison and no way do I feel it is an appropriate position for a new grad. I was a nurse for 8 years, with 3 past nursing jobs (5 years in a hospital, 3 years in home health and 1 1/2 per diem at a school) before I took this position. AND the hospital I had worked at for 5 years is the one I liaise at so I went in knowing how they operate and I knew all of their Case Managers from my home health position/it's the hospital that was our main referral source.

I'm 38, had an accounting career and left it for nursing. I plan on still staying PRN in the hospital I'm at now.

This is directly from my own experience as a new grad in an unconventional position for a new grad.

An admissions nurse who comes from years of experience on the floor of the facility has a certain perspective. She knows how to identify patients that are going to be a ton of work for the floor nurses. She knows which patients are going to be easy. It's impossible for her to separate this knowledge from herself, and especially if she has felt overwhelmed in the past (maybe she has lived through severe shortages and staffing issues) that perspective can cause her to deny patients who should have been admitted and accept patients who should not be admitted.

A new grad is much more likely to follow the criteria for admission as her guideline, not her understanding of what it is like to have a patient like this one on the floor.

So this is a possible reason for why a manager might want to hire a new grad for this kind of position. It's not a bad reason. Some facilities get stuck in bad habits and new grads are a way to bust out of those habits.

A 22 year old, fresh out on her own in life, is not the right kind of new grad for this position; even if you do want a new grad here. You need someone secure in herself. Age and life experience does that, so I can see how your former degree and experience mean something here.

To be sure that this is the reason, I think you need to have a frank conversation with the manager. Why are they looking for someone new?

If it's for the reasons I have stated, be prepared that if you take the position feathers will be ruffled. You need to be okay with that. Are you the kind of person who wants to go in and effect change or would you rather fit in? If the latter is more important than the former, you need to turn this down as you will be unhappy.

You can do this job if you are well trained with a good orientation. That is not going to happen if you are paired with a nurse who doesn't believe you can do the job, or someone who has the philosophy the facility is trying to correct. So your next question needs to be, "What would my orientation look like?" If the one who interviewed you is the one training you, you are golden. She sees the potential. If you get put with someone else you could be potentially thrown to the wolves. You could be eaten alive. I am using metaphor, but I am not kidding. Also, you need a long orientation; like at least 12 weeks full time, with the opportunity to take more orientation if needed and a resource person for a long time after that to whom you can go for questions and support. If you get all that (and facilities around me are doing this sort of thing) you can do this job.

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