Sutter Health New Grad program unpaid.

Nurses New Nurse

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Hey everyone, so I'm being offered a job through Sutter Health affiliate hospital and I've been told that they've changed the New Grad programs to being 3 months of unpaid training. I will be treated as an employee while I work, but just not get paid. I won't be contracted with the hospital at this time, and if I decided I wanted to leave, I can. But if I stay throught the whole training, I will be offered a full time position. I was told that this was the way Sutter decided to do things to save themselves money from training New Grads and then them leaving after they get their year experience.

Has any of you heard of this before? And what are your thoughts? I am grateful for having this job offer, just somewhat shocked at the no pay thing.

And how scary of Sutter to find you on the web here... this is where I am reminded that everything posted is public!

Do all of the knee-jerk opponents of an unpaid internship have any alternate proposals for new RNs who too often get stuck in the "need experience to get experience" no-man's-land? Even if budgets expanded tomorrow and hospitals started hiring more newbies, wouldn't those with recent acute care experience more likely be hired over other not-so-new-grads without that recent experience? Wouldn't the applicant with that experience be likely to feel more confident, give a better interview, and overall have a better transition experience?

If hiring rebounds again soon, are all newbies truly best-served by the status quo? Is it so great if organizations go back to the desperate hiring of anyone with a license to fill RN slots regardless of whether or not the applicant's competencies actually match the job's demands? And if there's such a risk in allowing unpaid interns on a floor as supernumerary personnel, isn't a similar risk to allow nursing students/instructors on the floor? Finally, I agree there are legal issues to clarify. But if students aren't allowed to do much clinically (due to legal concerns) and there are no post-graduate clinical training opportunities (due to legal concerns), why should hospitals be motivated to hire new grads many of whom will need so much extra to get up to speed?

Specializes in Case Mgmt, Anesthesia, ICU, ER, Dialysis.

It's part of the cycle...we were all newbies once, and we all bumbled around like bloomin' idiots for a year or so, with benevolent (sometimes) guidance from those more experienced. Just as we do now for our young grasshoppahs. :)

I'm sure this facility's legal department has signed off on this program, but I'd be interested to see how it'd stand up in court, y'know??

And boy, weren't they quick to jump right on this thread?? Talk about carefully crafted propaganda...

Anyone who's considering it...I know y'all are desperate. Jobs are tight, the economy stinks and Christmas is coming. But remember that employers will sell you up the river if it protect their a$$ets. No offense, but you guys haven't been out there enough to see what facilities can and HAVE done to nurses...and we know you are very special, and they would never do that to you because they told you so, but guess what?? THEY DO! Every single day, of every single month, of every single year.

If tons of experienced nurses are giving you advice based on their myriad of years...and it's all pretty much the same advice...then it's on you if you don't listen to it.

I know y'all want a job in nursing - keep looking. Something will open up, but in the meantime, volunteer with free not for profit clinics, whatever. THAT will count as experience, and you'll be better covered should something happen!

Unfortunately I agree with the lovely RN above me (I can't figure out how to quote some one else's response...maybe that's why I am an unemployed new grad...lol). We new grads, despite the bills and having absolutely NO MONEY, need to get out there and volunteer and work for whomever will take us. I don't believe this Sutter place is the right move because it is a paying organization that is offering a short 3 month non paid experience period that will not allow you to encompass the full scope of a registered nurse. So you are nothing more than an student nurse and I'm sure you have done plenty of that in nursing school.

Im not sure what degrees anyone has but I'm considering taking a job as a CNA or PCA (if and only if I am still not working in a LTC or hospital or MD office as a nurse a year from now afterexhausting all my other options). While working in this position, I will look into going back to school for my BSN (I have a ADN and a non nursing BS) and maybe the facility will invest in my education after a certain period of time of me working there of course. Then maybe I can also be eligible for tuition reimbursement or the internal Nursing Jobs that so many of us new grads have NO access too...I'm not sure. What do you experienced or non experienced nurse think about this plan?

Hello all,

After graduating in May 2008 and not being able to find a job for over a year, I was excited to hear that Sutter Delta was offering this internship program. After graduation I applied to almost every hospital in the Bay Area and had no luck. I even attended numerous Nursing Career Fairs, only to walk away disappointed because they were only hiring experienced nurses. I was devastated because all the hard work I put into school seemed to go unnoticed.

In July 2009, I was hired on at the County ER, for the new grad training program. Then, I heard about the Sutter Delta Internship Program. When I was in nursing school I did a few rotations in Sutter's ER and knew it was where I wanted to eventually be. So, I kept my paid position at County and was also offered the unpaid internship position at Sutter. I was working full time at County and the 2 days I did have off, I was at Sutter. It was tough working 7 days a week. I knew I had to give one up.

You're probably reading this thinking its a no-brainer. Give up the unpaid internship, especially since there was no guarantee that I would be hired. But it was really torn. Nursing was NEVER about the money for me. It was about going to work happy and I knew how I felt when I would come to work at Sutter. Even though I wasn't getting paid, I was so happy to be there. I felt so welcomed by the wonderful staff and knew I was getting a great learning experience. I felt supported and appreciated by everyone.

So, I left my paid position at County to focus and work really hard for the opportunity to be a part of the awesome staff at Sutter Delta. I am the other intern that was hired on at Sutter Delta's Emergency Department. I went through the 4 weeks of unpaid training and was offered a position after my 4 weeks of training. I am very fortunate to have been a part of this internship program and feel that it is a great way to get your foot in the door.

True, it is unpaid and you are not guaranteed a position. But the preceptors are great and they do not want anyone to fail. If you want something bad enough, you'll do whatever it takes to attain it. Just like in the movie The Pursuit of Happyness with Will Smith. He took a 6 month unpaid internship position because he knew how bad he wanted that stockbroker position. He worked so hard and faced many challenges along the way, but he rose to the top.

I'll leave you with a quote from the movie The Pursuit of Happyness.

"You got a dream, you gotta protect it. People can’t do something themselves, they wanna tell you that you can’t do it. You want something? Go get it. Period."

Specializes in ER; CCT.
True, it is unpaid and you are not guaranteed a position. If you want something bad enough, you'll do whatever it takes to attain it. "

And this is what Sutter is counting on. Where the unfairness lies is in the fact that they are still being reimbursed 100% off of whatever you are doing for the patient. It's not like they are giving a discount for those who you are caring for. What's scary is that this might change how all hospitals operate--that is raking in the profit off the backs of new nurses.

To the other poster who inquired what other than this can be done if no hospitals are hiring new grads. Simple. There are many community-based not-for-profit organizations who can really use the expertise of the skill set possessed by a professional graduate nurse. If you are going to work for free, why not use your nursing skills to benefit one of the countless not-for-profit organizations who are in desperate need, versus some scum-life-sucking hospital corporation like Sutter who's sole existence is for profit first--everything else second.

Specializes in LTC/Skilled Care/Rehab.

I agree Tammy, FNP/GNP that I would rather give my time to a non-profit. Unfortunately desperate times have made new grads desperate. I know because I am one of those desperate new grads. I don't know if I would want to work for free, but I am sick of becoming a "stale" new grad. I would love to volunteer for a non-profit but even volunteering is hard to come by in this economy. It is unfortunate that for profit hospitals are taking advantage of this situation.

I am trying not to settle for less than what I think I am worth but I am close to it. After applying for numerous jobs and being rejected over and over your self-esteem starts to go down. I was so proud of myself after graduating college and passing NCLEX. But then the months start going by without finding a job. Now I a working for practically minimum wage in retail. Something I never expected to do with a BSN. I'm not saying people should let themselves be taken advantage of but I can see how easy it is to let someone do that to you. I just recently got called for two job interviews in the past couple of days. That made me feel much more confident. Even if I don't get hired for either at least I know there are still people out there who are interested in me. Good luck to all the new (and not so new anymore) grads out there! Just keep your head up! Hopefully this economy will get better soon!!!!

Where the unfairness lies is in the fact that they are still being reimbursed 100% off of whatever you are doing for the patient. It's not like they are giving a discount for those who you are caring for. What's scary is that this might change how all hospitals operate--that is raking in the profit off the backs of new nurses.

"Raking in the profit"? I don't think there's that much money to be made by offering unpaid internships so long as they adhere to the policy of not counting interns in the staffing numbers. There will be the same number of paid nurses, the same number of paid assistants, the same number of patients and the same amount of reimbursement - so no extra income there. And to provide an internship program, even if it's unpaid, isn't free to a hospital. The nurses have to take extra time away from their regular responsibilities to work with the interns, and dedicate paid staff time to making sure that the program is running smoothly and continues to be benefitial to both hospital AND the interns. Where the hospital hopes to save money is by increasing the retention of paid new grads and by keeping down the length of time any given paid new grad will need to be on orientation.

In regard to volunteering... most volunteer work that an inexperienced new grad would be allowed to do wouldn't improve the new grad's marketability as an acute care hospital nurse.

Maybe if the recruiters tried a different approach they would have less trouble retaining after a year. For instance if they hire older new grads or others that there is discrimination against what would be the odds of that employee jumping ship? Funny how they want a years experience yet they will take on an H1B with no way to verify anything really. We certainly should not be taking nurses away from countries that themselves have a shortage (a real one).

I would think doing this and not getting hired might look bad on one's resume.

Next: you pay them new grad programs.

Money needs to be diverted from the schools and the H1B visa programs until the unemployed RNs are absorbed.

As for non-profit Kaiser lost over $700 million in the stock market this year. They are expanding and eating up smaller hospitals. The article I read about some of their business practices mentioned something interesting: The industry considers it to be a shortage if there are only 10 applicants for each opening. Imagine the power they are feeling now?

Maybe if the recruiters tried a different approach they would have less trouble retaining after a year. For instance if they hire older new grads or others that there is discrimination against what would be the odds of that employee jumping ship? Funny how they want a years experience yet they will take on an H1B with no way to verify anything really. We certainly should not be taking nurses away from countries that themselves have a shortage (a real one).

I would think doing this and not getting hired might look bad on one's resume.

Next: you pay them new grad programs.

Money needs to be diverted from the schools and the H1B visa programs until the unemployed RNs are absorbed.

As for non-profit Kaiser lost over $700 million in the stock market this year. They are expanding and eating up smaller hospitals. The article I read about some of their business practices mentioned something interesting: The industry considers it to be a shortage if there are only 10 applicants for each opening. Imagine the power they are feeling now?

As you saying they are importing foreign nurses who deserve and need an extended orientation similar to a new grad requires?

I have seen new grad open houses with H1B visa holders in attendance. They flew in from overseas to attend. Must be rich in their own country. Unlike Americans the foreign nurses help their fellow countrymen here on the job (in their own language). So they are getting lots of on the job training.

I am saying there is no real verification of schools or experience. Profit making recruiters take a big cut for delivering them to underpaid positions. One of my cousins does this. She is a burnt-out former nurse.

I am also saying until this huge surplus is over there should not be any H1B visas. Especially from countries where there is hardship from lack of nurses or other medical professionals.

perhaps there should be a medical peace corps where new grads could gain experience.

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