Flexible hours, but might this work?

Lisa CCU RN, RN · Jan 10, 2007

Work for an agency and you can work whenever you want.

jjjoy, LPN · Jan 10, 2007

Agency nursing is the way to go for flexibility.

Keep in mind, however, that a good agency won't send new grad nurses out because most new nurses have got a lot to learn before being sent in to work independently with a full load. The way most nursing schools work these days, new grads aren't prepared to work on their own right off.

A good hospital will give its new grad nurses several months of orientation/preceptorship before having them take a full load all on their own. Many new nurses say it takes at least a year to feel comfortable in their position.

If you want to be a competent agency nurse for hospital work it would be recommended to hire on at a facility with a good new grad program and work there awhile before switching to agency work.

JBirdAngel · Jan 10, 2007

Hello,

thanks for the replies, with agency work i can say okay i will work for these 3 months, adn then i will work for those 6 months? its not like i sign up and have to do what and when they tell me? just to confirm.

Also if i do become a nurse, or anything in this field the most likely place i would first try to get a job would be at a local medical facility that i think is more in the realm of long term care, as its not really a hospital, would this provide appropriate experience for an agency? or is that all hospital related and so would require direct hospital experience?

thanks - jason

Katnip, RN · Jan 10, 2007

Most agencies require that you have minimum a year's recent experience in the field you will be working in.

So, if you have the idea of working in cardiac care, or emergency, then no, the experience in LTC would not translate to that job.

As far as working with agencies, you choose to work or not when there are available assignments at various hospitals. You are usually paid more than you would as a hospital staff member, but you will also have to pay for your own insurance, etc. You don't get paid for vacations. It usually comes out pretty even since the pay rate is higher.

But if you're at work and the census is low, you will be the first to be sent home. Some agencies do guarantee that you'll be paid for 4 hours of a shift if you're called off. Some don't.

jjjoy, LPN · Jan 10, 2007

As cyberkat states, agency work doesn't guarantee hours. In many places, that's currently not an issue as there is plenty of demand but again no guarantees. It's sorta like being a substitute teacher, only for nurses.

Long term care also uses agency workers though I don't know if what the demand is compared to other nursing environments.

Other types of careers also have the agency work option (once you've established your skills), especially medically related jobs where an employee absence or vacancy must be covered. Nursing isn't the only option if that's your main reason for pursuing nursing.

JBirdAngel · Jan 10, 2007

thanks for the replies, and scheduling flexibility is large consideration to what i end up doing, if you would i could use examples of other jobs the agency type thing works for as i would like to look into those but at this point dont know what to look for.

I like the idea of healthcare very much as it helps people, but i am not sure i can handle all the stress, some of the things id see, death, and so on, of course i know God will give me the strength to do it if that is what He wants. i am trying to look into all this right now. so job flexibility and job openings are a big part of it, id also like, as you have noticed from other of my threads/posts that i would like it if job skills transfered to outside of the hospital/work setting.

also amount of pay when working is a factor but not the main one, the pay of nursing compared to other jobs with the flexibility that i know about seems nice

thanks - jason

Cattitude · Jan 10, 2007

hello,
i read/hear that nursing has flexible hours and such, with the shortage i am thinking that the following wouldnt be a problem, but for those of you mroe experienced if you could give me your thoughts that would be appreciated. i am more looking for something where i could work part time for say 3-6 months, then not work for a length of time, maybe 6-9 months or so, then work 3-6 months etc. as i would be doing something else during the not being employeed time. however i am wondering the likelyhood of employeers being willing to employ me for that length of time, knowing that i would only be there for 3-6 months? as i figure in most cases i might have to get a "new" job each time i am wanting to work again.
thanks - jason

jason,

you seem very eager about nursing and thats great! i notice that you have a ton of questions and i have a good suggestion. there are a lot and i do mean a lot of topics that will probably cover many of the questions you have covered here on the site though they may be under the older threads. i'm fairly new to the site here myself and enjoy going back even a few years and reading. it's entertaining and informative. check out the different forums and different specialities and see if anything sparks your interest. hopefully this may answer a lot of your questions and help you make a decision on whether or not you want to go to nursing school.

also remember, a lot of the things/rules/regs you inquire about vary from state to state so you may see different answers posted.. each state should have a website for their board of nursing. try some google searches also and see what you come up with... hope this helps and good luck!!!

beez