I had no idea, when I took a job as a nurse manager of an inpatient unit at a rural hospital that's 4 hours away from the nearest large city, that a huge portion of my job stress would come from the fact that we DO NOT HAVE ENOUGH NURSES!!
Every unit at our facility has job openings. We have dozens of travelers. My department basically has just enough nurses to cover core staffing. What that means is - if there's a sick call, or a PTO request, or a medical leave of absence, we're short.
Thank Dog that my unit is awesome and they are a team and a family and are invested in the unit, because when we're short, the nurses pull together and volunteer to take OT and work 16 hour shifts.
The point of this post...if you're a new grad, and you can't find a job because the market is so competitive and every place is wanting a BSN...consider relocating! Look for those facilities that are in rural communities, or small towns that are >2 hours away from the nearest metro area that probably has multiple schools and a steady stream of new grad nurses to fill positions.
Coming from Denver, I had no idea that there really were places in the US that had shortages, but it's true, and it sucks. For patients, for communities, and for the nurses who are working short-staffed or working 60-hour work weeks because, well, we have no other options.
