Question regarding Government C.Service Nursing...

Nurses General Nursing

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I'm hoping to gain a little insight by posting this! My question is for those of you who have worked in a military hospital as a civilian.

I know very little about the pay grade structure or even how it differs from a civilian hospital. What I do know is that I would be required to work Monday through Friday with weekends and holidays off. My husband is military and there are positions that have recently been advertised at our base, so I am just getting a feel for this whole military hospital idea.

Please share the good, bad and the ugly, if you would. :)

~Channa :)

P.S. I think my biggest obstacle in getting a position right now would be that I am a new grad and I am not I sure I can/or want to handle being surrounded by the military way 24/7. :)

Specializes in Community Health Nurse.

Hello NurzofFaith! :)

First of all, congratulations to you on becoming a RN after all the hard work you put into this moment in your life/your career! :)

I have worked in military hospitals before as a civilian nurse, and my husband is also military. I enjoyed working in military hospitals! It's totally different than working in civilian hospitals, but necessarily better...just a different experience, that's all.

I have worked orthopedic surgery, newborn nursery, pediatrics, SICU, and head trauma/neuro in military hospitals. I loved working pediatrics the most probably because I love kids!

You won't know if you will like working in military hospitals until you try it. You really shouldn't go on another person's experience with it because it's different for everyone. Try it, if you don't seem to "fit in", switch to a civilian hospital.

Whatever you decide, best of luck to you and your family! :)

dont know about military hospitals but heres some recent news about the VA hospitals which are also government facilities:

VA Nurse Retention Bill Signed into Law -

On January 11, 2002 the Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Programs Enhancement Act (HR 3447) was presented to President Bush. The bill was signed into law by the President on January 23rd. ANA strongly supported this bill which contains many important VA nurse provisions.

This legislation will:

*Modify and make permanent the VA Employee Incentive Scholarship Program and Debt Reduction Program;

*Require a report on the use of mandatory overtime by licensed nursing staff and nursing assistants in each facility;

*Make clarifications to the nurse locality pay authorities in order to allow surveys of salaries other than beginning rates of pay;

*Give VA nurses enrolled in the Federal Employee Retirement System the same ability to use unused sick leave as part of the retirement year calculation that VA nurses enrolled in the Civilian Retirement System have;

*Provide Saturday premium pay to title 5/title 38 hybrids;

*Require the VA to develop a nationwide policy on staffing standards to ensure that veterans are provided with safe and high quality care. Such staffing standards must consider the numbers and skill mix required of staff in specific medical settings;

*Exempt registered nurses from the requirement that part-time service performed prior to April 7, 1986, be pro-rated when calculating retirement annuities;

*Require a report on VA's use of authority to request waivers of the pay reduction for re-employed annuitants;

*Require an evaluation of nurse-managed clinics, including primary care and geriatric clinics;

*Require a report on VA's nurse qualification standards.

http://www.ana.org/gova/federal/news/presign.htm

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Thank you both for the insight!!

I sent an email off to the point of contact regarding the government positions and am just awaiting a reply..I'll try and update soon :)

~Channa

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