Getting a foot in the door as a NA/HCA/Porter?

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I think we all know that in many big cities at the moment, the job market is very competitive and new nurses especially have a bit of trouble finding positions. I'm wondering how worthwhile it would be to apply for other jobs on the units, such as as a NA, HCA or porter (among others). Personally, I think it would be a good way to make a decent salary in the meantime while still being exposed to the healthcare environments. I worry sometimes about losing my skills, and maybe seeing hospital life (even if I can't do the same things as an RN) would help a bit in keeping me fresh? I also think that taking one of these positions would make me a better nurse. And best of all, I would be an internal applicant.

Any opinions on whether this is a good route to try? Will managers even hire RNs for these kind of roles? Thanks for your thoughts!

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In a nutshell? No. Managers are looking for aides who will stay not an RN who is working at leaving. The skill set is entirely different. Depeneding on where you are employed, aides don't do vitals, or blood sugars, no med admin.

If you did manage to obtain a job, they will always fall back on using your education against you if anything goes wrong.

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I think we all know that in many big cities at the moment, the job market is very competitive and new nurses especially have a bit of trouble finding positions. I'm wondering how worthwhile it would be to apply for other jobs on the units, such as as a NA, HCA or porter (among others). Personally, I think it would be a good way to make a decent salary in the meantime while still being exposed to the healthcare environments. I worry sometimes about losing my skills, and maybe seeing hospital life (even if I can't do the same things as an RN) would help a bit in keeping me fresh? I also think that taking one of these positions would make me a better nurse. And best of all, I would be an internal applicant.

Any opinions on whether this is a good route to try? Will managers even hire RNs for these kind of roles? Thanks for your thoughts!

The best thing is to do those things WHILE you are in nursing school. I see many students in BC working as an ESN.. (I think they hired like a couple hundred students this year for the province). Trying to work in a related field as a student is the best for finding jobs in the future. If you work in a residential care as a care aid prior to graduation, you can land a casual job fairly easily after graduation. This can be different depending on the area.. but works very well for the lower mainland, BC

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