Getting into HH after a termination

[RN2be_07]

My family is going to move to Seattle soon and I am looking into jobs there. I graduated in Dec. 07 and worked as a pediatric nurse for 4 months before I was terminated (long story). I dont really want to do hospital nursing as I found it difficult to contend with the cliques, politics, and multiple patient load and all in admits/discharges. I found it really hard to keep up and I was exhausted and depressed at the end of every work day. I know I love nursing though because of those few precious one on one moments I had with the children and their families that made it all worth it. Because of this I am thinking home health is my place to be.

There are a few positions through PSA Healthcare in the Seattle area and they say they have a training program if you dont have experience. So my questions are as follows:

1. What is the likelihood of a relatively new grad who has been out of school and the workforce for the past 8 months getting a job in home health?

2. Should I even tell them about my previous job experience. When I left I asked my boss at the time what kind of reference I would be getting from the hospital (not necassirly from her, just the hospital) - she told me not to even put the job down on my resume. I am torn on this account as I feel it was some experience, I dont want to lie about not having job experience but at the same time I dont want them to somehow get a hold of my previous boss and have her destroy my chances at ever getting another job. I am really unsure of how to explain that I got fired from my first nursing job. Can I really ever get a job again as a nurse - have I already ruined my career?

3. Should I just go ahead and take a hospital job for a year then go to home health?

4. How steady is the work in home health? If you dont have clients that means you dont work which means you dont get paid and that worries me that I may be out of work for periods of time - how common is this?

Thanks for any advice,

Megan

[suzanne4, RN]

Some things to consider when applying for a new job. Withholding information on an application is the same as falsifying a document. And this can get you stopped before you even start. Normally there is a place where you sign that the information being provided by you is complete and accurate to the best of your knowledge. Do not let this trip you up.

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When one take a home health case in many instances, one is expected to have a couple of years of experience under their belt. In no way does four months of peds prepare you to take care of these medically fragile kids at home. When you are in the hospital setting, you have staff all around if there is an emergency; but when the child is at home. It is only you. And if the parents happen to be in the home, that is one thing; but you are the one that is there to provide complete care to the child during that shift, and the parents should be able to be out of the house during your shift. That is one of the reasons that care is provided so that they can get time away. What would you do if the child had a trach and it slipped out? Have you ever replaced one before? What if the G-tube were to come out? Would you be able to insert another one? Have you done it before?

Remember also that it is usually the state or private insurance that is paying for you to care for the child during that shift, and they are paying for someone with experience. If you had four months of peds experience, how much of that was actual orientation and how much time were you actually on your own?

Just because an agency may offer a job, you need to watch out for your license first. When an agency is offering a fragile peds job to a newbie, they do not have the nurse's best interest at heart.

Or looking at it from the other side, if this were your child; would you want someone with your experience carrying for your child if you were to leave the house for the day? To work peds cases at home, you need good, solid work experience behind you. Do not let anyone try to tell you anything else.

You need to get your confidence built up again as well. This type of case is most definitely not slow paced.

Best of luck to you.