Help! I don't know what to do....

[momof2nurse]

okay, i'm going to try to make this short and sweet, but please forgive me if i go on, because this is complicated.

details:

i am a new grad, passed my boards in february. during my management in december, for school, a nurse manager at the va hospital where i've done most my clinicals and i absolutely love, really liked me and told me she was submitting a proposal the beginning of the year that would expand the unit and create a need for more nurses. she wanted me and told me she had already told the nurse recruiter. she gave me the impression i would have a job in february at the latest. i am married for the second time, and have 2 kids in elementary school. all of my family is in nj, i live in fl.

so i go on vacation to visit my family over christmas, come back and leisurely study for the boards, but i make contact with the nm who promised me a job when she had a position. she says she doesn't have anything available except soon a night-shift position. i tell her i need days. she said hopefully something will come up. i'm a little confused since she didn't mention anything about the proposal, but i didn't think about it much.

i take my boards, pass, and call the nm again. she says she has the night-shift position, but nothing else and doesn't anticipate anything soon. she said the proposal still isn't ready and doesn't know when it will be.

i call the nurse recruiter, notorious for being hard to deal with, and ask him about open positions. he says there are a few and i ask to apply for all the day shifts.

weeks go by and still nothing. meanwhile, my marriage, which has been slowly falling apart and i won't say much about that since that will take a book, except that i rushed into it too soon and married someone who turned out to be completely different -and awful- from who i thought they were.

so now, i have been a gn for 3 months, rn for 1 month, no job, divorce in the future and most likely will be moving back to family in nj sometime this summer.

problem: do i get just any kind of job, like in a nursing home, just to have a job and make money to save for the divorce and move, only to quit in a couple months and move up north? do i try to get in at the va or another nearby hospital and let them waste their time training me and then leave right after training -most likely- to find another job in nj and probably have to train again, but not sure?

there are so many complications. my poor excuse of a husband works in the military and i have to defer to his busy schedule with long hours for me to find a job to work around his schedule is practically impossible. i'm only staying around for the summer so my kids can finish school. it's going to be bad enough to divorce their stepdad of 4 years, let alone moving states away.

then there's the complication of my family relocating to oh soon, so that would mean getting a license in nj, then moving with them to oh and getting another license, ugh! i don't even want to think about that yet.

i'm just so depressed right now with all the problems and decisions to make. this was supposed to be one of the happiest times in my life, getting my degree and achieving my dream of becoming a nurse and it's turning into a nightmare!!!!

i appreciate any responses!!! :redpinkhe

[UM Review RN, ASN, RN]

I could be wrong, so please check it out, but I'd get that job at the VA because you could always transfer to another VA hospital in Jersey.

The part I'm not sure about is that I think if your license is good at one VA, it's good at all of them. But please, check it out, that was one of those things heard from the friend of a friend of a friend.

Best thing about VA hospitals is that I've also heard that there's no cap on salary.

Good luck.

[momof2nurse]

thanks.

yes you can transfer, but 1) you have to work there for a certain period of time, i'm still researching exactly how long, but i think at least 1 year and 2) you can transfer as long as there's an opening where you're going. va hospitals are so good to work for, that they don't have many openings and when they do, they're gone fast.

i did a search at the va hospital in nj and it doesn't have any rn openings at this time! crazy!

[CABG patch kid, BSN, RN]

Because the VA is a federal facility, you can be licensed in any state and work in any state, so that's the good news. The bad news is that you aren't guaranteed a "transfer", you still have to apply and interview for a position at the new facility, at least that's what my old manager told me when I worked for a VA facility as a student.

If I were in your shoes, I'd get whatever would be enjoyable for the time being. If you are already going through hell at home, why get a job you don't necessarilty like, even if it is for a few months? If you only end up being there a few months, who cares, I doubt future employers will care; just tell them that you had some family issues that caused you to have to move from FL to NJ. Just take it one step at a time. It sounds like you have a lot going on right now, just focus on yourself and your kids, do the best you can, its all you can do, right?

Good luck, I hope you find a job that helps you through this tough time :)

[momof2nurse]

:rcgtku: Thanks carebear! Your name fits you and I appreciate your kind words.

Your advice sounds great to me and I'll take it. I'll see what I can do, and hope for the best!

[BrokenRNheart]

Getting your foot in the door of the VA is not a bad idea.

Unfortunately, night jobs are usually the first you will find. The other unfortunate reality here is how you are learning about "recruiting efforts." These hospitals are after the new young blood. They know that you are green and don't know their tactics nor do you know about the politics. They seem to be totally in love with you and make you feel so wanted. In the end you are just another body.

Even if you don't get a "transfer," the fact that you worked for the VA should help you to get back into a VA when you move and IF you choose to work there again (considering local and all).

Sometimes you have to take the night spot to get the day spot. Also, I have learned a lot of nurses are preferring nights because of the stress level on days. It's NOT such a bad start for a new nurse especially if you have personal things going on. I have been a day nurse my whole career. I'm about to become a night nurse. I see day/night rotators pick straight nights and I see new nurses have a much smoother transition on nights. It is really hard to do your job with the interferences and stress of days.

I am offering myself for night spots now. I think I've had it with the day politics. It really can be the better shift with all the other issues nursing is facing. I'm thinking financial stress is not going to help you right now.

As a new nurse, you should be able to get a job easily. New nurses are in hot demand. Recruitment is pretty much geared to new nurses. You will be fine and you might have a less stressful transition on nights.

Read some of our other posts. Your personal life could affect your RN position just thinking of typical politics. You could lay low on nights and probably get better experience.

[momof2nurse]

Thanks! I appreciate your words of advice and I'm feeling better about my want to work nights at the VA.

Even if it's not the VA, I've been thinking of how much better nights would be for me right now with all that's going on, especially with not seeing him as much due to opposite schedules!

I think you're right about getting my foot in the door at the VA and I hope it happens. I'll let you guys know.

Thanks for everything!