HELP!! Which Position to Choose??

amoLucia · Apr 10, 2021

You're starting an NP Program in order to do ???? This might be the determining factor.

Option #3 - sounds most time-friendly. And that 24/36 sounds attractive.

Option #2 - sounds time-greedy to me. You do have OR so that does help.

Starting school in the future seems to offer you a cushioning opp'ty.

Wishing you luck whatever you choose.

brissygal, BSN, RN · Apr 11, 2021

I too am wondering why you are considering NP Program so soon in your career? But I am sure you have your plan mapped out.

I agree with amoLucia

Option #3 and then Option #2

Try to pick an area that you will be happy in, and it will drive your passion, if cardiac is not your area - don't choose.

*sometimes writing it out like you have above, will give you a clear direction which way to go.

Best of luck in all your endeavors.

kbrn2002, ADN, RN · Apr 11, 2021

I'd strongly lean toward door number 3. First if you don't mind the weekend option those hours would certainly fit best with school commitments. Plus that pay structure, you're making OT pay every time you work. Hard to say no to that. Added to that the tiny size, "family" feel and flexibility of that hospital could be a big positive if you fit right in with the rest of the team.

Downside is you really need to be OK with working every weekend. I may be wrong here but it seems like those Baylor weekend positions are starting to go the way of the dodo. Partly because companies don't really like paying that premium wage but I am pretty sure it's also partly because nurses go into that position because it leaves their weekdays free and they get the extra pay only to find down the road they are really not OK with being committed to working every single weekend.

Another possible negative...You also indicated this hospital is "in the middle of nowhere." So is the potential commute an issue at all?

The OR option doesn't have nearly as attractive hours. Being scheduled 5x8's will be really difficult to work around school. The only positive I see is here is your familiarity with surgery would make your transition to working as an OR nurse easier.

The cath lab option has a better schedule than the OR position but I think you've pretty much ruled that out for yourself already as you don't seem to have experience or any interest in gaining experience in the cardiac arena. If you had indicated a bit more eagerness to learn the field I'd suggest that over the OR position just because of the schedule but it seems fairly clear that's not where your interest lies.

Finally [sorry for the long response!] congrats on having this dilemma! Three offers to choose from? You should be proud of that achievement.

CSTtoFutureNP · Apr 11, 2021

On 4/9/2021 at 7:46 PM, amoLucia said:

You're starting an NP Program in order to do ???? This might be the determining factor.

Option #3 - sounds most time-friendly. And that 24/36 sounds attractive.

Option #2 - sounds time-greedy to me. You do have OR so that does help.

Starting school in the future seems to offer you a cushioning opp'ty.

Wishing you luck whatever you choose.

Thanks so much for your feedback and advice! Ideally, I'd like to work in dermatology or plastic surgery as a nurse practitioner in the future, so of course, staying in surgery I think would help! However, I am in massive student loan debt from my nursing degree, and my husband and I want to pay off that debt ASAP! I currently work in the OR as a surgical tech, and my call requirements now are every third weekend and 1-2 nights every week, so I feel as though the call requirement for the OR job is pretty minimal! I guess my main worry with the weekend package is that I won't get much experience since they see very few patients. Should I be worried about that since I'm a new grad? Thanks again for your response!!

CSTtoFutureNP · Apr 11, 2021

17 hours ago, brissygal said:

I too am wondering why you are considering NP Program so soon in your career? But I am sure you have your plan mapped out.

I agree with amoLucia

Option #3 and then Option #2

Try to pick an area that you will be happy in, and it will drive your passion, if cardiac is not your area - don't choose.

*sometimes writing it out like you have above, will give you a clear direction which way to go.

Best of luck in all your endeavors.

Thanks so much for responding! My biggest concern with the weekend package is their low census... I worry that I won't get much experience considering it is a 20 bed hospital with an average of 6 patients a day throughout the entire facility. Will I get enough experience working there as a new grad?

CSTtoFutureNP · Apr 11, 2021

3 hours ago, kbrn2002 said:

I'd strongly lean toward door number 3. First if you don't mind the weekend option those hours would certainly fit best with school commitments. Plus that pay structure, you're making OT pay every time you work. Hard to say no to that. Added to that the tiny size, "family" feel and flexibility of that hospital could be a big positive if you fit right in with the rest of the team.

Downside is you really need to be OK with working every weekend. I may be wrong here but it seems like those Baylor weekend positions are starting to go the way of the dodo. Partly because companies don't really like paying that premium wage but I am pretty sure it's also partly because nurses go into that position because it leaves their weekdays free and they get the extra pay only to find down the road they are really not OK with being committed to working every single weekend.

Another possible negative...You also indicated this hospital is "in the middle of nowhere." So is the potential commute an issue at all?

The OR option doesn't have nearly as attractive hours. Being scheduled 5x8's will be really difficult to work around school. The only positive I see is here is your familiarity with surgery would make your transition to working as an OR nurse easier.

The cath lab option has a better schedule than the OR position but I think you've pretty much ruled that out for yourself already as you don't seem to have experience or any interest in gaining experience in the cardiac arena. If you had indicated a bit more eagerness to learn the field I'd suggest that over the OR position just because of the schedule but it seems fairly clear that's not where your interest lies.

Finally [sorry for the long response!] congrats on having this dilemma! Three offers to choose from? You should be proud of that achievement.

Thank you so much for taking the time to respond, I truly appreciate it!! I don't mind working every weekend, and you are right, I'd either have to commute about 50 minutes from the nearest "big" town, or live in a quite low-income area so that is definitely something to think about. My main concern with the weekend package position is that it is in a very low earning state compared to the other two options. So when you boil down the pay across each job, I would still be making $10,000+ more at the Cath Lab or OR positions (without factoring in call hours worked). The other concern I have with the weekend package is that it's a 20-bed hospital with a very low patient census every day... will I get enough experience as a new grad there?

Writing out the options definitely helped me in the sense that I realized I just don't have the passion for the Cath Lab as much as I do the OR. I think I liked the idea of the Cath Lab more than the actual work, though I do really like that you have the opportunity to circulate, do cardiac monitoring, and RN sedation, which I feel would be an amazing experience, especially as a new grad! Thanks so much again for taking the time to respond, having this community to reach out to has been so helpful!!

amoLucia · Apr 11, 2021

Another thing, with Option #3 you do have possibility for doing something else PRN during the weekday. You did say you start school NEXT year, so that's like 7 -8 months away. Time to rack up some extra hours for extra $$ somewhere else.

CSTtoFutureNP · Apr 11, 2021

Just now, amoLucia said:

Another thing, with Option #3 you do have possibility for doing something else PRN during the weekday. You did say you start school NEXT year, so that's like 7 -8 months away. Time to rack up some extra hours for extra $$ somewhere else.

I do not graduate with my BSN until September, but you are right! I could absolutely look to pick up something per diem during the weekdays as well!

kbrn2002, ADN, RN · Apr 12, 2021

21 hours ago, CSTtoFutureNP said:

Thank you so much for taking the time to respond, I truly appreciate it!! I don't mind working every weekend, and you are right, I'd either have to commute about 50 minutes from the nearest "big" town, or live in a quite low-income area so that is definitely something to think about. My main concern with the weekend package position is that it is in a very low earning state compared to the other two options. So when you boil down the pay across each job, I would still be making $10,000+ more at the Cath Lab or OR positions (without factoring in call hours worked). The other concern I have with the weekend package is that it's a 20-bed hospital with a very low patient census every day... will I get enough experience as a new grad there?

Writing out the options definitely helped me in the sense that I realized I just don't have the passion for the Cath Lab as much as I do the OR. I think I liked the idea of the Cath Lab more than the actual work, though I do really like that you have the opportunity to circulate, do cardiac monitoring, and RN sedation, which I feel would be an amazing experience, especially as a new grad! Thanks so much again for taking the time to respond, having this community to reach out to has been so helpful!!

I don't think you'd have to worry as much as you think about not gaining experience. A small community hospital should provide a wide variety of patient diagnoses to work with giving you ample opportunity to learn a little bit about a lot of things.

The lower pay also doesn't surprise me and that is certainly something to consider. As this position is weekend only it would free up the weekdays for a second per diem position if you want to supplement your income with a second job that allows you to work when it fits into your schedule.

I'm also not certain you'd end up being happy with such a long commute. 50 minutes one way essentially adds almost two hours a day to your work schedule, doable but not fun. I don't know if you are in an area where you have to worry about Winter driving conditions but if you are that 50 minute commute might not be worth it. It sounds like moving might be on the table for you anyway so if you decide to accept that position maybe look for something decent midway between a bigger city and the hospital. There's bound to be some nice neighborhoods in the area. Moving is a big commitment though!

Good luck whichever job you decide to accept, I'm sure you'll be great!

CSTtoFutureNP · Apr 12, 2021

You make a good point about variety at the community hospital... that's definitely something I didn't think of! Another great point you made was about the opportunity to pick up a PRN position, which is definitely a great option!

I think you're right about the commute, I definitely don't love the idea of that, but it would be something I'd be willing to do. However, finding a place to live that's midway between is certainly something I could look into!

Thanks so much for reaching out; it has been so great to receive all this feedback!!

kbrn2002, ADN, RN · Apr 13, 2021

I did also notice you said the the weekend position was in a "lower earning state." I am assuming that would mean a move to another area for you. Is that the case for all the offered positions?

If a move is inevitable no matter which job you choose there are other considerations as well. If you plan on staying in that area is it someplace you will happy living long term? Do you see yourself fitting in with the culture of the community you would be moving to?

The lower pay might not even really be much lower if lower at all when you factor in cost of living in the area. Generally a lower wage also means a lower cost of living.

If you have a family are there job opportunities for your partner? If you have kids how are the school systems?

No matter which job you end up accepting where you live will be just as if not more important than where you work considering it's a relatively long term commitment.

I don't want to confuse the issue for you but the job itself shouldn't be the only thing you consider if you are moving to accept it.