HUGE dilemma I need advice!

[Peeker19]

Here is my prediciment..

So I worked at a hospital in the PT department all through nursing school. I have been there for 5 years and I was unable to secure a nursing job with the company after I graduated. I have stayed PRN with the therapy department in hopes of getting a nursing position. This week I got an interview for the float pool, I believe I got the interview because I am a current employee and I would not need as much orientation. I have not heard whether I got the position or not.

Today I recieved a call from the manager of the therapy department requesting my resignation because I do not have the flexibility that they need to meet the needs of the department.

So here is the predicament, I had the interview knowing that I was a current employee and now I am being forced to resign from my old position. She wants my resignation letter today....what should I do?

1. Tell the manager that I did have an interview and can I wait to send the letter in until I know about the other position?

2. Call the lady I interviewed with and tell her what is going on and is it going to be a problem for me to get the position?

I am torn on what to do....at the time we talked about the resignation I did not even think that it might mess up my opportunity to get the new job! I should have just told her but I was not thinking at the time.....UGGGGHHHH HELP ME!!! If you are a manager what would you do? Let me wait or tell me tuff luck?

[classicdame, MSN, EdD]

As a manager I will tell you it all depends on the immediate needs of my department. If I could afford to keep you, I would. If your presence interferes with me being able to hire someone else then I would ask for resignation, as the work needs to be done. As for new manager, depends on your facility's culture. I see no harm in contacting the interviewer and asking about the status of your application. If you are stalled, start looking elsewhere. Whether or not you are currently employed will not affect your being hired AFTER an interview, as they already know what they need to know about you. GOOD LUCK

[canesdukegirl, BSN, RN]

Have a frank discussion with your current manager. Tell her that you have had an interview with the float pool, and you understand that she is focusing on the needs of her unit. Present your case as a win/win. She gets to hire another FTE who can fulfill the needs of the unit, and you get to have the opportunity to list "current employment" with the hospital that you work for so that you can simply be transferred. If she can agree to wait for a couple of days, you BOTH win.

Absolutely talk to the float pool manager and tell her your situation. She will more than likely understand what the other manager is going through, and could perhaps expedite your application into a transfer request instead. It takes much less paperwork to do it this way.

If your current manager is willing, you could ask her to contact the float pool manager and describe the situation. Both managers want positions filled...bottom line. See if it would be acceptable for your current manager to do this for you.

It really seems to me like the best plan in your situation. Good luck! Let us know how it unfolds.

[Whispera, MSN, RN]

I think the above advice is good. I don't think your current manager is meaning to put you in a predicament. She doesn't (probably) know you've interviewed for another job at the facility, does she? Then again, managers talk to each other if an employee is make the move from one spot to another.

One thing that strikes me, that hasn't been addressed yet, is...why do you have to resign? You don't want to resign, yet, do you? How can an employer ask you to resign if you're working the hours you've agreed to work. Even then, wouldn't it be a termination rather than a resignation? Is the manager trying to avoid you getting unemployment? Or is it just a matter of having all loose ends tied up? Does your manager know you're making a move and is being proactive about it to fill the needs of her department? I don't see that a resignation from a prn position would open up a larger position for your manager. I have a whole lot of "hmmmm's" in my mind over this.

I think I'd talk to her about the whole thing

[canesdukegirl, BSN, RN]

Whispera,

My immediate thought was that since the OP was only PRN, the manager was trying to eliminate PRN staff in order to argue a need for more FTEs for her unit. Capital budget negotiations are ongoing now, and these positions need to be negotiated now. That was the only reason I could come up with pertaining to the manager's seemingly rushed request of the OP.

I think that if the OP were to have an honest discussion with the manager, both parties would get what they want. It really is about the bottom line right now, and the deadline for capital budget negotiations is very soon. This is why I thought that the OP should take advantage of the timeline regarding staffing issues on both sides.

This issue could not have come at a better time for the OP.

[nurse.sandi]

I agree with the other posters but shouldn't the human resource department being the ones to talk to OP? At the hospital I worked at when someone was being terminated or asked to resign HR and the manager talked to the employee. It is silly to think company would want to lose a good employee but things are so different nowadays. All jobs are at will, even contract..they always find a way out of it. Do some further research and look on the open postings of your company and see if your job is on there? Nothing suprises me in health care anymore. Most of the time it is the bottom line... money. Good luck.

[AggieNurse99, BSN, RN]

My question for you: how can you work in PT? Are you not legally held to the standard of a prudent nurse no matter where in the hospital you are? How does this work per risk management.

[nurse.sandi]

I was told I could not be a sitter when I was trying to return to work with an injury and restrictions because of the prudent nurse issue.