2 job opportunities, help!!

[baseballerswife]

Hello all! I am stuck and need some advice. I'm a new grad LVN and am currently working at a nursing home, I got a call and was offered a position of unit clerk at a hospital for approximately 90 days then work as a LVN there. I'm stuck on what to do. The nursing home is going to pay me pretty good, but all I would be doing is passing meds. At the hospital I wouldn't make near as much as a unit clerk, but would have a secure spot as an LVN on med surg making comparable to the nursing home. And if I work at the hospital I can also PRN at another local nursing home on the weekends. What would you do?

If any of that wasn't clear please let me know and I will clear up what I can :)

[PCroizier]

If I were looking at this dilemma I would go with the unit clerk-lvn hospital choice IF it were in a contract that I would get to the lvn position for certain. I like the idea of getting familiarity with the unit and it's operations as the unit clerk first, but I would be worried if there is no contract that I might never get to advance to the lvn position.

[baseballerswife]

I would definitely have something in writing before I accepted the offer, too risky not to.

[baseballerswife]

I have only been at the nursing home for a couple of weeks until I get my GVN, how should I go about quitting the nursing home to go to work at the hospital? I don't want to burn my bridges at the nursing home so to speak.

[prettymica, ASN, BSN, MSN, LPN, RN, APRN, NP]

Go PRN at the nursing home and take the unit clerk position. Trust me they will call you alot to work at the nursing home.

[inkydorei, LVN]

If you put in a 2 weeks notice at the nursing home, you are not burning bridges....or like prettymica says, just go prn, with notice. As an LVN, you will probably have a hard time getting in at a hospital, so if i were you, i'd jump at this chance if working in the hospital is what you want to do.

[SinikRN101]

I would definitely take the hospital option.. but that's just me, I can't speak for you in your situation. Hospital Experience as an LVN opens up a lot of doors.

[jadelpn, LPN, EMT-B]

Strictly my opinion--Give notice to the nursing home that you are going PRN as long as you get in writing that you will be unit clerk for "X" number of weeks, then you will transition into an LPN position begining on such and such a date. And be well versed in what an LPN can and can't do in this particular hospital setting. Are there other LPN's on the floor? If it is not what you are looking for, I just don't want to see you get into a position where they are looking for a licensed unit clerk to do med sheets and orders and things like answering call bells because you hold a license-meaning that their idea of you becoming an LPN on the floor is that you can do med sheets and put in orders and call bells that perhaps a unit clerk could do, but a licensed person is held at a higher standard for accuracy, and take the call bells. Ask to see their LPN policy. Go on your state's nursing board website and get your scope of practice. If the goal is not to have you work to your scope clinically, take a patient assignment when they tranistion you to the LPN position, then you need to decide if your goal is to get clinically involved with patients, or if you enjoy the paperwork aspect of things, as well as patient contact when they ring. And some LPN's do like that aspect of nursing and is a good opportunity if it is right for you. And if you enjoy your position at the nursing home as med nurse, I would keep that as a prn position, and perhaps transition into either treatments or charge, depending on how much you want to work extra for them. LPN and Unit Clerk is not mutually exclusive, so I would be curious as to what that means, exactly.

[baseballerswife]

Strictly my opinion--Give notice to the nursing home that you are going PRN as long as you get in writing that you will be unit clerk for "X" number of weeks, then you will transition into an LPN position begining on such and such a date. And be well versed in what an LPN can and can't do in this particular hospital setting. Are there other LPN's on the floor? If it is not what you are looking for, I just don't want to see you get into a position where they are looking for a licensed unit clerk to do med sheets and orders and things like answering call bells because you hold a license-meaning that their idea of you becoming an LPN on the floor is that you can do med sheets and put in orders and call bells that perhaps a unit clerk could do, but a licensed person is held at a higher standard for accuracy, and take the call bells. Ask to see their LPN policy. Go on your state's nursing board website and get your scope of practice. If the goal is not to have you work to your scope clinically, take a patient assignment when they tranistion you to the LPN position, then you need to decide if your goal is to get clinically involved with patients, or if you enjoy the paperwork aspect of things, as well as patient contact when they ring. And some LPN's do like that aspect of nursing and is a good opportunity if it is right for you. And if you enjoy your position at the nursing home as med nurse, I would keep that as a prn position, and perhaps transition into either treatments or charge, depending on how much you want to work extra for them. LPN and Unit Clerk is not mutually exclusive, so I would be curious as to what that means, exactly.

This hospital utilizes the LVNs on the floor. There are several that work there and they take patients and do their patient's care like regular nurses. The LVNs work under a charge RN. Being the Unit Clerk would be temporary until the other new LVN is off of her orientation. Acting as Unit Clerk would count as part of my orientation as well.