Layoffs tomorrow!

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Can you believe it? My hospital is to announce layoffs on Monday. Where in the world but the NW do hospitals ever lay off nurses? It's not for lack of need of nurses, but rather the hospital cites decreased reimbursements leading to financial troubles. Meanwhile, the VP's still get their country club memberships paid by the hospital as part of their "compensation package".

Specializes in LTC, assisted living, med-surg, psych.

One of the hospitals in our system just laid off 15 nurses and fired all their LPNs. Lots of people where I work are afraid we're next, but even though I've heard all the same stuff from management (charity care is breaking us, the top brass are cutting all 'unnecessary' staff, we're in the red etc.) I'm not really worried about it. We just hired 10 new grads, and my own position is probably as safe as anyone's; however, I also think they're trying to clean out all the 'dead wood'.....the chronic complainers, the nurses who can't manage more than two or three patients without coming unglued, and the ones who are always behind. I told my assistant department manager a few months ago when all this started, "You're just speeding everybody up so you can weed 'em out". She didn't deny it. :rolleyes: Meanwhile, I don't see our CEO or any of the top dawgs suffering........oh well, at some point patient care will suffer enough that they'll be forced to bring staffing back up to reasonable ratios. Too bad it'll take a big fat lawsuit or two to do it......they never learn, do they? :stone

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i think what i react to, the biggest insult, is the bonuses they receive while patients are now getting substandard care.

it's an insult to the patients.

and an insult to the nurses.

nursing again, goes unacknowledged.

we really need to do something about our public image.

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Specializes in Specializes in L/D, newborn, GYN, LTC, Dialysis.
i think what i react to, the biggest insult, is the bonuses they receive while patients are now getting substandard care.

it's an insult to the patients.

and an insult to the nurses.

nursing again, goes unacknowledged.

we really need to do something about our public image.

yes, oh yes, punish nurses and nursing for what indigent care is doing to hospital's budgets. Typical.

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I also suspect what they're really up to is 'cleaning house' ...including weeding out the older higher salaried, savvier nurses and replace them with LVN's and/or the more naive new grads and more PCT's. I've seen this happen frequently in my area as well. I wonder if the older nurses stood up for themselves and claimed age discrimination if this would help, but who knows...most just go away quietly after 40 years as a nurse. Sad. I guess they don't have any energy left to fight. Of course, the facilities have likely covered themselves and created some dirt on these nurses to dispute any claim of ageism, so it may be hard to prove.

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it just so totally enrages me that mgmt.'s job is so damned cushy with all of its' perks and bonuses (i just can't let that go), as if they're getting rewarded for saving the hospital big $ by laying off nurses! :angryfire

i just get too worked up thinking about it.

i'm so damned sick of it.

do you know how much hospitals could save if they laid off people, starting at the top????

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Specializes in LDRP; Education.

I would suggest asking questions. Many staff nurses are simply uninformed either by choice or because their manager doesn't inform them.

I was amazed at what the staff nurses thought was going on at my hospital versus what was REALLY going on.

For example, many of them did not know that on top of laying off receptionists, unit secretaries and nurses, our CIO, our Executive VP and our Director of Security "resigned" effective before the next fiscal year. So, our labor cuts spanned across ALL areas.

The financial trouble is hitting ALL hospitals across the country. I would be surprised if any one hospital is laying off only RNs and that cutting labor expenses is the ONLY strategy they are using. Granted, labor costs are the highest expense for any hospital, but that usually is the last resort.

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Specializes in Emergency Dept, M/S.

I hope you guys don't mind me asking some dumb questions, but this thread brought some up for me, and being a brand-spankin' new nursing student, I have yet to find out the answers.

Of the layoffs, are these occuring at hospitals where there are unions? My thoughts (maybe incorrectly) was that those that are unionized are supposed to protect the nurses (and ultimately the patients) from severe understaffing (someone mentioned in this thread going from 8 RN's per shift to 2 - that's just so wrong on so many levels, I'm sure everyone knows)? I know being part of a union won't protect you from being laid off, but how does the union work FOR a nurse that is laid off? Or do they at all?

Also, what do the doctor's think about it? After all, when they give orders for meds/procedures to be done, and the unit is severely understaffed, do they get angry with the nurse for not doing 1M things at once (and correctly), or at the administration?

I am only familiar with our small community hospital of 48 beds (total), where the physicians seem to hold the nurses in high regard, even though there is a high turnover, due to hospital politics and under-paying/bene's. I know that it's small-town living, but wondered how differently things will be when I get to the "big" cities in my state. My first clinical rotation is at a fairly large Catholic hospital, starting next month.

I feel badly that there are area's of the country having layoff's. You can't open the Sat and Sun papers here without seeing pages of help wanted ads for nurses, from hospitals to LTC to agencies. It is such a shame that the healthcare situation in our country is in such bad shape, that the only ones benefitting are the administrators and their country clubs, while the patients, nurses, techs and other support staff are suffering.

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Where in the world but the NW do hospitals ever lay off nurses?

California

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I predict a real push for a national healthcare option for the unisured. Laying off nurses?? I thought this was supposed to be a secure position?! Unbelievable!

Pokey RN

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Specializes in MDS coordinator, hospice, ortho/ neuro.

Some folks turn up their noses at nursing home work, but except for when the occassional facility goes out of business, I've never heard of a layoff in a nursing home. Census and business goes up and down in hospitals and for agencies, nursing homes generally stay steady.

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I predict a real push for a national healthcare option for the unisured. Laying off nurses?? I thought this was supposed to be a secure position?! Unbelievable!

Pokey RN

1. Always keep your bags packed...ready to move at a moment's notice.

2. Never depend on your place of employment for your retirement funds...have a backup. And have 6 months of backup funds.

3. Most hospital CEO's are paid according to what's customary for their geographical area for their job...deal with it. You're paid the same way. Will you cut your salary in order to help the hospital's financial status...probably not.

4. Every...well most..jobs suck. It's your attitude that matters.

5. The healthcare system is about to fall down. If I had millions, a hospital would be the last business I'd start...due to reimbursement.

6. Welcome to reality...and it's not a TV show!

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Some folks turn up their noses at nursing home work, but except for when the occassional facility goes out of business, I've never heard of a layoff in a nursing home. Census and business goes up and down in hospitals and for agencies, nursing homes generally stay steady.

As a cost-saving measure, there were several nurse layoffs (among others) at a nursing home in my area a few months ago. The facility continues to be in operation, and closure is not anticipated.

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