One of my colleagues' husband has just got a job transfer to a region that is not midwife friendly, so she's job searching in the new city. There are no open positions for a midwife and she doesn't want to do bedside labor and delivery. She sent her resume to the hospital recruiter who asked her if she would be interested in interviewing for a nurse manager position for the emergency room. My colleague has never worked as an emergency nurse. Sounds out-of-step but the hospital has a goal of filling all management positions with MSN-prepared nursing staff.
This is a smaller hospital, around 120 beds? Maybe less?
She thinks this may be a good opportunity to bring midwifery into this hospital....eventually...but right now she needs a job. She is very open minded and has a great work ethic. She understands this is a different area--but she hasn't been offered the job and unsure if she should even interview.
Has anyone taken a position before as a manager in an area of nursing where you didn't have experience? How did it work out?
Any insight is welcome....granted, we have all had majority underqualified managers in our careers. However, my colleague is the type that truly listens and is flexible...we are going to hate to lose her in our practice.
I go along with those posters that say this might not be such a good move. ED managers have to be willing and able to help when the you-know-what hits the fan. This would be especially important in a small ED with few resources.
Specializes in Psychiatry, Community, Nurse Manager, hospice.
My coworker on inpatient adult psych went from charge nurse on an inpatient psych unit to night supervisor of a small community hospital, overseeing ALL units. She did not survive there and came back to work in our crisis unit after 3 months. Incidentally, she was furious with me for encouraging her to take that job offer and it destroyed our relationship. I hope your friend is not so irresponsible as to hold you accountable to her life decisions, but I'm just sharing the info to impress how badly it went for her.
I'm thinking it is a small hospital. Don't know if that means there is a bigger hospital nearby that would get the critical patients? This ER may not deal with high acuity patients.
Or is it the only facility withn 30 miles? It may just stabilize patients till the Life Flight transport gets there.
You can't expect a small hospital in the "boonies" to provide advanced trauma care.
If staff want to be hired from within they should be made aware the job requires a MSN. If none of them have one, or are close to getting one, that's on them. Many nurses don't want the headache of management.
Nothing against a person considering all of their employment options. However, I feel this would be a particularly toxic move on the hospital's part, and the ED staff is sure to agree. I'm with with @Jedrnurse, I don't think it will be pretty, just like it wouldn't be if an ENP or ED CNS was hired to OB in this context. I would consider this place a 100% [profanity of choice] for this move, and she should know if this is how they regard nursing care, they won't have one more ounce of regard for her as a manager.
It also wouldn't surprise me if there's an actual reason they would consider [desire] someone not too invested in the place or the specialty: In order to enact change, or more/bigger change, or just simply disrupt staff. But that's pure speculation, obviously. It just shouldn't be shocking if that's how it turns out.
Specializes in LTC, assisted living, med-surg, psych.
Sooo not a good idea. Like others have said, I'd have to question the motives of a hospital that's willing to hire someone with ZERO experience as manager of an ER. What often happens is they hire you, give you a short "honeymoon" period, and then the responsibility for everything that goes sideways is laid at your feet, and you get thrown under the bus when the excrement collides with the oscillating ventilation system. It's happened to me before and my career barely survived it. ☹️
I'm an ED nurse and, no, this would not be well received.
Regarding midwifery, the United States is so backwards regarding it. This epitomizes the paternalistic underpinnings of American medicine. Midwife unfriendly? Ugh!!!
I'm an ED nurse and, no, this would not be well received.
Regarding midwifery, the United States is so backwards regarding it. This epitomizes the paternalistic underpinnings of American medicine. Midwife unfriendly? Ugh!!!
I want to say, Midwifery only involves the most courageous, confident, and capable nurses I can think of. As a former pedi ED nurse and an elementary school nurse for many years where you are left to your own to assess, problem solve, and intervene...midwifery would scare the living hell out of me!!
Specializes in Specializes in L/D, newborn, GYN, LTC, Dialysis.
Having done management, I think it's a possible set up for failure. This is experience talking. It's hard enough to manage with all the applicable experience. Also, yep we are expected to fill staffing gaps, meaning if there is a call out at the last minute, it does not matter you have been there in the office 8 or more hours. You now have extended your day to 16 or 18 to cover the staffing shortfall.
Doing this, makes accomplishing managerial tasks hard. And if they are short, being exempt, they will lean hard to expect her to work bedside to fill gap as is. There will be a lot of 60 or more hour workweeks and changing hats, constantly.
It's difficult in the best of circumstances. Whenever I consider a new job, I like to find out why the vacancy exists, if at possible. There is a reason the position is open, believe me.
Oh and yea, expect staff pushback. That is the hardest thing to overcome. Many things, not under your control, are automatically your fault, both from the view points of admin and your staff. It can be so very thankless and stressful.
Specializes in ED, ICU, MS/MT, PCU, CM, House Sup, Frontline mgr.
I am a former Trauma RN. I have worked in small rural EDs and big urban Trauma EDs. I had one manager literally walk off the job one night when we called her in because we were short staffed. She thought she only need to drop by and provide us with ra-ra emotional support. However, the charge nurse informed her that we needed her to take patients. Thus, before she went to her office to get her purse and walk out and never return, her response was as follows: "I have been a manager for 15 years! I am not taking patients! That is not what I was told this job was about! I am giving my resignation now."
Front-line managers in nursing within the hospital setting are no longer office-and-meeting-attending-only jobs. If this is a front-line department management position (and most are), she will be expected to perform bedside ED work. She will not receive an orientation like that of staff RNs, but the expectations will be that she can perform the job of a competent staff RN when needed. Therefore, I highly suggest that: 1.) Your friend go to the interview to practice interviewing skills and 2.) She not accept the position if offered.
Specializes in UR/PA, Hematology/Oncology, Med Surg, Psych.
If a manager can't step into my position and do a decent job, I lose some respect for him/her. How can someone lead others when they don't know the job well enough to see the problems, stresses, and issues of said job. Managers should be able to be resources for their staff.
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traumaRUs, MSN, APRN
87 Articles; 21,287 Posts
I go along with those posters that say this might not be such a good move. ED managers have to be willing and able to help when the you-know-what hits the fan. This would be especially important in a small ED with few resources.