Navigating the system on my own

[RNursingAssistant]

Hello fellow nurses!

I recently had a discussion with my nursing manager about prospects of hiring me as a new graduate RN. I have been working on the unit as a CNA for over half a year. I've gotten stellar compliments from nurses and especially patients about the wonderful care I provide. As I discussed my future option with my nursing manager, I was nervous, and apprehensive about the answer I got from her. It sounded like, the creation of a new graduate RN position may open up in the near future.

What's holding my manager back from saying straight up, "Yes We Have Room For You!" is that this position is for an Clinical RN II that is leaving, and she struggles to tell me that it seems she would prefer an experienced nurse to fulfill the role. The 8 shifts orientation for experienced nurses vs 20 shifts orientation for new graduate nurses seemed to be steering her in the direction of saying basically there will be no opening for which I am qualified for.

In addition, she seemed to dislike the 'curriculum' the hospital provided for new graduates.

I want to talk to her again tomorrow about the merits of having me on board as a RN and not just a CNA. I'm already oriented to the unit, and she's seen great work ethic. Orientation may not need to be as long as she predicted, and in addition, she already knows I'm a good fit with the people there. I am not sure if I should also state the fact that although orientation is longer for New Grad RN, I plan to stay at the hospital for many years therefore the hospital would not be wasting money on training me.

I wonder, how should I approach her again? I would like to at least plant a seed in her mind that may be training a new RN is not such a bad idea.

[meanmaryjean, DNP, RN]

You must look at it from her point of view. You are asking her to place a new grad into an opening for an experienced nurse. I understand her reluctance.

And are you saying that your hospital only does 4 weeks of orientation for a new grad? Yikes- no wonder she doesn't like it! That's nowhere near enough.

[HouTx, BSN, MSN, EdD]

Your approach is admirable. Sitting down and having a frank discussion with your manager is absolutely the right thing to do. It seems that you may need to encourage her to be completely honest with you because she appears to be afraid of hurting your feelings. However, you deserve the truth because it affects your future employment.

Try not to take it personally if she does not have a place for you. She has to prioritize the needs of the department over individual staff needs. That's one of the main reasons that management is such a difficult job. If you do have to change directions and look for a new grad in another department, it would be great to have her in your corner to help you with your job hunt. In order to make this happen, let her know that you understand the reasoning behind her decision and make sure that she knows how much you value her guidance.