New Grad at Davita

[ALH2004]

Hey all,

I'm a new grad RN and filled out a profile/application on the Davita website a little over a month ago. To my suprise, I recieved a phone call today from a lady at the main office. She gave me a "mini" interview over the phone and said she would be sending my info to the manager at one of the offices in my area and they would be calling me for an interview soon. I was very excited at first because this is the first call back I've gotten after almost 4 months of putting in numerous applications and having NO luck. BUT after reading some of the post here about Davita and really thinking about it, I'm starting to have a few doubts. From what she described, the job almost seems too good to be true. I mean an extensive orientation/training (which she says they would pay for transporation and a hotel since I would have to travel to the one week class), great pay, benefits and working environment. But I have to wonder, with all these great perks, if offered the job, what would I be getting myself in to. I know Davita offers new grad positions, but this particular job requires at least 9 months of acute care experience, which I do not have. ALso, the lady said that I would be working 4 10hr shifts, but then said my hours would be 6am-5:30. I asked her twice, about the hours to make sure I didn't hear wrong and she said 6-5:30, which is 11.5 hours not 10!?! I may be over thinking, but I have a few doubts about this job. I guess what I'm asking is if offered should I take this job or should I wait and continue to try for a hospital job? I don't want to pass up an opportunity, but I also don't want my first nursing job to a bad one.

[sweetart_1980, RN, CNS]

It really depends on the facility u work for. The Facility Administrator and your coworkers make all the difference in the out patient unit. You work with the same people for those 12 hours, and yes some of the units have 10 12 or 14 hour days. some people have had bad experiances with davita but i have worked for them for five years in the outpatient and acute programs in southern cali and i like it. They have adequate pay scales and benefits and occasional great bonuses. If u accept an interview really evaluate weather or not u really could work under that facility adminstrator and talk to the people who work there and try to get a sense if they like it at that facility. as far as nursing experiance goes dialysis is a niche and u wont get much med surg skills down. But our patients are complex and interesting and u will get massive amounts of experiance in case management, team management, patient relations and so much more. Dialysis is a unique field and the benefits as a nurse are really something else. Good luck with what u decide!!!

[ALH2004]

Thanks for the input. I had an interview this past Thursday, but I don't think I'm going to take the job. The FA that interviewed me seemed like a great person to work for, but he was not the FA at that particular clinic. He's actually an FA at a clinic in the neighboring state, but was filling in for the FA of this clinic, while she is on sick leave. The nurses there didn't seem too friendly towards me. Maybe it was just a bad time of day for them, I'm not really sure. I really tried to take in everything while I was there, but I don't think it's for me. The facility was not in the best condition nor was it in a safe area. Nurses are excepted to be at work for 5am meaning I would have to leave my home at 4:15 to get there on time. Also, they want me to commit to at least a year, which is understandable with all the extensive training they provide. As a new grad, I didn't feel it was a good fit for me, so I will keep looking.