A letter I wrote to Senator Schumer. I am a new grad like many of you who CANNOT find a job.
I am writing to you today to raise awareness of the "nursing shortage" that has been reported by the media for some time. I am sure you are well aware that this is a problem that needs solving. If you visit a hospital, you will find that there are not enough nurses. Patients are being neglected. Yet this year alone, there will be 10,000 new graduate nurses.
For as long as I can remember, I've always had a love for medicine. It was not my first career choice when I graduated from high school. However, as time went on, I realized that the need for health care professionals was growing. There was one time in particular when I was in the hospital for surgery. It was 3 am and the pain medication had worn off. I called for a nurse three times, finally getting a call back on a loud speaker. I tried to raise my voice telling the nurse I needed more medicine. It took about 15 minutes for the medication to be delivered, and that was the one and only time I saw that nurse for the entire night.
As a nursing student, I experienced this situation often. Nursing trainees are able to dispense medication and care for patients just like the R.N. on staff. I cannot recall how many times the patients stated they were so thankful we were there to help. The patients constantly said that they had seen their particular nurse once or twice in a twelve hour period, and it took a lot of persistence to get the assistance they needed.
I know this business well after devoting three years of my life to learning about it, and realize that not only are the patients suffering but so are the nurses. Of course on paper the job seems like a win-win situation. The starting base salary can be anywhere from 55,000-60,000 annually. Well, I urge anyone to go onto a medical surgical floor and try to have one conversation with an R.N. while they are doing their rounds, dispensing medication, and writing documentation (which is constant). You will soon understand that there is no time to chat. To further complicate this scenario, what if one of the eight patients under their care has an emergency? In many cases this means that the other patients will be neglected or the emergency will go unseen for quite some time.
You are probably asking yourself if 10,000 student nurses will graduate this year, why is there a nursing shortage? It has been my mission to understand this over the past four months. I graduated in December 2009, and received my license in February 2010. I have been searching for a position as a new graduate R.N. for this entire time. What I have been told by every nursing recruiter is that there is no funding for newly graduated nurses. Many have said that the hospitals are broke and cannot afford the staff they already have. How can this issue of a nursing shortage be rectified if no one is willing to hire and train new nurses?
Since you are a part of the "baby boom" generation, I am sure you are well aware that if there are not enough nurses now, what will happen in the next 10 - 20 years? As the clock ticks, only a small percentage of the nursing students who graduated with me in December 2009 will have a position. Those of us who don't find jobs will lose the skills we acquired in school. At one hospital in particular, I was told that a position would possibly open in September 2010. That would be nine months after I graduated from my last clinical rotation. I have tried to gain employment in home care, nursing homes, outpatient facilities, doctor's offices, and any other place a nurse would be hirable. For every position I've applied for, the recruiter says the same thing, "We cannot hire new grads." Forty nurses from my graduating class are at a loss for ideas. Some have moved to other states, only to find the same exact situation.
I urge you to please consider a New York State funded program for new graduates. Ask anyone of us to take a pay cut just to have an opportunity to work and learn, and we would gladly oblige. Some of us may only have an Associate's degree in nursing. However, we've received same education that B.S.N. graduates enjoy, but at an accelerated pace. The hospitals are denying us jobs because they say that they cannot afford to further finance our education. Does this mean that being accepted into one of the most difficult and demanding nursing programs in the country and graduating magna cum laude was all in vain? I certainly hope not.
My newly-licensed colleagues and I are the future face of healthcare. But without jobs and training, our skills will go unused. This would be truly shameful, not only for my nursing sisters and brothers, but for the future retiree generation that will someday include you and my parents.
Maybe I missed something huge, but here is the section on licensing requirements from the NYS Board of Nursing:
Registered Professional Nursing
To meet the professional education requirement for licensure as a registered professional nurse, you must present satisfactory evidence of having received at least a two-year degree or diploma from a program in general professional nursing that is acceptable to the Department. To be acceptable to the Department, the program must be either:
registered as licensure qualifying by the New York State Education Department; or
approved by the licensing authority or appropriate governmental agency in the jurisdiction where the school is located as preparation for practice as a registered professional nurse.
In addition to the professional education requirement, every applicant for licensure or limited permit as a registered professional nurse must complete coursework or training in the identification and reporting of child abuse in accordance with Section 6507(3)(a) of the Education Law.
Every registered professional nurse must also complete approved coursework or training appropriate to the professional's practice in infection control and barrier precautions, including engineering and work practice controls, to prevent the transmission of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and the hepatitis b virus (HBV) in the course of professional practice.
If you graduated in 2010 you are required by NYS to gain your BSN within 10 years. Before that we do not have to get it however we are being FORCED BY the hospitals obviously! Going on 5 months now without a job!
To the best of my knowledge, and as a NYS resident, the "BSN in 10" is still nothing more than a proposal and has not been made law. If you can provide information to the contrary, please let me know, thanks.
Under the proposed law RN sfrom diploma and ADN programs would have to have their BSN,or making great steps towards it 10 years after graduation or loose their license, or at least "RN" status, cannot remember exactly which. New Jersey also as such a proposal floating around as well.
In any case ADN programs far out number BSN nursing schools in NYS and thus provide a majority of nurses, not only are a huge "business". If students faced a choice of not being a nurse a mere ten years after graduating from a ADN program, many would probably just go for their BSN straight away and get it over with. That would put many of the former nursing schools out of business especially those in community colleges and hospital affliates. Healthcare in NYS is a huge business with lots of clout, and can promise you that isn't going to happen without a fight.
As for NYC hospitals hiring only BSN nurses, that probably is true of the large teaching hospitals such as Mount Siani, NYP and a few others, but that still leaves Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx and especially Staten Island where the two main nursing programs are ADN.
Right now with the tough economic climate causing hospitals causing hospitals to keep nursing service costs down, and the glut of not only new grads, but experienced nurses floating about looking for work due to unemployment or under employment, it is easy to pick and choose. Should things turn around and the "nursing shortage" really begins to hit home again, trust me, ADN grads will be hired.
Thanks, DoGood! I couldn't figure out how I could have possibly missed such a huge change being announced and implemented over the past year--and without my employers having mentioned it! I'm from NY, too.
When I applied to hospitals in Queens, Brooklyn, and Staten Island I have been rejected due to the fact that I only hold an ADN. I know your right Dogood when you say that they will HAVE to hire us eventually but right now its just not happening. We need an ADN advocate if there are in fact more ADN programs! Shooting out all these new graduates with no jobs is just saturating the environment. I feel like I am drowning! BTW "President Obama" wrote me back a response to this letter. Obviously it was a generic letter but it was more of a response than I have gotten from all the people in congress I have sent this to!!
Specializes in Med-Surg /Cardiac Step-Down/CICU/CTICU.
when i was in nursing school there were talks of those newly graduated from ADN programs having to earn their BSN within 10 years or they wouldn't be allowed to practice. i went to lobby day in albany a few times and talked to senators and congressman & congresswoman who do support nursing, nursing education, nursing faculty regardless of ADN or BSN. don't forget that we are the strongest workforce in the country. anyways.....that bill died off in the legislature, but i'm sure they will be pushing for it again. although i don't think it's a bad bill, i just don't find it necessary for someone who nursing is a second career and they have no intentions of becoming supervisors or taking managerial roles in nursing or research or for someone who has a bachelors, just not in nursing. do i think that the theory you acquire in the BS program is important, yes, but to say it's necessary for someone to care for patients-vie me a break! an ADN is fine. of course those who already held a diploma or ADN would be grandfathered in to this so called clause and would not be made to go back to recieve a BS or BSN. same applies to the NP....now as I am undergoing my masters education....there is talks by all states to have all NP's educated at the Doctorate level and all NP's would have a doctorate in nursing instead and the phasing out of the masters in nursing. I'm sure this is something that will come to pass eventually. Just like way in the hay-day RN's only recieved diplomas in nursing...and slowly they upgraded education to associate and baccleaurate. It will take years and years to phase out the current education system that is in place and in every state. Prob way well into my grand-childrens time, so no worries.
When I applied to hospitals in Queens, Brooklyn, and Staten Island I have been rejected due to the fact that I only hold an ADN. I know your right Dogood when you say that they will HAVE to hire us eventually but right now its just not happening. We need an ADN advocate if there are in fact more ADN programs! Shooting out all these new graduates with no jobs is just saturating the environment. I feel like I am drowning! BTW "President Obama" wrote me back a response to this letter. Obviously it was a generic letter but it was more of a response than I have gotten from all the people in congress I have sent this to!!
*Wow*
Since there is only one undergraduate BSN program on Staten Island (Wagner College), one wonders where all the grads from St. Vincent's (now Saint Paul's), and The College of Staten Island (CUNY) are finding or found jobs. Both are ADN programs and crank out grads every six months (or is it yearly in the case of St. Paul's?).
There are only three hospitals on Staten Island, Richmond University Medical Center (formerly St. Vinny's), and Staten Island University (has two locations), so wonder when either started getting so picky.
Staten Island University is part of the LIJ healthcare system so maybe that has something to do with things.
Someone wrote they were rejected hired because they don't have a BSN. I just want to let you know that BSN are not being hire. Most New Grads that are being hired have some kind of connection. It doesn't matter if your a ADN or BSN, there are no New Grads being hired without connection. Just ask BSN New Grads at Molloy, LIU, etc., most of all there classmates are not being hire. I'm in my third week at a hospital, there were 15 new grads in March and 10 hired with me in April. Only 2 have there BSN, but everyone but me had a connection.
I hate to say it but is not what you know but who you know.
WondeR.N.
85 Posts
Hm! Interesting! I graduated a year ago, so I had no idea. Are graduates before 2010 exempt from the new rule?