New Nurse- possible agency nurse?

[Aporter004]

I recently got my license and am actively looking for a job. I am living in the Corpus Christi area. All of the jobs I have applied for at Christus Spon have either turned me down (no new grads in CCU or ICU) or just never heard back. OR I never hear back from Bay Area hospital. I have also been in contact with the HR of both systems. It is very frustrating. I have an outstanding resume.

I was recently contacted by an agency. They explained that I would take assignments in the area at local hospitals and I can pick what areas I want to work. It is full benefits and starting pay is 27/hr. I asked them if I would be properly oriented to the system of the hospital and the floor. It sounds really good.

Do you think that this is a safe job for a newly licensed nurse? Or should I pursue obtaining a job in the hospital?

[lizaliza]

Aporter005- I'm on the same boat. It's a really good question and actually I am wondering the same exact thing! I am a newly licensed LVN nurse and wondering if Agency is the way to go to start my new career? Can you please update us and let us know what you decided?.. if you did choose agency, was the orientation suffice?... would you make a different decision now? Thanks for posting!

[ambermeghan]

I got my license in February. I'm in Houston and I'm in the same boat. I still have not been able to find a job. I went with an agency and it was not a good experience. Orientation was 4 hours. They started me at a stand alone ER. It went really well, until I realized that they wanted me to work as the only RN. I didn't feel like it was a safe environment. They promised me several times that they would send me to a hospital to work, but then they said the hospital required 6 months experience for agency nurses. I also had to fight with them for a month to get paid for my training. They got to the point that they never returned phone calls. A classmate of mine went with a different agency and once she finished all the paperwork, they stopped returning her calls as well. I hope if you do go with an agency your experience is better. They can't all be bad, right?

[HouTx, BSN, MSN, EdD]

Sorry guys, but hospitals won't use agency nurses that do not have adequate experience. Agency nurses cost a lot more and for that amount of money, they are expected to hit the ground running with very little orientation. Some Houston area hospitals require agency nurses to come in for orientation on their own time (unpaid) in order to get on an approved list to work at that facility.

Have any of you considered relocation? I would suggest looking at smaller towns because rural hospitals in Texas still have a hard time recruiting nurses. If you are really desperate, you may want to check out the Rio Grande Valley. There is a perpetual need, and some of them may even pay relocation. Another option may be looking at LTACs (Kindred, Dubuis, etc). The working environment is similar to acute care, so it would be beneficial for your skill development.

[e.lindsey]

Hello all. I was in the same boat when I graduated last year, though I am from Denver. I landed my first nursing job doing flu shots and met another new grad who introduced me to Supplemental Healthcare and they were the ONLY agency to take new grads in the area of correctional nursing. I know there's a branch in Houston and San Antonio and they place all over the state. You might want try to them.

[all_good_names_gone]

I agree with all of the parties involved. As an agency nurse you get little to no orientation. The facility is paying high dollar for a pro who hits the ground running. I bounce back and forth between correctional nursing and LTC. I do Long Term Care when I need to be warm and sensitive for about a year or so. I learn TONS in correctional care. I cannot say enough about the skills that you will develop in corrections. You will become an assessment guru quickly. You will learn documentation skills that put most seasoned professionals to be somewhat envious. Whatever you decide to do, be safe! Check out the corrections forum.

[paulwalkman]

I did Travel Nursing in Texas over the summer. I was with a terrible company that called at 5 or 5:30am and sent me to a random hospital in one particular network. I was expected to hit the ground running...running for my life. I had to find the hospital and then find everything in the hospital for work. Unfortunately, travelling is not for first job experience. most places I know of want at least 2 years experience before yo can travel. I don't know about general agency work, but I woul assume it's nearly the same.

Paul

[elkpark]

Agencies will hire new grads for this type of work because they don't care what happens to you. This is a really bad idea for new grads. Facilities pay a lot of $$$ for agency nurses, and they expect to get seasoned "pros" who are ready to function with minimal orientation. If they wanted to be showing new grads the ropes, they'd just hire some new grads.

You are just a warm body (warm license?) to the agency. They will tell you whatever you want to hear in order to get you to sign up with them (like, plenty of orientation ) -- if you crash and burn, they have plenty of other warm bodies, but you only have you. IMO, it's important for nurses doing travel or agency work to not only have enough clinical experience to function but also to have enough general experience in nursing to be savvy about protecting their own interests and being careful not to put their licenses at risk -- because the agency employing you will certainly not do that. And because new grads are not prepared to do that, they can get put into dangerous situations which can end up in their careers being ruined.

I understand that this is a v. difficult time for new grads to be looking for jobs, but you would not be doing yourself any favor by taking an agency position.