Pittsburgh....LTC or agency nurses.....help

CoffeeRTC, BSN, RN · Apr 5, 2008

anyone?

JoshuaAdamsRN · Apr 7, 2008

I'm confused by your remark that you can't afford the time for an orientation/preceptorship. In most places, the hospital pays you during this period...

CoffeeRTC, BSN, RN · Apr 7, 2008

I've been in LTC for the last 15 yrs, so I'm sure if a would go to the hospital, I would need an orientation like a new grad. Most often they want a to have you do day shifts and work/ train ft hrs.

If I would stay with LTC, I am very comfortable with that and at a few of the recent prn jobs I've had, the orientation was....um typical. I had my few days of book/ paper orientation and the well planned training on the floor was tossed asided due to short staffing etc and I was on my own. To be honest, I was okay with this. Lets face it..Its really all the same (maybe different P and P and paperwork) Sooo...that was why I was even considering agency work.

Really, I just wanted to know which places to avoid? Either agencies or facilities.

CoffeeRTC, BSN, RN · Apr 11, 2008

Bumping cause I think I really need to start a looking.

NurseyBaby'05, BSN, RN · Apr 11, 2008

I just wanted to say good luck. :heartbeat I don't work LTC, but I do work a weekend program. Is that an option for you? You may only have to put in fulltime hours for part of your orientation. Good luck in your job search.

How about the Allegheny Valley School? I don't know prople who work there, but we get their "kids" all the time at my hospital. They seem really well cared for. Their skin is perfect. They don't look like procedures were done half-a$zed since they "wouldn't know any better." I'm just thinking that if that kind of care is able to be delivered consistently, the resources must be there.

http://www.avs.net/employment.cfm?navState=employment

june2009 · Apr 12, 2008

I have worked several agencies in pgh. As an LPN it was hard to get work in acute care and I have worked LTAC and LTC for the past 6 years. I got a job with epeople healthcare making $23-24 an hour and had many opportunities to work at the select specialty hosp. at montifiore. (8 south). I have also worked UPMC vital staffing and have worked at montifiore, and macgee, and I think they go to children's hosp now. I was actually offered a 3 month contract to work a telemetry unit at macgee (3 12 hr shifts per week) with 36 hrs/wk garunteed. My orientation was two full days down near the school of nursing and one half day at the vital staffing office. They were paid days at the agency rate of $23 per hour. They may even be paying more now. RNs for sure are making a lot more. I actually found the transition wery easy since I usually never had more than 4 patients on daylight shift and up to 6 on night shift. If you work 7p-7a you can park in the garages for only $2. The only drawback I can see in agency nursing is that you can be cancelled if the census is low. If you have a contract, however, you can refuse to be cancelled and then the facility has to cancel their own staff. PM me if you need more info. I'm sorry that I do not have any phone numbers for you. I'm not working for them now since I'm in RN school but I have every intension of going back to vital staffing when I get my license.

CoffeeRTC, BSN, RN · Apr 14, 2008

Thanks for the info! My mother works at Magee. (LPN for the last 30 or so yrs?)

I will look into Vital Staffing since I am leaning for agency. I only work weekends now and would like to keep with that.

cpaul10rn · Apr 26, 2008

:bugeyes:i do agency on a rare basis and select montifiore and it is not bad, the people are down to earth, and i "heard" they pay well...........just cant stand walking through the upmc hell holes...............

allnurses Guide · Apr 27, 2008

Montefiore is a UPMC hospital.

Sounds like you need to chill out... there's no need to be so bitter about a hospital system!

cpaul10rn · Apr 27, 2008

:nono:ghilbert, i was refering my "select" as select specialty hospital, which is located on the 8th floor.of montifore .......i do slam a entire system who wants to monopolize a field of work and in turn control the wages of the staff ie upmc........i have never met anybody who likes working for the "meca" upmc..........

K98 · May 5, 2008

While I am sure there are some RNs who actually like working for UPMC, I haven't met one. I have friends and relatives that are currently employed by the Evil Empire, but looking for alternate positions. I wonder how well the Evil Empire would be staffed if it suspended handing new grads 10K in cash with a list of conditions that virtually locks them in to 3 years of indentured servitude? All of the private-jet frequent fliers at the Empire should thank their lucky stars that they have a dearth of nursing schools in western Pennsylvania that feed new grads into the machine. If they actually had to retain staff they would have problems.