Mintezia

I had a previous case where I was told by the agency that the client "went through four pages of nurses". Unfortunately you do have clients who take complete advantage of their nurses. And it is on them, not you. Usually if a case has openings to me it's a red flag. During these times it might be difficult to staff a case fully. As others have suggested, find another case. At some point it is a possibility he will be dropped from the agency due to lack of staffing.

I've been wanting to get something off of my chest and it's been bothering me for a while. It seems I've had a lot of diffculty getting a home health case the past year, and I'm not sure why. I am not a new grad. I have been in this field since 2018. I worked in NYC and Seattle and in either place I've had far less trouble getting a case there with relatively little experience. I have trach and vent experience with peds and adults. In the past year I lived in SC and currently reside in NC but my experience getting a case here has been a nightmare. I go to meet and greets, waste my time and gas and be told that I'm not a good fit. I know they are usually required but my experience has been to go to a case where there was a need and train right away. Usually I would start work on the case and would only leave if they weren't a good fit for me. The clients here are so extremely picky to the point where it would be near impossible to find a job. It seems I lucked out at my current two cases mainly by the grace of God. I am not saying the clients shouldn't have a say in who is their nurse. It just seems scary how things work here. And I really worry what would happen if either client went to the hospital. I just need to know if I am missing something here. I became friends with a nurse that trained me and she told me how 2 of her friends that moved here have left and one that came from Texas is miserable. The wages I am getting paid for an LPN are great, but at this point I am so emotionally burnt out from the past year. I am not sure if NC is a good fit for me but I've debated on moving back to my home state of TN. I am a little worried how things will work there. I don't see a whole lot of variety of nurses out here. It seems like many of the nurses are older, white, so I am not sure if this is the preference for nurses here. I hate to make this about race but none of the other places I've worked were like that. Sorry if this post was long.

I started at $25 and lived in NYC. At that time the salary there was $23-27 for a new LPN depending on where they were working. The staffing agencies paid more but a brutal working experience for me as a new grad LOL. Then I saw it go up to $28 when the pandemic started. I imagine in a place like NYC they probably would pay $30 or more for an LPN with what's going on out there. And it really does seem like the gap is decreasing outside of travel nursing. It's jacked! But I imagine Covid nurses are still doing well.

Not Sure but I've seen it an experienced it. I mentioned earlier making a similar salary to an RN. I think both of us had a similar level experience which was not a lot. Surprisingly new hospitals RNs do not make a lot and depending on where the LPN is working at they can make more than the RN. I have traveled Around a bit and I recall an RN saying she made more money in LTC than she did in the hospital. This was back in Utah. I also used to work alongside an RN at a home care case in Seattle. I know she was working two jobs. I want to say she was working in a facility but it probably might have been your average one if she needed to work 2 jobs. That and Seattle being pricey LOL. I have also seen postings where my current salary has been more than a new RN. I know clinic salaries are also the lowest so there is that too. I do not think a new RN should be making less than an LPN especially since you gotta factor in all the expenses one may have. But someone somewhere did mention that staff nurses do not make a lot of money these days. The reason why probably has to do with something far more complicated. My current employer did tell me I would not make more money if I went back to school. I see lots of postings off of Indeed that say LPN/RN with the same salary listed. These mainly seem to be in home care or LTC though.

Thanks! I have zero desire to be in any kind of management and I'm not a very patient person so teaching is out. I suppose if I continued in home health that could be one way to get around it. I did see a fair amount of travel RN positions for home health that pay pretty good. I have decided I am going to move back to the west coast. I will probably look into Indiana states' online LPN to BSN program esp since I have lots of college credits. I've been to Miami once for a few days. I am not sure I could live in that state for a few reasons. Some CNA I worked with told me they are phasing out LPNs down there and even RNs have a hard time finding a job. I'm not sure which part of FL she was talking about. Being back in the south made me realize I am not longer cut out for the heat like I used to be.

I don't think so. I used to live in WA state and I made similar money to an RN who had her 4 year degree. I was getting paid $30 an hour (I had about 1.5 year experience at the time) and she mentioned getting paid $28 an hour. Both of us were working in home care though. But she said that the hospitals were really competitive to get into. I've browsed on Indeed and a lot of places the pay rate for RNs and LPNs is not that great outside of travel nursing.

I had a friend in Sacramento that lived on his own. But I think he was definitely working overtime there. I think the further in land one goes it might also be possible. I've also heard of Californians moving up to WA state. It's definitely doable there.

I won't repeat what has been already said. It seems he needs more care than the agency and family can provide. LTC centers are not the best of places but being in a facility there's less of a chance he will be neglected at least in the way his family neglected him. Restraints will not be given unless they are ordered for and in the plan of care. The family is not being reasonable and sometimes with home health there are situations where your license is put into jeopardy. It isn't worth it. Good luck!

Why not look into home health? The schedules are generally flexible. I've worked for a few an I have seen anywhere from 4 to 16 hour shifts.

I would check for peds home health cases specificially. The adult home care cases usually require a lot of lifting (some peds cases too). There are still lots of LPN opportunities although it depends on the region of the country.

Thanks so much on responding. It's unfortunate to hear it's not only affecting those in my state. It's a really messed up situation. I hear LPNs being phased out but it seems that they would rather have LPNs outside of the hospital since we are cheaper, especially as medical costs go up. And even in RN specific jobs like infusion it seems those positions aren't paying much more. It seems to me that the only thing the RN carries is the title. I am not sure if there is much awareness of this happening outside our field. And I don't see many RN hospital positions at least not in this area. As I search for jobs I see a lot of LPN/RN positions in either home health or LTC and the pay rate being the same for either.

I have been undecided on whether or not an RN would be worth it for me. I have 3.5 years of experience with trach and vent patients both adults and peds. I currently live in NC where I get paid $29/hr. (I am in the process of applying to a new agency that will pay me $30 after night shift differentials are taken into account). In the past I have lived in Seattle, WA and NYC. I am on the fence about staying here in NC especially since my old job is offerring to pay more including night differentials. There are other reasons too. My current employer told me they will not pay me more should I go get my RN. And I have looked at numerous ads here in Charlotte and it seems I won't be getting paid a whole lot more should I get my RN. In some cases it seems I will take a pay cut. Being realistic here I don't think travel nursing would be an option in my future should I go on for my RN. (I have a cat and am unwilling to part with him) I know getting an RN would be a good option but at least here the wages between RNs and LPNs do not vary much. I've got to factor in repaying student loans and living expenses especially since it is just me. I really don't want to take on debt if my wage is barely going to budge. Would it be best for me to move back to the west coast or elsewhere? And what has been anyone's experience that has gone from an RN to an LPN? Thanks!

It depends on the health conditions and family. An 'easy' case can become extremely unpleasant if the family is uncooperative or extremely controlling. In my experience it's usually mom who will decide that a nurse is good for her case if it's a peds one. Dementia cases can be trickier for those without the proper experience. But you also have to consider whether the client requires a transfer and whether or not you will have assistance and how strong you are. The simplest cases I've had were ones where suctioning the trach and tending to the g/t. There's a ton of downtime involved. Some nurses I've talked to really seem to enjoy the infant cases.

Have you considered home health? It's generally a good fit for those who are burnt out from nursing and are looking for a more laid back environment. I've covered different types of cases and I've had some require a bit of physical work whereas others I mostly sat for the shift. The scheduling is very flexible as well. Pay may not always be the highest but it is decent and overtime in home health is manageable without much effort.

Absolutely quit. Nursing homes have always been understaffed and it seems COVID has made it worse. No amount of money is worth that level of insanity. It's a reason I left for home health and it works out for me. As a new grad I had a 1:40 ratio, no support and staff that bullied and talked about me behind my back. There are good facilities out there with good ratios but it takes a minute to find. Good luck!

Depends on the area. In Seattle I made $30/hr. But the turnover for staff was very high. Staff was unorganized and some of the worst people I've met in healthcare worked at this particular home health agency. In NYC I made $25/hr as a new grad. Currently I live in SC and make $22/hr. However the other home health agencies in this area pay $17-20 an hour (In Seattle CNA pay was around $16-19/hr) regardless of experience and offer only 8 hour shifts. Home care really isn't good down here but I have extenuating circumstances for living here. My situation is only temporary.

No, although keep in mind you will need to take a jurisprudence test to get reciprocity in Texas. I have moved a few times and had no issues without having a permanent address in that state. As for the jurisprudence test it may be easier to sign up for that once you do become a resident. Keep in mind TX is a compact state. It may be easier to apply to another compact state that does not have a jurisprudence test and then having a permanent nursing license to use instead. Also the TX BON isn't the best. I have not been able to get a hold of any person so communication with them will be a tedious process. Good luck!

Thank you so much for your response! I really appreciated it. I am currently working on driver's license and with the test being modified I'm certain I'll get it soon. That's literally the only thing keeping me here. I'm lucky I've managed to find a way to work. But pretty soon once I get a car and license I'm outta here. I'm still really upset I wasn't told about the real hours. I made great money in Seattle and had a good standard of living. While there's a lot going on there I am strongly considering moving to the Tacoma area sometime next year. Good to know I'm not being paranoid. I have a good sense of intuition and I haven't always heeded it. The DON was the one playing up the agency who's a different person from the owner. Even though the DON said she liked me I plan on moving on when something better comes along. I think it says a lot about the agency allows such a person to be in that position. Edit: there are other agencies in the area. But the pay is crap and about the other half are visiting nurse only. And since these agencies offer mostly 8 hrs I'd be working 6 days a week if I needed overtime. No thanks!

Part of this is the reason I've stuck with home health. You are describing one of my former classmates' position. I always feel scared for her and constantly tell her to go into home health. No amount of pay will drag me into that environment. But there are a myriad reasons why some of us start as LPNs and stay ones for awhile. For me I'd have to keep working full time on top of paying living expenses and schooling esp since I don't want to take out anymore. A hybrid school would be ideal but those are hard to come by. There's also prereqs and waiting lists. Honestly school doesn't sound appealing and I'm not sure anything more than an ADN will pay off bc I don't like working in facilities and outside of a hospital (if you are fortunate enough to get into one) the pay between RNs and LPNs doesn't seem to vary that much. I think people glorify the hospital RN a little too much. For me I'm just happy to have a paycheck and still be employable.

I highly doubt it, especially with home health agencies. If the home health agencies did try to replace LPNs with RNs one of a few things will happen. 1. Costs to operate will skyrocket making home health unprofitable 2. RNs will either have to accept lower pay or shorter hours They can't find enough nurses, RN or LPN. And with exodus out of certain cities certain places will probably have severe shortages. I'm noticing some positions opening up to LPNs that used to be RN only. Even certain hospitals are hiring LPNs now (I've looked on Indeed and noticed this) The turnover rate is relatively high as well. There's a lot of things contributing to the shortage but I don't see how LPNs can be completely eliminated especially with rising healthcare costs.

I recently relocated to SC after things went poorly for some months. I also happen to have some relatives here. I used to live here as a kid and frequently visited. But I am finding that a lot of the LPN opportunities are relatively few, low paying and mostly 8 hrs. I'm literally getting paid half of what I used to make in Seattle and NYC. While COL was higher in those places I also saved money. I've managed to find an agency that will pay me around $22/hr. which is the best it gets considering other jobs in the area pay around $17-$19 an hour. I work in home health and enjoy doing that. I am noticing a few things about this agency. Their DON mentioned they can be picky about who they hire and how they have a ton of applicants. I find it problematic they seem to be the only agency that pays fair rates. I also let it be known that I am looking for full time hours. But I had to find out from another nurse that the agency operates on a rotating schedule, and things are first come first serve scheduling wise. I am on a case that is 12 hours and has great need for night nurses. Is this agency good? I was also told by the owner of the company I'd be meeting with him only to meet with an RN (his wife) and the DON. I'm not trying to be nitpicky, but I wonder if I'm right to worry about job security. I only got 18 hrs this week and I'm not sure if I'll be working 36 every other week, which isn't what I had in mind at all. I am thankful I am living with step dad and don't have to cover major bills, but I am also not too keen on living off of him for more than a few months. I've worked for 2 other agencies and have always had a set schedule. I also had to regularly turn down opportunities bc it seemed the agency always needed a fill in for a shift. But this agency seems like it has very limited slots and too many applicants which seems unusual to me. I've already decided I'm going to move onto a nearby major city that's an hour out bc frankly I'm seeing far too many cons to staying here. And there appears to be more opportunities there. Also I discovered I hate living in a rural area. What do you guys think?

Sorry to hear this is happening. It seems like spots are really limited for this position. Everywhere I've worked they were always short staffed and it wasn't hard to get in even for new grads. There's more opportunities out there. I'm not certain I would have said exactly what that woman said. While she was being a bit upfront I felt there could have been a more tactful way to address this. It also doesn't hurt to have multiple positions in place when finding a job. There's no telling what could happen. You most likely won't get this position since it seems they have a preferred candidate in mind. However even if you did there was a chance the job would not have been a good fit. Good luck!

Yea I did. There were several people in each of the classes that came all the way from California. From what I understand about the California LVN program it is even more competitive than the one in upstate NY and pretty much inaccessible if you live out of state. For me getting in was really easy. I happened to do my CNA at the same JC location and any CNA in their program got first dibs entry into the LPN program. I also scored really well on the accuplacer.

I would not let others push you into an RN program. This decision should be something you make on your own. I definitely understand the desire for home ownership, but there are so many things to consider. I would definitely move out of CA for so many different reasons. After that, you'll have to pick an area and stay there for awhile. It will be very important to consider whether you even like the area or are a good fit for it. Also consider the small chance that you may get burnt out of nursing. Should you get a home, what will happen if you somehow didn't have that nursing job anymore?

Thank you both. And you probably are right about me being burnt from nursing. I plan on looking for other educational opportunities outside of nursing. I don't think an RN would change anything for me. I'm not sure why my BSN friends were having a hard time finding jobs. Being in a major city doesn't help.