AnnemRN

I totally agree. You aren't stealing patients, it's their decision if they want to change agencies. As long as you're not asking them to switch agencies I see no problem.

"Military is even harder than civilian nursing to get into by a LONG shot. The pay and benefits are good and with the wars dying down the services are full. Minimum 2 years experience to even have a shot with the Army right now. I love when people suggest the military as a last resort when they have no clue what they are talking about. " Dranger, Your last sentence is unnecessary and comes across as rude.

Many companies are hiring for flu clinics now. It's not a long term prospect, but better than sitting home and will be something you can put on a resume.

The agency I worked for did require LVN's who had become RN's to have 2 yrs of hospital experience. The rule applied to an LVN coworker who had worked for our agency for several years, she ended up leaving until she got the experience required. The agency then rehired her.

I am so glad to hear this, PPV is a huge ripoff for nurses. I worked per diem for an agency that told me the mileage was included in PPV rate and wanted to send me to an out of town visit. I refused to go unless they paid me separately for the mileage, they finally gave in. I no longer work for any agencies that are PPV. I hope you win big.

I've had similar experiences where my agency sent me to discharge a pt "who was threatening to shoot the nurses." Thanks guys!! I also had a security guard who asked me to pick him up before we went into a very bad part of town to admit a known gang member to our service. The guard stated "I don't want any gang members following me home." I guess it was okay for them to follow me home. I agree that our safety is not always of utmost importance.

Honestly, the paper system was faster,but no more driving to the office to drop off documentation with the computer software.

Those are good points. Wound vac's require a lot of practice so, ask if you can do a few of them during your training before they cut you loose. I've also found that using lots of skin prep helps to keep the dressing in place.

I have made referrals to adult protective services if I have any concerns regarding patient safety even if the patient is being cared for. In the past, I had a pt who was being cared for by a live in caregiver. The caregiver kept her clean and fed, environment was clean etc. I just felt that the pt appeared fearful, but she wouldn't say anything negative. I made a referral to APS who followed up and it was found the caregiver was performing financial abuse. Caregiver had pt sign over all her property to him, it later became a legal battle after the patient died and I was contacted by an attorney. I would play it safe and make the referral and leave it up to APS to make determinations.

Here's the KCI website specifically wound vac application videos. It will help you with the steps, but it won't replace hands on experience. Wound Care Education and Training | KCI

Do you have your social worker and chaplain involved? The situation sounds dangerous, I would refuse to go back for safety reasons, but I am also worried about the patient being exposed to her unstable son. In this situation, I would definitely make a referral to adult protective services.

I think it's very doable if you're only seeing 3-4 pts a day and they are usually within 5 miles. Most agencies have you seeing 5 to 6 pts a day within a 25 to 50 mile radius. I think you're pretty lucky. It has been my experience that many times a paper system can be as fast or faster than a computer program.

You should ask bayada about their wound vac training also, contact KCI for their literature. Wound vac's aren't difficult, but changing wound vac dressings can be very hard on your back hopefully, they'll limit you to one a day. I worked for an agency that many times had me doing 2 wound vac's a day which is very time consuming. I don't have back problems, but my back was killing me by the end of the day.

First of all, I've seen this same problem in California. I mentioned it when I worked for the county, but no one wants to see the big picture - it's cheaper to hire not only new grads, but experienced nurses for these positions and retain them. I was told the county says it's cheaper to hire travelers or registry because they don't have to provide them with benefits. I'm not sure how much they think they're saving when the hourly rate for the agency/nurse is sky high. Once again, as stated in this article is the "nursing shortage". The public has been brainwashed.

It wasn't always this way in fact, when I graduated in 1990 the hospitals did "seek out employees". Every person in my class had a job with a local hospital before we even graduated. Of course, that is not how it is today. One of the problems I see is that nursing is constantly in the news as being recession proof and one of the best careers available. I know of so many people going into nursing because they believe they will have no problem finding a job and they will be making lots of money. The truth is, most places want someone with experience. The reason being it takes less time to train them which makes it very cost effective. Another thing, there are hiring freezes everywhere so, even though a job may be posted it may not be available for a long time. It makes me wonder why they post them at all. Very frustrating, I don't think I could hack starting out as a new nurse in today's world.