mattseviernd

I'm in my last semester of nursing school, so I should have my RN by the end of the year. I am seriously interested in trying to get a DON position for some underperforming LTCF in the Nashville, TN area after I graduate. I would like some feedback on whether or not this is realistic. Everytime I look at the Tennessean, it seems that two or three nursing homes are looking for a DON. I worked in a nursing home for 3.5 years, spending half of my day in restorative and the other half as acting secretary to the DON and ADON. I am very familiar with the headaches and the stress that goes with the job, and have tried to prepare myself appropriately. I took surveyor training online from CMS and have done extensive research on recruiting and managing frontline staff, not just techs but LPNs as well. I go to every seminar I can on LTC topics, have taken MDS training, and have been an active participant in conference calls from the state's QIO and from our Eden Alternative coalition office. I would like to institute culture change very slowly and *try* to find ways for the entire staff to work smarter, instead of harder. My former bosses said I needed to make policy instead of enforce it, and I have been told that I have no business being a staff nurse given my extra training. What do you guys think about my prospects? How likely do you think it would be that a nursing home would be willing to consider a new grad, considering my extra training? Thanks.