CalmCurator

Really sound advice! Thank you for this. I will definitely look on Glassdoor to see current and past employee reviews for the hospital and specific units. I'm more-so leaning towards not accepting any contracts as long as this remains an option so that I make the right decision for myself. Thanks again for all the great advice here!

I know this post was from a while ago, but I wanted to throw out my perspective as a student in my last semester of nursing school. I'm in an accelerated program which accepts current LPN's and EMT's. I love going to clinical's because I get a peek into what it would be like working in a hospital setting as I've only ever been able to work in clinic and LTC settings. Some of my classmates however really hate going to clinical. I have been on the unit with classmates who have complained about nurses because they think they are bossy and are using them to do work for free. Some have literally said, "I've already done my time. These CNA's/PCT's get PAID to do the care, I'm not doing their job for them." These are the same type of students who like to hide out, stay on the computers to get information for their assigned paperwork (complain when a staff member asks them to get up so they can WORK), and chat in break rooms or areas where nursing staff and techs can't find them. I try my very best not to be one of these types of people. It sends a clear message to the nursing staff on the unit that you don't care to be there and definitely doesn't give a great first impression, especially if you want to apply to work for the hospital in which your clinical experience takes place. It's also extremely entitled behavior. Clinicals are a LEARNING experience in which you get what you put into it. If you want to hang out and complain that others aren't nice to you or aren't willing to show you anything, some self-evaluation needs to be done regarding your own behavior. Have you reached out to nurses on the unit and asked them if they could show you some procedures if they have time available while you are there? Have you asked your CNA's/PCT's if they need help? (PCT's have a lot of knowledge to offer, but are often overlooked because they aren't in the role you are going to school for.. however, if anyone knows how to take efficient vital signs, or prioritize care, they are the ones you should turn to without a doubt!) Most of the time, when I come onto a unit at our local hospital, nurses and staff are not going to approach me first and go out of their way to say "hi" or "good morning" to me. I must initiate. And I understand their reasoning for this! My group of classmates are not the first, nor will they be the last set of students that these nurses will see, and I'm sure they have seen many students act and behave the way my fellow classmates have at clinical. Personally, I have had great experiences at clinical because I showed interest to learn, and the nurses I followed reciprocated that desire and were very receptive to me and gave me their time. At some point, as a student, we really need to start stepping into the perspective of the nurse and less about our own perspective. We need to learn to ask for help and guidance and give respect instead of expecting it. Again, your clinical experience will be what you make it. And if you've done everything you can and are still experiencing rude behavior from nursing staff, talk to your clinical instructor. They want you to have a good experience that supports your learning. It may be something they consider for the next semester when choosing which unit to bring students to in the future.

Thanks so much for responding. Signing a contract is a very scary thing for me. I am currently an LPN and only have experience in LTC, and clinic settings. I have no idea what working in a hospital will be like, and the only thing I thought I was certain of is the specialty in which I am most interested in, which is working with women and babies or children. (There are not many opportunities to work with children in the hospital setting in my area without prior experience.) It's currently looking like I may not be able to start where I would like, which may have been the only area I would've considered signing a contract with. With all of that in mind, if I breach the contract in any way, I definitely need to keep in mind that the money they give me will need to be given back. There is also the possibility that even if I were to work in women and children, I may not like it like I think I would.. I'm not the type of person who likes to jump around from job to job, but when going into a totally new work environment to which I know nothing about, the anxiety does creep in a bit to be held to a contract and knowing I cannot just leave or switch if I need to. While the sign on bonus is definitely enticing, I didn't think about the ulterior motives behind offering such a generous offer (10-20k). I really appreciate your perspective on this, as it's given me more to think about.

Hi everyone, I'm currently in my final semester of nursing school (RN) and I'm both excited and nervous at the same time. Recently our affiliated hospital recruiters came to our school to talk about the hospital and how to apply for jobs as well as outlined some amazing benefits to signing on with their hospital. Of these perks were the sign on bonus' in exchange for being under contract with this hospital for 3 years. During this time, we can switch units after 2 years. During Clinicals, I fell in love with postpartum and labor and delivery. The recruiters informed us that there were only a couple of positions open for new grads in this specialty area, however we needed to wait until mid September in order to apply. They encouraged us to look at the hospital career page to see what positions are available and strongly encouraged us to apply in September if we know where we want to work. The dilemma: After looking on the career page, I was excited to see both new grad postpartum and labor and delivery positions available on their website. I've been checking every few days just to see if these positions are still available and today, I noticed both positions are no longer available. I'm open to working on a different unit, however I'm not sure if I want to sign the contract (this is optional, but only signed contracts receive sign-on bonus). I hope I'm not coming across as entitled or whining. I genuinely would be happy to just have a job to look forward to after graduation, however I was hopeful to get to start out where I truly found my interest. So the advice I'm seeking is, if I apply for and am chosen to work in another position on a different unit with plans to transfer to postpartum or labor and delivery when a position becomes available, should I sign the 3 year contract or not? I'm not sure how often these opportunities come about, but I definitely don't want to miss it if it happens within the first 2 years. Thanks for any and all advise!