maidy

just to get things straight. the nurse was a foreign nurse. she was a very good nurse with all credentials and experience from her country. was recruited and promised to be going on to a hospital supposedly with an IV team. agency (her employer)promised her no problem since there are about 176 hospitals scattered all over US where she can be put into. Agency knows her handicap and which is only for IV's. Charge nurse reported her to management. Management ordered her to go to day surgery precisely to do IV insertions!!!!! disregarding her phobia!!!! HRD knowing fully well her predicament then offered to put her into nursery which BTW has an opening too. Nurse accepted. HRD and Manager had an argument since manager claims "other nurses are now also requesting to be put in nursery too" and wont do IV starts. HRD took back her schedule and terminated her now for insubordination. Well ....what do you think??? Is this fair or not??? Nurse claims she was willing to work and had accepted her new position, but it was HRD who terminated her. Even worse, agency is now trying to collect 13 th dollars supposedly for breaching her contract. personally, I think she didn't get fair treatment here.

Well, for some reason other RN's also have some glaring inadequacies like basic assessments which is "generic" too, now... i mean i would rather exchange a good RN doing good assessments for an RN who cannot do IV's anytime and willingly help her in getting her iv's done rather than compromising patient's safey with poor assessments and having both of us writing incident reports. I believe that all RN's has a strong and weak points and you cannot know everything. But if you work as a TEAM then you add up those good points will make your job more pleasant and enjoyable.

BTW, where is TEAM Nursing here? isn't that supposed to help her out or work as a TEAM. just asking?

Well, I really feel sorry for my co-worker because she is a such a sweet thing on the floor and also to the patients. She will always try to help us co-workers in our NGT, Foley cath and dressing if she can because not all of us are also proficient in that aspect. We always have 13-15 patients on the med surg floor and it really helped a lot. We are just dismayed that management chose the opportunity to fire her because she said she will not insert iv's anymore after a nasty incident when she was slapped by a patient. probabaly hurt her ego and unnerved her. we had tried to help her with her iv's in exchange that she will do other procedures. it worked well until someone told management about it and decided that she will be place in day surgery just so she will have that training again. But she refused and that is how they fired her. Was that really fair? I mean it could not have been a big issue but they thought otherwise.

Hello! just wanna know if it is mandatory for all RN's to insert IV's? Because a fellow nurse who is more than well experienced and very skillful in other procedures and previously IV certified too who refused to do IV's was terminated. Nurse claims she developed phobia to it after a very bad experience with a patient. Can a person really be forced to do anything that she is not comfortable and has developed an aversion to it. Is it fair to the hospital and to the nurse? Thanks!

just wanna know whether sign on bonuses are given just that ...upon signing of the contract or are they given in staggered amounts? I am just confused.... thanks!

Ms. Suzanne, I am so grateful to you. i did call the person that you PM'd and he has been a great help. He gave me the lawyer and is now working on my case although certain events happened only this weekend and which he doesn't know yet. right now i am so unhappy. Anyway, I am glad that there are a lot who care and gives insight and this somehow uplift my broken down spirit. I really need all your support in my trying moments. thanks a lot!!!.

Hello! again, my concern is that there was a lot that was kept from me when they did their big job fair then in 2002. i was informed when i passed their series of exams that i will be their full scholar and that everything will be free, all that is needed, to be able to come to the US like free exams, trip, filing fees etc. the works! but for the 4 years that they promised and I waited. i was the one who paid for everything like my TSE, TOEFL, CGFNS, Visa screen, medical exam and even my airfare. They only reimbursed it last March 2006 when i finally arrived here January. The only thing that made me stick with that company was because my original documents were with them and it is expensive and difficult to get another copy. and besides, they were telling me like oh your papers are with the embassy now and if you applied with another company the embassy will get confused making you wait some more time or if could be lost. So I just let them processed me. I asked the nurse to patient ratio and they told me that there are 4 RN's 2 LVN's and 2 CNA's in per shift which was all so untrue since there are only 2 RN, 2LVN and 1 CNA for the whole med surg floor of 36 patients. and what was worse is they cancel us if census goes down to 26 they will send one away to keep 2 nurses having 13-15 patients. and guess what... they gave me another contract to present and give to the consul when i was interviewed that i will be going in another facility in another state and with better wages and that was the basis for the consul to issue this visa. and when I got that visa they gave me the 3rd contract to sign that will now send me in another state and with lesser pay. I signed that contract because i was forced to... because the 6 months expiration of the visa was coming up and they said they couldn't find a facility for me when before they even boasted like they have 176 facilities scattered all over US. I thought well once in the US nothing of this sort will happen because there will surely be laws and nothing bad could happen. Even the sign on bonus was reduced from 12 th to 6th which until now I still haven't received any and informed us in writing that it is broken down as follows like 1,500 on the 3rd month, 1500 after 1 year 1500 on the 2nd year and the 1500 after completion of the 3 years contract. this is further reduced after taxes. well..This is not a signed on bonus this is a signed out bonus.!!!.. oh by the way, with the new contract they increased it from 2 years to 3 years. So. just right now I'm just so fed up and frustrated for the deception and they are asking me to pay the 15000 buy out contract right away and threatened to send me back home. one of the super has even told me that they have to do it just so the others who are left and are trapped too won't follow me. pls advice. thanks in advance.!!!

what is the best and proper way to leave a hospital where you have a contract for 2 years. Do you just go on AWOL? Can you just leave without informing HRD and the Unit but just leave a registered mail that you're not coming back and not to expect you for your duty. The reason is, you are so fed up and burned out and can no longer handle the load which is way above safety like 13 to 15 patients? any repercussions to expect? thanks!

here in southern texas you are paid based on your years of experience. like in my case with 3 years, i get paid like $21.5 base but since i worked nights i get $3 differential and another $1 more on weekends and 1.5% of base pay for OT. so for a months time work with like 180 hours clocked in including OT. i get about $4500 less 21% tax and medicare and about $50 of health insurance my take home pay would be like $3000. hope this gives you an idea.

how i envy you all!!! here in brownsville, texas we are forced to handle minimum of 1:13 patients in the med surg floor with different acuities and having even some patients who should be in PCU. It can even reach up to 18 patients!!!! I am so fed up and dead tired, my back aches so much that i cannot get up for the next days duty. i am likewise worried for my patient and for my license. we are slaves here left with no choice but to finish our contracts since if we decide to buy out our contracts we need to pay a breach of contract like for 12thousand dollars. what's worse we get cancelled with no pay if census goes down. help!!!!!

hello! Ms. Suzanne my name is Maidy and I just want to get help from anyone who can help me and also to give a warning to anyone back in my country Philippines with regards to these nurse recruitment agencies. My problem is about the muck that i am in now, I was a victim of an agency in Manila who promised all the perks such as free filing for ins, free immigration fees, medical exam,tse,toefl and nclex review and exam. trip to Hongkong for the nclex etc. and Yes, they fulfilled their promise for those things. the thing is I was able to get here in the USA and obtain my green card but the catch is i am assigned to work for 13-18 patients in the med surg floor with different acuities and which is very unsafe and really tiring for a 12 hr shift even the $24.50 for an evening shift is a pittance to what other RN's are getting here. I am afraid each time I work for my patients and license. Another thing is, they did not inform us that if patient census goes down we can be cancelled anytime and required to go back if census goes up. I dont know if this is legal here? how can we be able to pay for all our expenses if they keep on cancelling us and besides it was stated in our contract that we have to render full time and 40 hours /week. it would seem that they are breaking their own contract with us and not the other way around. I offered to buy out my contract which is for 12 thousand dollars and they said no problem but said they need to inform the INS with regards to my status even after paying the buy-out in short blackmailing me that I will be sent back home. Although, I am grateful for being able to come here in the states at least they should have informed us back home of what to expect. they presented to us a very good scenario. Does the Board of Nursing have a say on the nurse to patient ratio? and is this happening to other recruits? can anyone share their own nightmare? and lastly, is there a place here I can send my grievances?. thanks!!!

gosh! if you are having mandatory OT what we have is worse we are called anytime!!! and on our duty days if there is a low census what happens is that they cancell us. like we were already in the hospital and then they tell us to leave now in the middle of the day when census goes up they force us to go back!!! we work 12 hours shift plus the mandatory OT's and we get 13-18 pts in the med surg floor with different acuities... i don't know if this is allowed and are there any BON ruling on this sort of shenanigan? is this allowed or commonplace around here?. btw i am in southern texas. I hope to be enlightened any replies will be greatly appreciated. thanks!!!

i want to know what is the nurse -patient ratio in southern texas the one nearer in matamoros because currently i get 15-18 pt with assorted level of acuity in the med surg floor my rates is $24.5 + 3 shift diff but i am not really interested in the pay but for the nurse -pt ratio because i feel so drained and rundown each duty hours. and also, if i can just leave the facility and find another hospital? anywhere but there. its just that i had signed a 3 year contact being a recruit from the philippines. can i just buy out my contact? my breach clause is for 12000 dollars and can they send me back home to the philippines if ever i initiate breach of contract. the reason i would like to do this is because i cannot take care of my patients well anymore and would like to know if someone out there can give me their experience or insight. i will greatly appreciate any replies...