abend

PSL is the number 10 rated hospital in Denver. I didn't even know there were 10 hospitals in Denver. That should tell you everything you need to know.

On my floor it's bad managers who blame nurses for decreasing patient satisfaction when really... it's bad systems and a decrepit building a scary unsafe EMR. But it's easier to blame nurses. We are expendable.

Any advice for what to do if you're working for a hospital unit that offers a huge sign-on bonus for new hires but only gave a 50-cent annual raise to current, experienced RNs? BTW, management doesn't seem to understand how outrageously demoralizing this is and still sides with physicians over RNs on a regular basis. And half the staff has left. I think I know the answer, I just want a reality check.

You are "invited" to take the online test by a recruiter after you apply. It's a way for the managers to focus their interview questions to specific candidates (according to your answers) while also saying that all candidates were equally interviewed. This is a legal/regulatory CYA. Healthone is a deeply entrenched corporate for-profit hospital system. It definitely views nurses as expendable (they throw money at travelers--even use them as sitters!). Not nurse-friendly.

Sorry, I wasn't in Denver at the time.

I totally empathize... Sorry. If you haven't already looked into this--I did temp work giving flu shots, public health clinics, and a tiny bit of home health when I first graduated. I highly recommend the first two. Home health was a bit isolating and yes, scary, as a new grad.

I am working as an RN, and not in AZ. My MEPN program gave the NP or the straight master's (MSN) option. My particular school--as it seems all of the national nursing associations--really pushes the DNP for all NPs. At one point our school told us that all NPs would be required to be DNPs by 2013 or something. But then the economy crashed... not sure where everyone is with that but it might be worth checking into if you want to be an NP. Personally I've never worked with or heard of a DNP in practice nor have I worked with an NP who didn't have at least 5-years of RN experience. If that's any indication of job availability. Anyway, I've never wanted to be an NP. NPs in my specialty have fairly brutal hours and do a lot of procedures that I don't particularly want to do. I just want to have the option to eventually do research or education--so that's always been the appeal of the master's for me. Plus I discovered in nursing school that I just didn't have the brainpower or perhaps the confidence to go straight through any graduate program in nursing without ever being an RN. And now that I am working as an RN, I think I made the right decision (for me) to put off the master's for a while. I'm on sabbatical :-) Just as an aside, everyone in my MEPN class of about 50 people got through the BSN part of the program and passed the NCLEX. Not that all of them perhaps *should* have passed... but we all did.

I was interviewed about 6 weeks before I started the program. If that helps.

I have never been treated so rudely/disrespectfully than by the folks who run the new grad program at Providence Everett. The "interview" was an extremely humiliating cattle call of at least 20 people. The nurse who interviewed me asked me if I was lying about having a bachelor's degree from the University of Washington because I completed the accelerated program. Really? Maybe the word accelerated was too big of a word for this person to comprehend. Anyway, it became clear that they were going to hire the two gals who were their friend's former students--so why were the rest of us there anyway. After that encounter with management, I wouldn't work there if they paid me $100/hour. Plus they pray on the intercom every morning. I am fine with praying. But last time I checked, in this country praying is a choice and not a condition of employment. P.S. Yes, I found a great job with my very real BSN from UW. And I pray on my own time.

I did not go to UA. I went to another MEPN program at "the No. 1 ranked nursing school in the nation." And no hiring manager cared where I went to school. They just want to see the BSN and the RN license. So word of warning: Get the BSN on the way to the master's. This was an option in my program and people who didn't opt for a BSN, had little to no luck working as RNs because they weren't as competitive. Yes, even though they were enrolled in a master's program. At least in my experience, almost always a BSN candidate will get the job before a candidate with an associate's degree or the old-school RN by license (though ironically many, many nurses doing the hiring only have an associate's)--fair or not. A number of my colleagues are still in NP school. They are GREATLY in debt, and they have little to no actual experience as RNs. This doesn't bother the ones who never wanted to be an RN. And most of them are probably smart enough to pull off working as an NP with no nursing experience... if anyone will hire them. I think they rely on getting hired by one of their clinical placements or opening a private practice clinic.

Yes, this sounds like a great deal. However, a couple of my friends had their secure job offers rescinded by "sponsoring" hospitals after they finished nursing school. AND they were told they had to repay the hospital for their schooling. This was not because of anything these gals did, rather ... HR blamed the unfortunate situation on "the economy." Read everything before signing on the dotted line.

I feel you azdesertflower. Nursing is not for the weak. (I shake my head when I read posts by people who "just want to help people.") That said, I am not sure that any nursing school prepares folks for real-world nursing... But how could it really? Rhetorical. Think twice before leaving your cushy but boring desk job, Ladies and Gents. Anyway, I was told that anyone with an RN can't legally work "below" his/her license. So isn't that exactly what the RNs working as PCTs are doing?

Be very careful with these expensive masters accelerated programs. From what I've seen, few places hire nurse practitioners who don't have any RN experience. Not to mention, your RN colleagues may not be too supportive... just saying. Ask these question BEFORE paying the exorbitant tuition and putting in the blood, sweat, and tears.

That sounds like an excellent system, and I would definitely use it if I needed a job now. But I would NOT recommend ruling out all online applications. There are many hospital HR offices that will not give you the time of day. It's nothing personal. Usually it's just a matter of incredibly insensitive and oftentimes overworked HR office staff. It took me 6 months and relocating out of state (and away from family and home) to get that first new grad job. It is luck. Pure and simple. That and some experience giving flu shots... Anyway, I still have PTSD from the post-nursing school unemployment--which is why I still come to this site periodically. And yes, I found my nursing job online. Good luck.

That's great to hear. I'm really interested in their acute care track. How was the UW interview process? I know they do group interviews. What kinds of questions did they ask?