Zephyr44

This is good advice but I would not advise approaching management. They have already shown that they are not above unscrupulous practices to keep their nurses. They would just think up an excuse to fire her. I've had it happen to me -- if management doesn't care about nurses or patients, they will play dirty. She should not threaten legal action, just report the facility to the state, with documentation, on her way out. That will help the patients more than anything.

Hi everybody, I guess I need some encouragement or advice. I'm 62, have been an RN for 21 years, and need a new job. My current one, in home health, doesn't pay enough to support my family as it's Medicare funded. While I love the children I care for, I can't afford to continue as is, and I'm also a little frustrated because it's a lot like babysitting, even though the children both have trachs. I've applied for several jobs in clinics but no dice. I suspect they think I may retire soon, though I need to work another ten or so years until my youngest daughter is at least in college. (She's ten -- and adopted, in case you're wondering.) I'm applying next week to a community hospital that has accepted my application and says they have some positions opening up, but am nervous about my chances. I worked in a hospital 14 years and am still fairly energetic, but am not the bundle of energy that a new grad is. Still because of pay scales they'll have to pay me a lot more than a grad, which hurts my chances too. I live in Washington, and there's said to be a 2,000 nurse shortage in the area, but it must all be in nursing homes because I don't see much evidence of it. I'm grateful for any advice or suggestions.

Hi Anna, By now you've probably made your decision. But with your background, you should apply at Childrens. It's an excellent hospital, and I'm sure they could use a nurse with your background. I think the pay scale would be about $34/hr, but that's a guess. I worked at Harborview for years and made $27 last, in 1999. Pay has gone up in the area.