mugg54

Well, I can tell you a lot of bad, but not much good! First of all the reason they keep hiring nurses over and over, is because nurses DO NOT stay there! The area is extremely unsafe! Nurses have been raped and mugged in the parking lots! You have too many critically ill patients and not enough support staff! You barely have any PCT's on the floor, so you have your very sick patients, plus you do all the aide work too. I didn't find the staff friendly or supportive! There is constantly a turn over there, so you are always working with new staff which makes it even more chaotic! The HR dept. is very nice until you agree to take the job then they treat you like s**t! If you can find another job, do it! Don't get sucked in to this unsafe, understaffed hell hole! They offer you bonuses and all kinds of stuff to reel you in there! I guess that is the only way they can convince nurses to work there! Even with their big bonuses, it is not worth it! Sorry, but I told you I didn't have anything too nice to say about the place~!

Oops! Sorry Daytonite! I don't know how to post using your quote! I don't know how I put your quote in and it has my screename!

I would love for you to post these. I could really use them too! Thanks!

All talk with a patient should be considered therapeutic. Therapeutic communication skills take years to perfect. Do you want some weblinks on them? I have a few web links to powerpoint lectures from nursing programs on basic therapeutic communication skills as well as an assertiveness tutorial that I will post for you if you are interested in seeing them. I would love for you to post these. I could use them too! Thanks!

Yes, mine is 2 for 1 too! I was an LPN for 10 years, they started me as a R.N. with 5 years of experience. It made a significant difference in my pay too! It infuriates me that some of these places don't want to acknowledge all the wonderful experience we had as L.P.N.'s!:angryfire I can tell you, I have been a R.N. for 5 years now, and my job IS NOT that much different than it was as an LPN. There are a few things I can do now that I couldn't do as a RN, but overall I do the same job! The main difference I see, is in my paycheck! Good Luck!

Cenote, I think they probably lost your original contract and needed a copy of it! Why else would they need your contract? They are known for being under handed and trying to take advantage of their nurses! The pay really sucks too! Sorry, I just read your post again and realized they wanted to see your PRESENT contract! I guess they wanted to see that b/c they are nosey...lol! I would warn you to be very careful with this company! I took an assignment with them and I ended up having to get an Attorney to deal with them. They misrepresented everything to me. Set me up in unsafe housing, wanted me to work at the hospital WITHOUT ANY orientation, and so many other things I can't count. Go on some of the travel nurse sites where travelers evaluate this company and you will see that a lot of travelers have had problems with this company. I was told they change their name every few years, but i am not sure if that part is true! I agree with other's, they should change their name from "The Right Soutions" to "The Right Place to Work if You Want to Get Taken Advantage Of"!

I got report on an 87 year old man admitted with CHF. I was told in report "He is difficult and very grumpy". I walked in his room and introduced myself and proceeded to do his assessment. At first he was rather abrupt with me. He just seemed very sad to me when I was talking with him. I continued to do his assessment and started talking with him. Then I kind of made a little joke about the hospital food and he joked right back! We kept joking back and forth for a few minutes and he started laughing and telling me stories. I checked back on him several times throughout my shift. I never did anything extra special, just did the things that us nurses do to try and keep our patients as comfortable as possible. When I got ready to leave my shift, I went in for my last minute checks and told him I was leaving. He told me "I just want to thank you for being so kind to me. You took time to talk to me and you made me laugh, that is something I haven't done in 2 years now, every since my wife passed away I haven't smiled let alone laugh." Then he said "You know you just kind of restored my faith in you kids. Usually you kids don't have time to fool with old geezers like me." Now when he said that, I got my biggest laugh, cause this kid is 47 years old! I smiled all day thinking that he had called me a kid!

I am in Phoenix, AZ. I think the new grad pay is 20-25 an hour depending on hospital and area you work in. I would say average pay in hospitals would be about 30 an hour for an RN with several years of experience. Of course then you would add on diffs. for nights and weekends and specialty areas, so that could push it up to around 40 an hour!

Lannisz, I too lost it at work! In hindsight I was lucky I didn't lose my license too! I was the new kid on the block too at the time! After I got off orientation, it seemed like I would always have the assignments with the worst patients! I had this challenging patient for like two weeks straight! He was alert and oriented,but was really acting out! He had recently been diagnosed HIV+. A couple of times he said "If I am dying I am taking out as many with me as possible!" Well, he had the habit of taking blood, feces or whatever and trying to smear that all over the staff! Yes, he later rightfully ended up on the Psych floor! Anyway, he was beyond a challenge to care for! Anyway, I went into work one night and they had someone else assigned to this pt. I was so happy until this one nurse said right in front of me "Let the newbie take him again, he is a pain, and she needs to learn to deal with it." :angryfire I said "No, thanks I have had him for weeks now!" Well the charge Nurse was her friend, and she changed the assignment right in front of me and gave me the patient! I was so upset and I also had a lot of terrible things going on in my life at the time (husband was on drugs, adolescent daughter that was acting out). Anyway, I just LOST it! I grabbed my bag and said "You know what she CAN take him because I am out of here!" and I proceeded to go get on the elevator and leave the hospital! When I got home (this was before cell phones were popular) the Nsg. Supv. called and asked what happened and I told her. The next day my Nurse Manager called and I had to go and meet with her and the Charge Nurse! The Nurse manager was very fair! She had heard many stories of the Charge Nurse showing favortism to her friends, so she actually DID not fire me and really took up for me! She did scold me for walking out and told me to NEVER pull that stunt again! I was embarrassed, I had done it, but I went back and worked at that job for like 10 more years! I never had that problem again! Shortly after that incident the Charge Nurse was assigned to another floor away from all her buddies!:rotfl: Anyway, I know just how you feel! Sometimes it does just get to the point where you feel like you can't take it anymore! When I feel like that at work now, I just try and go on a quick break and re-group, say a positive affirmation and say the Serenity prayer! It does help! I also learned if I have TOO many of those days, that it is probably time to find a new job, or move to a new floor or something! Well good luck, I hope things get better!

Well, JCL hospital does offer the sign on bonus BUT like someone said on here before...there is a reason these hospitals offer these big sign-ons. They have to offer them because THEY suck and that is the only way they can attract nurses to the hopitals!:chuckle :chuckle :chuckle Someone gave me advice I WISH I would have taken...and that is to know what you are getting into before you sign on that dotted line! You know how they say when something seems too good to be true, it usually is? Well, that applies to the sign on bonuses too! So just be careful before you accept a bonus! Usually if the bonus is really big, it means the hospital is really bad! At least that is what I was told, and I should have listened!

Well, I know I will get a lot of flak for this answer, but I cannot stand the sight or smell of feces or vomit. I have been like this for years and I have never been able "to get used to it"! I did not go to college for 5 years to clean poo and vomit! If I would have wanted to do that, I would have just been a CNA! So, if a hospital doesn't have aides to do the dirty work, I can't work at the hospital! Now I do greatly respect and appreciate the aides for what they do, and I am not knocking being a aide. I am glad someone can do it! I just don't want the job!

Zacarias, It could be that your attitude is better! I know attitude does account for a lot! I tried to have a positive attitude at first, but over the months it has only become more unbearable working at JCL! I have worked at jobs I absolutely loved and the only reson I left them is because my husband was transferred (military). I just don't feel this way at JCL and I know a lot of other nurses don't either! Why do you think they have wwwwwwwwwwaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyyyyyy more travelers than staff nurses? They can't keep staff nurses there! Well good luck and I hope you continue to enjoy it there! Bri

Hi, I have seen another thread posted on the general forums asking about salaries and some people got very upset about it! I am NOT asking you to reveal your salary if you don't want to! So please don't flame me and say I am asking personal info!:angryfire if you don't want to reveal the info., please just don't answer this post! I am just trying to find out what hospitals, agencies or other places pay the best in this area! I also saw someone else pose this question on the AZ thread and they didn't get much of a response! Come on Phoenix area Nurses, help me out and tell me where the best pay is at around here! I have only been in the area 6 months and am stuck at a hospital I hate! I want to find a better place to go that pays more money! I always thought ACUTE nursing shortage = HIGHER pay, but it doesn't look like that here! Thanks! Bri

Linda, Glad you agree with me! I felt bad because I had heard such positive feedback about the hospital prior to going to work there! I have not heard the nurses say too many things good about the place since I've been there though! I wonder if they had their recruiters on here posting all the good stuff to reel us in!!! I am not impressed at all with the hospital! I will be soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo glad when 6 months are up, so I can say "Take this job and shove it!" :chuckle I think it is amzing that they have such a nursing shortage, but they have such strict rules like "No jeans are to be worn on the campus ever, even if you are picking up your check!" That is so old and outdated! I know a lot of professional women that wear nice jeans and a blazer, or guys that wear jeans and a shirt and a tie and they look just fine! I have been to some of the most expensive restaurants in Aspen and everyone wore jeans! I just think there is a lot of bureaucratic B.S. to put up with at JCL! That is kjjust one exmple, but there are many, many more! I also think the pay is well below a lot of other places in the city! The pt's have very high acuities! They have charge nurses that are supposed to be so helpful, but all they do is sit around and bite their nails, and take report and don't do anything else! I don't think the few real staff they have are supportive at all, but as I said, most of them are poor travelers trying to make it there themselves! You are lucky you didn't take a sign on bonus from them! I wish I never would have either! You know someone told me once that these nursing recriters are just like car salesmen, and now I am really starting to believe it! Well, I am glad you are out of there and I am counting my days! Who knows, maybe I will get lucky and find another hospital to buy out my contract! I met one girl that did just that! Take Care Mugg54

I believe the starting pay for a new grad RN is around 22-25. I am not sure what the pay is for LPN's. I know several nurses that did the on-line programs and didn't have a problem obtaining an AZ license! Good Luck!:roll