Nidgma

I lived for many years in St. Thomas (still my home) and attended college and worked for about 11 years in Peds. Probably the most important thing for you to know is that it is a little island that is only 3 by 13 miles and that is mostly vertical!! The government is very corrupt and they kinda run their own show so to speak. Economy is poor now compared to 80s. I will say that the hospital equipment is not the latest and technology is not the finest. Patients are very sick and generally use the ER for their primary care. There are government employees that are only taking up space and they will continue to do so until they retire. Nothing new so far. The need for flexibility is a must and being non judgmental essential. Preface everything with good morning, good afternoon or good nite. Things take 10 times longer in the VI than anywhere you have ever been or could imagine. Now the good stuff,,,absolutely beautiful, beaches phenominal, seawater you don't want to get out of, people lovely and gracious, music at all times, food to die for, splendiferous sunrises and sunsets, people from all over the world... boating, windsurfing, swimming, picnicing, networking, relaxing, dancing...you will make memories you will never want to forget!!! Island hopping (boat or plane) by the day or for a few days is something you shouldn't pass up!! If this sounds intrigueing...GO!! By all means at least for one contract!

If an agency nurse is contracted for a shift at a new hospital is she or he less capable of caring for the patients because it isn't their regular place of employment!! If you have checked lately, agency nurses generally make slightly more money due to the fact that they are willing to frequently move around the country filling in those, for one reason or another, short staffed units. They pay taxes in their home state as well as the state they are employed in and usually don't work full time for one reason or another. I have never seen a traveler who's goal was go to a unit to steal someone's job though I have worked many a facility where I was greeted with hostility rather than as one to come in and help out in a crunch. If I as an ER nurse am striking to obtain the higher wages I think I deserve or better working conditions, I DO want someone to step in and take care of my community of potential patients for as long as it takes for me to hold out and get what I am willing to stand up for. $100s an hour as a labor dispute worker, common' now, if wages were that good don't you think overall wages would be a bit higher under normal circumstances, try $50!! Generally, the labor dispute nurses, like travelers are unique people who are flexible enough to do an excellent job of what they do or they wouldn't be licensed or willing to maintain a job in an ever changing environment. As far as working straight stretches of shifts, I have worked at a number of facilities that do block scheduling up to one week on and one week off usually voted in as personal preferences!! Obviously the term SCAB is a derogatory term and being used for that reason. Do you use other derogatory names when referring to people you don't agree with or like...I'm afraid to know as I have met a few of you on the job in ERs across the nation!! Please try to be a diplomat and see all sides of the story, can't we all just get along... :redbeathe

Thanks, in writing I am going to request a copy of my file. As to whether they can change anything prior to sending me a copy only they will know. This hospital has been getting the reputation for being poorly managed and loosing good staff because of it in a number of units, so I wouldn't put anything past them at this point. Oh, the employment frustrations of being in a rural area!!!

Hi all, not to beat a dead horse but in a thread a couple of days ago I asked about this issue and didn't really get an answer. If I suspect a Do Not Rehire was put on my file by an old bully nurse manager can I go to the HR dept and request seeing my file and if DNR is on it ask for a reevaluation or something similar. I need this cleared up as I can't get work at my only local hospital! Thanks in advance.

Thanks for all the responses. I only heard two mentions of having the right to see my file to verify the actual problem. So, who knows about our actual legal rights. This is a private hospital. I believe the fact that I have 18 years of experience; raising my pay, may play into this, but again, that is discrimination. It is just so unexpected for me to be so scrutinized for a permanent position when I can choose, apply, interview and accept a travel position in as short as a 24 hour period. As far as covering themselves with posting the positions while hiring within; there is not enough staff to hire from within. The tracking devices...if that is not micromanaging I don't know what is, the concept is still new to me but I can't EVER see myself in that situation. Points to a serious distrust issue with employees to me! I have never worked a facility that overhead paged for RN's, but where we did have phones. Electronic tracking seems like an expensive method of communication!!

My Mom has recently been diagnosed with Parkinson's and I have chosen to stop my traveling lifestyle and stay close to her at home in Northern MN. I am 52 years old. Finding work has always been difficult here due to being so rural and there being so few nursing opportunities. At our local hospital I recently applied for three critical care positions, one of ICU's 8 half time positions, one full time cath lab and one half time ER. Being a peds nurse since '82 when hired with this same 'local hospital' in '89 I was introduced and worked successfully for four years in their ER. I have been working in ER ever since. During my employment I do vividly remember having a bully of an ER nurse manager and a vague memory of being written up once for what I remember being some rediculous reason. I received a rather rapid response to my applications stating: We have completed the initial screening of applications and regret to inform you that you are not among those that we have chosen for further consideration. We were fortunate to receive a large number of candidates whose skills and experience more closely fit our needs. To my knowledge I am as skilled and experienced as any applicant could be as my record is clean, my references are tight and I interview, accept and complete travel contracts regularly without a hitch. What gives!! Am I on a, Do Not Rehire list, and if so what can I do about it? I feel discriminated against. Two things of interest; one is that this facility also has their staff wearing tracking devices! Two, what is going on in their relatively small ICU to have 8 positions open?

I'm very frustrated with the compact situation; while waiting here in central OK at my sister's place for a 13 week contract to come through in CA where I carry a license, I get word on a seven day contract in TX that starts in 48 hours-perfect senario I think to carry me over...I carry a compact license (VA) where I have lived for the last year and worked full time perdium in MD. I am still using my TX drivers license...WELL, I get turned down on the TX job because I reside in VA, have a VA compact license but have a TX drivers license...I don't get it...was my company in VA clueless about my drivers license status or what, I don't understand. The recruiter for the one week TX contract states that my compact license residency and drivers license need to be from the same state and I need to just renew my TX license (providing I fudge a TX address I suppose)... Needless to say I am out of the seven day contract!!