youngblood19

I'm not with AHS because I saw an amazing opportunity available that happened to be outside of AHS. I was very content with what I had at the time (good work/team, great management, no trouble getting time off) but decided to pursue something else. This thread (and forum actually) has become so toxic and defensive... won't continue to be apart of it.

The intention of this thread was to recognize the positive - there are countless other threads about the unfortunate reality many nurses are facing at this time. I'm a "realist" and a cynic at heart but also appreciate that the some good things are overlooked and focus tends to be on the bad. I've lived in AB my whole life and have some insight into the corruption, poor planning, and budget constraints in the province and AHS especially. I've seen the layoffs and bumping when I worked in AHS but those people were still entitled to positions as a result of that. It's very distressing to see how dim things are - especially the mindset of the majority of conversations I've had with nurses about this.

Wow... what a turn down for a thread intended to be a little hopeful. Honestly the majority of peers I went to school with who intentionally sought out positions have found regular or temporary (more than 12 months) employment as new grads in both hospital (NICU, L&D, Med, Surg, CVICU, Clinics) and community settings (Public health, community agencies, post secondary) that fit their needs - whether a low FTE or full time. The rest with casual employment because it fits with what they want right now. Plus, even if you get bumped you're still entitled to another vacant position, even if it's not somewhere you're particularly interested in working in. I definitely agree that nursing in Alberta and beyond could be better funded/staffed and some areas are working with minimal staff. But let's not forget that many nurses (new and experienced) ARE getting new work that they can make a life out of.

Hey there, I've been reading all nurses for quite some time now out of interest but never decided to make an account until now. I've noticed quite a dismal outlook on employment in Alberta and wanted to share some of my story. I graduated in April 2013 and after applying to about 50-60 jobs got called for an interview with AHS. Eventually, this led to a part time job (0.4 days, weekends) in Edmonton starting in July with them coming as a completely external (and did not "know" anyone in the system) employee and was quite shocked and happy to have landed same. Worked there until February 2014 when I was interviewed for a full time RN position again in Edmonton with a post secondary institution with **regular office hours!!** (again, completely external, no connections) and have been there since. A few of my friends and others I went to school (plus a couple LPNs moving from private into AHS/Covenant) with have also been able to do similar things since we graduated, so I wanted to say to everyone looking for work here in Alberta not to give up and keep putting yourself out there. Don't give up. It may feel seemingly random how people get called for interviews but maybe writing a tailored cover letter and modifying your resume to fit each position could be a big factor that I and others have noticed. I didn't want this post to seem like "oh yeah well look at me!" but I wanted to put out a positive message on a board that seemed quite bleak in terms of work in Alberta. Thanks.