Published Sep 20, 2011
loveishope
40 Posts
Has anyone taken the prophecy assessment? Is it like PBDS or is it multiple choice? I know that you can take it at home.
xtxrn, ASN, RN
4,267 Posts
loveishope, I have no idea....the title of the thread was interesting...
I looked at their website (they didn't do this "back in the day"). Is this something that is required of you to get a job?
It amazes me how many ways people come up with to cause more hoops to jump through.
Whatever the case, I wish you well :)
(and regret that the people who run this are making money off of job applicants- and that an employer isn't suitable to make the decisions without behavioral, clinical, and situational information coming from a third party-- I'd hate to work for someone who can't make a decision on his/her own...
Best of luck :)
Yes, it is required before you interview. Weird name for a test I think. I have taken PBDS and it was awful. A lot of hospitals are making assessment tests mandatory for hiring. And I was told there was no way to study. I just hope that it's multiple choice because the PBDS test made you type your responses. It was horrible.
Esme12, ASN, BSN, RN
20,908 Posts
All I can say is Wow......hospitals can't make up their own tests and make their own decisions about qualified personel. I have never heard about taking a test prior to the interview. wow.....where is this all going...
Straight into the crapper.
you know, after thinking about this for a little bit, it really makes sense. it's sad and pathetic, but it makes sense.
nursing students and new grads repeatedly talk about how procedures, policy, interpersonal communication (with preceptors mostly), etc. are so flippin' difficult- they haven't been taught this stuff. all of the cyber interactions have stunted eye-to-eye, face-to-face communication and the ability to assess a person for a job. and this is in no way coming down on the students/new grads- hang with me- i'm on your side :). it's a system that's grown from a couple of generations that don't even spend as much time talking on the phone as they used to- let alone in person (anybody remember getting hollered at to get off the phone so someone else could make a call? :)). it's down to texting. how many stories are there about the time kids spend texting their friends - not even actually using their voice to speak with them. it's what they know. yes, there is some in person communication- but you guys who text more than you speak on the phone, what would you do without your phone to either talk or text? think about it...:) not that long ago, people had to wait until they got home to use a phone. and we survived :) i'm not saying that the cell phones and/or texting are "bad", but when they stunt being able to "read" another person because of so little time looking at one, it's a concern
so, now the "new grads" from 10 years ago (not quite as text-dependent, but definitely cell-phone dependent), are the nurse managers and dons of facilities. they don't know how to manage, because they never had to communicate in person with anybody if they didn't want to. they may have book knowledge, but the interpersonal skills are fuzzy (and i know this isn't everybody- but it's a lot of people :)).
it's a societal thing...not just nursing.
some company figures this out, and once again bails out the person who is incapable of forming an informed opinion, and making a choice based on the information at hand. they need a 'score' of some sort to make all work out in their own heads. so, now we have standardized testing for interviews. that's not only pathetic, it's scary. if someone can't assess a potential co-worker who is carrying her information in her resume'/application (in her hand while they are in the same room), how do they assess patients who don't have neon signs displaying their symptoms??? it's not just the measurable stuff...."gut" is a real thing in nursing. "gut" reactions are formed from watching people and their unspoken communication. sometimes it's so subtle, there really aren't words...it's just "gut".
i"ve been watching this (because of being totally dumbfounded at some of the stuff i've been reading), and it's just going to get worse. as the old farts start dropping off, the interpersonal communicators will be gone. will patients be asked to text next???? chunk the call-light, just get them all some sort of contraption rigged up to the call light system, and tell them to "text their questions/problems/requests..... someone will do a drive-by med pass, and see about them in a little while....?
the new nurses/students have to be absolutely in the dark about anything that comes from situational experience- if it wasn't written down in a book, there's no frame of reference at all (used to pull that from just normal conversations with people- but those are minimal at best anymore). a crowd of young adults can all be sitting within 15 feet of each other, nobody saying a word, but the fingers flying on the text gizmos - i have a "dumb phone" that i've used 3 times in 1.5 years...(and the ages in the group i'm referencing generally are up to age 25 in my view because of the length of time to reach full brain development- again- not anything 'bad' about the 17-25's in college...it's a matter of physical brain development). with nobody to fill them in (since the ones just before them didn't have a clue either) they get sent out of nursing school expected to know how to evaluate things on an interpersonal level, and it's like having to read sanskrit.
whether it's tv, news stories, magazine articles, message boards, or whatever...the lack of awareness of how to just deal with a human being as a human being is fading fast. public high schools are all doing a lousy job with the basics (though there are many self-starting young people who are seeking out advanced classes while in high school)- they can't teach basic social skills (like how to sit down and talk to someone about a job...or fill out an application/resume'). the parents are either missing in action, or working hours that aren't conducive to them teaching this stuff (again- not everyone- but there's a big trend, even on this one site- and some heart wrenching decisions that have been posted about wanting to go back to school, but having to work to keep a roof over the heads of the kids, and food in their stomachs).
so, now the new nurses are tested on clinical, situational, and whatever that last thing was, so the interviewer knows what to look for. they don't know otherwise- i can't think of another reason to pay some company money to decide who gets an interview.
...unreal.
no wonder the newbies/students are having so much trouble. the 'senior' nurses (who may be 30 years old- trust me, that's young- lol) are probably doing the best they can considering what they've had to work with in their own life experience and frame of reference. but it's still really sad.
the profession isn't going downhill because of anything except the lack of leadership in the managers, which of course is inevitably damaging the environment with staff nurses. and it's not nursing per se- it's a complete breakdown of how to just deal with each other in the same room. maybe that sounds harsh. it's just an opinion- so if you don't agree- that's fine (i'll still sleep at night :)). it's not about adn/bsn/msn....it's about the absolute basic skills of communication.
kids in high schools are now turning in essays in 'text speak'....and don't understand why that's a problem....people can't tweet through life.
if a lot of you guys out there had the option of talking in person to people about the things here on an, would you do that, or stick with the computer and 'anonymous' communication? why? (don't expect an answer- just think about it) :) what do you miss with online communication (tone of voice, body language, inflections, demeanor, facial expressions, etc). most of communication is non-verbal. with most of communication being 'distant', a lot is missed...so how can people know how to react and relate to each other?
jmo...:chair:
mama_d, BSN, RN
1,187 Posts
Xtxrn...
You might just be on to something there. :)
My facility would never shell out the bucks for something like that...tgey much prefer to hire whimsically and then spend the money on having multiple other companies what we're screwing up at. We do RCA for serious preventable events...yet never do RCA on how people who are involved in them and contribute to them by not being able to critically think got there in the first place.
My dept is trying to move to peer interviews once people make it past the cut on a HR and managerial level. It has seemed to help. We recently had a run of techs who were hired who were just awful...one actually ended up quitting nursing school b/c her expectations were so skewed from reality...but the last couple who got hired on with significant input from the peer interview process have been great. You can tell a lot about attitude, whether or not the personalitied will mesh, etc. from just talking to someone...and the peer process is a lot more laid back, so I think people are more likely to let their true colors peek out.
Those chosen to be part of the peer review committee are generally those who have been there for a while and are shall we say more outspoken...if someone can get through that process with people who are like we are then they're far more likely to fit well.
I like the peer review interviews. At first, I was nervous about being interviewed by a group of nurses, but it is so much more comfortable. And a group of nurses keep the interview open and interesting. I feel you learn so much more about the person by watching body movements, facial expressions, and tone of voice. I do feel it's important to assess someone's skill level and this can be accomplished by discussing what the nurse is efficient in and then building on weaknesses. I like the traditional sense of orientation, working with a preceptor. And I also agree with ongoing assessments such as unit based competencies. I just feel that these pre- hire assessments fail to give the whole picture. And speaking of phones, I will be interviewed by phone if everything goes well with the test. Interpersonal communication is, I'm afraid, a dying art.