Reservations: Swedish Seattle- AM

[blue26]

Hi,

So just wanting some sage advice as I have some reservations about a new contract I've been offered.

Me: I'm a new traveler, just finished my first assignment and am on to the next. I have 7 years experience in med-surg, neuro and telemetry and have always worked in Oregon. I feel like I am a strong nurse with a solid base of experience but accustomed to safer ratios provided by Oregon.

I have been offered a 13 week contract at Swedish Cherry Hill - Seattle on a neuro-telemetry unit. I have until tomorrow morning to decide whether to take the contract or no.

I have some reluctance about this for a few reasons.

+Nurse ratios are 6:1 at night, with a CNA loaded with 12 patients where I may be responsible for post angiogram monitoring, vasoactive drips, new strokes, CP etc. I have only ever worked in Oregon and the unit similar to this in my old unit was 3:1 or 4:1 at night. Is this crazy? Am I walking into an unsafe situation?

+When I called the unit to speak with the nurse manager, the staff who answered the phone sounded really stressed out.

+When asked to have time to consider whether to take the assignment or not, the recruiter was pushy and passive aggressive like a used car salesman. She would not send me the contract with the fine print to independently read over the weekend. She wants to go over this with me over the phone.

The reasons I want to say yes:

+Monetary Benefits: Better pay with this new company. It's only 13 weeks, I can do anything for 13 weeks theoretically right? Plus would be interesting to live in Seattle for a spell.

+Swedish seems to have a good reputation. Magnet hospital. It couldn't be a totally unsafe burnout factory could it?

+Sure bet. Say no and be in limbo until another assignment. Really I just California would just issue my licence already!

There's a few red flags here I admit. But is this just the way it is with travel? I understand the recruiter profits from me taking an assignment. I understand nurse to patient ratios are different in other states. Will it be fine when I get there? (This first assignment went o.k. but I am still in the loving arms of Oregon.) Am I just anxious about moving state? Or is my gut right and telling me the truth that this is a bum deal?

I would greatly appreciate any specific feedback on working in Swedish Seattle in general or if anyone has any insight on these feelings of anxiety and doubt.

Thanks :/

Any feed back would be appreciated about the hospital. Wish I had posted this before the night in which I had to decide.

[NedRN]

Red flags? Fire sale - buy now or lose out? Contract they won't let you read?

Sounds like an easy decision to me. Swedish always needs travelers and uses multiple agencies. Put it on your bucket list and come back to it.

I know I sound like a broken record to those who lurk here regularly, but you need to have several agencies on board. Each of those agencies must have recruiters you can trust and communicate well with otherwise your assignment is unlikely to go well. You don't even know if this agency has competitive pay for Swedish, or a competitive contract with fair conditions. You won't find that out with a single recruiter who does not communicate openly.

[wanderlust99]

I worked at the Cherry Hill campus, but in the Neuro ICU. I floated to the neuro tele unit twice, during night shift. I honestly didn't think it was that bad. And I'm used to only caring for 2 patients at a time. I was worried about the ratios and floating there because I'm used to working in CA. I think I had 5 patients each night I worked. Busy at first, but I had a lot of downtime later in the night. I remember a couple people had total care assignments, so they'd have 3? patients but no CNA. I thought that was the easier assignment tbi.

You are used to working neuro, so you know the crazy combative confused patients are to be expected. I remember the charge nurse being very helpful when I floated there, she'd answer my call lights and helped me deal with a pt that kept getting OOB. The CNAs the 2 shifts I worked there weren't the greatest, but they did VS and checked blood sugars - which was helpful.

If you want to go to Seattle, I think it's a good hospital to work at. It's the smaller campus of the Swedish healthcare system. The parking is free on the street at night. I just didn't like Seattle due to the constant rain and other personal reasons, but if you're from Oregon, it's probably more up your alley.