RN Boom to bust in california

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The nursing industry has really shot itself in the foot in california if you ask me. After years of importing nurses and passing less than stellar nurses what we have now is an assess of new grads who will may have to relocate out of state to areas like the midwest and texas to find work. The numbers of new grads applying for a handful of newgrads position is just mind numbing and i suspect this coming year will be even worst as the new batch graduates competing previous new grads who are still without acute care experience. I wish you guys the bests. I wonder if the east coast is the same.

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Specializes in M/S, MICU, CVICU, SICU, ER, Trauma, NICU.

An outsider looking in:

Isn't the ENTIRE state of California in major disarray?

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I was wondering about that as well. What happens to the new grads that graduated last year and this year and yet to have a job and this month and at the end of next spring will be hundreds of new graduates? What's going to happen? As I stated in another post I can name 10 nursing programs within 1 hour of my house. I dont know. I definitely have to watch how this plays out.

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Specializes in ER.

Thanks for the well-wishes! I am on the East Coast. I don't know how it compares to West Coast but its hard to get a job here! (in the ATL)

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while it's true California may be in a lot of trouble, California has set up pt to nurse ratio lawS and we still have too many nurses. I suspect each June probably about 1500 to 2000 nurses graduate it's reach a point of supersaturation of nurses. I m a clinical instructor n my students are telling me that some hospitals they have talked to are offering new grads 18-22 an hour! I was on the interview com for our new grad program. We had over 400 application for 8 spots last spring. The nursing schools needs to vet out more students and the boards needs to shut down offshore nurses till we can find middle ground. If you are having problems dowN south then the only place left is the midwest.

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wow! $18-22 an hour! in the bay area? When I first started taking my prereqs nurses were being hired for $30 and up.

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Specializes in Med/Surg, ICU, educator.
wow! $18-22 an hour! in the bay area? When I first started taking my prereqs nurses were being hired for $30 and up.

when there is an abundance of supply, the price goes down. Many have been fearing this happening for quite some time.....and the one job I saw posted at another facility for exp (2-5 yrs) nurse was about $3/hr below area standard. My buddy that works there said they had 104 apps for that job 2 hrs after that job posted and had to close down the posting. And this is in rural Indiana area. Not just Cali. Things are tough all over kids, for all of us, not just newbies.....I count my blessings because I have a job.

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I read an interesting piece by an investment analyst who follows health care stocks.

His position, after quite a bit of study, is that the supposed demographic driven boom in health care that's coming with aging baby boomers is more illusion than fact.

Apparently, the peak growth of health care spending for individuals comes in their late 40s and 50s. Then it levels out until about 80, when hospitalizations and LTC use increases.

So, if he's right, hospitals will struggle for quite a few years. Conventional wisdom says he's wrong, but conventional wisdom is often folly.

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Specializes in Peds/outpatient FP,derm,allergy/private duty.
The nursing industry has really shot itself in the foot in california if you ask me. After years of importing nurses and passing less than stellar nurses what we have now is an assess of new grads who will may have to relocate out of state to areas like the midwest and texas to find work. The numbers of new grads applying for a handful of newgrads position is just mind numbing and i suspect this coming year will be even worst as the new batch graduates competing previous new grads who are still without acute care experience. I wish you guys the bests. I wonder if the east coast is the same.

Gee, it's too bad that LA Times reporter who did the hit job on Registry nurses, didn't bother to do even a rudimentary fact check before she droned on and on about the horrible crisis of the horrible, awful nursing shortage. :angryfire

I don't think California is in complete disarray- most of the 38, 000,000+ the inhabitants are just living our lives, and enjoying the mountain, ocean and desert landscapes that are no more than a couple hours drive away. Now, the state government that's a whole 'nother story. . .

I can remember back to when there was literally an entire section of the Classified Ads for nursing jobs. You know, like how those automotive sections are so big? Like that.

Is it the foreign imports that are to blame? Expanded nursing programs due to previous shortage? I don't know. I would have thought those ratio laws would result in a lot more openings for nurses, but I guess it didn't. . .

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Specializes in Ortho and Tele med/surg.

Yup things are just as bad on the east coast and in New York. Things will get better after the baby boomers retire.

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The nursing industry has really shot itself in the foot in california if you ask me. After years of importing nurses and passing less than stellar nurses what we have now is an assess of new grads who will may have to relocate out of state to areas like the midwest and texas to find work. The numbers of new grads applying for a handful of newgrads position is just mind numbing and i suspect this coming year will be even worst as the new batch graduates competing previous new grads who are still without acute care experience. I wish you guys the bests. I wonder if the east coast is the same.

I don't see the problem in Calif as any worse than elsewhere but I'm not basing this on research or a statistical survey, just from what I see/hear. Regarding the importing of nurses . . . Calif wasn't the only state to do that. And, "less than stellar nurses" . . . I don't know where that comes from, we all have to pass the NCLEX and attend approved nursing programs. The situation in Calif is just the same glut of RN's that all of you are experiencing, throughout the country . . . the hospitals are not hiring because the patient census is down and elective surgeries are being postponed. IMHO.:twocents:

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Specializes in LTC, Psych, M/S.

I hope people just entering nsg school realize what is going on - although most are still under the illusion there are 'jobs everywhere' which is what the news media is still suggesting - like in the registry article yesterday. I agree that the problem will get worse before it gets better, nationwide. This being due mostly to the large #'s of new graduate nurses.

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