Second chance as a new grad

[Beldar_the_Cenobite, CNA]

Hello all, 

 

I have a question. Those who worked in HR either at a hospital or in general your advice would be greatly appreciated. Nursing managers like Unit Manager or Director please share your thoughts. 

 

I work as a CNA while I'm in nursing school. I've been fired from many facilities (mostly long term care and maybe 1 hospital "Valley hospital in las Vegas" [UHS Inc])

I currently work at a long term care where I've worked the longest before after getting fired so many times from other facilities. The times I did get fired I didn't last a month. Maybe I'm burned out. If I graduate nursing school and stop working as a CNA and start working as a nurse, would the one hospital I would like to work at again for experience hire me back or would they want 5 years of nursing experience even though I wasn't a nurse when they fired me I was a CNA? Would they give me a chance as a new grad nurse? I figure that would be a route they could go because I don't know anyone that graduated CNA school and got to work at a hospital with no experience.

 

I've been a CNA for 3 years. Most of my experience is from agency. The second-longest tenure I have is at the long term care I'm at now. Where I'm at now, so long as everything is good between me and them and providing I don't fail school and can pass the NCLEX, I could work as a nurse for them, but I would also like to work at a hospital. Someone once told me hospitals are more difficult to work at because there's more protocols than a long term care. I didn't know that. The hospital I would like to go back to trains new grad nurses for 3 months. The place I'm at as a CNA trains new nurses 1 month. 

[Wuzzie]

If you were fired for cause it is unlikely the hospital will hire you regardless of the position change. They likely won't take you even after 5 years of working. In fact, with your history it might be difficult getting hired anywhere. If you continue your course towards being a nurse it would behoove you to examine what has happened and come up with a plan for improvement that you can articulate when you are inevitably questioned about your past work history while being interviewed. 

[chare]

I think you are going to have a difficult time overcoming your work history.  In my opinion, f the facility where you currently work is willing to offer you an RN position this might be your best option.

Best wishes.

[Jedrnurse, BSN, RN]

Generally speaking, I wouldn't count on a place that fired you hiring you back in any capacity.

[JBMmom, MSN, NP]

I think that having a good position to transition into is your best option. Starting out in a long term care facility as a RN doesn't mean you won't eventually work in a hospital, many people transition from other facilities to hospitals, especially if you have been able to gain experience. Since you mention being fired from "many facilities", it's probably most important that you establish a solid work history at some point if you're going to make this your career. I would stay with your current facility and start there as a RN since you are building a solid employment history there. 

[lifelearningrn, BSN, RN]

When do you graduate?  It sounds like you've worked for the same agency for a while. You may do well to list the agency as your employer, and not the different facilities. 

I agree with the others that you should address the issues that caused you to get on their DNR lists, and apply to places other than those facilities. Since you have a job and are in good standing, staying there to get some RN experience isn't a bad idea. You can still apply for other nursing positions while you work. 

[caliotter3]

If you really want the answer to your question just carry yourself into that facility and have a discussion with someone in HR.  Do it now so you don't have a chance to get false hopes festering.  And as previously suggested, it might be worth your consideration to stay for a time where you are now successful.  The longer your positive track record, the less impact the negative will have on your future.  Best wishes.

[Beldar_the_Cenobite, CNA]

20 hours ago, lifelearningrn said:

When do you graduate?  It sounds like you've worked for the same agency for a while. You may do well to list the agency as your employer, and not the different facilities. 

I agree with the others that you should address the issues that caused you to get on their DNR lists, and apply to places other than those facilities. Since you have a job and are in good standing, staying there to get some RN experience isn't a bad idea. You can still apply for other nursing positions while you work. 

I graduate next May. I was at the hospital for about a month or a month and a quarter, one of those two, and I didn't get to see these two patients almost the whole day because I was trying to answer other call lights and I just had poor management skills and they complained to the unit manager. It was a L2K/Medsurg floor, the biggest unit in the hospital, and my unit manager warned me it was a difficult floor to work when I interviewed with him. I've stayed with the temp agency place while I worked at the long term care I came back to. I went to Maxim staffing first, then long term care, then quit because of a patient no one would help me with, then a bunch of facilities, then the hospital, followed by more facilities, then back to the long term care I was at after Maxim because the patient I quit over finally left.  

[Beldar_the_Cenobite, CNA]

20 hours ago, caliotter3 said:

If you really want the answer to your question just carry yourself into that facility and have a discussion with someone in HR.  Do it now so you don't have a chance to get false hopes festering.  And as previously suggested, it might be worth your consideration to stay for a time where you are now successful.  The longer your positive track record, the less impact the negative will have on your future.  Best wishes.

You always bring hopes up, Caliotter3. Please don't ever change your profile name. It's always good to see your supportive positivity. I wish managers had that. I was planning on staying where I'm at as a CNA to transition as an RN, but I also wanted to work at one of the UHS hospitals in Las Vegas. There's a ton of UHS hospitals. Like 6-9 hospitals I think. Around Covid, they bought a hospital. I got fired because of a patient complaint and not visiting them. I didn't mean to not see them, but boy was I busy. During the investigation with HR and the unit manager, I didn't remember not seeing the patient or even remember the patient that complained against me, yet they still fired me anyway. I tried to be transparent about it. It would have been nice if my unit manager maybe pulled me to the side or something. I don't know. It was a tough unit. I'll say that. Once I graduate I would like to work the night shift no matter where I work. Patients can sleep, I can pass meds, but it'll be quiet and I would hope I can sit down a couple of times and let everything I've learned in school marinate. I graduated CNA school and had a horrible experience. Horrible training everywhere I went. At least working as a nurse I'd get more training (long term care is typically 1 month, hospitals 3 months) plus I won't have to worry about school anymore.