typical rn:pt ratios near philly

BiotoBSNtoFNP · May 7, 2015

Where will you be coming from?

The pay for a few years experience should be low to mid 30s. Obviously some pay better than others. I think Penn pays the best but i dont think jeff, einstein, main line, temple etc are far behind. Hahnemann was a few dollars lower.

My hospital for med surg is 5-6 (VERY rarely 7) patients w one cna for the floor who only did vitals. All of the other care was left to the nurse. So i am sure the pcu ratio is less.

Many of the area hospitals practice primary nursing with less reliance on aides than some of the other areas in the country.

Temple is the only union hospital in the area but from what i have heard, nursing satisfaction is great at most of the hospitals. And, quite a few are magnet if that is important to you. Also, many of the campuses are smoke free and it seems to be the new big thing to teat for nicotine upon hire-just for your information.

If you are moving to the main line, main line health appears to be a great employer if you can get your foot in the door!! You have a large selection of hospitals and as an experienced nurse, you shouldnt have a problem getting hired anywhere ðŸ‘ðŸ˜€

purpleca · May 7, 2015

Where will you be coming from?
The pay for a few years experience should be low to mid 30s. Obviously some pay better than others. I think Penn pays the best but i dont think jeff, einstein, main line, temple etc are far behind. Hahnemann was a few dollars lower.
My hospital for med surg is 5-6 (VERY rarely 7) patients w one cna for the floor who only did vitals. All of the other care was left to the nurse. So i am sure the pcu ratio is less.
Many of the area hospitals practice primary nursing with less reliance on aides than some of the other areas in the country.
Temple is the only union hospital in the area but from what i have heard, nursing satisfaction is great at most of the hospitals. And, quite a few are magnet if that is important to you. Also, many of the campuses are smoke free and it seems to be the new big thing to teat for nicotine upon hire-just for your information.
If you are moving to the main line, main line health appears to be a great employer if you can get your foot in the door!! You have a large selection of hospitals and as an experienced nurse, you shouldnt have a problem getting hired anywhere í ½í±í ½í¸€

I'm currently in NJ. I have heard that NJ and PA ate the worst states regarding pt ratios, but am hoping that PA is a little better. It just doesn't feel safe to me.

Oh- one thing though- I only have an Associate degree. I know I need to get into a BSN program asap, but haven't yet. Will that make it a lot harder for me to find a job?

Angels91084 · May 7, 2015

Penn will not hire unless you have a BSN. Also nether will a lot of the city hospitals. My floor is a med/surg and our ratio is 4/5 we can have 1-2 cna's on the floor depending on availability. If we have 1:1's that means less cna's for the floor.

JustcallmeNurse · May 7, 2015

Hello! I'm am scoping out working conditions in the Philly area, where id like to relocate to next year. I will be moving to the main line area, so im open to suburb and city hospitals.
Currently im on a 27 bed pcu unit. We have 1 -2 aides, 7pts per nurse on days, and are about to switch to primary nursing (no more charge nurse) and will "hopefully" bring our ratio to 6. I know not all pcu's are created equal: ours is vitals Q4, cardizem and heparin drips, cath lab pts, post pacemaker insertion, chest tubes, bipaps machines, all on tele.
Please share with me:
*what hospital (or at least wether it is suburb or in city if you aren't comfortable)
*Rn to pt ratios
*type of unit
*how many aides?
*is there a charge nurse?
*pay scale (I will have 1 - 2 yrs experience) I currently make $27 on days

I work on an extremely busy surgical floor in the city. We have the highest turnover for beds besides the ER. On days we have 4-5 patients and same for nights. Although we have recently been approved for more "patient care hours" or something like that to where our ratio should be 1:4. We usually have 3 CNAs on days and 2 on nights, but that does go down if there are 1:1s on the floor.

We do have a charge nurse that does not have patients, except for on extraordinarily rare occasions.

With 2 years of experience you would start around $38.

My facility is BSN only, and an overwhelming majority in the city/burbs are also.

I wish you luck on your search!

flyersfan88 · May 8, 2015

Ratio is 1:4

Aides: 3 on days, 2 or 3 on nights.

Yes there is a charge. Charge takes no patients during the day and 2 at night.

2 years experience will get you around $38 base pay.

TitusNoir · May 11, 2015

Einstein is BSN only 1-2 yrs experience would be around 32 an hour

Home Health Columnist / Guide · May 15, 2015

Most Philly health systems are hiring BSN grads only-- you should be enrolled and actively taking classes in order to get a foot in the door of best health systems. Your PCU unit experience should get your resume at least reviewed. Best wishes transitioning to PA.

purpleca · May 16, 2015

Thanks. I will definately make getting into a BSN program a priority before I move!

purpleca · Oct 5, 2015

I am now enrolled in a BSN and am ready to start applying. I saw that Main Line has weekend only programs. Are there other hospitals in the are that also have that opportunity?