VA Proficiency Nurse III Frustration & Appeal

[Sarah918]

I am feeling frustrated with the entire VA NPSB proficiency process. At my hospital, it is a good old boys system in which board members promote their friends and the other managers and shut the door on others. I am a staff RN with a MSN and years of experience. I applied for my nurse III after completing a hospital wide project and doing other work that met the 9 dimensions.

This whole process has me frustrated beyond words. My profIciency has been lost by HR multiple times. My initial NPSB review said I didnt meet 7 of the 9 dimensions. Before submitting my proficiency, I had it reviewed by 3 former board members who all said I would meet for a 3. I submitted a request for reconsideration after the initial denial, and suddenly I met 6 out of 9 dimensions. I am now appealing my denial to VACO. Has anyone ever done this? What was he outcome, and how long did your appeal take to be answered after it was sent off?

I have been repeatedly been told by my own manager "you cannot get a 3 without working in management" and "it takes multiple submissions to get approved". I do not think this is correct. It may be harder to find the time and get approval for a project, but staff RNs cannot be essentially "blocked" from promotion. The dimensions are black and white, yet a subjective system is used to approve or deny proficiencies. It seems so unfair at my hospital. I've seen other nurses get promoted who were friends with board members, while other truly deserving RNs who meet the dimensions and make lasting changed within the hospital are shut out.

Any guidance and other nurses experience with this would be greatly appreciated. I love working with our Vets, but the good old boys club and the oppressive bureaucracy had me ready to bash my face into something. I feel defeated. Thanks all

[knytenurse03]

I'm not sure how to PM but they boarded me as a N II also with a MSN and over 8 years experience. Trying to get a Nurse III now and could benefit from a copy of your proficiency to help guide me. I am new to the VA and coming up on my 1 year anniversary. I have been working on my proficiency for a month and I am frustrated. You can reach out to me at [email protected] or [email protected]

[NurseNine]

Hi RN4KU,

If u still have the proficiency, can u share a copy with me... thanks in advance. My email: [email protected]

[knytenurse03]

Correction, over 8 years experience in the role I applied for but I have been a nurse for 15 years.

[Jag4lf98]

RN4KU will you send me a copy of your proficiency? Thank you.

[Navysailor99]

Good morning, I work at the VA and respectfully requesting your assist with NURSE 3 proficiency. Can you please email me at [email protected]. Thank you

[TTRN1]

Hi

I know its been a while you post this thread. I just happens to see this when I searched for the help to get VA proficiency to nurse 3. if you dont mind, can you send me the example also. here it is impossible to get nurse 3. my managers hasn't been much support either. I just graduated with my NP, but the pay is so low, i dont have a NP job yet. I am trying to get it before i accept the job if anything comes open. It would really help me to write my proficiency. Thank you in advance!

[TTRN1]

Hey Trumi241

Can you also share the tips for to get the nurse 3 with me too please. mine is due next month and i would really like to get some help.my email [email protected]

Thank you

[melbelrn]

Can someone please send me the nurse III example [email protected].

Thanks

[pamella1025]

I feel your pain. I am also a nurse at the VA Hospital. I was hoping to find some helpful advise for a similar issues with the self-evaluation nursing proficiency as well. I started working at the VA as an Associate degree nurse ten years ago, since then I have gotten a BSN degree in 2014 and did not receive any promotion. Recently I received my MSN degree and still did not receive a promotion and remain a nurse I. I was told to rewrite my proficiency which I did with the help of a nurse educator who is familiar with the correct wording of the evaluation. However, my problem is that what I am told is that the time frame for resubmitting the evaluation has lapsed since there is a thirty day period to appeal. Nevertheless, the bottom line is that I was given an unfair evaluation outcome that shows that out of the 9 areas of the evaluation I met 0/9 which includes education of which I have acquired a Master's degree and a Med-surge certification as well. I know that nothing is written in stone, therefore I will continue to press on until I can find the right person that can help me with this problem. The system is extremely unfair and as you mentioned, it is based on who you know. The worst part about this self-evaluation is that your supervisor's wording impacts the outcome of your evaluation regardless of how well you have written the information to meet the various criteria of the proficiency as well. In my opinion, the supervisor has way too much power over who gets a promotion versus who does not. My hope is that this method of determining nurses promotion will be re-evaluated for its fairness in promoting nurses for their hard work.

[Guest1030015]

The worst part about this self-evaluation is that your supervisor's wording impacts the outcome of your evaluation regardless of how well you have written the information to meet the various criteria of the proficiency as well. In my opinion, the supervisor has way too much power over who gets a promotion versus who does not. My hope is that this method of determining nurses promotion will be re-evaluated for its fairness in promoting nurses for their hard work.

I tend to avoid these proficiency threads because many of the posts just don't make sense. Perhaps it would benefit some of the individuals involved to volunteer on the salary board so that they can see first-hand how it works. For example, there are direct care nurses (so that you are evaluated by peers) who sit on the board and help to determine the final outcome, and in the case of many facilities, the individuals on the board may not have any personal knowledge of the of nurse that they are reviewing.

In what work environment does your supervisor's opinion/wording not impact your evaluation and promotion potential? In the private sector, your supervisor is often the only person who determines if you are promoted. What are your ratings like? Are you fully successful, highly successful, or outstanding? Are you working in a leadership capacity in your area? Are you working to impact unit-wide (Nurse II) or housewide (Nurse III) outcomes on a consistent basis?

Did you review and sign off on the proficiencies that were submitted? Did you appeal your proficiency outcomes at any of these times that you feel you were deprived of a warranted promotion? If you did, and still didn't get the outcome you desired, did you appeal nationally?

I don't know how it works at other VAs, but in my facility, a Nurse III is a high-functioning professional who spends a significant amount of time serving housewide needs. This nurse is participating on quality initiatives, housewide committees, possibly involved in a lean project, etc. If a nurse with an MSN is simply punching in and punching out, no matter how wonderful he/she is at the job, the requirements for a Nurse III are not being met. In the end, it doesn't matter how good your writing skills are if you can't demonstrate that you have met the criteria for a promotion. There are many resources available at the VA to assist you with this process and the criteria are clearly articulated in these resources.

I would focus less on the proficiency that one nurse used to obtain his/her Nurse III, who may or may not work in a similar clinical area, which may or may not have a proficiency that would result in a promotion in the "average" VA, who may or may not have a board with similar dynamics. Use the established criteria and speak to them in your self-evaluation. If you don't meet the criteria, then then set some aggressive goals for the year so that you will be able to demonstrate them in the next rating period.

Tone is hard to convey over the internet, but I'm not being snarky. I just see a lot of posts that demonstrate a lack of understanding about how it works or what is required. When I first started at the VA, a lot of my employees would tell me that I couldn't do this or that because of union rules. When I finally sat down and read the union rules, I realized that my staff, like me, lacked an understanding of what the bargaining agreement actually said. The same seems to be true of the salary board; many people spread misinformation and discuss how unfair the process is, yet haven't really examined the criteria and their own deficiencies.

[pamella1025]

quote from SubieRN, BSN, RN

Perhaps it would benefit some of the individuals involved to volunteer on the salary board so that they can see first-hand how it works. For example, there are direct care nurses (so that you are evaluated by peers) who sit on the board and help to determine the final outcome, and in the case of many facilities, the individuals on the board may not have any personal knowledge of the of nurse that they are reviewing.

I appreciate your response, but this is my point exactly. As you have mentioned, nurses are evaluated by their "peers", which I was told as well. But, who are those "peers" determining my worth on the job? I work on the night shift and no one on my shift is a member of the salary board. Therefore, the nurses who make the decisions regarding if I get a promotion, do not know me, do not work with me, and perhaps never met me. Also, I was told by the board Chair person that the supervisor need to word the evaluation in a specific way for the nurse to receive the promotion. If the supervisor does not write the proficiency using certain words that satisfies all of the 9 evaluation criteria, then the nurse still does not get promoted. So, what is the point of the self-evaluation? The bottom line is, the self-proficiency requires that the nurse describes how she/he contributed to the organization to improve care for the veterans as it relates to the 9 areas of the proficiency. However, if the supervisor uses only one or two words from the nurses 2-3-page self-evaluation, along with lack of the "right wording", the nurse does not get a fair evaluation. In my case, I volunteer on 2 different committees, I have done my required in-services in terms of teaching my peers, I have been a preceptor for new nurses, and I have worked as a charge nurse periodically on the unit. In addition to that, I have acquired a BSN degree in nursing, a MSN degree in nurse education, and a Med-Surge certification. To add to all my accomplishments, I have been a nurse for a total of 17 years and is still at an entry level position. How is this fair? Does the committee have no respect for higher learning? I will never understand how any reasonable person can justify not promoting me and others with similar circumstances to a nurse II. The VA proficiency evaluation for nurses is unfair and in dire need of assessment to determine the fairness of its intention.

[CARN72]

RN4KU, I do not have PM. Could you please send to my personal email? [email protected] Thank you!!