What's up with Human Resources

jaimealmostRN · Jan 30, 2005

As a new grad, in the past few months I have talked with and applied to many different hospitals via HR. I have found that the way HR is (nice, nasty, indifferent) is a very, very accurate reflection of the hospital "mind-set" (mng't, your co-workers). The few places with truly mean and rude HR were the places that you couldn't pay me enough $ to work at EVER!

jnette, ASN, EMT-I · Jan 30, 2005

LOL, in a meeting I just had with my nursing staff and admin, we had a huge lecture on "the customer is always right". I stayed quiet for quite some time...and no matter what was thrown at the admin...like noncompliance with meds being wrong, or a patient being abusive being wrong...she came back with "no..the customer is always right so live with it".
I finally muttered...'well that makes staff always wrong then, because you can't have it both ways'. That one flustered everyone...because I was very right...me..a staff!
I suggested that we don't go with the mindset of the 'customer always being right', but instead to say 'our customers deserve respect, dignity, autonomy and the rights to a supportive environment by professional staff'. Then they said that was too much and would never work...
So I grabbed the mission statement off the wall of that very room, put it down and said...hmmmmmm...so this too is wrong! Written on it were my exact words!
Okay it didn't go anywhere..but I think I proved my point rather nicely! And for me...a little win in the ongoing saga of "as the administration turns". LOL!

Whoooooooooooooooooot !!! I LOVE this !!! Kudos to YOU, my friend !!! :balloons:

Reading this just made my day. :) Ahhh.. .............

HR_Response · Feb 1, 2005

I am a SPHR certified HR professional who has worked in hospitals for years. I've had the pleasure of working with some fine people and witnessed nurses work miracles. Nurses should be paid what most make for just putting up with doctors and family members. But of course you all know this and you knew it when you started. It's not all about the money for most nurses. It's simply not worth it if it were.

Regarding the HR world . . . My weeks are commonly 60 to 70 hours long. That's because I am the only person other than my very over worked assistant to handle HR issues at our hopsital. It's not huge - only about 400 people or so. But I'm it. You know how it is on the floor. A lot of drama goes on in a hosptial - and it often plays out in my office. So honestly about 70% of my time is spent listening to Managers complain about RNs, RNs complain about CNAs/LPNs or Managers, Food Prep employees complain about coworkers, etc etc. Then there is Administration - I have to deal with them and their often innane ideas too. Being the go between is a PAIN. Of course we have to deal with JCAHO and other agencies plus all the benefit and leave issues. It adds up. Despite all this I know I could not do your jobs. I don't have the guts or cognitive skill set. BUT you wouldn't want mine either. Promise you that.

RNview · Feb 1, 2005

I am not generalizing but SOME HR Personnel are just too rude. I posted my case before:

https://allnurses.com/forums/showthread.php?t=91590&highlight=turned+recruiter

After talking to this person, it made me change the way I look at their hospital and management. I wish they could put someone up in front who deal professionally with people of any kind.

**SKM-NURSIEPOOH, BSN, RN** · Feb 1, 2005

as a new grad, in the past few months i have talked with and applied to many different hospitals via hr. i have found that the way hr is (nice, nasty, indifferent) is a very, very accurate reflection of the hospital "mind-set" (mng't, your co-workers). the few places with truly mean and rude hr were the places that you couldn't pay me enough $ to work at ever!

i just graduated last spring from a bsn program & applied at the same university hospital. now i've been a lpn for over nine years & was applying for an office position there until i was ready to back to bedside nursing. hr apparently set-up an interview with the office manager & the director. both individuals & the other staff felt i would've been a great fit as i'd worked ambulatory nursing twice before.

but ohhhhhhhhh nooooooooooooo! in steps hr & all he** breaks loose! first of all....the nsg recruiter calls me with a laundry list of things that she states are required by jacho. mind you...this is the first & only hr requesting this material & claiming it to be a jacho requirement :uhoh21:....out of the countless other positions i've applied for in my entire nsg career :rolleyes: ! but first...she told me that i would be considered an graduate or *new* to practice nsg...despite my having passed the nclex-rn & having over nine years of lpn experience. what she said next mad me see red completely :angryfire! she had the gall to say the my lpn experience doesn't count as *real nursing* experience & that i would have to submit:

my final transcripts.
two letters of recommendations from my senior level clinical instructors.
a copy of my most recent employment evaluation (from my present employer).

she tells me this the same week of christmas/winter break...like all of the instructors where gone on vacation & wouldn't be heard from until after the new year holiday. then this....this...person simply drops me in another recruiter's lap. obviously this other recruiter was a junior level recruiter as she seem not to know which way was up or down. she just kept calling me with messages about my referrals. well...i can't tell ya how pissed-off i was! first of all...imo...this nsg recruiter dropped the dang ball by not interviewing me first. had she told me this crap in the first place, i would've turned her down flat & wouldn't have wasted the director & office manager's as well as my valuable time! the only reason i even considered submitting that stuff was cuz they (the nsg depart) was re-embursing the graduate nsg their senior year's tuition cost...which for me was $18,950!

but noooooooo.....i told her that i could sort of go along with the final transcripts...but that was leaving a bad taste in my mouth cuz my register's office won't give graduates official transcripts without the five dollar fee & they would mail the letter to it's destination (hr is literally across the dang street!)...in otherwords...they're a pain in the a** too. i then e-mailed & phoned my former clinical instructors.......i've yet to hear from either one to this day....good thing i was turned-off by hr huh? but when it came to hr wanting.....no...demanding a copy of my present evaluation from another employer (depsite my being a lpn having no baring on this present position)....she stated that they were only interested in the *kind* of employee i am & not necessarily *what* i did. well that's when all bets were off!!!! this person had the nerve to tell me that i could request a copy of it...that i as an employee had a right to a copy! i told her that i may have a right to that copy...but they don't!!!! i told her that she could fax my hr/supervisor their standard employment reference sheet & that would be filled & submitted back to her....but under no circumstances was i going to just hand over a private document that belongs to me & my current employer. my office manager looked into it with our hr & they confirmed that there is no such jacho requirement for hr files. they more than likely were trying to do some sort of study with that institution's graduate nurses. needless to say...i wrote an e-mail to the junior recruiter & guess what happened....that position was reposted with the specification that the applicant must have at least three years experience in ambulatory nursing! well....it was their lost...that's how i look at it anyway :chuckle.

my feeling is my license should speak for my *rn entry level* competency...my degree should speak for my performance at the university...what in the he** does my grades have to do with being cable of performing an ambulatory nursing position? one i've done a few time prior as mentioned above? i've also got experience in the army & worked the icu...in fact....prior to my discharge...i was the ncoic (non commissioned officer in charge) of that section....but i guess that means absolutely nothing though :angryfire!

i've decided to take another position at one of the other prestigious, level i teaching institutions in philly...within their icu & decided to stay-on with my other employer per-diem (as a favor) until they can find my replacement. my other employer (the major pediatric level i center in philly) were very accommodating with my school schedules & i do appreciate that. i worked as a lpn for them & will continue to do so as they don't have it in their budget to pay me the rn salary. i could've easily gone over to the clinical side there but choose to return to adult icu because of future aspirations in becoming a crna. the folks in the hr from both my current employment are very caring & the folks who work for them are too. soooo i totally agree with jaimealmostrn's assessment/correlation with the overall aura/attitude of the hr & the whole system.

cheers!

moe

sunfirebsn · Feb 1, 2005

This is just the post I've been looking for!! :devil: As a recent new grad, I have talked (to a person when fortunate enough) to different hospitals' HR departments and have mostly experienced the same thing, answering machines machines machines!! and waiting days to a week for my call to be returned. I understand it takes some time to get everything organized but sometimes it makes me wonder if there is a shortage, because they don't seem to be in a rush to combat it. No one has ever been rude thank goodness but the whole waiting game gets old. You know sorry I just want to work at your hospital! I guess it is like that at other places too. Well, I feel a little better now! :thankya:

actioncat · Feb 1, 2005

Ohmigod! I did not know that you worked at my hospital. Good grief! I cannot believe how lazy and rude some of these people are. Well, I guess I deserve it. One time I interrupted someone that was eating their bagel and cream cheese.

RNKitty · Feb 1, 2005

[ i worked as a lpn for them & will continue to do so as they don't have it in their budget to pay me the rn salary. [/i]

i'd be careful working as an lpn when you have and rn license. you are legally liable to the full extent of your license! just as an aside.

btw, my dh is in hr and he has been enjoying these postes. especially human remains!

skanded · Feb 1, 2005

I feel your pain. Our HR sucks. THey need to take some CS classes!! :angryfire

**SKM-NURSIEPOOH, BSN, RN** · Feb 5, 2005

i'd be careful working as an lpn when you have and rn license. you are legally liable to the full extent of your license! just as an aside.

btw, my dh is in hr and he has been enjoying these postes. especially human remains!

i've check with both sbons (pa & nj) & a person is allowed to hold & work in both license level. the thing that one must know is the scope of practice for each position. as my lpn position is within ambulatory is slightly different than what the rns do in this setting...i'll be just fine. lpns do everything the rns do except for telephone triage which require extra computer training that the rns have access that lpns don't.

that's for lookin' out anyway ~ cheers :cheers:!

moe