Despite shortages, nurses not finding work as quickly
Submitted by Admin on July 7, 2010, 4:07 pm 5 Comments
"With fewer nurses retiring or working part time, positions typically available to new nurses have dried up and hospitals and health systems have cut back dramatically on new graduate hires," Deloras Jones, the executive director of the California Institute for Nursing & Healthcare, wrote in a report released in June. "As a result, an alarming number of new nurses are unemployed, opting for non-nursing jobs, or moving out of state to seek employment opportunities."Suggestions For Nurses Finding It Hard To Get A Job 1. Tailor Your Skills To Meet Society's Needs: A headline in yesterday's Guardian newspaper (UK) said "Graduates warned of record 70 applicants for every job. Class of 2010 told to consider flipping burgers or shelf stacking to build skills as they also compete with last year's graduates." That's probably fairly accurate if you happened to earn a degree in liberal arts, general studies, real estate, hospitality management, english lit, philosophy, or some other major that's not exactly in high demand during a recession, but the same does not hold true if you have an education that provides you with skills society needs. Nursing & Allied Health Professions Are Necessary Professions Banks will continue consolidating so there won't be a need for as many people with finance degrees. It will take years to unwind the excess housing inventory so the need for additional new home builders, architects, and real estate developers won't be growing anytime soon. Retail stores are closing like crazy, commercial real estate continues to implode, banks aren't lending, wages are falling rather than going up, and everywhere you look adults are now competing with your teenagers for what few fast food jobs there are. Economists and financial pundits and busy arguing whether the global economy is in "recovery" or slipping into a double dip recession (or worse). I don't have a crystal ball, so I'll leave you to your own conclusions about where the immediate future leads, but I can tell you one thing with certainty: Nursing & Allied Health careers are probably the safest and most employable careers to be in for the forseeable future. Be Versatile: The job situation is a regional issue. There are places in the country that are hiring nurses, but you might have to be willing to move to get those jobs. These are not times to be rooted to your community if staying where you are means no job. Those good times will return, but not for some time to come, possibly not for some years to come, so be versatile enough to be willing to move to where the jobs are. Be adaptable enough to accept any position you can get to get your foot inside the door. You may not get to work in your preferred practice area or setting, but it's better to accept a night shift on a floor rather than go hungry while waiting for the perfect position. It's even better for an RN to be willing to accept working in an LPN's role (for LPN pay) if need be rather than have no job at all. Better for an LPN to be willing to start as a CNA, an ECG tech or phlebotomist for a while if it gets you a job. Remember, jobs can open up after you start someplace and you will have a far better chance being the one chosen to fill the job once you're already known by the person doing the hiring. Also, it's better to do some form of work that keeps your skills current rather than sitting at home letting them get rusty. Get The Skills Or Degree You Need To Become Or Remain Marketable This is a time of transition, and I'm sure you recognize the fact that some of the jobs that have been lost since the recession began aren't coming back at all, and some that do may take a long time to come back. If your former job was as a mortgage loan officer, a real estate salesperson, an auto salesperson, or a factory worker, now is an excellent time to consider retraining for a career field where there are jobs today and will be even more demand tomorrow. It's a great time to consider becoming a Health Information Technologist, an x-ray technician, an RN, to earn a degree in Long Term Care Administration, or look into any of the other hundreds of health care careers. And now is the time for nurses to improve their educational qualifications in order to remain marketable today and prepare for the challenges of tomorrow as well. If you're an LPN consider becoming an RN or earning your BSN degree NOW. If you're an associate degree RN I implore you to strongly consider earning your BSN degree. If you are a BSN nurse there's never been a better time to use those employer tuition reimbursement benefits to your advantage to earn your MSN degree or to become a Nurse Practitioner. Take Charge Of Your Future - Today.
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I am a licensed RN graduate with an associate's degree. If I would have forseen the economy taking a dive like this I would have taken the required courses for my BSN. I have been actively searching for an RN position throughout my pursuit of my degree. Unfortunately, what I see happening in the Cleveland, Ohio area is that there are so many nursing schools and not enough positions available upon graduation. Also many of the larger oraganizations such as University Hospitals and the Cleveland Clinic Foundation are scrambling to fill contracts that many students signed to gain tuition reimbursement. This causes a problem for the people who don't already work in a healthcare setting or had to resign to finish school. All the RN positions that I see available now and this includes long term care settings (nursing homes, etc.) are BSN preferred/required and at least one year experience preferred/required. It took several of my friends who graduated before me over a year just to get their foot in the door. I am trying to remain positive and persistent but it is very disheartening for those of us graduates trying to find a place in the healthcare system.
i find this very strange, i run a very intensive nursing home and i cant get nurses, i've had a vacancy for almost 12 months and no applicants, i did get one but they didnt turn up on the day they were due to start which meant i'd wasted 3 months!
There are other alternatives where we as nurses can utilize our skills and make use of our knowledge while helping the communities we live in. Be willing to think out of the box
This is, unfortunately, the norm for new graduates due to the economic demise, budget cuts and a slow recovering economy. As a nurse and a recruiter, I am always looking for job opportunities that might be of interest to nurses. My suggestion would be to look into other nursing jobs, outside of acute care setting, just to get your foot in the door of the health care industry. This will at least allow you to earn an income and to utilize some aspect of your professional knowledge base and training. Examples of such jobs include: Correctional nursing, call centers as an advice nurse, insurance companies looking for nurses to process claims; you understand the terminology and community health nursing; seeking employment through registries or companies seeking nurses to direct flu clinics. Look for positions that are willing to train you. Also, consider the Navy reserve. You can start a career with them by only committing two weekends of every month to service. You can stay at home and do this and receive excellent benefits and career opportunities. The Navy Reserve also offer excellent opportunity for career advancement and travel. Hopefully helpful, Lolita Moore, RN, BSN
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