Reply #68: I feel for you....

[rainbow4321]

I was an agency NICU/Newborn nursery nurse for a long time but had to start taking care of adults out on the tele and med surg floors because if I only did the baby units there were certain times of the year where there was no work to be had. it sucked to sign up for a 7 pm - 7 am shift
only to be sent home at 11 pm. Or to sleep all day and get that phone call at 5 pm telling you "we MIGHT need you at 11 pm" and then getting cancelled for even that. I eventually went contract and got guaranteed hours..that lasted for 4 years, it was a good deal for me and the hospital. I got a full paycheck and they, in turn, got a nurse who was cross trained in adults/babies/pedi and they could send me anywhere in the hospital.
The "baby" nurses thought I was crazy for cross training to adults but I got lots of work/hours while they were getting cancelled left and right. Then the hospital got alot more competition in town and even the adult floor work dried up eventually. Even the staff nurses were getting cancelled at least once a week and the hospital didn't give a rat's ass that people STILL had bills to pay even if their paychecks were shorted every payday.
Eventually, all contracts were cancelled hospitalwide and
they even ended up laying off a bunch of staff nurses due to low census.
I'm now a staff nurse in an outpatient clinic. Better hours/benefits, full paycheck every 2 weeks, hell will freeze over before I ever get "cancelled".