To join a "premium nursing agency"?

[Gallopingourmet]

30 years in the NHS as a qualified nurse, reams of experience considered by my colleagues to be "exceptionally knowledgeable, hard working and an outstanding team player" but due to the lack of one qualification am stuck on a band 5 (approx £28k pa), we are all treated like crap by our management, no funding for any study leave, our dept is endlessly being critisced by the management despite being highest rated dept in the hospital for "patient satisfaction" this isn't good enough, tired of working "long days" 12 3/4 hours usually with no break 12/13 times a month, working completely ridiculous shift patterns, not having my shift request granted, not having my annual leave requests granted (I don't actually won't two weeks at the end of November I wanted two weeks in October when my DS was here), paying to park my car, only being allowed to park at a "subsides rate" 4 times a fortnight (I work 6 times a fortnight), no public transport where I live so parking costs me £10 on the other two days, I could go on. So I'm seriously thinking of joining a "premium agency" and if it works chucking in the NHS completely. They pay 2 1\2 times what I earn now, and pay travelling costs, parking cost. If I solely worked for them just 6 shifts a month I would earn significantly more that I do now and have no hassle (I've done agency before and love it). To me its a no brainer but my good friend is being sniffy about it she thinks Im behaving "immorally" because the premium agencies are making a stinking profit out of the NHS's self inflicted staffing crisis!

[frikadela01]

Very true Squinkies I didn't think of the elderly.
However having spent years prior to qualifying working in EMI homes I wouldn't go back for all the tea in China, I've never been physically attacked more than when I worked with the elderly. Hats off to the people that work in that environment their entire career, it's both physically and mentally exhausting at times.

[LetsJunglyJumpToIt]

the NHS is currently experiencing a massive staffing crisis

Well aware, just going home from a 12 hour shift myself!

[SquinkiesRule]

frikadela01 Thats not always the case in private.
We have sent some truly sweet, happily muddled Dementia patients to lots of EMI homes where the RMN staff work in the private sector.

[frikadela01]

Yadnbu. I'm an RMN qualified for 4 years now and regularly consider jacking it in.l for agency work but I need the benefits of maternity leave etc at the moment.

I can't consider private work either since in mental health privaye usually translates as patients the nhs cannot manage.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

[Gallopingourmet]

Thank you for all your comments especially other nurses. You have reassured me that I am not being unreasonable.
My friend frequently talks about nursing being a "vocation" for me it's a job which I try to do the best of my ability as I would if I was a dustman, accountant or prime minister. She's an intelligent sensible person but thinks I should stay and fight for better conditions pay etc but all who work in the NHS know this is pointless.
Good luck to my fellow nurses and the rest of you probably have no idea quite how bad our NHS has got, how strapped for cash they are, the future is not good.

[SquinkiesRule]

YANBU Another NHS nurse here, I only do 24hrs a week, but if I start getting pissed about with my shifts, I will leave and go and work in one of the nicer care homes around us for more money and the same number of hours.
There are a lot of 50 somethings working in our department who have cut their hours to 18 or 20 and are now picking up a shift a week with a premium agency You aren't allowed to work for your own trust as an agency nurse, but for chatting, so far one has had a day at a local private boarding school, a day in one of the really nice nursing homes, and a day in the private hospital, she's loving it. Wishes she'd done it sooner.

[Polarbearflavour]

YANBU.

I was an NHS nurse but I left because working conditions are horrendous.

Private hospitals do pay more IME...around £5k more than the NHS and I used to get free meals on duty and private health cover too. Fewer patients to look after and a nicer working environment.

[ragz134]

Are there jobs nurses can do outside NHS, apart from agencies? Could you do something else with your training, that isn't actually nursing? I know a nurse that set up a first aid training company, she does really well with that. Or maybe research?
Back to your original question, you are NBU to want less stress and more money. I think nursing should be moving away from the expectations to be selfless martyrs to a vocation, as it sets us up to take all the crap and not complain. Of course we need to care for our patients, but if you can't care for yourself then you won't be able to. I agree that the NHS is collapsing, quite possibly at the design of the government, and it scares the crap out of me...
If agency work will take the strain off you, go for it and sod what your friend says.

[Gallopingourmet]

MrsFiona yes I could possibly look at agency work to fund my training although our students find it difficult to work and study at the same time. But this is definitely something I'm considering.
Some would say that getting a promotion to the next grade up may bring more money but also more stress, you do the same job as the band 5's and loads of "admin" in your own time. We currently have 5 staff off with mental health problems two are on the next band up!

[Gallopingourmet]

"With a huge risk of being stuck in an environment with frustrated and burned out nurses"
I know advanced nurse practioners in all the areas you mention and have in the past worked in both minor injury units and a very similar environments to a prison. Sadly there are many frustrated burnt out nurses in these environments; not just the wards. The NHS is collapsing the pressure on all staff at all levels and in all areas is immense, this summer we have been as busy as we are in the winter (summer is our quieter time), we are seeing more sick patients this summer than we have ever done before, our limited rescources are stretched to nothing, beds outside our trust are becoming like hens teeth and we are now keeping patients on our ward that three or four years ago we would have transferred out to a regional centre and when we are deciding to transfer them our regional centres have no bed due to no staff and we're airlifting them 100's of miles.
We rarely get a break in 12 3/4 hours but we are expected to make critical decisions sometimes I don't get to the loo all shift. Our doctors are also in short supply and very thinly spread, often two doctors are covering four depts, when there is an emergency in one, nurses are left to manage an emergency in another area.
Critical mistakes are being made by both doctors and nurses.

[QuiteLikely5]

Your friend is jealous

[Duckyneedsaclean]

I'd stay part time NHS for the security and pension, then agency the rest of the time. That was my plan before I found out I was upduffed with twins.

[MrsFionaCharming]

Could you switch to agency work temporarily whilst working towards the qualifications you need, then go back in at a higher band?

[ragz134]

Softkitty, thank you so much. I was beginning to have a huge 'oh my god what am I doing?' moment! I already known I don't want to work on wards in the long term, my goals include doing Advanced Practice training, working in primary care/prisons/minor injuries. But a lot of that depends on access to further training and getting a job once qualified that will enable me to do that extra training. It's a lot of what its, with a huge risk of being stuck in an awful environment with frustrated and burned out nurses! But I really don't want to do anything else...

Good luck OP, I hope you find a nursing role that you can feel content and fulfilled in.

[Gallopingourmet]

Soft re career progression unfortunately because I lack one qualification I'm stuck on top band 5, when I was taken on the trust was going to fund the training for the missing qualification but it would cost £40 000+ to do it and I would be off the ward for 12 months full time and six months part time. So they quickly back peddled on that idea.

[Gallopingourmet]

We too have employed Italians Spanish Portuguese Croatians Indians and Romanians many leave even before their contracted time is up and return to their own country many are good but others often don't want to do the hands on stuff delegating that to HCA's etc but in my area we don't employ many of those, trained staff do most of the hands on care as well so we struggle to keep them we employed 6 Italians two years go we've only got 1 left.
My current thoughts are to reduce my hours to part time but because I do a speciality which is quite technical our management have said that we have to do a minimum of 24 hours a week to keep our practice up to date other areas in the hospital seem happy for staff to do less 15-17 hours a week.

[taytopotato]

I also heard its so hard to get rid of people in the nhs

That is not necessarily true.

• I have seen people put on performance management then capability dismissal
  
• also know few nurses who have been referred to the NMC

[JellyBelli]

YADNBU. Its a crying shame but the Govt has created a crisis, probably to prepare the way to abolish the NHS. Its evil, but you didnt make it happen. Look out for yourself, you've done your bit.

[Softkitty2]

ragz134 whenever I have students i tell them to have a feel of the areas they do their placements in and guage whether they like it or not, so that when you qualify you can try and avoid those departments/area because the last thing you want is to be moving wards every 6 months because you dont like it. You also dont want to feel like crying everytime you go to work because you feel miserable. You have time to think what kind of nursing you want to do.

Nursing is definitely getting harder because of the lack of resources and staff shortage. But if you choose wisely its very rewarding and there is career progression.

[taytopotato]

OP, why not reduce your NHS working hours down to a minimum and then work for an agency or another job a way out of the NHS?

My area of work has managed not to rely on agency too much because the management recently recruited a lot of on Spanish, Portugese and Italian nurses - a very young and productive workforce (using less of sick leave, maternity leave). However, most of them are thinking of leaving the UK because of Brexit. I can only see staffing crisis (again!) when this happens.

[Softkitty2]

I am still very 'young' in my career and need the benefits of mat leave etc, also building up on my qualifications. The only reason i havent jumped ship is because i work in a great dept. In a very niche area which i waited patiently for. I have a good manager and every year i have been put on modules with university credits so CPD is quite good.

However, a newly qualified practitioner who i used to work with jumped ship and moved down the road to a private hospital and earns £6k more than me. But the shifts were so erratic and sometimes they were forced to take annual leave.

Its a big decision definitely because the grass is not always greener on the other side.

Also like another poster said, you have to consider sick pay, pension etc.

I also heard its so hard to get rid of people in the nhs 😜

[ragz134]

I'm in my first week of student nurse training, the biggest worry I have about my chosen career is ending up in your situation. I have a lot of career goals, but most are dependent on undertaking further training once I have a few years experience, and I know this won't be as easy as it sounds as opportunities aren't always available. I have seen many nurses desperate to get out of the NHS chaos, it's a really worrying time to join!

[Gallopingourmet]

Yes that's true, a friend has taken out sickness insurance to cover this don't know how much it costs definitely something to think about.
On the other hand many in the private sector don't have sick pay like NHS staff rhyme just accept it.

[PikachuSayBoo]

It's ok until you have an accident/chronic illness and can't work for months in end. As happened to a friend of mine. So you need savings in my opinion.

[Gallopingourmet]

Soft we don't give our agency staff difficult/complex patients either (that's what I specialise in so would miss that) although we do expect a bit more of the premium agency staff as they're being paid so much more than us.
Your also right in that I do have bills mortgages and an expensive hobby I would like the money and just as importantly the time to indulge in.
We've not had a proper pay increase for God knows how long, those not on the top bands have received nothing I think mine was about £250 last year, I dont see this getting any better with the governments plans to keep on increasing the minimum wage, with so many NHS staff are on the minimum wage there will be no money left to increase the wages for the rest of us. In contrast the premium agency I'm looking at joining have according to a friend who works for them just put their pay rates up again,