licensed practical nurse

registered nurse - pediatrics

registered nurse - home health

licensed vocational nurse

nursing supervisor

Pediatric Home Service

I was promised a specific position when hired on eith Craig Home Care. When I started they had me start only working one day a week when originally hired for three. I was told it was while they were waiting for the nurse I was replacing to finish her two weeks. Then the lies were unraveling. I was actually covering for someone on medical leave, the nurse came back earlier then they expected and the nurse I was originally supposed to replace was never leaving so then I was stuck with no client after getting acquainted with my patient. They offered me a few options to make up for the hours which consisted going to two different clients homes. I accepted. After I accepted I was then informed the parents of my first case wanted me to come back and replace the nurse I was hired to originally replace! At this point I had already changed my schedule around as a single mother and chose to stick with the new plan. The parents were upset and the nurse coordinator blamed it on me instead of taking the wrap for her own unorganized mess. After months of getting acquainted with my second client, growing to love the child and family I recieved a text, most impersonal way to communicate, from scheduling, that the mother did not "need me any longer" and that I would not be going back there effective immediatly. Being close with the parents by this time I contacted them and she was completely furious that they would put blame on her and didn't even know what was happening herself. It turned out to be an insurance issue. Now not even 6 months after being hired I am being tossed around left and right never knowing what to expect, being blamed for their mistakes, getting attached to my clients just to be ripped out of their homes. Weeks turn into months of me asking them to find me replacement clients so I can maintain my income and they wanted me to drive far and wide and could only offer me 12 hr shifts. When hired they understood I am a single mother and could not do these types of shifts and assured me there were plenty of clients in my area. After four months of asking for new clients I receive a determination letter stating that I am not willing to work available shifts and was let go. Worst company I have ever worked for. The supplies were never stocked, constantly ran out of nurses notes and mars, gloves and other supplies. Often times the parents were left scrambling to find coverage for being left high and dry with no notice or being caught of guard by being informed by other sources of changes instead of directly by management which broke my heart because our jobs are to help these parents not make their lives harder. Do not work for this company they do not care about their employees or clients. I have been receiving post cards that they need nurses in my area and they go straight in the trash. Save yourself the time, energy, and heartache for the families and apply to other home health agencies. It's a shame.

I received PTO- but had to use it because office management was too lazy to schedule me when client was in the hospital.  When I went to a meet and greet one and a half hours away as was scheduled management again was too lazy to allow me to work there and then said I refused when in part in my email I said I would do whatever it took for that week only.  I was already driving one and a half hours from home and I preferred to be allowed to work there instead of driving another hour and a half.  After all this I was told after writing an email telling my boss her pto ought to be taken away just as mine had been when clients were in the hospital 1 she fired me for being unprofessional.  This coming from a boss who allowed hippa violations and allowed certain favored employees to get away with anything and everything. Pto is meant to be for scheduled things or time I chose to take off not forced to take because of the laziness of management.  The cooperate office backed her by saying that there was no open hours and that is a blatant lie as evidenced in the open homes email that I still receive. They are too lazy to even take me off this.  Dumb dumb.  
The last straw was when I wrote the RN supervisor to tell her there was a drastic change in Pt condition- I received an email back asking why I was the only nurse in the home teller her this.  The client went into the hospital to get abx to.  I emailed when he got out several times about several concerns - never did she do anything to follow up on anything and the patient ended up passing away.  Ya think if she would have listened the client might still be alive? Hummm we will never know but I will say nothing was ever listened to - she never came out to the house to check on the patient as told to me by family.  
So perhaps it was his time and the good lord wanted him or perhaps it was lack of following a client slowly circling the drain.  
I ask myself what more could I have done - sad that I have to doubt myself and didn’t get the clinical management support.  What is the purpose of change in condition box if not to make a difference in the lives of our clients.
Oh and I should not forget to include the fact I got a gift card for recognizing a change in condition.  I would give the gift card back to bring my client back.

PROS: If you are self-sufficient and independent, this job is great fit for you. There's a lot of room to learn and develop. You can choose your workload and how many patients you want. Typically, you'd start in 2 homes and train in more if you wish. Almost all patients are trached and vent status so you learn respiratory assessment and interventions fast. You really become an expert on your patient. 

Scheduling offers EXCEPTIONAL work-life balance. I've been able to plan my work schedule around weekly commitments like church and bible study. I feel really cared for because of this. 

CONS: Working alone can be intimidating at first. You might need to bring your patient to the hospital, call 911, communicate with parents and hospital. This can be very scary. And even in small ways, you need to think on your feet and be creative with problem-solving. If your patient isn't being cooperative, you really only have yourself to come up with a solution. Whereas in the hospital, it can be helpful to bounce off ideas with a team. You can always ask parents for help, but the nature of this job requires you to be an independent problem solver. 

Other challenges I've faced are computer not working, shortage of supplies, fire alarm, mice, messy homes, cold homes if they forget to turn the heat on, running out of drinking water from my water bottle. Just little things you wouldn't think would matter if you were in a typical hospital setting. 

I think this organization is a prime example of the greed run amok in our society. It started as a small company where the majority of people who work there were friends and family, and the dedication to taking care of the child was outstanding. But then the family that owned the business decided to sell, obviously I don’t know the reasons, but they were taking care of Minnesota children very well and there was no need to adjust that. The family was making money and all of the staff there were extraordinarily happy, which provided the ability to take care of the customers amazingly. Then they sold to acquisition firm, and it was all about expansion, All of the dedicated staff who had the passion in their hearts started to leave. Cutthroat executives entered the picture and I was told in multiple instances we will go live with these Applications no matter what because my bonus depends on it. I was told I could spend 50 million on a project just to get it done by a certain date because then the organization would look more profitable. It didn’t matter how hard it was on staff to get done what they were requesting, it didn’t matter how inefficient the system is as long as it got implemented. I’m pretty sure the executives did get their bonuses as I begged for pennies for a raise. I am in the worst burnout of my life and have substantial PTSD from the job. I’ve heard that they take good care of their clinicians though so as long as you stay out of the business offices, you might be fine.

Pediatric Home Service (PHS) is a great place to work!  From a nurse's perspective, you will be challenged, supported, and rewarded whether you are a new grad, or you have many years of experience to offer the children and families served by this company.  PHS offers phenomenal 24-hour support to their nurses working out in the patient homes in regards to any concerns including technical issues with equipment, or any nursing or respiratory concerns which can be addressed by Case Managers and Respiratory Therapists on staff.  PHS handles many of the supply and equipment needs that arise in patient homes, and will go the extra mile to make sure that any immediate needs are addressed, even sending out deliveries same day if there is an urgent concern.  
     While taking great care of the children, PHS also takes wonderful care of their employees.  Plenty of free CEU opportunities and additional training on all equipment that you will encounter while working with your specific patients.  There is plenty of room for personal growth and PHS takes pride in recognizing their employees for their extra effort in and out of office.  Full benefits are offered and pay is competitive, including bonus opportunities.

I started here as a new graduate nurse and it is by far one of the best decisions I've ever made! I thought I would get less training and less hands-on clinical experience compared to working in the hospital, but I was definitely wrong! PHS is SO on top of training the nurses. As soon as a patient has a new order (change in IV pump, vent machine, etc), PHS works to get every nurse trained before proceeding with these changes in the home to ensure patient safety and nursing competency. All the staff are so friendly, funny, professional, and so quick to help. Not to mention how quick the staff return calls when I need some help with IV issues, scheduling, or even basic nursing questions. 

On the flip side, Field Nurses typically only rotate between 3-4 patients. I had this one month where 2 of my patients were admitted in the hospital and I was left with only 1 patient in the field (whom I only see once a week). There wasn't much the schedulers could do and I just didn't get much hours. Personally, I feel the new grad starting pay was slightly below average as well. Some days I worked very hard and felt that I could've been paid slightly more.

I absolutely love working with my pediatric client's. Working 1:1 affords you the opportunity to understand all of their medical history, current treatment plan and goals. I can identify which treatments  are working well and which ones need to be re-evaluated. I can also get to know my patients so well that I can anticipate their needs and wants even when they are unable to communicate their wishes. Nothing is more rewarding than seeing your kiddo glowing with joy because someone finally understands them and wants to have fun with them over and above all of their daily cares and treatments. I get to advocate for my patients and coordinate with all of their specialists to get the products and services that can bring my patients and their families a better quality of life and a sense of normalcy in what can sometimes be a chaotic life for these little ones. I get to see the relief in the families eyes when they see how much I care and that they never have to worry about the care I will provide while they are away. Best of all, I get to see these little fighters grow and defy all initial expectations of their diagnoses. That is the best feeling in the world.

There are pros and cons to every workplace, here's what I have found so far in my time working here.

Pros:
- The benefits are pretty good. Life insurance and a couple of other options are offered at no cost to you. 401K contributions are matched (I believe)
- Independent working
- They state that if your client becomes hospitalized/family cancels a shift and you lose that shift, you will receive pay regardless

Bad:
- Communication breakdowns are common due to many nurses and supervisors working cases they are unfamiliar with (more true to the supervisors). Parents grow frustrated and there isn't much a singular nurse can do as it's more of a systemic issue.
- I mentioned above that if your client goes to the hospital or family cancels the shift that you will get paid, but this is incredibly conditional. They will pay your shift only if they can not provide you another shift. The pay is baseline, so no benefits or additives if the shift was supposed to occur on a weekend, holiday, or overnight. In addition, they will provide shifts OUTSIDE OF YOUR NORMAL SCHEDULE. If you cannot make these shifts, they will take away your supplemental pay.
- Raises are hard to come by. Overtime is non-existent. 

What is the best part of working at the company?
the clients--the pay is horrible

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
pay is horrible, I wasn't able to get enough hours even tho I was told that "it would be no problem"

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
the family of the client I had was wonderful and I really enjoyed my client. The way  I was sent to meet new clients was very much lacking. I was given an address and no information unless I asked which had not been the practice in working with Craig Home Care in previous years. There was no compensation for driving often times 45 minutes one way-which I did not care to do-for meet and greets. As I am a smoker, Many clients did not want a smoker in their home. I can respect that, however, this would have been good to establish PRIOR-it would have saved me from wasting my gas, my time and the potential client's time.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
when I did get a shift, I worked in the home of the client and it was always very pleasant

PHS is a great company to work for. They really value their nursing staff and provide exceptional ongoing training and support. This is  a great place to start your nursing career and a wonderful company to work with if you want to have 1 on 1 nursing experience with wonderful kiddos. Working at PHS was the most rewarding job I have every had.  
The culture is fun, but as a field nurse, you do not always get to experience that fun. Also as a field nurse you are working independently with very little interaction with coworkers.  
Working NOC shifts can be quite lonely and difficult at times.
Some families are great and others are hard to work with, but the management at PHS strives to ensure that its a good fit and will work with employees when needed to move to new homes.

The pay is mediocre but you do get shift bonuses and holiday pay. If you are looking for a rewarding career this is a good place to be. If you are looking for high level nursing income, this probably isn't the place for you.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Licensed practical nurse 61 salaries reported	$33.22 per hour
Registered nurse - pediatrics 8 salaries reported	$42.06 per hour
Registered nurse - home health 9 salaries reported	$33.11 per hour
Licensed vocational nurse 1 salary reported	$31.49 per hour
Nursing supervisor 3 salaries reported	$83,833 per year

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