Pros
Not many. There was a move to try to “elevate” this position but it failed miserably. Benefits are decent. Pay isn’t that great - literally 3 dollars more an hour and then you’ll find out nurses with excess of 5 years less experience than you are earning more than you.
Cons
Basically this is a charge nurse position with the usual responsibility and no authority. Typically the charge nurse is a tasker for RNs on the floor. You’ll spend more time toileting, passing meds and walking patients than if you were a staff nurse. If you don’t have Unit Clerk, you’ll do all of that too. Answer phones, call lights. Make sure everyone gets lunch - because your name is the one management sees on the online form people have to fill out if they miss lunch. So basically a glorified task without the thanks that a resource nurse gets. God help you if you try to help a nurse be accountable for something. It will unleash a toxicity only seen in level 3 plus containment. New Grads gossip about staff and call it venting. Inexperienced nurses are way more hostile towards more experienced nurses. God help you if you are older and more experienced.
