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Arietta posted:Anyone else in school getting ready to take the ATI? We're taking ours next week (part of the course grade). You're only taking one ATI? While I was in school we took three or four ATI exams each semester in different topics. We got stacks and stacks of ATI study guides but I didn't look at any of them. It was supposed to get us better prepared for the NCLEX, but I honestly don't feel that they helped at all. It was more of a nuisance than anything and it wasn't hard to pass for anyone in our nursing program. Don't stress out, they're not bad at all. I passed the NCLEX on my first try with 75 questions. The thing that helped me the most was taking a course through Kaplan at the end of nursing school. It was a week long and was kind of spendy but it was extremely helpful. I don't think I would have done as well without the Kaplan course.
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# ? Nov 24, 2011 23:20 |
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# ? Jun 4, 2024 11:07 |
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Koivunen posted:You're only taking one ATI? While I was in school we took three or four ATI exams each semester in different topics. We got stacks and stacks of ATI study guides but I didn't look at any of them. It was supposed to get us better prepared for the NCLEX, but I honestly don't feel that they helped at all. It was more of a nuisance than anything and it wasn't hard to pass for anyone in our nursing program. Don't stress out, they're not bad at all. I think we will probably have more later on, I'm only in my first semester but I have a stack of ATI books that we haven't used yet. Was that Kaplan course online or in a classroom? I just briefly skimmed over their website and saw they had NCLEX prep classes for almost $500. Arietta fucked around with this message at 07:00 on Nov 25, 2011 |
# ? Nov 25, 2011 06:57 |
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Arietta posted:Was that Kaplan course online or in a classroom? I just briefly skimmed over their website and saw they had NCLEX prep classes for almost $500. It was a classroom course with an instructor that taught it, and it also had an online component where you could do an endless amount of practice questions and then see why certain answers were right and why some were wrong. Most of my classmates also took the course. It was eight hours a day for five days and I studied the online stuff for over 100 hours on my own between when the course ended and a month later when I took the exam. My school reimbursed half the cost so we only had to pay $250. It's still a big chunk of money especially for a college student, but taking the NCLEX more than once costs money, too. It was such a huge relief to go into the NCLEX feeling totally prepared. I feel like a spokesperson for Kaplan but it really was a great investment.
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# ? Nov 25, 2011 08:10 |
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Koivunen posted:It was a classroom course with an instructor that taught it, and it also had an online component where you could do an endless amount of practice questions and then see why certain answers were right and why some were wrong. Most of my classmates also took the course. It was eight hours a day for five days and I studied the online stuff for over 100 hours on my own between when the course ended and a month later when I took the exam. My school reimbursed half the cost so we only had to pay $250. It's still a big chunk of money especially for a college student, but taking the NCLEX more than once costs money, too. It was such a huge relief to go into the NCLEX feeling totally prepared. If you are the "student rep" for a Kaplan speaker at your school you get the course for free.
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# ? Nov 25, 2011 10:38 |
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Can anyone recommend 2 year nursing programs in Western Ma.?
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# ? Nov 28, 2011 00:44 |
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Android Thumper posted:Can anyone recommend 2 year nursing programs in Western Ma.? Springfield Technical Community College and Holyoke Community College. If you need details, PM me. Greenfield CC has one as well, but I'm not as familiar with it.
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# ? Nov 28, 2011 14:37 |
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Well since Android asked a quest along these lines I think I will too. Could anyone here give me an opinion of Tallahassee Community College's nursing program? Here's a link to their curriculum. Has anyone attended TCC and taken this course? It's also for an associates which I know people in this thread have said is fine, did I understand that right? I'm worried that I wouldn't be able to get a job with just an associate RN degree.
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# ? Nov 29, 2011 00:25 |
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Took my last final this last week, pinning coming up this coming Thursday. Despite the saturated midwestern market, I landed a critical care fellowship through OhioHealth. I didn't realize how much the job thing was stressing me until it was taken care of. Fellowship is 21 weeks, involving 5-6 weeks of lecture/simulator and 3, four week rotations through various CC environments at various Columbus area hospitals with lecture in between each. At the end, you get married up as best as possible with where you want to be versus which unit managers want you. Bonus shot of me receiving a level 1 trauma during my final quarter preceptorship.
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# ? Dec 5, 2011 08:21 |
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Some questions, I'm considering becoming a nurse. The pre-reqs, will that take more than a year of college? What can you tell me about psych nurses, I'm interested in that because I have psych problems myself. Is it a bad idea to go that route when I have my own problems? Also, my mom has been a cardiac nurse for 34 years. I asked if she's ever felt at fault for a patient dying. She said, quote:I have never felt guilty over any decisions I made in nursing. I have not made any mistakes that have caused any bad outcomes for pts. I just do the best I can, and I am a well known highly respected nurse in the cardiac field. How could that possibly be true? Is she super-nurse? That's the thing that scares me the most about nursing, is lives being in my hands.
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# ? Dec 7, 2011 01:21 |
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Dancingthroughlife posted:The pre-reqs, will that take more than a year of college? I think that would depend on the school you're trying to get into and how recently you graduated high school. For me, it is going to take me three semesters to get all my pre-reqs out of the way because I have been out of high school for quite some time now.
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# ? Dec 7, 2011 01:27 |
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I've been out of HS for 12 years and don't have any other degrees, so I suppose it would be that long or longer for me.
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# ? Dec 7, 2011 01:50 |
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Dancingthroughlife posted:What can you tell me about psych nurses, I'm interested in that because I have psych problems myself. Is it a bad idea to go that route when I have my own problems? What about it interests you? Do you just want to hear about other people's problems so you feel better about your own? Or have you had poor experiences with psych nurses/doctors and want to help people, etc? Psych nurses don't get the luxury of wearing scrubs but they also, for the most part, don't have to deal with bodily fluids. quote:That's the thing that scares me the most about nursing, is lives being in my hands. People die. You do what you can to either make it not happen as soon or make it as comfortable as possible.
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# ? Dec 7, 2011 03:11 |
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Baby_Hippo posted:What about it interests you? Do you just want to hear about other people's problems so you feel better about your own? Or have you had poor experiences with psych nurses/doctors and want to help people, etc? I think it's partly that I'm interested in mental health and psychology and just want to know more. And partly that I feel a kinship with the patients. But I wanna wear scrubs.
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# ? Dec 7, 2011 03:29 |
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Psych nurses don't wear scrubs? Huh. What do they wear, then? I know home-health nurses wear street clothes, because they're out in the community, but I didn't know psych nurses wore anything different. As for prerequisites: It all depends on your school. My school required a lot (Two English classes, psychology, sociology, nutrition, biology, microbiology, algebra, two semesters of A & P, just off the top of my head--some schools also require chemistry or biochemistry) and A & P had to be taken after biology, so it took me about two years to get everything done. TheFarSide: Congrats! Love your user name, by the way.
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# ? Dec 7, 2011 03:50 |
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While we're talking about what nurses wear, does anyone happen to know what male mental health nurses in the UK wear? I know we end up wearing scrubs some of the time but is it usually just street clothes?
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# ? Dec 7, 2011 04:45 |
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leb388 posted:Psych nurses don't wear scrubs? Huh. What do they wear, then? I know home-health nurses wear street clothes, because they're out in the community, but I didn't know psych nurses wore anything different. The psych nurses I've seen wear scrubs, but as students we wore dress pants and our school dress shirt. Real dorky looking, but I suppose it looked like "normal" wear more than scrubs. We wore the same for our community/public health clinical.
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# ? Dec 7, 2011 06:38 |
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leb388 posted:Psych nurses don't wear scrubs? Huh. What do they wear, then? I know home-health nurses wear street clothes, because they're out in the community, but I didn't know psych nurses wore anything different. On the dual-diagnosis units where I had clinical, they all wore business casual street clothes. The units were very structured around group therapy, group discussion, and group education. Each day the physicians, nurses, and social workers would meet about the patients and catch everyone up to the same page, be it dosage tweaks, status about housing after leaving the unit (a large portion of those on a DD unit are homeless, live at a shelter, room at the YMCA, etc. - an unfortunate problem is that so many psych patients basically slip through the cracks since deinstitutionalization. It's all about stable and discharge. Average stay on a DD unit is under 14 days), or how they've been in group, with their nurse, etc. Psych is interesting in that it's a field that no matter where you end up within nursing, you experience it with at least a portion of your patients. That being said, it's a field where they're always recruiting because it isn't as flashy as something like the ED or OB or whatever else. There's also a large amount of stigma involved with mental health facilities and the diseases themselves, and it's not like popular culture does much to help with that.
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# ? Dec 7, 2011 08:11 |
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leb388 posted:Psych nurses don't wear scrubs? Huh. What do they wear, then? I know home-health nurses wear street clothes, because they're out in the community, but I didn't know psych nurses wore anything different. Around here business casual. Ugh, I HATE sloppy looking home health nurses - wearing flip flops and SWEAT PANT CAPRIS to a patient's house is completely unacceptable. If you are that loving lazy JUST WEAR SCRUBS.
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# ? Dec 7, 2011 18:01 |
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So, I'm not a nurse, but I figured you all would be the people to ask about shoes and I hope you don't mind. I'm a student midwife (in Ontario, where midwifery is a direct-entry primary care health profession), which means lots of long nights running around in L&D. What do you guys wear on your feet so that you don't feel like you want to saw them off at the end of your shift?
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# ? Dec 8, 2011 04:16 |
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I have a decent pair of hush puppies that feel like butter after being worn in a bit. Most (all?) hush puppy shoes have removable insoles, as well, so you can pop in something more cushy/orthotics if you're into that. Also they don't look like white bricks, or whatever is most associated with nursing shoes. On second thought, these probably would look stupid with scrubs, but only ED/theatre wear scrubs here usually.
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# ? Dec 8, 2011 05:03 |
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I had a pair of Dansko nursing clogs that I wore for about three years. http://www.scrubsandbeyond.com/Dansko-Professional-nursing-clogs-67084.html Lots of people I work with wear those, too. They come in some pretty cute patterns, not just black and white. The people at work all seem to love them, but they were really terrible for me for some reason. They have a really hard sole with great arch support, but there's no cushion. I think they're kind of clunky, too, and I've nearly sprained my ankle walking on uneven sidewalks many times because there's no give to the material on the bottom. They also made my hips hurt like crazy because it threw out the alignment of my knees. (Enough ranting already!) Now, I wear a pair of sneakers designed for walking. I have no idea what they're actually called, but I got them half off at a sports store. Honestly I can't tell the difference between a walking sneaker and regular sneakers, but my feet always feel fine at the end of the day. Whatever you do, don't get the shoes that are supposed to tone your legs with the rocking soles. http://web-images.chacha.com/toning-shoes/toning-shoes-jul-14-2011-3-600.jpg They are horrible for your joints because they throw your joints all out of whack and don't offer proper support. They may feel great initially, but down the road you will develop problems with joint pain. Edit to add: the psych nurses at my hospital wear scrub bottoms and tshirts with the hospital logo on it. If it's chilly they'll wear long sleeved button up scrub tops. Whenever I float there I'm in full scrubs, it doesn't really matter. Don't be a psych nurse because you think you can sympathize with the patients. There are so many different kinds of psych disorders, even if someone comes in with the same diagnoses that you had/have, they could experience it in a completely different way. As a mentally healthy nurse, there are so many people you simply won't be able to connect with, especially if you work in an inpatient unit. Even if you can't relate, they need the same care as everyone else, regardless of your personal feelings. Also, it's not like you can really share your personal psych history with patients. (You can, but you shouldn't.) Finally, if you try to involve yourself too personally with psych patients, it may hurt your own progress with your psych issues, depending on the severity of your diagnosis. For example, if you suffered from depression, it may be difficult to care for a patient with depression because it could bring back memories of how you felt during that time, and that might be hard to deal with. Unless you have been symptom free for a very long time and things are totally under control, you may want to think hard before entering the world of psych nursing. Koivunen fucked around with this message at 10:58 on Dec 8, 2011 |
# ? Dec 8, 2011 10:45 |
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TheFarSide posted:On the dual-diagnosis units where I had clinical, they all wore business casual street clothes. The units were very structured around group therapy, group discussion, and group education. Each day the physicians, nurses, and social workers would meet about the patients and catch everyone up to the same page, be it dosage tweaks, status about housing after leaving the unit (a large portion of those on a DD unit are homeless, live at a shelter, room at the YMCA, etc. - an unfortunate problem is that so many psych patients basically slip through the cracks since deinstitutionalization. It's all about stable and discharge. Average stay on a DD unit is under 14 days), or how they've been in group, with their nurse, etc. That makes sense. I just always pictured psych nurses wearing scrubs. I never had clinicals in psych--our teachers told us we'd be seeing psych diagnoses anyway during our medical clinicals (and we did). As for shoes: I wear New Balance sneakers. I know some places want clogs, but sometimes I need to move fast. We should add something to the OP about sneakers/watches/nursing schools, since I see the same questions coming up a lot.
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# ? Dec 9, 2011 00:49 |
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On the subject of the OP, I think this thread is great, but it could definitely do with some updating. Original post was made back in 2008 and the "lots of jobs" part is hardly accurate.
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# ? Dec 9, 2011 02:16 |
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I wear New Balances too, Dansko and clog shoes just don't work for me. On my off hours I wear Merrill Pace glove shoes (basically those awful toe shoes minus the toe part) because I destroyed my feet wearing Sketchers and they are the only shoes I can wear without being in pain.
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# ? Dec 9, 2011 02:28 |
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Thanks, everyone! Looks like I'll be going to the athletics store this weekend.
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# ? Dec 9, 2011 03:03 |
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Space Harrier posted:On the subject of the OP, I think this thread is great, but it could definitely do with some updating. Original post was made back in 2008 and the "lots of jobs" part is hardly accurate. Is it the same for Nurses with experience? I was under the impression that the lack of jobs pertains really just to new nurses with zero experience.
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# ? Dec 9, 2011 03:12 |
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Hughmoris posted:Is it the same for Nurses with experience? I was under the impression that the lack of jobs pertains really just to new nurses with zero experience. Same here. That and it's much more competitive in bigger cities.
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# ? Dec 9, 2011 03:55 |
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Space Harrier posted:On the subject of the OP, I think this thread is great, but it could definitely do with some updating. Original post was made back in 2008 and the "lots of jobs" part is hardly accurate. Wow, I didn't even notice it was from 2008. Definitely outdated. If anyone has suggestions for FAQ questions/answers, shout 'em out.
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# ? Dec 9, 2011 05:19 |
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Koivunen posted:I had a pair of Dansko nursing clogs that I wore for about three years. http://www.scrubsandbeyond.com/Dansko-Professional-nursing-clogs-67084.html Lots of people I work with wear those, too. They come in some pretty cute patterns, not just black and white. The people at work all seem to love them, but they were really terrible for me for some reason. They have a really hard sole with great arch support, but there's no cushion. I think they're kind of clunky, too, and I've nearly sprained my ankle walking on uneven sidewalks many times because there's no give to the material on the bottom. They also made my hips hurt like crazy because it threw out the alignment of my knees. (Enough ranting already!)
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# ? Dec 9, 2011 06:07 |
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To what extent does it really matter where I go to get my nursing degree? Obviously I'd be better off at University of Washington/Johns Hopkins/Duke/Upenn/wherever than at some joke school that advertises on the subway. But are my job prospects going to be seriously hindered as long as the place is CCNE accredited? http://view.fdu.edu/default.aspx?id=6337 This place for example is by no means my dream school, but they'll take me and get me out the door very fast. (Most places have longer accelerated programs with more prerequisites so it'd be at least another year before I get out - I'm 26) Am I better off spending another year taking additional prerequisites, pulling my GPA up, and applying to top/good nursing schools; or can/should I just go somehwere that will put me in the position to pass RNexams as quickly as possible? I'd like to be working in a legit-hospital and not be doomed to a life of nursing home/middle of nowhere clinic work because I went to a lovely school, but I'd also like to get started before I turn 30.
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# ? Dec 10, 2011 19:38 |
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Avian Pneumonia posted:To what extent does it really matter where I go to get my nursing degree? I personally do not think it matters what school it says on your resume as long as the school's program is known around the hospitals as a good program. I would try to find some students that are in the program or have graduated from it and see what they think of it. I went to a community college to get my RN (just graduated yesterday yay!)and turned down the hospital affiliated nursing school because I heard horrible things about it from students and nurses that precepted the students after graduation(they weren't as prepared for NCLEX or to be in a clinical setting) as the graduates from other programs in the area.
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# ? Dec 10, 2011 20:28 |
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Avian Pneumonia posted:Am I better off spending another year taking additional prerequisites, pulling my GPA up, and applying to top/good nursing schools; or can/should I just go somehwere that will put me in the position to pass RNexams as quickly as possible? The thing is, if you go to a school that hurries to get you in and out, you will not be prepared to pass the NCLEX, and you won't feel prepared to go out into the real world and be a nurse. As a nurse, people's lives are in your hands every single day, and you owe it to them to be fully prepared and educated as best as you are able. When you're looking at schools, really pay attention to how many clinical hours their nursing program offers. Also see if they do training to prepare for boards, like ATI testing. You're going to want to go somewhere that offers a ton of clinical experience, because when it comes down to it, that is what matters the most because it exposes you to what nursing is actually like in a real hospital with real patients. Employers will notice what school you went to and will generally have an idea about what the program was like. Also, if you get lots of education and a great clinical experience, it will show with your confidence.
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# ? Dec 11, 2011 17:23 |
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Just in time for the holidays, this has been circulating around the internet and was posted in the bathrooms at my hospital. Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the floor Lasix was given, filling foleys galore. Stockings were worn to prevent emboli, they came in two sizes, knee and thigh high. The patients were nestled cockeyed in their beds, while visions of stool softeners danced in their heads. We in our scrubs, and they in their gowns, Fashion created to hide extra pounds. When down in the ER it became such a zoo, they called with admissions for me and you. They're coming, they're going, and they're all looking the same. My patience for patients is starting to wane. Now call lights are ringing, the guy two rooms down, says "Didn't get pericare, send my nurse now". And now delegation seems the best plan, We try to send others, for the needs of this man. When what to my wondering eyes should appear, But Santa himself and 8 tiny reindeer. Hey says he comes from Central Supply. To bring us LR, NS, & D5. The doctors then scribbled what no one could read. Orders on patients, to measure their pee. We try to decipher illegible words, orders for patients, to guaiac their turds. The new shift arriving, our day is now through, How did this emesis get in my shoe? We give them report and pass on the facts, and tell them of duoderm lining the cracks. And the nurses exclaim as they limp out of sight, "Ambien to all, and to all a good night".
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# ? Dec 11, 2011 17:25 |
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I'm currently taking classes towards my degree in nursing, and one of my instructors told us to get a CNA in the mean time just to have it. Is it worthwhile to get one? If so, are there any online classes that I can take for it?
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# ? Dec 16, 2011 16:45 |
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nescience posted:I'm currently taking classes towards my degree in nursing, and one of my instructors told us to get a CNA in the mean time just to have it. Is it worthwhile to get one? If so, are there any online classes that I can take for it? Does your degree program need it? I didn't have to, so I didn't bother, but my mom is taking classes now and the CC she's going to needs her to get her CNA before she's on the waiting list. It's nice to have it, but not necessary. You wouldn't want to take it online if you do (I'm not sure you can?)- the whole point of it is to have patient experience. I would suggest getting some sort of patient exposure if you haven't already, like volunteering in a hospital or working in a nursing home if you don't want to do the CNA.
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# ? Dec 17, 2011 03:07 |
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nescience posted:I'm currently taking classes towards my degree in nursing, and one of my instructors told us to get a CNA in the mean time just to have it. Is it worthwhile to get one? If so, are there any online classes that I can take for it? If its not required, don't bother. Most hospitals will let you work as a patient tech once you have a semester of clinicals under your belt. I work as a tech right now and will graduate in may.
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# ? Dec 17, 2011 08:40 |
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nescience posted:I'm currently taking classes towards my degree in nursing, and one of my instructors told us to get a CNA in the mean time just to have it. Is it worthwhile to get one? If so, are there any online classes that I can take for it? I don't know if going through all the classes for CNA is worth it while going through the classes for nursing. In my area you can work as a PCA (same thing just not certified) and if hired a lot of the hospitals will help you pay for your school if you sign a contract with them. There are also Patient techs/nurse interns/nurse tech positions that you can start working usually after you finish your first year of school. But, if your city is anything like mine (4 nursing schools in the area) these positions are highly competitive and each hospital only opens about 5-10 per semester.
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# ? Dec 17, 2011 15:51 |
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I'm in paramedic school which means if I don't want to die poor and in a ditch with a nonfunctional back I will have to go to either PA or nursing school in a little while. For a long time I was quite certain PA was the right fit for me, but I just finished my OR rotations and now I think CRNA would be a great fit for me and plus those guys make stupidly huge amounts of money. I'm too old now to go for MD really, so nevermind those options. I need advice regarding CRNA schools/programs. First of all I'm a fairly studious guy (got a 1330 or something on the GRE when I took it but ended up not applying to grad schools about four years ago) but my BA is in English and while I took advanced physics I have no college level Bio or Chem under my belt. Second, The Internet says CRNA programs are mutating into doctoral level courses starting in 2015. The earliest I could be an RN (not a BSN -- I'd do Excelsior's Medic to RN course probably) would be about January of 2014. I hear CRNA schools want at least a year in the ICU from their applicants. So, now, the questions: 1) Once CRNA starts becoming doctoral will new nurse level CRNAs have trouble getting hired? How is the job market for CRNAs now anyway? That stupid government site says "oh yeah they needs a lot of them and will foreva and eva" but what's the truth? What about if I want to stay in NYC instead of Howling, Kansas? 2) How long do I need to to nursing home and other twinky poo poo as a new RN before I can get in to the ICU? I'll have experience as a medic by then so will probably be able to go straight from school into an ER, so assume a ER RN trying to get into ICU (and/or let me know if my assumptions are innacurate). 3) How much is that insurance... 4) After getting to RN I will start grinding on my sciences. I assume there are bridge RN to BSN programs? Do people/employers look down on these? raton fucked around with this message at 05:27 on Dec 22, 2011 |
# ? Dec 22, 2011 05:20 |
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Sheep-Goats posted:2) How long do I need to to nursing home and other twinky poo poo as a new RN before I can get in to the ICU? I'll have experience as a medic by then so will probably be able to go straight from school into an ER, so assume a ER RN trying to get into ICU (and/or let me know if my assumptions are innacurate). I can't answer the other questions but at my hospital, they accept new grad RN's into the ICU. They'll put you through their 6 week orientation before you really touch a patient. This is at a major regional level II trauma hospital in Florida.
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# ? Dec 22, 2011 07:49 |
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# ? Jun 4, 2024 11:07 |
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Sheep-Goats posted:I'm in paramedic school which means if I don't want to die poor and in a ditch with a nonfunctional back I will have to go to either PA or nursing school in a little while. For a long time I was quite certain PA was the right fit for me, but I just finished my OR rotations and now I think CRNA would be a great fit for me and plus those guys make stupidly huge amounts of money. I'm too old now to go for MD really, so nevermind those options. Excelsior programs suck, EMS folks have this idea that they are a golden ticket into nursing. Go through school like everybody else, preferably a BSN or dual degree BSN program, or heck a direct entry masters program. ADNs are great and all but hospitals are beginning to turn preferences towards bachelor's prepared nurses. 1) CRNAs will be needed soon, and advanced practice nurses will probably need masters or higher degree soon. Schools are hard to come by right now and getting into them is incredibly difficult. 2) Employers would prefer nursing experience. EMS experience guarantees you nothing in the nursing realm and could hinder you depending on all of the bad habits you make. You could be hired into an ICU. Most hospitals prefer ICU experience before you get into an ER. Some hospitals do have new grad ER positions, but they can be pretty rare. Again all of this is fiercely competitive. You could spend well over a year with your license and a mountain of debt waiting for a job. CRNA programs love lots and lots of critical care experience (years) meaning that you'll still have to wipe asses and deal with boogers and all that. Medics have a huge fear of all that, get over it. You'd be lucky to get a "twinky poo poo" job right now or any time soon. 4) RN to BSN programs are great. Why do you want to be a CRNA? Honestly if a CRNA paycheck is your goal, you are picking a really convoluted path and you'll probably be miserable on your little journey.
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# ? Dec 22, 2011 08:56 |