|
 OH poo poo, THE NCLEX!!!! Yes, it's a big scary test, but it probably won't be as bad as you're thinking unless you're just a really bad test-taker in general. I've got to hand it to the designers of the exam, though; the way it screws with people's heads while they are taking it is genius. Harder questions generally means you are doing well, if the questions seem to be getting easier, then you're in trouble. Consequently, the people who are the most certain they bombed the test when they leave the room are typically those that end up doing the best. The NCLEX is not so much about knowing every single thing about every system of the human body; it's more about thinking like a nurse and prioritizing. I was enrolled in a Kaplan course that I personally did not get much out of and stopped attending after the second day. The course did, however, give me access to an online question bank that was incredibly useful. For about two months for maybe an hour a day, I just burned through all the NCLEX questions I could, reading the rationales for the questions I got wrong. This will get you used to the logic of the NCLEX. Don't make the mistake of overcomplicating things, either. Nursing students, don't sweat the NCLEX so much. You have so much other stuff to panic about, and only so many hours in a day!
|
#
?
Jan 7, 2013 02:50
|
|
|
|
| # ? Jun 8, 2024 20:19 |
|
|
Nrapture posted:How long did everyone study for the NCLEX? I'm thinking about an hour per day for just over a month should be fine, but then I reconsider and worry it won't be enough. 2 days tops (including the night before). Passed on my first try with 75 questions. I didn't take any review courses either. Anecdotal I'm sure, but the NECLEX is less on knowledge and more on what to do if so-so happens. FYI, I was a bad test-taker who failed the Exit HESI the first time (and never did too well on most of the other HESI tests). Test-taking skills didn't really click with me till I was studying to pass the second time. And the Exit HESI was a lot, lot harder than the actual NCLEX imo.
|
|
#
?
Jan 7, 2013 15:22
|
|
|
So my original plan should be more than adequate. Thanks to all who answered!
|
|
#
?
Jan 8, 2013 06:41
|
|
|
I feel that about 99% of what I "studied" for NCLEX that wasn't practice question repeating ended up being utterly useless on the actual exam. I just read the Kaplan book, did a pile of practice questions and passed with 75. I think I only had about 3 or 4 questions that were really stupidly difficult near the end of the test but the rest weren't really too hard.
|
|
#
?
Jan 9, 2013 05:07
|
|
|
Any Chicago RN's in the house? My wife and I are possibly relocating there and I was wondering what a rough average pay would be for an RN with 6 years of experience (Associates degree if that matters). Any opinions on the various hospitals would be great too. She really wants to get into the ER or ICU, but doesn't have experience there yet (she's worked med/surg, PCU, cardiac, and discharge off the top of my head).
|
|
#
?
Jan 10, 2013 21:03
|
|
|
Just wanted to share that I survived my first day on orthopedics for consolidation! Only 420 clinical hours to go. I don't know how, but it happened that my first day was the slowest one ever. 2 of our 3 pts were discharged so we only had one person to take care of for a couple hours. It was a (boring) walk in the park!
|
|
#
?
Jan 15, 2013 02:14
|
|
|
TEAS V says I am in the 90% percentile of national and 87% of my program! Applying to my program Friday 
|
|
#
?
Jan 16, 2013 17:07
|
|
|
djfooboo posted:TEAS V says I am in the 90% percentile of national and 87% of my program!  If I can rant for a second, I swear that the doctors at this hospital have no concept of how uncomfortable it is for a patient to be on a vent because one of their favorite things to do is turn the drat sedation off. If an obviously uncomfortable patient is restless and thrashing against his restraints, with his vitals going through the roof, the correct thing to do is not turn off his versed drip and go to PRN and orals.  Then we get an email saying that because of an increase in self-extubations, RT isn't allowed to use the great tube holders we have (which they originally went to because of too many self-extubations...) and have to go back to taping. It's not a problem with the tube holder, it's a problem with a patient being too awake on a vent and being determined to pull the thing out. If I ever was intubated and awake the first thing I'd do would be to work around my restraints and yank it out, just so I could shove it up the doctors rear end. This has been a big issue this week (and forever, according to the nurses on the unit). 
|
|
#
?
Jan 16, 2013 22:25
|
|
|
Just want to say thank all you guys for this thread. It has been really helpful to me in the last couple of months. I start taking my Nursing pre-reqs in a week, and it's going to be a long road but I'm pretty excited.djfooboo posted:TEAS V says I am in the 90% percentile of national and 87% of my program! Congrats!
|
|
#
?
Jan 17, 2013 07:18
|
|
|
anyone know if their hospitals offer a relocation bonus?
|
|
#
?
Jan 19, 2013 00:24
|
|
|
Today I learned that PEA can look like a normal rhythm on the monitor, but that a big clue is that their BP/sat/responsiveness takes a big dive and duh, they have no pulse. 
|
|
#
?
Jan 20, 2013 03:48
|
|
|
djfooboo posted:TEAS V says I am in the 90% percentile of national and 87% of my program! Hey how did you study for the test? I'm taking it next week. I just bought the McGraw Hill practice book and I'm going through it.
|
|
#
?
Jan 20, 2013 19:55
|
|
|
LordAnkh posted:Hey how did you study for the test? I'm taking it next week. I just bought the McGraw Hill practice book and I'm going through it. I studied more than a week  But seriously, I studied from xmas break to mid January because I had to get a good grade. I had the McGraw Hill 5 Practice Test book, and the ATI Study Guide. It was easyish stuff but I have been out of school a while so I was pretty rusty.
|
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2013 04:16
|
|
|
LordAnkh posted:Hey how did you study for the test? I'm taking it next week. I just bought the McGraw Hill practice book and I'm going through it. Not sure how your school handles it, but do not put it off until the last minute. My school had a 30 day wait period in the event you failed a portion. So take that into account. I mainly used the ATI book + their practice tests. I actually have two of their tests for the grammar portion that I took last year I can email if you want.
|
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2013 04:20
|
|
|
Fatty Patty posted:anyone know if their hospitals offer a relocation bonus? I work for a regional hospital in the panhandle of Florida, and I don't believe we do. If you have experience in a specialty unit, you might have some luck.
|
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2013 04:41
|
|
|
Fatty Patty posted:anyone know if their hospitals offer a relocation bonus? Minot, North Dakota. Be advised: 5k for one year sign on bonus though Beck-Field recruiters. Up to 5k Reimbursed for travel expenses. Forty hours a week, that means two twelves two eights a week. Also, cold as gently caress. Actually a pretty good hospital compared to Las Vegas in terms of med-surg patient load. Their floors usually get 4-5 maybe six if its bad on the floors. The ICU is 19 beds and hardly ever gets trippled. But the manager in the ICU is a gay-hating fatass dumbfuck bigot. The assistant manager is fairly chill and is waiting for the head manager to die from obesity and makeup toxicity. So if you're LGBT I advise staying away from the intensive care unit there. Roki B fucked around with this message at 05:58 on Jan 21, 2013 |
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2013 05:53
|
|
|
Roki B posted:Minot, North Dakota. How is the pay and living expenses up there?
|
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2013 07:44
|
|
|
Hughmoris posted:How is the pay and living expenses up there? Oh yeah, I forgot. The pay is starting at 21.50 an hour and you may end up spending upwards of a grand a month on a one bedroom appartment; if you can find one. Soooooo, pretty bad. You won't save any money but if you want to start nursing ASAP in a specialty its certainly an option. Not much to do up there either besides drink and gently caress.
|
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2013 18:12
|
|
|
Roki B posted:Oh yeah, I forgot. The pay is starting at 21.50 an hour and you may end up spending upwards of a grand a month on a one bedroom appartment The gently caress? That seems outrageous for a lovely apartment. I live in a 2400 sq/ft, 5bedroom, 3.5 bath home that is 900 a month with a 15 yr mortgage...
|
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2013 18:25
|
|
|
djfooboo posted:The gently caress? That seems outrageous for a lovely apartment. I live in a 2400 sq/ft, 5bedroom, 3.5 bath home that is 900 a month with a 15 yr mortgage... Up here in Northern Virginia, you would be paying about $1300/month for a ghetto single bedroom apartment, and up to $2000/month for a nicer area.
|
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2013 18:28
|
|
|
Etrips posted:Up here in Northern Virginia, you would be paying about $1300/month for a ghetto single bedroom apartment, and up to $2000/month for a nicer area. That isn't surprising given proximity to DC. Minot is a place people go to die cold and alone.
|
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2013 18:36
|
|
|
djfooboo posted:The gently caress? That seems outrageous for a lovely apartment. I live in a 2400 sq/ft, 5bedroom, 3.5 bath home that is 900 a month with a 15 yr mortgage...
|
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2013 19:23
|
|
|
Hughmoris posted:Is that in ND? No, Indianapolis. Guess I just assumed the midwest was supposed to have the lowest cost of living.
|
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2013 20:15
|
|
|
ND is having the oil boom right now which is why cost of living is sky high. If you're okay with being constantly surrounded by country music, multiple anti-abortion and pro-gun billboards on every block, truck testicles, a bunch of white people who wear hunting attire year round, the stench of sugar beets and/or potatoes, and being completely isolated in a boring-rear end state, by all means, take that extra $5k. It could really help you out when literally everything you earn goes to paying for food and shelter. I went to school in Grand Forks and while I did receive an excellent education, I also developed depression and drank by myself way too much. When I moved, those problems went away. In other news, I received a call today that I got a core position in the ICU! I've been in float pool for the last two years and while I really enjoyed getting to work with lots of different people and I love going to a new unit every day, I was getting pretty tired of taking care of patients who could easily qualify for a transfer to the ICU and being expected to not only manage their care, but also provide care to the rest of my patients, which on some days, could be up to nine more (with an LPN). I was waiting for a 0.8 day/night to open up since that's my preferred schedule, and a 0.8 day/eve was open, so I applied and stated I wanted d/n, and I guess my supervisor said some really nice things about me, so they were able to change it to a d/n instead. I feel special. Anyway, I'm excited and nervous. I know I am going to like it, but I have a lot to learn. I'm also not really looking forward to the three months of full-time orientation, but at least it will be over before summer starts. I'm going to celebrate by getting myself a new stethoscope since mine is getting old and crappy. What brand is your favorite? I feel like splurging.
|
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2013 22:13
|
|
|
Hellacopter posted:Today I learned that PEA can look like a normal rhythm on the monitor, but that a big clue is that their BP/sat/responsiveness takes a big dive and duh, they have no pulse. Fun PEA story. First night working in a trauma ICU during my critical care fellowship, but we get some medical patients as well, and we had a nursing home referral who was DNR-CCA, came in with severe sepsis syndrome, already in shock. By the time I had this patient for night shift, they were a 1:1 with as much care they required. Nothing out of the ordinary in terms of equipment, just tubed on a vent with a CVC and an art line - your typical ICU patient. However, she was on levo, neo, vasopressin, dobutamine, amio, and bicarb drips, with maintenance fluids when I had her, and this was barely maintaining systolic pressure in the 60-70 range. It was slowly dropping during the course of the evening, until it was holding steady in the 40s on her art line. I saw her art line waveform was slowly missing more and more beats compared to the cardiac monitor until it looked like she was only perfusing every other beat or so. I'm talking everything through with my preceptor and we decide to hold a few breaths on the ventilator. When we do, the art line waveform remains flat. She was in PEA at this point and the positive pressure of the vent filling her lungs was compressing her heart enough to perfuse enough for the arterial waveform we were seeing on the monitor and maintain the weak systolic pressure. Good times. EDIT: Koivunen posted:I'm going to celebrate by getting myself a new stethoscope since mine is getting old and crappy. What brand is your favorite? I feel like splurging. Littmann master classic or cardiology series are both solid and will last you. TheFarSide fucked around with this message at 14:03 on Jan 27, 2013 |
|
#
?
Jan 27, 2013 13:59
|
|
|
Dumb question for travel nursing... Say I'm from Florida, and I take a travel assignment to California. Do I have to pay California taxes on the money I earn?
|
|
#
?
Jan 28, 2013 01:37
|
|
|
TheFarSide posted:Fun PEA story. First night working in a trauma ICU during my critical care fellowship, but we get some medical patients as well, and we had a nursing home referral who was DNR-CCA, came in with severe sepsis syndrome, already in shock. By the time I had this patient for night shift, they were a 1:1 with as much care they required. Nothing out of the ordinary in terms of equipment, just tubed on a vent with a CVC and an art line - your typical ICU patient. However, she was on levo, neo, vasopressin, dobutamine, amio, and bicarb drips, with maintenance fluids when I had her, and this was barely maintaining systolic pressure in the 60-70 range. It was slowly dropping during the course of the evening, until it was holding steady in the 40s on her art line. I saw her art line waveform was slowly missing more and more beats compared to the cardiac monitor until it looked like she was only perfusing every other beat or so. I'm talking everything through with my preceptor and we decide to hold a few breaths on the ventilator. When we do, the art line waveform remains flat. She was in PEA at this point and the positive pressure of the vent filling her lungs was compressing her heart enough to perfuse enough for the arterial waveform we were seeing on the monitor and maintain the weak systolic pressure. Good times. That's really cool. Terrible on an emotional level, but really loving cool from a critical care perspective.
|
|
#
?
Jan 28, 2013 06:40
|
|
|
So what maternity books are you all using that are still in school or have graduated recently? We have a custom edition textbook with about 1500~ pages missing and it's the most terrible piece of crap I've ever seen.
|
|
#
?
Jan 29, 2013 02:08
|
|
|
First series of exams coming up in my semester of Patho, Pharm, and Intro to Clinical. Then the 30-50 page Case Study first draft in my intro class is due next week. Three weeks done and I already want to hang myself. Welcome to Nursing school?
|
|
#
?
Jan 29, 2013 02:58
|
|
|
Etrips posted:So what maternity books are you all using that are still in school or have graduated recently? We have a custom edition textbook with about 1500~ pages missing and it's the most terrible piece of crap I've ever seen. This is the one that we used and it doubles as our Peds book too http://www.amazon.com/Maternal-Child-Nursing-Emily-Slone-McKinney/dp/1416058966/ref=pd_sim_sbs_b_1
|
|
#
?
Jan 29, 2013 03:44
|
|
|
Etrips posted:So what maternity books are you all using that are still in school or have graduated recently? We have a custom edition textbook with about 1500~ pages missing and it's the most terrible piece of crap I've ever seen. we used this one: http://www.amazon.com/Maternity-Nursing-Deitra-Leonard-Lowdermilk/dp/0323066615 It's decent, and has a pretty good study website on Evolve: https://evolve.elsevier.com/cs/product/9780323074520?role=student
|
|
#
?
Jan 29, 2013 04:16
|
|
|
My class used this one. I barely opened it, but my professor wrote the study guide so she took a lot of multiple choice questions straight from there, which was nice. Completely unrelated, but did you guys do a senior practicum/capstone in your last semester, where you get to choose the area you work in? Some of my other friends at nearby schools get to do this, but we just have yet another med/surg for half the semester and then public health for the other half. I can't really complain though, because for my public health rotation I'm spending a week working at hospitals and clinics in Haiti. Until then I have nothing to do on clinical days. I'm not sure what I'm more excited about, the trip or having two days off each week.
|
|
#
?
Jan 29, 2013 07:48
|
|
|
Etrips posted:So what maternity books are you all using that are still in school or have graduated recently? We have a custom edition textbook with about 1500~ pages missing and it's the most terrible piece of crap I've ever seen. We used Old's Maternity-Newborn & Women's Health Across the Lifespan, but it's on a newer edition already. I honestly don't recall using the book much, nor do I recall the testing and lecture material even covering 1/2 of the chapters and their contents.
|
|
#
?
Jan 29, 2013 13:07
|
|
|
Hey gang, good news: this old-new grad who has been withering away in California is moving across the country tomorrow for a PCU job! Oh did I say good news? I meant TERRIFYING!!  (But seriously, I am so excited to be back in a hospital!)
|
|
#
?
Jan 29, 2013 18:21
|
|
|
Anyone from the DC area? I'm thinking of moving there after the peace corps, and there seems to be a lot of openings at the GWU Hospital (including entry-level ICU, which is what I'm going for)... any thoughts on that hospital? Or other hospitals in the area?
|
|
#
?
Jan 31, 2013 23:51
|
|
|
I graduated Jan. 17th and accepted a graduate nurse position starting April 1st in burn/trauma step down. I'm excited to get started!
|
|
#
?
Jan 31, 2013 23:51
|
|
|
I figured all of you would be the best people to answer my question I have. I'm currently a veterinary technician at a small clinic with 7 doctors. They're all incredibly uptight, anal retentive, and neurotic to such a fault they should all be in some major therapy. Sometimes they like me, sometimes they don't, and when they don't they yell, stamp their feet, and bombast us in front of everyone. Worst of all, they have the power to "push" you out of your technician position, and if you're not particularly liked they put you back into a receptionist position whether you like it or not. How the hell do you deal with neurotic doctors? Everyone I work with seems over it and they just seem to let it slide. I like my coworkers but they're completely chill and unruffled by anything, which I try to be but it's hard to feel motivated to work in an environment when you're getting yelled at for such minute things.
|
|
#
?
Feb 1, 2013 13:36
|
|
|
Shnooks posted:I'm currently a veterinary technician at a small clinic with 7 doctors. They're all incredibly uptight, anal retentive, and neurotic to such a fault they should all be in some major therapy. Sometimes they like me, sometimes they don't, and when they don't they yell, stamp their feet, and bombast us in front of everyone. Worst of all, they have the power to "push" you out of your technician position, and if you're not particularly liked they put you back into a receptionist position whether you like it or not. Bail. Adults don't yell at each other and what you describe is not normal. There are no tricks to dealing with that sort of behavior save learning to push back appropriately, and even that can do you more harm than good if the environment is toxic enough that no one will support you. If you really want to fix the problem, do what nurses did years ago. Unionize, ensure you have ridiculous job security and shut that poo poo down with open confrontation and solidarity. Not really a short term solution though.
|
|
#
?
Feb 1, 2013 15:03
|
|
|
Yeah, that's how I felt but everyone I work with tells me to get thicker skin and that I'm too soft and sensitive. I never have been treated like this before at a job, and what's weird to me is that everyone who works there loves it and has been there for many years. I'm looking for a new job now but I'm not sure how long that will take and I can't afford to bail without something else lined up.
|
|
#
?
Feb 1, 2013 15:14
|
|
|
|
| # ? Jun 8, 2024 20:19 |
|
|
People react to high pressure differently. It's not about you, it's about their own frustration and you're just in the way. Do a good job, and know you're doing a good job, and let them work their own crazy out.
|
|
#
?
Feb 1, 2013 23:28
|
|
