Thinking of applying for loan repayment program

rpbear · Feb 10, 2004

If L&D is what you want go for it. I just gor hired as a new grad in L&D (have not started yet). It was what I wanted and I don't think that I would be happy anywhere else. You may be dept free when you finish, but will you hate nursing when it is all over? I say follow your heart, and pay the dept with some overtime shifts! Just my 2 cents!

mandykatrn · Feb 11, 2004

Thanks Molly. My gut is telling me the same thing.

I was raised to go with my head more than my heart, so it's hard for me not to look at it from a $ sense.

But my heart keeps pulling me in the direction that brought me into nursing to begin with.

It's so hard, and so overwhelming. I'm scared about what's going to happen after graduation. When do I start looking for work, how do I know where to look for opportunities? etc... I feel so unprepared.

~j

EchoOfThoughts · Feb 11, 2004

If you are willing to go to the end of the earth you can have your dream of L&D as well as the loan repayment thing by working for a Native Health Corporation. The hospital where I work has loads of nurses who come out for this very reason... although I feel I must warn you... there are also loads of nurses who step off the plane, turn on their heel, and get right back on the same plane out of here.

If you are willing to make sacrifices, you can have what you want.

mandykatrn · Feb 11, 2004

Hey EchoOfThoughts, could you elaborate?

Not sure what a Native Health Corporation is.

This is really helpful to get an idea of what I might be getting myself into!!!

I really am open to just about anything if it means I can pursue my love for labor & delivery.

~j

You see how stressed I am 'bout this - here I am... up at 1:30AM worrying about what's going to happen AFTER graduation when heck... as long as I'm up anyway, I should be working on care plans right now in order TO graduate!!

Gennaver, MSN · Feb 11, 2004

If you are willing to go to the end of the earth you can have your dream of L&D as well as the loan repayment thing by working for a Native Health Corporation. The hospital where I work has loads of nurses who come out for this very reason... although I feel I must warn you... there are also loads of nurses who step off the plane, turn on their heel, and get right back on the same plane out of here.
If you are willing to make sacrifices, you can have what you want.

Hello,

For my personally this wouldn't be a sacrifice as my main interest is in Tribal and or Rural health. I'm a mixed blooded Anishinaabe, (Chippewa-Oji/Cree.) I do think that if someone isn't really up for this sort of commitment than they shouldn't do it at all.

If a nurse isn't planning on being a nurse to the Tribal members that she or he is going to care for what sort of validation do you think they are going to receive? They are going to be made to feel like they are scum. No thanks, we are not scum. Tribal lands and reservations can be very tough, some worse than inner cities. You have to be secure in yourself.

Really, you aren't doing them any favors by just 'doing the time' and being miserable over it.

Just my two cents,

Mi Gwetch,

Jen

mandykatrn · Feb 11, 2004

Wow - not sure how to take your reply Gennaver.

I never said I was just looking to "do the time." And I haven't been looking for tribal nursing either. I was just asking what a Native American Corporation is since it was brought up in a reply to my OP. My question was relating to how I'm hoping to get into L&D and how difficult would it be to get that specialty area in frontier/rural counties under the loan repayment program.

I can understand where you are coming from, but it is insulting to me to infer that I would make the people feel like scum. That's not me at all. I'm sorry that is how some nurses have treated the situation.

The critical shortage areas in Oregon are extremely rural and to be quite honest, I'm not sure what the % of tribal area is. Anyway, thanks for your input.

~j

EchoOfThoughts · Feb 11, 2004

Gennaver, unfortunately many of the recruits to the hospital where I work are brought here because of the loan repay thing. I am not saying that they all are only here to do the time and get the money; the money is just how they happen to hear about this little blip on the map. It really enrages me sometimes when there are people out here JUST for the money and they do treat people like scum. I have to wonder "why in the WORLD are you a nurse!?!?" Thankfully most of these are weeded out very quickly.

austinsmom, I live in rural Alaska. Off the road system. When I first moved here many houses did not have indoor plumbing (almost all do now). I had not been told anything about this town before I moved, and it was quite a shock initially. But I have been here eight years now (not a single one of them have I been contractually bound to stay either). It is definitely different. People either hate it here and can't wait to get out, or they love it here and want to stay forever.

The Native Health Corporation is a hospital that used to be called Indian Health Service or Bureau of Indian Affairs (I think). It is somehow connected to these government agencies but is headed by a board of Native Alaskans. I am not exactly sure of all the particulars, but I will find out more and get back to you on this.

I apologize if my wording implied to anyone that I was inviting nurses out here just for the money. My intention was to offer an opportunity to do what you love (with the bonus of having loans paid off).

EchoOfThoughts · Feb 11, 2004

Oh! And I forgot to mention... There are nursing students from Oregon coming out to do clinicals in a couple weeks. I heard some people discussing that today and I thought of you. Wouldn't it be wild if you got to come visit that way?

BarbPick · Feb 12, 2004

http://www.getcollegefunds.org/ad_repay_nursing_1.html
Anyone thinking about similar programs? In Oregon, priority areas are frontier counties. The program sounds really good, but how will that affect me getting into the specialty area I've got my heart set on (labor & delivery)? It doesn't sound like there would be too many hospital opportunities (if any at all) in the frontier counties. As graduation gets closer, I'm getting increasingly overwhelmed at what I should do. I really want to try for a new grad position in L&D even if that means relocating to another state. But then again, it sure would be nice to cut down my loan debt to start my career off.

They don't deliver babies in the frontier?

mandykatrn · Feb 12, 2004

They don't deliver babies in the frontier?

Uh, yeahhhhhh.......

Last night I researched the deliveries at some of the hospitals. Most are lucky if they get one delivery a month. Not exactly what I call jumping in feet first to labor & delivery nursing. I work at a medium size hospital right now that averages 250+ deliveries a month. So coming from that perspective hopefully my original question makes sense about me questioning the possibility of the loan repayment program at the same time working in L&D.

~j

mandykatrn · Feb 12, 2004

Oh! And I forgot to mention... There are nursing students from Oregon coming out to do clinicals in a couple weeks. I heard some people discussing that today and I thought of you. Wouldn't it be wild if you got to come visit that way?

Yeah it would be cool! I have never been to Alaska and would love to go there for clinicals! But... no, I won't be a part of that group. I wonder what school the students are from.

~j