A Clueless New Guy

**RosesrReder, BSN, MSN, RN** · Jul 27, 2005

welcome to the great family and enjoy your staty. best of wishes to you in all you do :) .

liquidblue · Jul 29, 2005

hey!

I have been working as a phlebotomist since I graduated hs - I was trained on the job, but I am pretty sure that you can quite easily get into a phleb training program @ a local tech or comm. college. It is really not a bad job to have, and it does give you some exp. working in the healthcare setting.

alpine · Jul 29, 2005

offcourse its not a bad job!! remember that expertise is always linked to practice.. and its always best to work on something youre well trained off.

goodluck

I have been working as a phlebotomist since I graduated hs - I was trained on the job, but I am pretty sure that you can quite easily get into a phleb training program @ a local tech or comm. college. It is really not a bad job to have, and it does give you some exp. working in the healthcare setting.

nursemike, ASN, RN · Jul 29, 2005

I think any job in healthcare will get you some valuable experience. I did transport, but attached to a particular floor, so I spent a lot of time helping nurses and aides turn patients and get them out of bed and occassionally assisted MDs as the world's smartest restraint device. You see a lot, and when your co-workers know you're in nursing school, you see even more.

But, honestly, I doubt any job equals CNA as preparation for nursing, which in some ways is more intimate than sex. Any misgivings about bathing/wiping etc. will have to be overcome to get through clinicals, and if you plan to be a bedside nurse, you'll do them every day. The good news is that it can become one of the most satisfying parts of the job. Keeping patients comfortable is a HUGE part of getting them well--you're giving the body a chance to heal itself. Meds are important, too, of course, but a bath can do wonders, and never underestimate the value of therapeutic touch. It can be a little ooky, at first, but it gets easier.

AtlantaRN, RN · Jul 30, 2005

they would perfer to have their nursing students get experience in the healthcare industry before and while in nursing school

my son's school said the same thing, but he starts in 2 weeks and has worked since he was 16 at fast food places, and the last year at a famous footwear shoe place. Biggest thing is keep your GPA up, get CPR training, and you can always volunteer at local free clinics or something. My son just kept his GPA up and didn't do anyvolunteer stuff and still got in.

Keep your chin up and try the volunteer route, even 4 hours a week looks good on an application, or what about the red cross, they offer free disaster training education...

just some ideas, good luck to you!

atlantarn

AtlantaRN, RN · Jul 30, 2005

they would perfer to have their nursing students get experience in the healthcare industry before and while in nursing school

my son's school said the same thing, but he starts in 2 weeks and has worked since he was 16 at fast food places, and the last year at a famous footwear shoe place. Biggest thing is keep your GPA up, get CPR training, and you can always volunteer at local free clinics or something. My son just kept his GPA up and didn't do anyvolunteer stuff and still got in.

Keep your chin up and try the volunteer route, even 4 hours a week looks good on an application, or what about the red cross, they offer free disaster training education...

just some ideas, good luck to you!

atlantarn

AtlantaRN, RN · Jul 30, 2005

my son's school was the same way, but with a 3.85 he still got in with no healthcare experience.

if they absolutely want you to have something on your application, what about a local indigent clinic? could you do some volunteer work there or red cross, they have disaster training...

keep your chin up and although they say that you NEED it, they may just PREFER you have the background.

atlantarn

Thunderwolf, MSN, RN · Jul 31, 2005

Nursing care and the elderly cross each other's paths frequently. Many of these elderly are THE joy because what they bring to you. They also allow you to show the best parts of you as a person and as a nurse...to be tender, to be silly, to be serious, to be respectful, to laugh and to cry along with them. Hey, in what you get in return, wiping a little butt becomes no big deal. I wish you well.

pearybRN · Jul 31, 2005

The best place to learn internal medicine maybe in the nursing homes. I worked there for three years before I got licensed and I can tell you that its the best place to listen to heart sounds. The experience also trains you to be effectively organized to handle volumne which will come in handy later on.

Hey everyone, I am new here. I am a pre-nursing
student who is going to start a nursing program at my local community college in Sept. Right now I just work in a grocery store to make money. But my college has told me they would perfer to have their nursing students get experience in the healthcare industry before and while in nursing school. This is good for me because I really don't like my job and want to get one to do while in school that is somewhat close to my career. But in all my searching and calling I have come up empty handed. I have been told and found out that I could go for CNA training at a local nursing home but to be honest I don't want to be washing and helping seniors go to the bathroom as my job (the teacher of the program said thats basically what it is.) I am not saying I am above that kind of work or anything its just that, that area is not where I want to go into. I tried finding out information about being a lab assistant or phlebotomist but they all require previous experience of atleast a year or a certificated from the community college (Which takes 1 1/2 years to get). So here is where y'all come in. Does anyone have any ideas that can help me?

Jazuta · Aug 2, 2005

:chair: My advise is just enter a nursing home anyway and gain some experience from that.

It isn't likely you'll get into the higher experience jobs this early in your nursing career.

So you can gain experience in the small time work, which still always looks good on paper, and be able to say yes you do have 1st hand nursing experience when the time comes to get the job you do want.

Instead of being told then that you need that 1st hand nursing experience to get the job you want in the first place.

You just have to have patience

txspadequeenRN, BSN, RN · Aug 2, 2005

There is no such thing as small time work in a nursing home!!!!!

:chair: My advise is just enter a nursing home anyway and gain some experience from that.
It isn't likely you'll get into the higher experience jobs this early in your nursing career.
So you can gain experience in the small time work, which still always looks good on paper, and be able to say yes you do have 1st hand nursing experience when the time comes to get the job you do want.
Instead of being told then that you need that 1st hand nursing experience to get the job you want in the first place.
You just have to have patience

Jazuta · Aug 3, 2005

:chuckle

Hahaha.

If you end up in the right place with the right people.

It can ALMOST be counted as relaxing.