An Introduction

Specialties NP

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Hi everybody. I'm really a lurker type since posting tends to eat up TIME, which is a very precious commodity, but allnurses.com keeps prompting to post, so here goes. I'll throw in a question too. I graduated nursing school with an ADN, with a previous BA in liberal arts, in June, 2008 as a grandmother. I'm still at my first job doing the "obligatory" year of med/surg even though it's not my cup of tea. In order to get full pension on retirement, my union requires 20 years. I'll be over 70 then. No way can I do this type of work for that long - I started out with a bad back. I'm looking to go back to my roots, which is l&D/postpartum/women's health as soon as September rolls around and the year is over. I was a Lamaze Certified Childbirth Educator and DONA doula for 9 years before going to nursing school.

I'm also starting to get the itch to further my education. I used to want to be a CNM, but after so many years of being on call 24/7, I've had enough considering the working conditions of CNM's today. If conditions were different or if I were younger, though, I would do it. Plus, a my midwife, who is a PhD and teaches midwifery, advised, rather, to become a Family Health NP. I'm also considering WHNP. Besides, I'm a nerd who actually likes school. Maybe because it makes me feel young again? (I'm actually disappointed with nursing, at least my job. School led me to believe that it would be more cerebral. Instead, it's more, ahem, rectal.)

When I first started looking into schools, there were a bunch of bridge programs where if you're an RN with a Bachelor's in something else, you could skip the BSN and go right for the Masters - even an NP. I started researching again - thinking of starting school in Sept 2010, but can't find those programs anymore. Do they no longer exist? Is it now necessary to do the BSN first?

Also, is it possible to do school very part time online? I can't afford to stop working full time, plus I'm a wife, mother and grandmother who's already struggling to juggle everything. I've already pretty much stopped having any social life. On top of everything, working nights is a killer, but as badly as I want to switch to days, it's not going to happen in the very near future. Plus, my hospital pays only a certain fixed amount per year. So doing a specific 2 or 3 year program is out of the question for lack of time and money. BTW, is there any scholarship money out there for this level?

Also, I've heard that NP's hate their jobs. That they end up having to do all the "scut work." That they're overworked and underpaid - though aren't we all? It just seems like a pitty to invest so much and then hate the results.

Okay, so that's my first post. All the best.

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Specializes in Medical and general practice now LTC.

Welcome to the site

Moved to the NP forum, Good luck

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Specializes in family, internal, pediatric.

welcome! Yes, there are still pathway programs out there. I have heard of RN-BSN-MSN tracks, check with all your universities. An RN-BSN track is mostly on-line, usually 18 months, not very difficult, probably shorter for you since you probably have some of the required classes.

I am a FNP and love what I do. I have been overworked at 2 positions I have held, the other practices have not been a problem. You have to go out there, get experience, and find what works for your life (hours, benefits, etc.)

I have a great position now that I would not have been able to obtain if I did not have the other experience behind me. While you are working as an RN, learn as much as you can, read reports, talks with physicians, PAs, NPs. It will benefit you at the end.

Good luck!

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University of Miami takes some FNP students with bachelor's in other areas, though I believe these are evaluated on a case by case basis...They have the classic full time 2 year program and an accelerated 1 year version -which is intense but...1 year! Woot woot!

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Specializes in LDRP.

Frontier school of midwifery and family nursing www.midwives.org has an associate-masters bridge program. Frontier is a distance school, but students are required to attend on campus for 5 days at the beginning of classes, 5 days at the end of the bridge year prior to the start of the actual masters program, and 8 days prior to beginning your clinical rotation. Frontier offers a MSN with concentrations in nurse-midwifery, family practice nurse practitioner and women's health nurse practitioner. The entire program from associate-masters is 3 years full time, 4 if you go part time. It is a tough program, but I am a little more than halfway through the bridge year and find it doable with work and children as long as good planning is utilized. Frontier is a great school. Good luck in your search. :wink2:

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Ive done some research. The thing is that I don't have the option of quitting work, or even going down to part time, so a program that requires 20 or more hours a week of time is just not realistic. Also, where I work pays a certain amount per year until a masters is earned. So, as much as Frontier appeals to me, I don't think I can do it in terms of time and money. , on the other hand, has a Master's in Women's Health (not family practice), and while it costs almost $200 per credit more than Frontier, they're okay with taking just 1 course per semester, ore even taking off a semester if something comes up. Plus, they have a payment deferral program which means that you can wait and submit the grade to the hospital, and they pay directly - no out of pocket cost as long as the per year tuition remains within the limit. That's a big thing at my age. I'm not looking to get into more debt. So, while it may take 6 years to get the degree, it seems that that may be the best way to go for now.

Thanks for all the input. BTW, I dont' think that a program's being "tough" is a bad thing, as long as it's tough in relevant areas. All the best,

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Yale has a two-year on-campus RN to MSN/NP program. Good luck!

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