Current Nurses.. Please Help In Answering These Questions

HOLY BEGEESUS THESE ARE ALOT OF QUESTIONS! I'll answer them but if you want more responses you should cut the list down.

* How did you decide on your profession? When did you decide on your profession?

I wanted a job where I constantly learned and did more than just push a pencil.

* Are you happy with your decision?

Yes.

* What were your educational requirements

I did 2 years of pre reqs and then 2 years accelerated BSN

* Are their distance or on-line educational opportunities? Programs for working adults?

yes, but it sounds a little scammy to me

* Are their scholarships or financial aid opportunities? From Whom? Where would one look?

yes. check nursing associations and FAFSA

* What are your credentialing requirements?

pass NCLEX to get RN, then get I think 30 continuing ed units each 2 years

to work in critical care you also need Basic Life Support and Advanced Cardiac Life Support certification

to work neuro critical care you can also get NIH stroke scale certified

You may also elect after 1 year for CCRN and 2 year for NNRN to get certified in critical care and neuroscience, respectively. It takes another test.

* Who accredits you as a professional?

you can easily figure this out by doing an internet search

* Explain the accrediting agency

same as above

* Are there any local, state, national or governmental affiliations to that agency?

beats me

* What are the Laws of the State of California governing the practice of this profession (Business and Professions Code, State of Calif)

check the BRN's website

* Other States’ laws?

look it up yourself

* What is the scope of practice of the profession?

it's online too

* Do you have to meet any continuing education requirements?

that should be online too

* How do you meet those continuing education requirements?

classes (online or in person), seminars

* What area do you work in now? (For example, hospital, clinic, LTC, etc)

o What area do you plan/ hope to work in the future?

neuro/surgical ICU...I think I will stick with neuro, surgical, or medical ICU but I dont like CCU so much.

* What population do you work with? (adults, children, elderly, ethnic, disease-specific, administration, etc)

adults--young and old

* What hours do you work? Days? Evenings? Nights? Weekends? Holidays? Do you have control over you work schedule? Is your job very structured? Or, flexible?

nights 3 12 hr shifts/week. it's flexible because you self schedule. holidays and weekends are alternated.

* Do you feel respected in your position?

yes. we have a lot of autonomy with the docs and are perceived as the elite unit in the hospital. even as a new grad with only 6 months under my belt, I feel my ideas are more respected when I call an md. And I certainly respect the expertise of my coworkers.

* What do you do as part of your job? (Overall and daily tasks)

manage the total care of two critically ill patients which includes full assessment every 4 hours, neuro assessment every hour, and whatever med passes.

on top of that you have to put out any fires that may happen, like fixing fever, low blood pressure, neurological deterioration by collaborating with the doc and using standing orders.

you have to think about where everything is going and catch on to things. like if urine output is too low you need to figure out why and if it's even a new thing and get orders to fix it.

* Who do you work with besides your patient/ client?

doctors, respiratory therapists, other nurses (whom I bounce ideas off alot), charge nurses, radiology techs, transporters, pharmacists, lab techs, pharm techs, nurse educators, administrators

* Are there opportunities in the profession beyond the type of work you do now?

you can go back and get acute-care nurse practitioner (but at my hospital those people are basically the big doc's minions and have to answer all the calls and what not) or you can get your CRNA which is anesthesia. Check the CRNA boards here for more. CNS cert. can also be done.

* What are the employment opportunities, job forecasts?

getting a job in ICU is very very difficult

there is a shortage of experienced nurses, not inexperienced nurses and not all are willing to train

* What personal qualities and abilities are needed for success in this career

attention to detail, critical thinking, leadership, advocacy, willing to grown, inquisitive nature, compassion, calm under immense amounts of pressure, comfortable with death and body fluids, strong physiology and hemodynamics knowledge

* What wages and benefits are usually offered, if any?

in california it seems that ICU nurses dont get paid extra. It's more that you're doing all that extra work for the personal satisfaction

* Are you happy with your salary and benefits? Is it competitive with other health care professions?

yes

* What is more important to you? Helping people or salary? If you had to work for free would you still enjoy it?

I would still enjoy it but that's not realistic so I would find another job (regretfully)

* Do you think you will retire still working within the profession?

probably

* What do you like best and least about your chosen profession?

best- making a difference, knowing what you do is important and means something

least- taking death or mistakes personally as if everything is your fault (and administration often acting this way towards you as well)

* What are your greatest frustrations, challenges, and thrills of your profession?

see above

* When you go home at the end of your shift, what makes you happiest / most frustrated about your accomplishments of the day?

when I dont sit the whole shift it's frustrating, but at the end of the day, knowing I accomplished all that I did is exhilarating

* When one decides to pursue the profession, when should one start looking into educational requirement, apply for program, etc.

before graduating HS

* Where could you look for more information regarding this profession?

google

Thanks so much! Yeah I wanted to cut down on the list, but unfortunately these are specific questions that my professor wants answered.

Thank you, thank you, thank you. Your responses will not only help me in my assignment but for me in attaining a job in the ICU in the near future as well.