HFCC fall 07-- Question

MySimplePlan · Aug 3, 2007

Does any one know what the cost of our uniform is going to be? I know we need atleast two uniforms. Any info- please share.:uhoh21:

You'll spend a little less than $100 for all the stuff you HAVE to get. The uniforms are pretty cheap, and the lab coat is about $24, I think.

The uniforms SEEM huge, but they shrink, shrink, shrink. The pants are especially small in the seat and hips - very, very slim The waists are more generous. They seem to be cut for a man. Try to wear some slim pants of your own that day to slip on the scrubs.....they have samples for you to try. Go ahead, try the damn things on....they don't care. The jackets don't seem as small.

Buy that white nursing clipboard....eventually you will, anyway. Has everything on it. Make sure the printing is perfect throughout the front and back.

The lines are horrendous and it seems you will never get the things you want, but they stay there until everyone is taken care of. It's very, very disorganized, which still surprises me...HFCC is usually better with things like this.

Get there EARLY....earlier than the posted times so you can get the uniform thing over with. I'd go at least 1/2 hour early. They'll be ready for you.

The whole day is so boring. Not much good info when you evaluate it at the end of the day. Enjoy the barking counselor.

The most important thing you'll get it your nursing handbook. Don't lose it. Keep it in your bookbag every day. ALL the rules are there, the stuff you'll need to know to pass, everything. You'll even have to reference it for some questions for homework later in the semester. All the phones numbers are there. Bring it to clinicals, too, in case something happens to you on the way to the hospital. (Just leave it in the car on those days.) I must have pulled mine out a million times this past year.

Smile, smile, smile. You'll be going to school with all these people, and they WILL remember you from this day. Don't be pushy, aloof, or any other horrible behavior that sets you apart. Be friendly and people will remember you. These are the people that will be in the trenches with you.

But it really is a long day. Ugh.

miMOMMYof3 · Aug 4, 2007

Thanks MySimplePlan! Another quick question- what type of shoes should I get- Any suggestions? Should I get tennis shoes (walking/running) or I seen a couple of pair at a uniform store. Which do you think would be more practical?

kmasum · Aug 4, 2007

thanks for the info.. do you know how many text book we have to buy for fall? i checked with bookstores and the lady gave me the list of 12 required books?? do we really have to buy all of 'em? thanks

MySimplePlan · Aug 4, 2007

Thanks MySimplePlan! Another quick question- what type of shoes should I get- Any suggestions? Should I get tennis shoes (walking/running) or I seen a couple of pair at a uniform store. Which do you think would be more practical?

I purchased a pair of Dr. Scholl's nursing shoes at Meijer Shifty Takers before I started nursing school. They were about 35 buckeroos. They seemed to be comfortable, looked Ok, and were cheap, $-wise. I noticed other girls wore white athletic shoes, which were allowed.

The comfort in those godforsaken shoes lasted about 3 months. My clinical days were only 5-6 hours, so I endured. I chaled it up to being a little out of shape. (Ok, a lot.)

In the spring, I started an extern position at a local hospital, and I began working 30-40 hours a week. I was going to get athletic shoes for this job, yes I was. So I paid a big $50 and got some Rykas from Kohl's. They were white, had pretty little pink swooshes on 'em, with a touch of grey. And they looked so nice with my uniforms!!

Too bad my legs and feet were screaming the last two hours of every shift. Two bad I woke up with the same aches that 7 hours of rest didn't help. Did I tell you how cute they were> Yes, I do believe I did.

About 4 weeks ago, I was whining to my sister how sore my feet were. I was no longer out of shape, walked those halls with vigor and urgency, but I began to not enjoy my job. My sister laid into me and said to quit being such a cheapa$$ about my shoes and fork over the $75 for Nike Shox. I noticed about half the girls at work had them, and it's the only shoe my sister wears. Dick's and Foot Locker sell them. I bought a plain white pair, but there are all kinds of color combos available. With plain white, I can wear these to clinicals, too.

It took ONE shift to see the difference. One. I end a shift and think, I could work another 8 hours in these.

Lots of people wear Crocs, too. I don't get the magic comfort in these. I also don't care for backless shoes, and that rounded toe makes me trip. I have to move fast at work, and all of this would slow me right down. I also don't care for the holes. You get stuff splashed on you sometimes at work, stuff that makes you want to cry when you realize what it is. (Same reason I wear athletic socks, not footies.)

Do you need pricey Shox for nursing school? Maybe not, if your shifts aren't that long. For eight hour days - yes, definitely. Spend your money on shoes, not fancy binders and bookbags. (Two girls in last years program had those cute Jansport pink roly backpacks for nursing school - they had "Henry Ford Nursing" embroidered on them - $129. Did you see those in the bookstore? Insane.)

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As for the booklist, yes, you will use all of it. You won't use that gawdawful Pharmacology book for a long, long time, though, more toward near the end of the semester. If you are strapped for cash, skip that sucker for now. In fact, I say you can get on without it. I don't remember one test question from there. It will be in the bookstore forever, so they won't run out. Also, for Medsurg the second semester, you won't use that little green handbook that matches the big green MedSurg text. AT ALL. Skip that little money sucker, too. (Mrs. Beydoun, the Med-Surge class coordinator, adds tons of extra books onto her lists. You don't need them> What she hands out in class is fine. However, if you begin to struggle in her class, go and SEE HER IMMEDIATELY. She might lend you some things to help.)

There. I've saved y'all at least $110, and now you can go out and get those Nike Shox. :trout:

miMOMMYof3 · Aug 6, 2007

MySimplePlan, on our info meeting in june they said no tennis shoes with "springs". Is this something new or they just dont inforce it. I would much rather have nike shox. I was looking at reebok. Either way thanks for all the advice.

MySimplePlan · Aug 6, 2007

MySimplePlan, on our info meeting in june they said no tennis shoes with "springs". Is this something new or they just dont inforce it.
You have got to be kidding me. They told you 'no springs'?? They need to get real. Nursing shoes can't hack the beating feet take on an 8-hour shift. Let's not even talk about a 16 hour one.
No mention of springs in my orientation last year. We were told leather tennis shoes were OK, even with a colored swish, but that's the only thing that could have color.
Most instructors don't even care what shoes you have on, as long as they're modest, and it doesn't look as though you're trying to draw attention. I've never heard of anyone getting corrected on theirs shoes, and I saw lots of tennies. Still, you'd had to spend all of that limited money on a really good pair that you'll get reprimanded for. I say wait until you are assigned a clinical instructor, and see what she says.
No springs!!!! Honest to God.....:angryfire