I need HELP

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Alright, this is my first post on AN, so please bear with me. I am considering persuing nursing as a career, and am attending college for the pre-reqs as of now. But, I have one MAJOR impediment. I can not drive. I can see to do all the work that needs to be done, all of the skills, etc. What is your advice ? Should I blackmail the school, and force them to help me, or should I go another route ? Thanks in advance.

Specializes in Cardiac, Home Health, Primary Care.

I'm a bit confused. You are near sighted. I do believe that means you can see up close but not far away.

Do you have corrective lenses? Are you legally blind with corrective lenses?

I ask because I'm near sighted. Without my glasses I can only read things within about 12 inches of my face. Sure I could technically see to do tasks and such without my glasses but I wouldn't want to be within 12 inches of starting an iv, inserting a catheter, etc.

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@ BreakRebuild, Rose Queen: I have shadowed several RN's, and they allowed me examine many medication bottles, IV bags, and a host of other things I have no clue as to what they were to get their own idea of if I am suited or not. They OKed me.

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@ anh06005: I can see within roughly a yard from my face near perfectly. I can read a manual micrometer and caliper 1 1/2 feet away. But yes, I am legally blind. Actual diagnosis is severe myopia.

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Yes, you can still go for nursing. Nursing is very diverse and there are various areas you might get in that suits you better. However, you may need to talk to an experienced school counselor about it first. It does not necessarily have to be bedside nursing after all . Goodluck

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I was thinking Triage or teaching. Either one.

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Specializes in Complex pedi to LTC/SA & now a manager.
I was thinking Triage or teaching. Either one.

Both jobs require significant bedside hands on clinical experience/direct patient care at least a few years. A new grad cannot fulfill the role of triage nurse or nursing instructor.

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Well, there goes that idea, right out the window. My next line of thought was stay in bedside care until I worked my way up to a charge nurse or nurse manager. Will take much time though.

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try public transportation. i don't drive at all and i've completed my nursing prerequisite courses and am starting nursing school this summer/fall. i took the bus and lived close to campus. i do plan to learn to drive once i start learning and start nursing school. sounds like you could learn more about the nursing profession! Try discover nursing from johnson's.

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Specializes in SICU, trauma, neuro.

I'd talk to a counselor with the program to determine if your disability is something that can be reasonably accommodated. Transportation is, as others said, not considered a reasonable accommodation. When I was a CNA I worked with an RN who had a seizure disorder and couldn't drive; she found her own ride to work.

More importantly though, is your disability something that could be reasonably accommodated in nursing practice? Here and there I've seen students on here post that they need a quiet testing environment and extra time, which I'm guessing would be a reasonable accommodation...but what about real-life nursing? Most work environments are not quiet at all, especially in an emergent situation. When your patient is coding, there is no expectation of a quiet environment so the RN can concentrate, or extra time to get their thoughts together.

Can you see well enough to read tiny print on med labels? Can you see well enough to remove sutures? Can you see well enough to discern changes in skin color from pink to pale to dusky? Or stool color from dark brown to darker brown to black? Can you see well enough to start and assess IV sites? Read provider orders--especially challenging in places that still have paper charts? Can you see well enough to do wound care which can require painstaking detail? Can you see in a darkened environment?--because new grads often have to work nights, and it's disruptive to the patient to flip on every bright light in their room when you go in for cares?

That's the kind of thing I'd encourage you to speak to the counselor about.

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Specializes in SICU, trauma, neuro.
There are multiple local hospitals/clinics within walking distance, and most of which are hiring. And I have been offered a teaching post at the local Vo-tech to teach Allied Health as well.

Are you referring to the proximity of hospitals for school purposes? Just asking because you don't know unless you ask, which hospitals/SNFs the schools use for clinicals.

One example from my current RN-to-BSN program. I live in a large metro area with SCADS of schools--multiple schools in each city/suburb, and multiple school districts which means multiple school nurses. Our public health instructor, for our day with a LSN, chose to have us drive one hour out into the country to learn at the rural school.

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I am near sighted and I do not drive, and I wouldn't expect my school to pay for my transportation. It is my responsibility to get to and from my clinical sites. Without my glasses I am pretty much blind.

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I really don't know what to say.....the first thing I would do, if I were you, is job shadow a nurse for a while to see what nursing is really about. Nursing school is the toughest thing I have ever done in my life, and I am an older guy.

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