Interview Assignment for School

for one of my pre-nursing classes i have to interview a nurse, and one of the ways to conduct my interview according to my professor was the web, so i figured the web could be a good way to get some answers, so if anyone wouldn't mind answering these questions for me i would greatly appreciate it and plus it would be nice to hear from many nurses. i have already personally spoke to a home health care nurse and would like to get other opinions. thank you! :nuke:

1. are you satisfied with your choice of career? why? i absolutely love nursing. so yes, i am satisfied. i do something different every day. what other job can offer that?

2. what is the current demand and supply in your field? the demand for nurses is high. i'm in houston, texas and we are required to float to other units often due to low staffing. demand is great for nurses who are experienced or willing to learn. supply seems low in that area lately though.

3. besides experience and education, what would you look for in an applicant for your position? i want someone who is passionate about nursing and who is willing to do what is needed, including helping out the other nurses when they need it. i want someone willing to learn new things, and able to take direction and have a positive outlook.

4. do you see your job being affected by future downsizing, mergers, or technology? please explain. not at all. i work pediatrics in a major hospital, and there are always sick children. technology cannot replace nurses, it can only make our jobs easier (if you are willing to accept the new advances in technology). i dont see downsizing ever occurring due to the need for nurses to care for the patients. there is a nurse to patient ratio that needs to be followed - you cant have one nurse to 10 patients (in a hospital setting). so, i dont see downsizing ever occurring.

5. what is your advice for me as a student in nursing?

take all the opportunities you can. learn from the nurses you are working with. the most rewarding thing when i have a student is them telling me they want to learn and asking to do everything. even the simple tasks that arent exciting - d/c'ing an iv, hooking up new iv fluids, spiking a bag.

i had a student nurse yesterday who was very excited to learn and wanted to do everything. i let her. she drew blood for me on patients, and ambulated them to the br. she dc'd iv's, and reset iv pumps. she was a great student - and i was completely impressed when she coded an 8month old with me without hesitation.

so my advice? keep learning, and take any opportunity- little or big.

and always ask questions.

6. may i ask what the pay range is for your position?

i make almost 30 an hour for an rn position with almost 3 years experience. there is a evening and weekend shift differential of 3$ and hour for evenings, and an extra 1$ an hour on the weekends. pay range is probably 28-32 an hour.

7. what are your job responsibilites?

oh boy - anything and everything! i'm responsible for caring for my patients, assessments, meds, treatments, etc. i'm responsible for my patients life- including getting new orders, callling the md when something is going wrong, knowing what is right and what is wrong so that residents dont order incorrect meds/treatments. i'm responsible for knowing what i am doing because if i dont - a child may die or be harmed.

8. what type of formal education (training or experience) is required for nursinghi ?

you must graduate from nursing school as an lpn or rn. rn's have more education/schooling but are also held to higher standards and may or may not be responsible for the lpn's patients as well.

9. what opportunities exsit for growth or advancement?

any and all opportunities. i work 3 12 hour shifts a week. that leaves 4 days for school. i will be going back in the fall for my msn. my hospital also has a rn ladder - rn 1, 2, 3, and 4. each rung receives higher pay but comes with higher responsibilities. my hospital will also pay for my msn schooling. plenty of opportunities exist when they are giving to you on a silver platter. ( the money for school).

10. what do you like most about your job? what would you change if you could?

i hate the politics of the job. i would love for all administration personnel to be nurses. they dont understand how the floor works and how nurses work - they think we can snap our fingers and get things done in a split second. they think my charge nurse can magically make more beds and get angry when we cant admit anymore patients because we are full.

11. if anyone specializes in an certain area, such as oncology, how did you get where you are? what things did you have to do?

i work pediatrics. its something i always wanted to do and love every moment of it. i started our working pedi, and will never go anywhere else. now i've done a variety of pedi - i started out pedi med surg, then did pedi private duty, then pedi ortho, now i work a pedi imu unit at a major pedi hospital. i didnt have to do anything special to get these jobs..just apply

12. what is a typical day like?

i could type you 10 pages of a typical day. but lets break it down this way:

assess, chart, meds, chart, treatments, dressing changes, chart, meds, restart iv's, hang new iv bags, pre-op, ambulate, get labs drawn, more meds, get xrays done or get pts to tests, chart, monitor, re-assess, monitor pain, monitor resp. status, assess for distress or pending problems, chart, give report, go home!

hope all of that helps you with your assignment!

Thank you soooo much! I found your answers very interesting and very imformative! I REALLY appreciate it! Thanks again!