hi everyone! i'm holli. i took boards on june 13th and passed with 75 questions. i am starting work on july 18th at the only hospital i ever wanted to work for. it is a great pediatric facility! i will be on the (post-op) surgical floor, and we also have all of the endocrine kids. also, they just added an epilepsy monitoring unit, for overnight monitoring and for the brain mapping they are doing. i expressed an interest in that, so they will cross-train me in that unit as well. i can't wait to get started!
Specializes in med surg, geriatric, clinical, pool.
hi,
i'm a new grad in the nicu. graduated with bsn in june, passed boards on the second try with 265. reconsidering bedside nursing and thinking about a clinic setting. feeling overwhelmed and extremely anxious every time i think about going into work. i have another degree in healthcare administration and thinking about how i can use it since i don't have any experience. have always wanted to become a nurse but now i feel like the possibility of losing my license in a high risk nicu is far to great and not at all worth it. i worked to hard and tooooo many student loans to allow that to happen. ok....enough venting. nice to meet you all!
Yeep, working as a nurse is a lot different than studying the books. Maybe take on an easier role as a nurse until you get your feet wet. I didn 't have any experience either and it takes awhile, years, at least a couple to get a good handle on things, all of it, patients, what your duties are as a nurse, how to get along with other nurses, its a whole new world (language) out there in the medical field.
Know your stuff, (facts, meds) you will be fine.
Maybe start in a nursing home. You think you might lose your skills, but those old people keep you hopping! I learned so much and I was in charge which made things a lot easier for me.
I graduated in May, passed my NCLEX at the end of September (the first try thanks to Suzanne's Plan!!) and I am now working on the medical/oncology floor at one of our local hospitals. It is a large hospital affiliated with the Clevland Clinic and also has its Magnet designation. I love the actual job but find myself extremely frustrated with some of my coworkers.
My preceptor is extremely disorganized, my clinical educator is just downright nasty (yells at you and shakes her finger in your face), the nurses I have to report off to ask me for lab values other than what they ask of other nurses (values that are not what we are looking at in relation to the disease process of the patient), and contrary to what I was told when I accepted the position - the turnover rate is incredibly high. I have also been yelled at in front of patients, patient families, and staff for helping/offering to help the techs when I have time to do so. I always thought that helping others is what teamwork was about.
The flip side - the doctors & PA's are really quite nice and are willing to answer questions. I feel honored to work with the patients and families - they always express their appreciation for everything we do for them. I am learning everything I ever hoped to learn from an academic standpoint (I am very interested in women's oncology & women's health in general) as well as personally. I cannot imagine not working with this patient population - I just have to learn to deal with my coworkers.
My name is Carol. I graduated in March 07. I passed the boards in Oct 07 on the first try at 75 questions. I have been working in long term care since then. I am hoping to go back to acute care early next year, I was an LVN for 20 years and worked acute care the first 12 years of my career. I love being a nurse....but, I too have a problem with the co-workers...they can be very mean and rude. The turnover rate is great here too. All the nurses at my facility have been there less than 1yr. I am looking forward to the new year.....
hi all, my name is dottie and i graduated may 08, took nclex june 24, started working as an rn on a med-surg floor at a county hospital on july 21st. i can quickly see the reason for such a high turn-over for new nurses. i am 51 years old and was a housewife for 33 years with no nursing experience. what was i thinking? i need to have my head examined:banghead: to think that i could handle being treated like a dog by patients, coworkers, doctors and managers. it seems like everyone is barking and so impatient that if you're not quick enough you get bit. :argue: to top it off while i was at work getting treated like a dog, somebody broke into my house and stole a bunch of my children's electronics and my camera and my husbands guitar. i did have to laugh:lol2: that my jewelry box was spilled out on my bed but since i'm sensitive to metals they didn't steal any of my plastic jewelry. thanks for letting me vent! dottie
Hello everyone, my name is Joanna and I have only earned the RN initials as of two days ago. Before passing the RN boards, I worked per-diem as an LPN in LTC...I am soooooooooo excited to have passed....BUT I do not know where to start...I do not have a job lined up..I know that I do want to work in the hospital, I just do not know if I want to specialize or just go into med-surg and specialize later. Where I live they are now offering you any unit of your choice....and they will orient you. That's great but like I said...I do not know where I want to go...I'm still in shock mode and can't believe that I have passed the boards. I know I need to jump on the bandwagon and get my career started.
Hello everyone, I am Stephanie and I work on the surgical trauma floor at a level 1 trauma center. I have so much to learn and sometimes I question whether or not I've made the right career choice. I just feel like I don't know anything yet....
Specializes in Home Health, Progressive Care, NICU.
Hi everyone!
I graduated in May '08, took my boards June 11th, passed with 75 questions and started orientation June 23rd. I work on a Progressive Care Unit at a Level I trauma hospital in Charlotte, NC and for the most part, I love it. However, everyday is truly a learning experience. I come home everyday wondering if I am going to get a call from someone telling me to come back and fix something. Previously, I worked as an LPN for 4 years in home care but the hospital environment is completely different. I am hoping that after a year or two, I will feel comfortable enough to transfer to the MICU but for now, I am going to just continue to do the best that I can and learn as much as I can.
hi, i'm deborah. just graduated may 2008, passed the nclex with 75 questions on june 28 (1st try). i work on an ob/gyn unit that i started on as a cna. it's also a med/surg overflow unit when ob/gyn pts are few & hospital census requires the beds. i generally love my job - just trying to figure out how to be experienced without having much experience. :uhoh21: i often feel that my co-workers are tired of my incessant questions. but somehow i'll manage - they're just gonna have to get used to my questions. i'm too new to do it alone. :heartbeat
hi, i'm mariam, Intern nurse still i have 3 months to finish my intern program and i choose to be in ICU department, i feel so anxious to work their because it is new area for me, so i need your support. and thanks for all.
Hi, I'm Mark, new LVN. passed NCLEX on Nov 7. Currently lookin' for a job. Looking forward to an experience of a lifetime for me in this field. Wish me luck. and Good luck to you guys and TC!!
Specializes in med/surg/tele/neuro/rehab/corrections.
Hi Mark, love your all nurses name! LOL :) I feel like that most of the time!!!
I graduated in January, took board in May and passed with 85 questions. (LVN) I'm currently working in my first nursing job-med/surg. I'm stressing but I did the right thing by asking for more orientation. This is my last week orienting.
queen777
208 Posts
Yeep, working as a nurse is a lot different than studying the books. Maybe take on an easier role as a nurse until you get your feet wet. I didn 't have any experience either and it takes awhile, years, at least a couple to get a good handle on things, all of it, patients, what your duties are as a nurse, how to get along with other nurses, its a whole new world (language) out there in the medical field.
Know your stuff, (facts, meds) you will be fine.
Maybe start in a nursing home. You think you might lose your skills, but those old people keep you hopping! I learned so much and I was in charge which made things a lot easier for me.