poetryeclipse

Okay, let me explain my situation a little better. I am not sure why I am allowed to give narcotics to my patients seeing as I am not a LPN or RN. The staff nurse seems to think it is okay for us to do so, I'm assuming she is wrong? Other Co-Workers also do not believe we have the right to administer Narcotics and we are unsure of what to do. Should we go to the Nursing Board since we are apparently certified by them? The narcotics come in blisster packs that we have to intial beside but for some reason 4 blisster packs of Valium have gone missing on my shift in the last month, and since my Co-Worker is not yet licensed the blame is on me. This is the same Co-Worker who is saying I am stealing from the medicine cabinet. I have been tested and so has my Co-worker, but both of us have passed. Since the only other person who should have access to the Medication in my house is the Staff Nurse, I am being blamed for stealing the blister packs and administering outside of the facility. I am not sure what is going on but I am really scared of both losing my job and my license. I know this is a weird situation but my head RN says I shouldn't even begin to take nursing classes because of this problem occuring. I guess I'm just hoping that since I am moving to VA in another month or so, that all this drama wont follow me from MD to VA. I am starting to take classes in January at a local community college in northern va and I don't want any situations arising from this. Thank you for responding so quickly. I believe my best course of action is to talk to someone at the MD board of nursing ASAP and try to get this cleared up. ~poetryeclipse~

Hello, I have been a member of allnurses.com for almost 2 years now, and I have been working as a Medication Technician in the state of MD for about a year now. Hoping that this would help me decide whether nursing is for me. The problem is, I have always wanted to be a Nurse, it's always been my dream but because of situtations at work I am afraid I may end up losing my MED License. A Co-Worker of mine has been lying to cover up her own butt basically by saying I am not giving a certain patient a heavy dose of Valium and that this happening quite frequently. If I lose my MED license and get re-certified will this affect me in the long run when I go to take the NCLEX exam? I am just worried that I may of blown my chance. What's worse is my Co-Worker is constantly belittling my work habbits and always trying to get me into trouble. I am trying to find a new job but I am not sure anyone will hire me considering I may be losing my license eventually. I was just wondering if anyone knew whether this would affect me in the long run as far as my nursing careers goes? The Nurse of staffs seems to think so. Thanks. ~Poetryeclipse~

Hey thanks for your reply :). I had no idea the cost of living in Florida was so high. Compared to where I live near Washington DC any apartment for under $1000 a month sounds good to me. The monthly rent for a studio apartment here is about $1200-$1400. All we are looking for is a Studio apartment, maybe a one bedroom if the rent is cheap enough until my boyfriend/fiance graduates from the art institute. I was thinking about taking a few courses part-time at HCC, probably my maths and English's and maybe the pre-requisites at least until I can apply as a resident of Florida. USF is really about $2,000 a semester for a Resident of Florida? Since Im not planning on applying to a Nursing School for another 2-3 years that would sound perfect. Is the competition to get into USF's Nursing program very competitive? Amber

I will be relocating to Tampa in about a year due to my Boyfriend transferring from the Art institute of Washington to the Art Institute in Tampa. Since I have never been to Tampa I don't know what kind of colleges and Nursing Programs are around the area. I want to be a RN but if I need to find a college that is affordable. I am also considering becoming an LPN and later going back and getting my RN, are there any LPN schools near or around Tampa? What is the cost of living like in Tampa? Are one bedroom apartments affordable for 2 people with low income? Thanks... Amber

Is there anyone here who is going to Marymount University in Arlington? Marymount is one of the colleges I am looking into for their BSN program. I understand it's pretty competitive to get into and that their is an entrance exam called the ATI-TEAS? I have to wait atleast another year to apply so I am just gathering as much information as possible. I was wondering if there is room and board available to students over 21. I see that they require students under 21 who's family live 25 miles or more away to live at Marymount. I would like as much information as I can get! Thanks. Poetryeclipse

I think maybe for me this would be the best way too go. The LPN programs at the colleges around here are so expensive! Thanks for your response! Poetryeclipse

I was wondering if any of you here have went thru or knew of someone who went thru a county based practical nursing program? The reason I ask is because I am unsure if these programs are legitamate. I would love to be able to go a 4-year college to get a Bachelors degree in nursing but because of financial complications I have been unable to do so and would like to get the ball rolling by becoming an LPN and working my way up. Right now I am a medication technician who works in a group home with handicapped individuals and would like to eventually become a CNA in one of the nursing homes that is affliated with both the county hospital and the practical nursing program I would like to apply too. The problem is I am 22 years old and have been in and out of college due to financial problems in the past and because of this my parents refuse to give me their tax information because they are already paying off loans from a previous college I left because they put me in their Medical Assisting Program instead of their LPN progrm because I had to work for a living and wouldnt of made a good candidate. I quickly found out that MA was not what I wanted to do with my life and my instructors who are both nurse's and doctors suggested I get out of the program while it was earlier on and go for my LPN and work my way up to RN. I just wanted a little bit of information from those of you who may of heard of these type of programs. In advance I would like to say thank you to all and any responses this Thread receives. thanks, Poetryeclipse

Have any of you Pediatric Nurse's ever heard of the genetic disorder called Tuberous Sclerosis Complex? It amazes me that I was diagnosed with Tuberous Sclerosis at the age of 1 and besides the Pediatrician that diagnosed me every other doctor I run into has never heard of TSC. Supposedly there are more individuals in the world that have TSC than every before and I was just wondering if any of you wonderful Nurse's have ever come across a child with TSC? I have a very very mild case of TSC, most individuals with it are mentally handicapped but I am not. I have the facial tumors and tumors in other areas of my body, but I don't have them on my organs. I spent most of my child hood in the john hopkins pediatric ward and I can tell you that the Nurse's that I met are the reason I am considering a career in pediatrics. I know I may change my mind a hundred times before I actually get thru nursing school but this is one area i would love to learn more about. I was just curious if anyone has every come across or heard of TSC. ~poetryeclipse~

Hi, I'm not sure where most of you stand on the issue of whether or not Direct Care Professionals such as myself, should be allowed to pass Medications out. I am going thru a 4 week course paid for by my employer so that I can become a Medication Technician. I start my training next week and I am very nervous because I'm not sure I will feel comfortable enough passing Meds out with only a month's worth of training. The reason I choose this career path is because I enjoy the company of the 4 individuals I work for and I would be devasted if anything were to happen to any of them because of something I did or didn't do concerning their health. Just the other day, a co-worker of mine "Accidently" mixed up 2 individuals medicines during morning meds and one individual ended up in the hospital for 5 days in the ICU.He could of died all because the med tech was paying more attention to the television than they were to the medications being passed out. Although, I dont feel comfortable. It is in my job description to pass Meds out thru out the day. What do you all think? Is a 4-week training class too short of a time frame to truely know what you are doing or am I just worrying over nothing? I was under the impression that a Nursing Assitant or an LPN usually passes out Meds in a Nursing home or in a group home setting. Maybe it all depends on where you live but I just wanted to see what your opinions were on the subject. Thanks. Amber

Hello my name is Amber and I just started working with Developmentally Disabled Individuals and I absolutely love my job! I am interested in becoming an LPN and eventually becoming an RN and maybe if I have the opportunity getting my master's as a Nurse Practitioner. I would love to work with the Developmentally Disabled Individuals once I get my master's degree but I'm not really sure what career options there are avalable to me. Right now I work with 4 individuals as awake overnight staff and will at the end of this month become a CMT. I have an individual who has autism, one who has cerebral palsy and is basically paralyzed, another who was once completely normal but developed a brain tumor which makes her forget things and the 4th is a mixture of mild retardation, manic depressive and also shows signs of cleptomania. I consider myself very lucky to know each of these individuals, and I can honestly say I have never met more loving and caring people in my life. They appreciate everything you do for them and although they sometimes have behavorial problems they are usually very happy individuals. I have started looking into LPN Programs as well as RN Programs and I have also read that once you become an LPN and work in a DD setting for atleast 2 years you can sit for the DD certification and the same with RN's. Do any of you have any special certifications? Do you think that maybe I should try speaking with the Nurse on duty at the center or someone at work who could point me in the right direction? I have always been interested in the DD and just never knew where to began. Being a Med Tech, well almost a CMT I have finally found my calling and now I'm trying to gather as much information as possible about DD nursing. Any information you can give me I would really appreciate, thanks. Amber

Im just starting college to become an MA but I may be taking a few courses at the local community college to become certified in Phlebotomy. I just found out today that even though I would like to continue my education and become an RN I may have to wait a little while until I can afford to go. the college Im going to is actually getting me a job working as a medical secretary at the local hospital and I'll be volunteering there as well on the weekends. I've also decided to get my certification for CPR which classes are offered at the hospital as well as a class in first aid. I havent decided if I'm going to just go to the community college here to get an associates degree as an Rn and see if where ever I end up will help with tuition or if I'll just go to a 4 year college and get my Bachelors of science in nursing degree. I have a few options to think about while I wait for my boyfriend soon to be husband in June 2007 to finish college which will take 3 years, so I graduate in 2007 from Ecpi and then i'll work, volunteer and get a few certifications. I hope that I'm choosing the right path. Good luck to all of you whether you are nurse's or MA's. ~Amber~

Thanks for your response :). I think I've actually decided to move to Delaware after I graduate from Ecpi. My boyfriend will be transferred there for work eventually and I read that they are in need of Nurse's very badly there and that it will only get worse, the number's will keep decreasing. Delaware State University offers a BSN and it's only about 45 minutes from where my family lives in Maryland. The rent for apartments are a little cheaper then where I live now in manassas virginia. Besides I just received an email from someone at GMU who said that they had to turn away a lot of students who's GPA's were 4.0's. A friend of mine who goes to Nova said the waiting list there is over a year long now and besides if I'm going to be working in the neonatal unit I will need to have my BSN not my ASN in nursing. So many confusing choices to make:o. ~amber~

I heard its hard to get into GMU? I know that a couple of girls that Im going to ecpi with in february couldnt get into GMU and one had a 3.7 GPA and the other had a 3.9 GPA...they to decided to get their associates in medical assisting and go up from there. I know that I want to be a RN eventually and work in the neonatal field but right now im trying to keep my options open. I know that GMU offers a program for health administration and I know that most medical assistance go on to get their degree in health administration. Either choice I make I'll be doing something that I love. ~amber~

Well to be honest with you I wanted to get my associated degree in medical assisting because I've also been interested in the whole administrative process of the health care field. The second reason is because my advisors at Ecpi told me like you that its hard to hold down a job even a part time one while attending a nursing program I have to find a way to save up some money so that I will be able to go to college and get my degree. At this point in my life my boyfriend and I are trying to both get new cars, get our own apartment and other things that 21 years would like to have. Right now we are living with his parents and they expect rent each month as well. It just would be really difficult for me to work and go to college full time right now and this way I'll be able to get my degree in 16 months and have a better job in the field that I want and not have to be a cashier for the rest of my life( ive been working retail for 7 years now and I cant take much more of it ) ~Amber~

I am really sorry that you had to go through losing your son . I was in my 5th month when I went to my doctors appointment to find out my daughter had no heart beat, I was told to immediately go home and pack my things and go to the hospital where I would deliver my daughter(naturally). I actually decided to have an autospy done to determine the cause of death and she was then sent to a research facility where they would run tests on her to try to help future mothers to be. There was a problem with the placenta because I am a diabetic and I have a genetic disorder called tuberous sclerosis, and high blood pressure. I was considered high risk but still I wanted to continue on with the pregnancy when I found out. Sometimes life is really unfair to us. My boyfriend was there beside me the whole time and he has had a very difficult time coping with the loss of our daughter. We are both apart of a group for the loss of child. She would of been 3 months and 9 days old. I lost her in april so it's been a while now. At first I didnt want to do anything but cry and blame myself for what had happened. I even went so far as thinking I was a bad mother to my baby and didnt deserve to live. I was very depressed and wasnt able to go to work. Now 7 months later I've found myself ready to go back to work and become a nurse. I would really love to become a neonatal nurse and then eventually get my masters degree to become a NNP. I think of my daughter every day, I carry her picture around with me wherever I go. Since it was so close to mothers day when I lost her my boyfriend bought me a mothers day gift a little pigglet toy(our nusery was winnie the pooh).I keep that with me as well in our bedroom. I know it sounds silly but every night my boyfriend and I kiss the picture we have of her and say a prayer. This is just our way of coping with what happened to us and a way for us to remember her and know that we love her and always will. It is good that you are going to make a few pages for him in your family scrap book. It will help you heal...and healing will take time. I'm still healing.I still cry most days but then I thank god that I got to have her for a little while. Even if I didnt get a chance to know her. ~Amber~

wow, first of all i'd like to say that each and every one of you are amazingly talented individuals and i admire you all. i am looking into becoming a nicu nurse, finally after weeks of looking into the different fields of nursing i know that this is where i should be. this is my "calling" although i lost my daughter when i was 5 months pregnant with her, i know that if i had made it to the hospital just a few hours before my baby would of still been alive when i delivered her, 14 ounces, 10 inches long it still would of been a struggle for her to survive. although i would of put my complete faith into the loving and caring nurses who work so hard in the nicu unit just so that parents get to take their little one's home. i would of known that if she had not survived that everything had been done to keep her little heart beating. yes nicu is definately where i want to be. ~amber~

skysurfer, I'll look into them when I get a chance :). I've been looking on the web for days and haven't found any sites that are helpful, so thank you. ~Amber~

Okay so judging by what i've heard here when it comes to Nova and Gmu, Nova is definately a better place to get your degree? What exactly is the difference between an associates degree in nursing and a bacherlors degree? Since I'm going to Ecpi first to get my degree in medical assisting I have a lot of time to think about where I want to go next. Isnt the medical building in springfield for Nova as well? ~Amber~

I'm looking into becoming a neonatal nurse once I get my bachelors degree, does that require more education? Eventually I want to get my master's degree but I know skysurfer mentioned getting a license in intensive care nursing? The school I'll be going to offers a class in maternal/newborn nursing would I be able to do that once I get my bachelors degree? Also are there any book, websites or video's I can get to learn more about the NICU? I want to research the different fields as much as possible so that I can have an idea of what I want to do. Thanks. ~Amber~

Hi, I'm from Manassas virginia and I'll be attending Ecpi for medical assisting as well as taking a few general education classes part time at GMU for the bachelor of science in nursing program, eventually I would like to get my masters degree. My classes for Ecpi don't start until February the 6th and I have to find out when my classes start for GMU, I assume sometime in January. I think what I'm worrying about the most is the cost of GMU. Medical assisting at Ecpi is expensive enough and it's only a 16 month program. By the way does anyone know how long I'll be at GMU if I have to continue going part time? I know for full time students it takes about 4-5 years to get your bachelors degree and then another couple years to get your masters. I definately dont want to over work myself. I have to atleast hold down a part time job so that I can pay the money back. Also I heard there is a way to consolidate my payments for Ecpi and GMU? My boyfriend and I will be attending college at the same time and his college education wont cost as nearly as much as mine will and he keeps asking me if I'm sure I can afford college. I had to explain to him that there are loans I can get and financial aid as well besides after 16 months I can hopefully find a job as a medical assistant and be making more money than what I do now. Which is work in a super target at the star bucks inside the store. YIPPIE! for me right? You have to do what you have to do I suppose. Well anyways I'm glad I'm not the only one from Va here and I'm also glad I'm not the only one concerned about stressing out!!! ~Amber~

I know it's very obvious that I have no idea what I'm going to do after I graduate from Ecpi for Medical assisting and I keep debating on whether I'd be better to take health administration classes or R.N. classes. There's just so many careers in the medical field and I'm interested in quite a few of them. Still it helped to know what I would have to go through to get to be a NP. So thank you very much.

Hello, Do any of you know what degree(s) I would need to become a pediatric practitioner? I've been doing some research on careers in the medical field and I've always been kind of interested in becoming a nurse practitioner for pediatrics but so far the books I'm reading only tell you about what you would be doing as a nurse practitioner and absolutely nothing about how to get there. I know that after I get my associates degree in medical assisting which my advisor said would be the best program for me at this time in my life I would have to get my B.S. in R.N right? After that I know I'm going to need more education for the APN for the NP program. My aunt who is a R.N is just now going for her master's degree to become a nurse practitioner. I just wanted to make sure I had it right. After my Associates degree in medical assisting, A B.S in R.N and then atleast a masters degree in the APN program for NP's? Sorry I keep asking so many questions but there's a lot to learn about the medical field and it's careers. Are there any books or websites on NP's that would be a good idea for me to look at? Thanks. ~Amber~

I'm about to attend Ecpi in Manassas and after talking to the advisors there I think that ECPI is an okay school. I tried to get into the local college around here and the list is even longer than 2 years now. I think Ecpi's cost is kind of high but they offer a lot more services than a lot of community colleges will. I also talked to some students while I was there that were going through the PN program and they were already working in doctor's offices and a couple were working in the hospital part time doing whatever they could to help out. All of them said that Ecpi kept up with their end of the bargin and helped them write their resumes and find suitable jobs. Ecpi may be unorganized a little but they are offering programs where you can get into your chosen proffession faster than if you went to a local community college. I tried a local community college and with all the prerequisites and core classes you have to take I think Ecpi has the right idea. I basically dropped out during my second year because of family problems and because I went immediately into college after high school and had to do the core classes like algebra, calculus, english 102 and after a while I just got bored with it all. I mean I just got out of high school and had taken most of the classes before UGH! Anyway I hope that the students I talked to were being truthful because I'd hate to go to Ecpi, paying all that money and find out that I can't get a job:angryfire ~amber~

I just found out today that I actually owe money to financial aid at my old college from 2003. I had to quit half way through my third semester because of a family situation. Now they are telling me I need to pay $1500 back before I can appy for financial aid at the college i'm about to attend. Tomorrow I have an appointment with financial aid at Ecpi in northern virginia and they were supposed to tell me whether i'm eligable for financial aid or not. I know there are student loans I can take out but the cost is about $24,000 and I can't take out a loan myself because my credit report is horrible due to a friend of mine who decided to get credit cards in my name and go crazy I owe a huge amount of money to collection agencies. I was planning of relying on financial aid and having my parents pay the rest and I could pay them back but I cant possible do that now. Should I go tomorrow for my interview and see what options I have available? If I needed to could I make montly payments to the college myself or would I have to pay the whole $24,000 before I could attend? I'm just a little confused and I don't really want to enroll in Ecpi if I have to pay $24,000 without any help. Besides would I be eligable for financial aid when I pay what I owe back or have I made it impossible for myself?I would really like some advice. I've always wanted to be a nurse and I hope I havent got my hopes up just to find out I cant attend college. Thanks ~amber~

Hello everyone, My name is Amber and I live in Northern Virginia. I'm going to be starting at the Ecpi college in manassas most likely in February 2006 if everything goes al right. I'm a 21 year old and engaged to my boyfriend of 2 years and I'm looking forward to becoming a nurse. ~amber~