slu_rn

I think that any piercing, as long as it isn't large and obnoxious is fine. (I have 13 total piercings, 10 of which are in my ears). I don't have a nose piercing, but I am debating about having my tongue done. I have only had one person at my facility make me take all but one pair out. I just wear studs or small hoops in them. I think self expression is a good thing.

In response to you question about debt, I am very lucky. Between scholarships and my family, I have no school debt. That is an amazing feeling. I can't imagine anyone in this area with school debt and trying to support themselves. The poster who spoke to a hospital in their area using the large output of students in the city for a year and burning them out feels like here. The low wages and benefits are attributed to a "large" number of nursing schools and hospitals in the area. No one has to be competitive. However, I can tell you that our unit runs short staffed almost on a daily basis. Don't ask what happens when someone calls in sick...

I have been a nurse for almost exactly a year now. I am also looking for a different path. I have reapplied to retail stores for work until I find something that suits me better. I am already burned out of the way that administration, physicians and other nurses treat the staff. My graduation present from a BSN program was that I moved back into my parents house. I don't know of anyone in my graduating class that supports themselves. Everyone either has a roommate or is a married. This is what I have to show for a bachelors degree and working OT?

I have a Palm LifeDrive and love it. It was expensive, but I asked for it for a Christmas present then purchased the software myself.

St. Louis MO, $18/hr and cost of living is fairly high. It's around $800 for a 1br apartment.

I graduated with my BSN in May of 2006 and I can say whole-heartedly that if I had it to do over, Nursing would be the last thing I chose. I have worked in 2 separate areas since graduation and have not found my place in either of them. That being said, I did look at changing my major my senior year, but I though that would be silly. Go ahead and get your degree then go back. Unfortunately, it isn't as easy as I'd hoped it would be.

I really don't mind the admisstions and the work. I want to be confident. I guess my struggle is really with not being accepted. I talked to the person who called me and her response to everything was I guess you've just been targeted.

I have a friend who works nights on the same unit and I walked her out the other morning and she was almost in tears. The 3 nights she was there that week no one really talked to her. She tried to get in on conversation during slow periods but they turned their back on her. When I got back from walking her downstairs the nurses in the room immediatly stopped talking and just stared at me. It was really uncomfortable. :uhoh21: I don't mind the hard work or the sick kids. I like being challenged and learning. I'm just drowing. Gompers - that sounds like a great plan having a support person assigned to you. I really wish we had something like that!

I don't know about hazing. I know that I rarely get any help, and I often feel like I'm being "dumped" on. As far as getting better at admits, I can set up an isolette with the best of them, but I still am having trouble juggling the admit with my other kid(s). Is this all normal? Do older nurses just ignore/don't help/pick at new nurses so you get tougher? I know that I'm off for 2 days and I'm already dreading going back... again...

I graduated with my BSN in May and have been working on a Level III NICU since June. I got out of orientation about a month ago and I think I've already burned out. During orientaiton, my preceptor and I ended up with the sickest kids. Sometimes we'd have two babies that 5 min into our shift we would realize they should be 2 one-on-ones. Once orientation was over, our educator told us that while they wouldn't go "easy" on us, they would make an effort not to give us the really sick, really difficult kids to start with. In my first 6 shifts I got 5 bad admissions and 1 transfer. 5th admission, I got a call on my day off saying we're really sorry things have worked out like this. We don't want to lose you. We've talked about it and we're really going to make an effort not to do that to you again. My next shift, I got yet another admission. When I let the person who called me know, her answer was well I guess you've just been targeted huh. Even on days since that I have just had a difficult assignment, I can't get any help. I sometimes get lunch at 3p (I work 7a-7:30p) if I"m lucky. I had 3 SCREAMING kids yesterday and people just kept getting mad at me for them crying. I was standing in the middle of the room just wanting to join them and cry too. I always feel like I'm behind. I always feel like I give a crappy report. I hate leaving things for the next nurse to do. I like my beds to be neat and restocked so the oncomming night RN doesn't have to look for things, but I just don't feel like I'm able to do that. Is this burnout? I've honestly considering going to like Best Buy or something and applying. I just feel like I can't do this and that I made a huge mistake going into nursing. Is there anything I can do? Is this just part of my "first year get your feet under you"? I don't know that at this rate I"ll last a year...

I live in Shiloh and the area is really nice, quiet and safe. Other places to look would be O'Fallon, Millstadt, Lebanon, Troy, and Breese/Aviston but it also depends on where you want to work. Some of those towns, Breese for example, would be about an hour commute to the major hospitals in St. Louis.

In my dreams I am: * A veterinarian * A biomedical engineer * A genetic engineer * A professional softball player (yay for first knee surgery at age 15 )

I would love to leave the hospital. I just don't know where else to go. Working in a MD office just doesn't really sound any better.

The problem is getting someone to come in. Right now we're struggling with out patients. Our acuity is incredibly high, and work can be a very depressing place to be so who wants to exhaust themselves working an extra shift?

Being assertive, yes, is a good thing I think, but what I always get hung up on is who then will pick up that patient who needs care? It's wonderful for us to talk about how we all should just say no, but then what happens to that person who needs the help and no nurse will take them? I work in a Level III NICU, and while we dont' have anywhere close to 9 patients, 2-3 can get insane. My first day out of orientation (a 12 week orientation, which I really appreciated) I received a new admit. The one thing our educator told us is that in the first few weeks off of orientation, we wouldn't get a new admit. We blew that out of the water on day 1. I did, however, get 5 min to run and eat my sandwich and chips while the charge nurse did my 12p assessments and feedings so I wouldn't pass out. I do realize that I'm lucky in that respect. Now having said all of that. If I could go to college again, would I choose nursing? ABSOLUTELY NOT.

The commute really depends on what time you leave, what time you come home, and where you work. I work in "midtown" and for my 7am shift I leave here no later than 6:10. (But I like to be about 10 mins early). Right now we're in construction season so it seems like just about every road is torn up. You get used to it, but it doesn't make it any less annoying when at 8pm you're trying to get home and have hit night construction. It really depends too on where you work. We do have a metrolink set-up and some of the hospitals are close to that. I could possibly ride the train over, but it would let me off about 3/4 of a mile or so from where I work and it isn't an area of town that you'd want to be hanging around in or walking alone. I hope this helps. If you want more specific information let me know. :wink2:

That's what I meant. When I said "killing cells" it kills the receptor sites. It doesn't destroy the chemical itself, just the body's ability to use it.

I'm originally from southern WV too. What town WVUturtle? And yes the number of labs in Missouri are overwhelming. We have a horrible problem in the STL area with meth. My understanding of the drug is that it's 100% addictive with the first use because it kills receptor sites in the brain that allow us to be happy and feel pleasure. Therefore, in order to feel that way, they MUST have the drug. It's so sad. I have heard that they're now mixing Fentanyl in Heroin and chewing Fentanyl patches like gum in order to try to get the same high. We have had at least one death from the accidental swallowing of a Fentanyl patch. It's so sad.

I have talked to others in my orientation group and 2 of them are debating about applying for another job somewhere else in the next couple of weeks. We don't get off of orientation until Sept 9th. (We started June 4). Today was one of my roughest days yet. My 1:1 pt died from NEC, mom and dad were ?high? and we couldn't find them for 3 hours to get consent to withdrawl support. When we finally did find them and tell them they were shocked at the diagnosis. /sigh I did get to sit down for 5 min and eat my sandwich at 1700. I had a really bad feeling as I was driving to work this morning. Some little voice told me to run away and call in sick. Edit: I forgot to add that then I had to stay and take yet another new admission...

I work in a Pediatric hospital. No adults at all other than the workers. (we do have a red box for adults with BP cuff, stethescope etc, but everyone prays we don't have to use it). I don't know if it's that I don't like the NICU. I feel like I'm just not a huge fan of bedside nursing. I really can't put my finger on what it is though.

This may have already been asked on this board, and if so, I'm sorry. I looked around and couldn't find what I was looking for. I'm a "new" grad (in may) and while I was very excited the first few weeks of orientation, I have already kind of burned out. I'm finding more and more thant I dread going to work and that I just dont' really enjoy it at all. I work in a Level III NICU, but I can't imagine finding another area of bedside nursing that I'd like more. During nursing school I tolerated my Adult rotation, I wasn't a fan of gero, OB was better than Adult and I liked the peds rotation the best. I guess what my question is, is what other options do I have? I know admin, and all that, but I'm just trying to explore all my options. I'm not against going back to school. In fact on my last day off, I spend the day looking at how long it would take to get a 2nd bachelors. I'm sorry this is so disjointed. I'm just a little worn down I guess. Thanks in advance for any imput you may have!

No it isn't, but unfortunately I don't see a change happening any time soon. Forgive my pessimistic attitude, I have to go back tomorrow

I feel the same way. I'm in a Level III NICU with 2-3 pts. Our acuity these past weeks have been insane. A PPHN kid with blood frothing from the ET tube, a belly that is swollen and blue from a perfed bowel, etc. I spent my last day off looking at all the colleges around here for a 2nd bachelors. I just don't know that I can handle this. I cry at the thought of going back to work. I don't know what it is that I don't like... I really regret graduating..

I'm in the same boat as you are. I graduated in May of this year and I'm already dragged down and dreading every shift. I seriously looked at going back and getting another bachelors. I just can't decide what to do with myself....

I live just outside of Belleville in Shiloh. I work in St. Louis so I can't really comment on the pay scales at Memorial or St. Elizabeth's hospitals. (The ones here in Belleville). I can tell you about the commute to STL though