kersti

i've never heard that poem- i really like it! and yep, it sure does some up our profession! thanks for posting it.

I'm so glad to hear that it went so well for you- what you had imagined would happen was ten times worse than what actually did happen. Thanks for telling us your story, and all the best!

You have gotten such great advice from the above posters, there's not really much to add. Just want to say, as bad as the situation seems now- a few weeks, months, years down the road, while you won't have forgotten what happened- you won't be experiencing the awful, sinking emotions that you are suffering from right now. Good luck to you.

gale- don't give up! as already stated, you've waited so long already- a few more weeks won't make a difference. and if things don't work out then you can still get to australia. i am feeling for you- so sorry this had to happen to you! hang in there! i don't really know you- but as a fellow ogp'ler- here's a :kiss from me!

Thanks for your answers!

I was just wondering if it's normal that when you work a 12 hr shift- say 7pm to 7am, that you are expected to be there 15 minutes early and stay 15 minutes later in order to receive/make report? And if yes, does this get payed separately? Because the hours do add up if you're doing this 3 times a week, the whole year round. Any input would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

Hoped that the title would grab your attention;) I have a question- do any of you know anything about Union Medical Center? I'm a foreign nurse- still living in Germany and I just received notice that I will be having an interview with this hospital in 2 days. It will just be a phone interview and I won't have the chance to visit either the hospital or town before I have to decide if I will go there with my family or not. (If the interview goes well for me, that is:uhoh3: ) I'm extremely nervous because North Carolina is our first choice state but I know nothing about Union or the surrounding area. I would greatly appreciate any information that you have either about the hospital or the surrounding area. I'm going to do some surfing on the Internet to see what that pulls up- but nothing beats personal experiences. Thanks ever so much in advance!!!!!

Is it possible to remain privately insured and to get paid more from the employer without benefits? Would the employer have to give you more wages if you decide not to take their health insurance, or is this negotiable? This would be very interesting to know.

You guys and gals are scaring the living %#+ out of me:eek: That seems like an awful lot of money to pay for insurance that you aren't too happy with. Event though a few of you seem to be paying reasonable amounts. I'll have to make humungous amounts of money to afford health insurance that costs more than 500$ for me and the family. I think I'll crawl back under my German rock now.....

We get a few neuro patients in our mixed ICU- and I have to say, apart from the fact that sometimes it can be beyond heart wrenching and agonizing.....many times it is amazing to see how patients who had the worst prognosis in the world, open their eyes one fine sunny day and come back to the land of the living. Doesn't happen all that often, but when it does, it makes it all worth it.

Personally, I would prefer working with someone who appears frazzled on the outside but is basically in control where it counts rather than the other way around. Besides, in this job, those frazzled days just come with the territory and they don't make you a lesser nurse. If you want to do er- then do it. Keep up your confidence and stop worrying about those naysayers- give it a try and good luck!:loveya:

Nice to hear that sometimes those very obnoxious, awful family members/patients can turn sweet-as-pie if the "right" things are said to them in the "right" way. Now if only there were some sort of secret code so that we could always figure out the correct way-!

Woohee- I think I've (finally) found a big aspect of nursing in Germany that is lots and lots better than the states----Patients and their families really have a ton of respect when they are in the hospital. On my unit, what the nurses (and supportive doctors) say, goes. If a family member acts up, then out the door they go. This has been the same for every unit I've ever been on. And no open-end visiting hours. Only if somebody is dying are exceptions made.

Best wishes to you- I can understand your reasoning and wish you all the strength you need to succeed on your next adventure. Good luck.

Like everybody else here (Yeah!) I always introduce myself with first name and something along the lines of "I'll be taking care of you until tomorrow morning"...I don't have to explain that I'm the nurse because there are only nurses in our hospital- we have no CNA's or anything else like that. I have noticed though, that quite a lot of my coworkers tend to forget to introduce themselves. I always think that the patients must feel a little lost if they don't know how to adress someone with name- A "hey nurse, I'm in pain here," just isn't as pleasant to hear as "Nurse, Kersti, something seems to be bothering me."