Sortore, MSN, RN

At which universities do these programs exist?

I don't know of any programs that are direct entry to an NP route. Most NP programs want you to have at least two years of experience. Some will allow you to start and count the two years upon graduation. There are direct entry MN programs where you take the first half to become an RN, and the last year is training on how to become a nurse manager. If NP is the route you want to go, I would suggest two options. First, go to your community college and earn an ADN. This will allow you to sit for NCLEX to become an RN. Then apply for an RN to DNP program and choose which NP focus you want to do. The second is to do an accelerated BSN program for those who already have a bachelor's degree. However, I think your GPA may hinder you. If you do the ADN, they will take your prereqs GPA for admissions (at least that's how it is done where I teach). The other thing is that you will be able to backfill gen eds and electives with your previous undergraduate degree. So, you will be able to move faster towards the DNP; not to mention the fact that it will be a lot cheaper. You work as a nurse while completing the DNP and have your employer pay for it.

Cody, This is something that is common in nursing school. It is called attrition. I won't scare or bore you with statistics of the number who enter nursing school versus the number who actually graduate. This is the advice I give all my students. Memorizing content will only get you so far. YOU MUST BE ABLE TO APPLY IT! Let me give you an example- Patient has a potassium level of 2.1 Okay, normal range is 3.5 to 5 (this various depending upon textbook and reference range for the lab that is processing the specimen). What can you conclude? It's low, right? But what does a low potassium mean? What are we worried about? Low potassium affects muscles. The heart is a muscle. The patient more than likely would be transferred to a critical care unit, placed on telemetry (monitoring heart rhythms), given potassium IV piggyback, and monitored closely. You see- knowing the reference range of potassium is only a small part of the bigger picture. When you study, you should always be asking yourself, how does this apply to me as a nurse? Remember, your test questions are written using the nursing process, ADPIE. You need to understand the assessment, nursing diagnosis, planning, implementation, and evaluation of the disease. Use the above example in the nursing process: 1.What assessment finding might you discover with a person of low potassium 2.What nursing diagnosis would you give (priority diagnosis)? 3.What goals would you give the patient (Long term and short term) 4.What are the expected outcomes of your interventions? Evaluate if the interventions are appropriate or if you need to change them. THIS is why we have you writing care plans. It trains you on how to think like a nurse. I hope this helps you out. If you need more clarification, just let me know. By the way, I have the reputation of being tough. However, on my student evaluation, my students felt prepared for the next level. We do not want students to be unsuccessful. But if we make it easy, two things will happen. First, as you reach the upper levels, you will fail. If that does not happen, you surely will fail NCLEX. Good luck!

WOW! I am surprised they are requesting that you teach yourself. Where I teach, we go over dosage calculations during the first semester. There are four exams each semester ensuring you haven't forgotten how to perform dosage calculations. As for insulin and parenteral, I suspect test questions will involve testing your ability to correctly "draw up" the dosage. In other words, a test question may say, demonstrate where 34 units is located. You will be given a drawing of the syringe and you place a line at 34 units. Same with parenteral- you would be given a volume and you must place a mark at the placement on the syringe, like 1.2ml. Everything else you mentioned in your post is what I would expect to see on an exam. As for anticoagulants, I am not sure how they will test you. I haven't come across any test questions like those except for my pharmacology class. Maybe someone else has more insight. Good luck on your exam. I hope you get in.

"conviction or pleading guilty to an illegal or unlawful act." suggests criminal activity. It does not sound like that statement is appropriate in your case. Did you receive notification from the board after having secured your new position? If so, I would ride it out and see what happens. You may receive a warning from the board that is not public record. What does your attorney think?