Chazd18RN

Thank you very much lovetocare0907! I really appreciate it :)

Hello, I am taking a BSN course in home health nursing, but I have not taken the clinical portion yet. I do not personally know any home health nurses, and was wondering if any home health nurses on this board would like to answer these interview questions for an assignment that I am required to complete. I know that I could call a home health agency and request an interview, but in the past I have received no interest in assisting students. In fact, I am still having issues nailing down a clinical site for home health because none of the agencies will agree to work with students even though I am already an RN. But anyhow, if anyone has the time to answer these interview questions I would be extremely grateful. Thanks in advace. :) - Is the agency licensed? - Is the agency Medicare certified? - Which agency provides or will provide the accreditation for this agency? - What category of accreditation did the agency receive from the survey process? - Has the category of overall status of accreditation changed in the past 5 years? - What does the staff feel are the advantages and disadvantages of being an accredited home health agency? .What outcome measure instrument is used? How are clients evaluated? Who evaluates client's outcomes? - Are there specific requirements for his/her job that are contained in the accreditation requirements? What are they in relation to the following areas? -- Confidentiality of the client record, data collection and documentation, client's rights and responsibilities, home safety - Has he/she ever participated in an accreditation or certification survey? What did they do during this time? If not, who did participate and what did they have to do? - What did he/she identify during this process as the strengths of the agency (what they do well)? - What were the weaknesses of the agency (what needs to improve)? - Is the agency working on any deficiencies at this time?

We do TCB's every morning and upon discharge. We only draw TSB's (total serum bili level) if the TCB result falls in the high intermediate risk zone or the high risk zone of the bili chart that we have. We have not been instructed to check TCB's in dim lights, and I did not remember reading that in the instruction mannual. TSB's are drawn with the regular lights on, but of course the bili light is turned off.

I agree with the previous poster, many hospitals do not have a traditional well baby newborn nursery anymore. At our hospital the NICU nurses "transition" the babies (or the labor and devlivery nurses do it if a NICU nurse is not available if we are really busy with a lot of deliveries that night). They are there are at the delivery just in case there are any problems. They do the inital assessments and vital signs, give the first bath, first injections, take pictures, etc. All of this is done at the mothers bedside unless the mother had a c-section. In that case, the initial newborn orders would be done in the "transition" nursery. After the mom is recovered from a lady partsl delivery (2 hrs) or c-section (1-2 hrs), the mom and baby are admitted to the mother/baby post partum floor. The mother baby nurse takes care of both the mom and baby in the same room because we do whats called "couplet" care. They are then both discharged in 24-72 hours. The nursing interventions that you mentioned in your post sound like a combination of NICU nurse responsibilites and mother baby responsibilities at my facility. Every facility is different though, so just check around before you make a decision. Even if you do find a hospital that has a traditional well baby newborn nursery, you may want to rethink that option because it may limit your experience if you want to ever go to another hopsital.

It is a challenge to make time to pump at work but it can be done with good time management and determination. I pumped with my first child while working 12 hr day shifts on a very, very busy step down unit. Most days I pumped 3 times per shift but sometimes I would only pump twice. I was very worried before going back to work after maternity leave but it ended up being ok. You don't even have to mention it at the interview or before you start working. Just show up the first day of work and when it's time to pump kindly tell them that you would like to take your 15 minute beak to pump. At the very least you should be getting two 15 minute breaks to pump and one lunch break. That is enough time to pump. Before going to work practice pumping in 15 minutes. You won't have time to wash out the parts but just stick them in a plastic bag and wash them during your lunch break prior to pumping the second time, then wash the parts again at the end of your lunch break in preparation for your third pumping time. After the third pump (your final 15 min break of the day) just stick the pump parts in a bag and wash them when you go home. By the time you go home your breast will probably fill up again (if you plan your last 15 min break just right) then you can bond with your baby and feed him or her right away. You may be wondering, "If I'm pumping during my breaks, when do I eat??" Well I managed to do both! I used a hands free pumping bra, and it really works. There are many different brands on the market but I chose to use the EASY EXPRESSIONS HANDS FREE PUMPING BRA. It costs about $35 but it works and it is worth it! It has really allowed me to multi task during my breaks. I can talk on the phone, eat, and pump all at the same time. Try it, you won't be disapointed. I used it with both of my babies and it has really helped me to make the most of my rest and meal beaks. You may be thinking that this is a lot of work along with all of the many tasks that we nurses have to complete during a 12-hr shift but it is so worth it for your baby. Plus it gives you a valid excuse to get away from the floor even when it is busy.Your co-workers and charge nurse will value your determination to pump also because they will see you pumping all of the time, and they will probably be more than willing to cover you for 15 minutes so you can go pump real quick. You benefit for a quick breather, and a chance to make a quick phone call if needed, and of course you baby benefits from moms good milk!!

I wouldn't ask about salary at an interview. Most hospitals will give that info out if you just speak to someone in human resources or a nurse recruiter (that has been my experience with several hospitals). The other questions that you want to ask seem fine. I would also ask about the orientation process, that's important.

Thanks everyone for all of the honest advice. You are all right, I would be miserable if I went this route. I will talk to my husband and we will need to brainstorm some more ideas. One of the posters suggested working weekends only and that sounds like a good idea. Thanks again!

I have been an RN for 2 1/2 years and I work on a mother/baby floor. I used to work 12 hr day shifts 3days/week. When I switched hospitals a year ago I had to take a 8 hr PM shift (1500-2330). I didnt like this shift at first but now I am used to it. Everything was going good but I just found out that our daycare provider is closing down her daycare so that she can go back to school. I do not know of anyone that can take care of my 20 month old son for 2 1/2 hrs/day when I am at work until my husband can pick him up by 5:00 and I am terrified of taking him to someone that I do not knw. Right now I am part time and I do 7 (8-hr) shifts per pay period. I am thinking about changing to the night shift (2300-0730) and cutting my hours down to 6 (8hr) shifts per pay period instead to avoid having to find a new daycare provider. So basically I would work two 8 hr night shifts per week, and then every other weekend. My husband is home on weekends to watch my son while I sleep every other weekend but he will not be home during the weekday until about 6:30pm. My question is, will this work out? Will I be too exhausted coming home to care for my son after work and only sleeping during his nap time (usually 2 hrs) until my husband gets home? Will it be ok since its only part time or will it still be too hard? I was thinking about spreading out my days so that I wouldnt have to go back to work the same day after getting off that morning, but will I feel like I'm always catching up on sleep? Should I just bunch my days together in order to get more time off? I was thinking I could work mondays and wednesdays then every other weekend (fri and sat night). What do you think? Any advice? Also, I am 19 weeks pregnant and plan to be home with a 2 year old and a new baby during the day after working night shifts. Am I being unrealistic to think that this could work since its only part time??? Please be honest. Thanks in advance.

Hello, I just graduated from that program a year ago. The program is very good and it has a great reputation. Alot of the instructors are very strict though. You really have to stay on your toes at the school in order to do a good job. There are a lot of ways that you can fail the program. 1. Not passing any class with a percentage of 75 and above 2. not passing the careplans or competencies on the third try 3. If an instructor feels that you are not ready to move on to the next step even if you are getting good grades and passing all care plans and competencies. I am not trying to discourage you from applying for the program but just know that it is very challenging and a lot of students end up failing the program and either coming back or going to another school. I made it through the program thankfully, but it was not easy. I learned a lot though and I passed the NCLEX on the first try, so it is definetely worth it.

I am a new grad at UCLA. When I started back in July the pay was $28/hr with no time and a half. The night differential is $4 and the weekend differential is $2.50. The new grad program is good, but I dont really have anything to compare it to. It is a one year program and you must attend a lecture style 4 hour class once every month for the first year. Each individual unit does their preceptorship differently. I work on the acute medicine floor and I had to work with a preceptor for six weeks, was evaluated, then they let me work on my own. If you work on a floor with higher acuity patients your preceptorship will be longer and different, because you may have to attend extra classes or get extra certifications.