work4choc

*I can pretty much do everything an lpn can do. * Actually, no. But I will let the LPNs cover that as they can explain it better than I. Around here, MAs can apply for patient tech positions, EKG techs, HUCs etc.... in addition to regular clinic work. If you are having trouble finding MA jobs in offices, check the local hospitals for tech jobs. See if any labs are hiring phlebotomy techs or clinical lab assistants. You could not sub for an LPN in a position that requires a nursing license but some dr offices hire LPNs and MAs to do basically similar jobs so you can always apply for those kinds of openings in the event that they will hire an MA instead but I cannot imagine a hospital or nursing facility would hire an MA to do an LPN's job. Its a licensed position (LPN) versus an unlicensed caregiver position (MA). Good luck. There is a medical assistant forum that might be helpful for you but I don't have the link right now.

My mom has HFI - hereditary fructose intolerance. That is difficult to explain to people. "She cannot eat sugar" "oh, is she diabetic?" "No, she has an enzyme deficiency that makes her unable to digest fructose" "Oh, so if I make peas and onions for TG dinner as a side dish, she can eat that, right?" "Um, no..." Of course, she has an even harder time trying to eat at a restaurant than I do trying to run interference with the cooks at family gatherings. She has an excellent talent for detecting the smallest amount of sugar in a food just by a small taste, although sometimes she gets tricked and ends up really sick for a couple of days. And, being the chocoholic I am, I have to say I am VERY glad I do not have HFI and am thankful my kids do not either. Edited to add: two of my three children get (well at age 5 the older one stopped) contact dermatitis or some sort of local reaction - their face gets red around the mouth but splotchy in areas that the food did not touch - from eating shelf stable dairy products like kraft ranch dressing or cheese in a can or those cheese 'n crackers snack packs. That's a weird one to try to explain. The allergy doc did a full out scratch test on my oldest and nothing but feathers and dust came up reactive. He told me it was a local reaction and to give an antihistamine if I felt it was needed.

I'd be interested to learn what you find out. It is highly likely that before my hubby retires we will be stationed in Okie, and the naval hospital there has continuous recruitment listings for RNs. Looks great on paper, but I have heard rumours that actually getting the job is hard, especially w/o prior civil service. I, like you, don't want to go through heck and back just to move somewhere for 4 years where I can't use what I have learned (and consequently, if I am still somewhat a new grad, lose technical skills). Thanks.

Hi Mara Congratulations! Right now I don't have anything specific really to ask about the program, but may as the time gets closer. Thanks for your offer of help and congratulations again on your accomplishment! Do you have a position lined up yet? What type of nursing will you be working in/want to work in?

OK I have to rant here for a minute *warning* Just had to let you know there are still SOME of us out here that have been working our tails off on this since our children were babies and first exhibited typical inappropriate social behavior. Then, as other kids grew out of it and ours did not, enlisted the help of professionals, books by professionals, teachers, doctors, nurses, etc....Just because a kid has behavior problems does not mean that the parents have been shirking responsiblity or started too late. Sometimes there is a neurologic basis to the behavior and it is a two steps forward, one step back process to help them learn to control their behavior. I'm freaking exhausted by it and could probably teach classes on behavior management techniques. We don't medicate because our child has tics and I don't want the stimulants to make them worse than they already are. *end of my rant* Back to the original topic, I think your suggestions are good! The only other thing I could add would be off-label prescribing - giving a med for a diagnosis it is not approved for. I think Depakote is used in childhood bipolar disorder but it is approved in kids only as an anticonvulsant. Clonidine is used for impulsive behavior in kids, but is not labeled for that. That kind of thing....not sure how controversial it is though. Good luck with your presentation brittney!

I would also like to add that consumers are willing to pay huge sums of money for tickets to professional sports games and keep the licensed apparel and accessories market thriving. The last time I went to a professional sports event was when the Bruins were in the playoffs back in the early 90s and it was $100 for two tickets. As it was hockey and 15 years ago, I am sure the prices for say, a Dolphins game, would be much higher. Many people look at healthcare as a basic human need that should be low cost or free, and balk at high copays, etc... There are far more sports junkies out there than we "trauma life in the ER" junkies LOL. Who will pay for the higher salaries? Doubt the CEO of United Healthcare or Kaiser will take a cut in pay and reduce the profit margin to raise salaries. I'm not an NP, and neither am I an RN, so my opinion probably won't hold weight in the context of your research, but the topic got me thinking, so I just thought I would add in my thoughts....

Thanks. I requested the packet from UNM today for the accelerated BSN program. I don't think I am going to consider TVIs program because I would have to repeat Bio 237, 238, 239, 247, 248, and anything else (i forget the rest) because I graduated UNM in 97 and took all of those prenursing classes between 92 and 94. UNM (unless they have changed it since 2 yrs ago) simply requires that 9 credits be less than - I think - 8 years old. I am planning on taking the combined patho plus A&P 1 and 2 online, and then finding a pharm course online. Hopefully that will cover it, as I took all of the other prereqs way back and had only N240 and N238 (patho 2 and pharm) left to go. Apollo College has a RN program and I think Pima is going to launch one too, but from what I have read, they are going to run about $30,000 for the program. yikes! I just need to do something to make my final decision on the career path I want to take, and I am sure there is something in Abq that I can do to help me along but I just don't know what right now.

**wow this got a bit long - sorry** Hi all. My hubby is in the military and I just found out we will be moving (back!) to Albuquerque this year (I met him while I was an undergrad at UNM). Way back when, I did most of the prereqs in the BSN program at UNM and then changed my major. Now, I am considering applying to the accel BSN program if I can fit it into our assignment length. My big worry is that I really need to make a decision that nursing is the right choice. I almost went into the program once at UNM; I did a quarter and a week of an LPN program after I graduated and moved and then decided I did not want to be an LPN - I always was interested in areas that I have heard LPNs don't get to work in (true or not - I was not interested in LTC or M/S and that is what the grads of my program were doing). Soo...I finally convinced myself that I did not want to be a nurse (and had a nice laundry list of reasons why), and then it started dragging me back again. That old "calling" thing..... I am afraid I am more into the idea of nursing than nursing itself, if that makes sense. So I need to dose myself with some reality. Can you give me any ideas as to how I can try to really figure this out? I know everyone says to work as a CNA but maybe you could offer insight about, say, where to work as a CNA, or maybe just where to volunteer, or something else....Being a CNA does not really thrill me, but my only experience with that was that one quarter of LPN in LTC where we did bathing, feeding, checking feeding tubes, etc... on patients that were pretty much unable to care for themselves at all. So it might be different in a different setting ( I would assume I'd be doing other things like ambulating postop pts etc...) Any ideas besides CNA or volunteering? HUC? ER tech? What setting? I have heard all sorts of conflicting opinions about the hospitals - the only one I have heard nothing neg about is Pres. I am starting to ramble on now, but all of a sudden this is real (we did not know if we were actually going to move), and I have to figure myself out. My husband has reached his limit on my indecision about school and as he, mostly on his own, paid back my student loans from my BS, has pretty much said - you can do what you want but MAKE SURE it is what you want and you will want to work at that job when you graduate. My other path may be the RRT program at TVI, which cost and time wise is about even. Honestly the RRT program scares me much less than getting through nursing school, but man oh man, I just cannot decide. I am trying not to let fear be my guide - if I give in to fear I am going to do an MA course (and probably be frustrated in a matter of months though right now it sounds like fun and totally not intimidating). Help? I know this is more of a general nursing question but I am hoping to get Abq specific ideas too. Thank you so much!!

I'm going to agree with the other military posters on this thread: 1. Family services for financial counseling and/or the "shirt" (for AF), his chief (for Navy), or whatever the equivalent is for Army, depending on your branch. 2. You can have allotments set up out of his pay to go directly to your creditors/bills you owe. He has to do this, but if he does not want to or drags his heels, see #1. This would be a HUGE help. In addition, you could have the pay going to your account and he could get his allotment "allowance" deposited into his account, like someone suggested. 3. You PROBABLY would save money living on base, but it all depends. Right now our mortgage on a 4 bdr house is $760/mo (includes taxes and insurance). Our BAH is about $835 (as you know, if you live on base, your BAH disappears). Electricity is the only utility our base includes in the housing. Our electric bill averages $110 per mo - so yes we would save about $35/mo. We'd definitely save on gas - its an 11 mile drive door to door right now. If you are renting, you most likely would save by moving on base. Our housing waitlist was over 2 years when we moved here (hence, we bought a house). It varies by base, but you might wish to check yours out. Also, check the family center or education office to see if there are any additional financial assistance programs or scholarships available. You sound totally stressed out. I also agree that maybe you should lighten your course load a little. Your 4 year old will be in Kindy in a year or two and childcare will cost less. I am sorry you are going through so much. It is a bad sign that you are relieved when he deploys. That is not the first time I have heard a spouse say that, and I believe it is something that needs to be addressed for the good of your family. Hang in there, you have gotten lots of advice and support, and I hope that continues for you.

Hope no one minds my bumping this back up to the top as I am thinking about this program. I have a degree from UNM and actually did 2 years of BSN prerequisites before changing my major (kicking myself because it was easier to get in back then than now....):selfbonk: . I am (hopefully) moving back to Albuquerque next year. I am wondering about admissions criteria too. I have been a sahm for 7 years now (well I work as a med transcriptionist for now so I guess that makes me a wahm) and am wondering about letters of recommendation and whether I should start volunteering somewhere so I have a rec/eval from someone even remotely related to healthcare instead of from, say, someone like my neighbor. My cum gpa at graduation was a 3.74 and my nursing prereqs gpa was higher than that, so I hope that my grades would be high enough. The two courses I had left to take were Patho 2 and Pharmacology, so I definitely plan on taking those. I was so looking forward to Pharm and still am. I also liked Patho (yeah call me crazy). Gosh, I hope that changing majors right before applying to get in way back when won't reflect poorly on me. Beyond getting in, how is the work itself in the program? It appears that they have made the program a bit longer than it was a couple of years ago when I first looked at it. How many hours/days per wk are clinicals (wondering because its an accelerated format)? Thanks anyone for any feedback on this.

I had a positive ppd a few years back, as did my dh. (neg x-ray) Since neither of us had the BCG vac, it was assumed we had been exposed to Tb and both of us did 9 mos of INH. We had monthly blood work done to check our livers. What I learned from one of the MDs that did one of my monthly checkups was that 85-90% of the time, your body will completely destroy it, but that remaining 10-15% of the time, your body has simply walled it off, and if you become immunocompromised in the future, you could develop Tb. The INH is supposed to get rid of it if your body has not, or at least, that is what they told me. And I was also told to NEVER get the skin test again - I will now need to have chest x-rays instead when I finally enter a program again.

I would like to add a couple of comments in response to concerns raised above. In our diocese (Diocese of Savannah) it is mandated that the teachers receive a salary that is at least 85% of what is paid a public school teacher. There are many fine teachers that are willing to accept a lower salary for what they feel is a better, more supportive teaching environment. Our K3-8 school has 275 students. The classrooms for the lower grades are new (within the past 4 years), and the materials are in good condition. The only thing I feel that is a shame is that the teachers do not get a tuition break for their kids, so some of the teachers' kids go to public school. My son is in 1st grade and he has 11 kids in his class. Last year in Kindy, there were 24, and enough parents raised a fuss about the class size that they split it for 1st grade. My son could probably benefit from properly designed special services. He is very bright, but daydreams, dawdles, loses his focus, etc.... and subsequently, gets more "s" grades (equivalent to a C) than he should due to unfinished class work, homework forgotten at school, skipped test questions because he got distracted and missed them....I decided with a class size of 11, we would see if his teacher could help him work on improving his habits. We will be moving and for at least the first year in our new city, he will attend PS, and we will see what they can offer him. Private schools do lack that, as the state will not fund them for any special services. We went through the IEP process and at the end, I was told my child could not receive services of any kind unless he enrolled in public school - which, honestly, if I felt strongly enough about getting him services and keeping him in private school, I would have contested. Anyway, way TMI for the original post, but I wanted to respond to the other comments posted along the way.

There isn't a whole lot of required time at my son's school. We are Catholic so we get a reduced rate that is not tied in with volunteer hours. I have a friend who gets some aid and she does some volunteering but they have never come to her and told her to do more or how much she needed to do. She helps serve lunch (about 1 hr) twice a month up to sometimes one day each week. Parents are required to: be a yard duty person (1.5 hours) at lunch recess three times during the year, and participate in two fundraising events as a volunteer. We have a halloween carnival and road race on the same day and I stuffed goody bags a couple of days before the race and helped with decorating the day before the carnival for a total of about 4.5 hours. My kids came with me. So, in total, I did 9 hours this year that are documented and required. There are always opportunities for more hours - giving AR tests, lunch duty, field day,... Our school may be different as there are a ton of sahms that seem to give many many hours, so the need and requirement might be lower than another school where there are fewer volunteers, but it is worth looking into because it is probably less than you fear.

Well stated gerry. My spouse is in the military and has to have EMT-P as part of his many certifications/training - he is not an IDMT like you were, but I am still amazed at the procedures he is allowed to do. I was reading over his shoulder as he was updating his OJT records when he was in the medical section. The one that stands out in my memory is that he can do venous cutdowns, which upon his explanation, sounded very invasive to me. That being said, he could not walk into a hospital and become an RN. His training is quite different. That does not make him higher, lower, or equivalent to an RN or LPN, just different. The approach to care is different. The critical thinking process is different. Just like nurses aren't jr. doctors, MAs (and any other allied health positions) are not jr. nurses. Sharing a skill set does not equate anyone to anyone else in anything but those skills (and even then some people are better at some skills than others regardless of the letters after their name). I won't say any more because I am not a nurse and beyond this I will just be talking out of the top of my head. BTW gerry, good luck to you in school!

#1 - 25 mos. By the time I was done with him, I was fantasizing about never ever breastfeeding again. #2 - 3 mos exclusively, then I became pg, tired, moving, etc...and did an additional 3 mos of bf and supplementing with formula then weaned a little after 6 mos. #3 - completely done at 9 mos - not sure when he started supplementing but I just could not keep him latched on the breast, short of using duct tape. He was and is very active - had I had the time and energy to pump, I probably could have bottle fed him ebm, but I was just plain exhausted. Pumping more than 1/2 oz was really difficult for me, and the stress of trying to pump enough, combined with keeping 3 kids under 5 occupied for 30 min while I prayed for milk, was just too much. Frankly, I was burnt out on being pg or breastfeeding as I was pretty much one or the other from Feb 98 to Dec 03, with the exception of 6 months between weaning #1 and getting pg with #2.