slou!

I am an ex-nursing student (I was a nursing student for 2 years but changed it to special education, that's another whole story :)) but if I learned anything in nursing school, it's how strict the HIPAA laws are. Someone was telling me a story about someone THEY know (confusing already.) and they said this nurse, we'll call her Jaime, was at hospital where someone famous was, we'll call him George. Well Jaime wasn't George's nurse directly, so she feels she can tell everyone what George was in the hospital for, how he was acting, etc etc etc. My friend told me Jaime isn't violating HIPAA at all because she isn't his nurse. That just screams violation to me. I feel really bad for George about this. He is in the hospital and his personal information is getting leaked. If you can't trust nurses, who are professionals, who can you trust? It's just sad.

Congratulations to everyone who is done/almost done! And to everyone who isn't I hope we all do well on our upcoming finals! I am so looking forward to having a nice break, but in a way I wish we didn't have one because I'm afraid I am not going to be as motivated next semester!

I feel like I am the last one in school! All of my friends are taking finals this week or last, and are either home or going home next week! My sister is coming home Wednesday and my other sister is done on the 15th! I am not done until the 20th! Oh well, I guess that's what you get when you were the last to start school! Last day of Semester: Officially it is the 15th, and then finals begin. A lot of professors are doing finals on the last day of class so some of our finals are before the end of the semester. Finals: Sociology 105: Thursday 14th Math 101: Sunday 17th History 102: Wednesday 20th English 102: Research Paper due the 14th Yeah I definitely don't have it hard at all this year with my finals! I know none of these are really nursing related, but my school requires a lot of humanities credits and other ones. And I am not taking a Science class this semester because I am behind in Math credits (Failed the placement exam, it's pretty normal for our school for some reason because 1/3rd of nursing students fail it..) and I had to take Math 101 instead of Chemistry. I am taking Chem next semester and then Anatomy over the summer. I am looking forward to going home! I am going home Wednesday night. I am just really happy that I am almost done this semester. I honestly didn't know if I could handle it at first but I really suprised myself with all A's and B's. My next semester starts up again the 15th of January. So who else is studying for finals? Good luck to everyone who is! I am studying my butt of so far and I plan on taking advantage of the 24 hour open library next week!

Thank you so much for posting these! During junior high my school was awesome about giving everyone a choice about dissections from the start. If we didn't want to, there was a computer version to do. High school was kind of a hassle but they let me use computer versions too. I don't see why it was a hassle when they were the ones who had the computer versions but they let me and a couple other students do them electronically. I am actually taking anatomy online too, but not really by choice. I didn't pass the math placement exam for my school, which puts me a semester behind in sciences so I will be doing it over the summer and taking it online! So does the veg in your username stand for vegetarian/vegan? I was vegan for a couple years, but now I am vegetarian again..

Wow, don't complain about being short staffed when you have an attitude like THIS towards new CNAs/students!

Ugh, I am NOT looking forward to doing this. Not because I don't think I can handle seeing an animals insides or will be grossed out, but I am really against dissection of animals and animal cruelty.. This really sucks!

"If doctors, like airline pilots, died with their clients they would take a lot more care with the orders they issued." That quote right there reminds me of how I got over my fear of flying! The pilot doesn't want the plane to crash JUST as much as you don't! Sorry kind of off topic, but I really liked that quote!

My friend is a teacher and HATES it. She said she would like to do nursing, but obviously is going to wait it out and make sure a, she really wants to do nursing and b, gives teaching some time. She used to waitress before hand and actually made the same amount of money working as a waitress in Cracker Barrel! That is absolutely rediculous!

I am the baby of the family, the 3rd born. I am not a nurse yet because I'm still in school. Alcoholism runs in the family. But my family wasn't dysfunctional though. Anyway, me and my sisters are all going to school for jobs in healthcare (Physical Therapy and X-Ray) and my mom is an X-Ray/Cat Scan/Mammo/MRI Tech, but I am the only one who is going to school for nursing/who is a nurse. (By that I mean I am the only one going for nursing, and WILL be a nurse! I am not saying I AM a nurse but the only one who eventually will be as of now!) My one sister has contemplated switching to nursing but is still going for PT.

I was this close to going there, but I was offered a really good scholarship at my school so I didn't. But, I heard it is a pretty good program. One of my friends is doing this program.

Wow, I have a learning disability and I am shocked at peoples attitude's of those with learning disabilities! Especially because the term "learning disability" is SO broad. There are so many different kinds of learning disabilities. I have dyslexia. I have gotten extra time on tests. I'm sorry if that offends anyone, but it takes me longer to process words and I have trouble reading. If the test was orally, then I would be fine. I agree with the person who said you either know the material or you don't. I don't think the extra 10-15 minutes I get would really make a difference if I didn't know the material. If I know the material it comes to me. I don't spend the extra time trying to remember the material, I do that before the test when I'm studying. I spend the extra 10-15 minutes because it takes me longer to read! I am not a nurse or a nursing student (I am a pre-nursing student), but I know that I have no problems with critical thinking. It's not that it takes longer for me to THINK, but it takes longer for me to READ. Yes I know there is reading involved with nursing, but I have been challenging this my whole life and I will continue to do so. I maintained A's and B's in high school, and after 1 semester in college so far, all A's. It is challenging but I am so determined to do this and not be defined by a learning disability. I have struggled with this for ever, and people's attitudes never seem to change. I have been told I was a "slacker and perhaps I should flip burgers if I do not want to read or write"

Does anyone know if there are hospitals who will pay for your education AFTER you are a registered nurse? Or generally do they have a program and you have to go through it? I'm not looking for example (I still have 3.5 years!) but just wondering if hospitals out there exsist!

I posted something like this about a month ago, and generally the answer was yes, go for it! Not saying that people are aren't CNAs are BAD nurses and not saying they are better, but I just got a lot of answers saying that since you will be above a CNA (not like above them, but job wise. sorry i'm having trouble finding a word for this here that won't offend anyone but I don't mean that nurses are ABOVE them but aren't they in charge of them job wise?) then it would be wise to be a CNA. I am only a freshman and I'm about to end my first semester in 2 weeks, so I'm thinking maybe next year when I have a car on campus I'm going to do it!

Well I am only a freshman so I am not in the "nursing school" part yet, but so far I have written 6 papers. And my English professor asked me what my major was and I told her nursing, and she said "Oh you will be writing a TON of papers then!" I don't think mine have been too bad yet, they are generally 4-6 pages but I hate the really long ones, like I have an 8-10 page one coming up. Not looking forward to it!

UGH me too! I always find myself with my eyes slowly closing and I keep yawning, it drives me crazy! And I have this one professor who ALWAYS turns the lights out as soon as he walks in because he has "sensative eyes". I always get so sleepy in his class!

I'm sorry I didn't mean to offend anyone by this! I didn't mean it like that. I meant that a lot of times I have heard (and have had people told me) that you should gain experience in med-surg, and it might even be a requirement for certain jobs. I also agree that med-surg IS a specialty, I don't think I clarified that in my original post! I respect all med-surg nurses so please don't get me wrong! I was just asking because I've seen a lot of posts on here of people going to med-surg then going somewhere else. I personally wouldn't like to be in an area I HATED and I see so many posts about new nurses in med-surg and they HATE it and want to leave nursing. I hope that I am never in that position, I hope if I do med-surg than I really want to do it! :)

Thanks! Yeah I am not worried about it at all yet, I am going to try to go through clinicals with an open mind so I don't try and like something I don't really like just because I wanted to do it before. Does that make sense? For example, I could end up hating OB but try and make myself like it because I liked it before clinicals. But I won't do that! And like I said I'm not worrying about it yet, I still have years; I was just curious.. That's another thing I heard, say you have a pregnant patient who has something wrong with her, whatever it may be, and you don't even know how to treat a normal (I mean not pregnant, not they pregnant people aren't normal!) patient with that same thing wrong with them, how would you handle that on top of them being pregnant? That is something I've heard before. But like I said I am really not worried about it now I was just wondering what some people have done.

I'm sorry, I don't mean to hijack your thread, but can someone tell me exactly what an externship is? Sorry again :)

I THOUGHT these were new! I wasn't sure though. I was on last night and I thought something looked different but I couldn't tell if I just hadn't noticed them before!

Thanks everyone for your replies! Like I said I have a lot of time to think about it! My goal right now is to do something in OB or NICU, but that could change once I go through clinicals! Which still won't be for another year and a half! I was just curious.

I know they always say to get a year or a couple years of experience in Med/Surg, and I am NO WHERE near deciding where I want to work yet, but I was just wondering something. Now I know they say this to gain experience and in case you don't like a certain specialty you can fall back on your med/surg experience, but say you went straight into a specialty and you hated it after 5 years. Now couldn't you go to med/surg then? 5 years after you graduate and dislike a specialty? What would be the difference of doing it before or after? I also know that med/serg gives you a lot of experience that you can use IN a specialty. So can anyone tell me if there is any more benefits of doing med/surg before or after you dislike a specialty? I mean this is assuming you will even dislike it. I always thought that if I wanted to do a certain specialty, I would want to go right into it if that was possible, and then if I didn't like it or whatever, then do Med/Surg. I am just curious, I don't really need to decide anything until about, oh 3.5 years! I was just wondering. Thanks! Sorry if this has already been covered, I tried searching and couldn't come up with anything! :) EDIT: I just wanted to clarify and say that I know med-surg IS a specialty and I have a lot of respect for nurses in this field! I am not saying by any means that it should always just be used as a step to another unit! I also am not saying I will not like it, I have had NO nursing classes or clinicals, so I have NO idea where I want to work! I could change my mind 6 times by the time I graduate! :)

Hey, I am a freshman nursing student and I am also CPR and First Aid certified in high school. The only things I really did with it was babysitting. I mean it is helpful to KNOW, but I don't think it can really help much more job wise! I would think that it would be a plus to any job in the healthcare field though!

OUCH!

Wow, do I feel stupid now lol! I guess I just wasn't thinking. :chair: I guess the law would be to impersonate a doctor then, not call yourself a doctor.. I agree that this happens with every profession though.

Look at the rest of them: http://www.cafepress.com/buy/nurse I am not a nurse, so I wouldn't buy them, but they are pretty funny! Haha I love the "Be nice, I could be your nurse one day :)" one though!