mt33133

I found this article to be heartbreaking and absolutely ridiculous!! Can anyone else believe this is happening in the US?? http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090614/ap_on_go_ot/us_health_care_s_forgotten

You can get extra money for living expenses through private loans. Though I think now with the economy they are harder to find. I know I had to take out private loans in order to live while going to school. At least now you only have to cover two years instead of three :) Also, try to find a scholarship from a local hospital. You may need to suck it up and get a private loan for this first year and then you might be able to get a scholarship from a local hospital in order to cover some of the costs for the second year. I know Northside, Piedmont, St. Joes and CHOA all offer scholarships if you agree to work for them after graduation. Word to the wise, with the economy the way it is right now and difficulty many new grads are having with finding a new grad residency program slot after graduation, it would serve you well to get involved with a local hospital as soon as possible through some type of scholarship program. That way when you graduate you already are guaranteed a job in a residency program. I work for Piedmont and had a scholarship from them through Mercer and Piedmont initiative. Piedmont had over 400 applicants for their residency program when I applied. They hired 20 - 25 new nurses out of the 400 applications. Start now developing relationships with hospitals in the area and your life will be a whole lot easier when the time comes to find a job. Also, many hospitals offer summer extern programs for the summer between your first and second year. Take advantage of those too. Get your foot in the door anyway possible!! Good luck to everyone beginning the nursing school journey!! You can do it!

Hi everyone - I was wondering if someone out there could give me some feedback on specific reservations where you have had good and bad working experiences. I am a single female and looking to apply to IHS for the loan repayment program for working on an indian reservation. Just have no idea what to expect. Do they provide housing? Do you find your own housing? Do you have private housing or do you have to share with other IHS nurses? Are you isolated if you come through the IHS program or have you experienced becoming part of the Native american community while working on the reservation? Are there ICUs at the reservation hospitals? All of my experience is in critical care, not sure if that is a useful specialty to have when applying to work on a reservation. Any feedback would be much appreciated. Thanks!

You can go online or call the Mercer Atlanta campus bookstore. They should have an idea of the books you will need. The books change nearly every year so it would be hard for someone not in the class to give you an idea of the books you will need. Also, nursing students do not sell their books back, so the bookstore on campus never has cheaper, used books for sell. I had great luck using Amazon.com and half.com for textbooks. I mostly purchased new books, and was able to get them cheaper on these websites. Plus Amazon ships any order over $25 for free so it worked out well. Summer school is now in session so you should be able to get someone on the phone at the bookstore during the day. Good luck! I graduatued from GBCN Dec. '08 and it was the best education ever! I already had a BS degree from UGA and I loved the family like atmosphere of the college and all of the faculty and administrators were great!!

Hey everyone!! Congrats to all you new students starting this fall at GBCN!! I graduated in December and am now in a Critical Care residency program at Piedmont. Unfortunately, those of you starting Fall '09 will be the first class starting the two year model. All I have to say is be ready to bust your behind. I thought the three yr program was challenging, but after hearing they are combining patho and pharm into one course during your first semester all I can say is strap in and hang on. Your first year will probably be the hardest thing you have ever done. But you can do it!!! The faculty and administration are amazing and they will help you in any way possible. It is a great education and they prepare you to take the NCLEX. Most passed the NCLEX from our Dec. graduating class with the minimum of 75 questions so you will be prepared to take the NCLEX upon graduation. I am so excited for all of you. Good luck and let me know if anyone has any questions.

I know this is an older post, however I have been deeply disturbed by an organ procurement I observed as a student nurse. I was able to speak with the anesthesiologist regarding what type of anesthesia he was using. He said none. I then asked the nurse who was the organ procurement coordinator about why no anesthesia was being used and I was told because the anesthesia would damage the organs. The patient had been declared "brain dead" and apparently because of this determination everyone felt like no anesthesia was needed. However, I am concerned because of all the reports that have come out regarding lack of consistency by hospitals in using brain death criteria established by the American Academy of Neurology. Every hospital has its own policies and procedures. The truth is that we don't know what a patient is experiencing who is lying on an OR table during organ procurement. I guess my question is this, does anesthesia really harm the organs? What is the harm in providing anesthesia during the surgery? I took an informal poll of other nursing students regarding organ donation and no other nursing student knew organ procurement without anesthesia was common practice and I am pretty sure loved ones of those donating their organs have no idea this is taking place either. This experience just really bothered me and I am seriously reconsidering becoming an organ donor, or at least state in an advance directive, etc. that organ donation can only take place if certain anesthetics are used.

Wow, this is scary stuff!! As a new grad getting ready to begin a 6 month critical care nurse residency program I am shocked by the laziness and attitudes of the nurses described in the situations above!! For me, I have always imagined my patients as if they were family members. Am I providing the kind of care I would want and expect to be given to my mother, father, sister, grandma, etc? There is a good possibility that each of us will end up in the ICU one day, and we will want the very best care possible in order to improve the odds of us making a recovery. It is a shame that some nurses don't feel the need to provide the very best care possible. The ICU is full of very, very sick patients, and to have such a nonchalent attitude is dangerous!

I just graduated from GBCN and I took my A&P I, II and Microbiology at GPC prior to applying. They were accepted no problem. When I applied they accepted students on a rolling basis, not sure how they do it these days. I did not have to take the NET when I applied to GBCN and I had A's in all my science courses that transfered. My total GPA for transfer classes was around a 3.8. Good luck to you!!! GBCN is an excellent program. Most of us who graduated in December have taken the NCLEX, so far all have passed and about 75% of us finished the nclex in 75 questions.

For those of you working in more rural areas of MT, what type of RN skill sets/experience would you recommend for a new nurse starting out in nursing who eventually wants to work in a rural area. I am starting out in ICU, but I am not sure that is really the skill set I would need to be an effective RN in a rural area. Also, for those who work in hospitals with NPs, what type of NPs are hired (adult, family, acute care)? Thanks in advance for everyone's assistance!

I know Piedmont only hired 18 new graduate nurses hospital wide for their residency programs for grads in December. However, since you have nursing experience, you may find it easier to find a job in Atlanta. I think many hospitals in the Atlanta area still need experienced nurses, but they are cutting way back on the number of new grads they hire because of the high cost of training them.

Yes, apparently the GBON is saying it will take them 4 to 6 weeks to post licenses on their website. Absolutely ridiculous. A classmate of mine who moved to Virginia stated she found out she had passed the NCLEX because VA BON had her license posted before she got her results from Pearson Vue. And she signed up for the quick results, so we are talking about VA posting licenses within 24 hrs of being notified by Pearson Vue of passing. It really is just awful that we are all having to wait to start working on the GBON. Many new grads from my school sent formal complaint letters to the Governor's office as well at to the Secretary of State, and basically we all got the same standard form letter in response. Just an example of gov't workers I guess, no motivation to get things done quickly.

Good plan!! Getting a hospital to pay for continuing education is definitely the way to go! Just keep at it and know all your hard work will pay off!! If we are talking about the same hiring manager for the ICU at AMC, then she is a GA Baptist graduate from back in the day when it was an associate program? I hear great things about the ICU at AMC with all the traumas, etc. Keep us posted.

May I suggest that you consider getting your BSN. Even if you could tell the hiring manager in the ICU that you don't plan on stopping your education at the ADN level that would help you out as well with getting your foot in the door. The bottom line is that nursing is evolving to include higher levels of education for entry level nursing positions. The DNP program was established so eventually the entry level degree needed to become a nurse practitioner is a doctorate and no longer a masters degree. Don't limit yourself by only getting an ADN. Definitely a great starting point to get started but continue your education. It is false to think that you only need a BSN if you want to go into management. Most job opportunities, whether it is a charge nurse position, etc. will be looking for nurses with BSN degrees. Most hospitals will choose a nurse with a BSN degree over an ADN degree with the same amount of experience every time, especially in a tight job market like we have in Atlanta.

Actually many SATA are a good sign, it means you are testing at a higher level.

yes, I had the same problem with the Kaplan Qbank questions. I had a calculation question that wanted the mls of fluid given over a 3 hr period. The answer came to 312.5 mls. In school I was always taught to round to a whole number when dealing with IVs, so I answered 313 mls. This was the wrong answer, they wanted 312.5. So I guess if it is asking for a drip rate, you obviously would round to a whole number and if it is asking for an amount of fluid you round to the 10ths place if necessary. Does this sound right to everyone else?

Are any other new graduates concerned about the length of time the GBON is taking to approve applications??? I have other nursing school friends who moved to other states after graduation and they were approved and received an ATT number in less than 2 weeks!! My application was submitted the middle of December and I have yet to hear anything from these people. It is just ridiculous!!!

Right now, because of the economy, I think it is hard to find a job as a new graduate anywhere. I graduated with a BSN from a prominent nursing school in Atlanta in December. Thank goodness I had a scholarship from an Atlanta area hospital, because the only new grads hired for the entire hospital for the 18 scholars from my school. The good part is that there are many smaller hospitals outside of Atlanta, and though they may not pay as well as some of the larger, more well known hospitals in the city of Atlanta they usually have openings for new grads. Good Luck!

Yes, I understand how easy it is to fall in love with MT. My first visit to MT was in 2001 to work on a ranch and I have been going back at least once a year ever since. Eventually I hope to move west myself, either MT or WY. In the past 8 yrs I have done a ton of research on MT and WY, the job markets, real estate, best towns, etc. My understanding is that Bozeman takes care of their own first, understandably. They get many, many people who want to move to MT all the time. B/C Bozeman has a nursing school in town and few hospitals to support all those students, they get first pick of available jobs. Your best bet would be to relocate first and then start applying. You might have better luck in the northern part of the state, like Kalispell, etc. From where would you be relocating? What type of RN are you? I know most hospitals are always looking for ICU, ER and OR nurses.

You may want to try nursing homes and LTC facilities. The Atlanta market is saturated with new graduate nurses right now and the economy is not so hot. Many people depend on jobs for health insurance. With no jobs, there goes the health insurance and people are not scheduling elective procedures. Therefore the census is down at many metro hospitals, which in turn leads to fewer opportunities for nurses without experience. I graduated from a BSN program in December and have a job once I pass the NCLEX only because the hospital paid my nsg school tuition and I owe them time. Many of the students I graduated are having some difficulty finding jobs in Atlanta, when historically graduates from my nursing school have never had problems in the past. Good luck with your search!

My guess would be the 1:1 ratio for a vented pt would be in a smaller hosptial without RT on the ICU floor. In the hospital where I finished my senior practicum, there is at least 1 RT on the unit at all times and they deal with the vent, the RNs very rarely adjust the vent settings, etc. Therefore, vented pts in this type of setting do not require a 1:1 ratio. Is this correct?

This is fantastic info!! Thank you for sharing. As a soon to be new graduate nurse currently completing my senior practicum on an med/surg ICU this is something I can start doing now, so hopefully when I get hired onto an ICU I will have a good knowledge base of the equipment and supplies used. I hope things are looking up for you now! My question for all of you new ICU nurses is how long is your orientation program? At the hospital where I hopefully will be working upon graduation, the ICU residency program is 6 months rotating through all the various units and then an additional 4 week re-orienting to the unit in which you are hired. I can't imagine trying to work in the ICU without such a lengthy orientation.

It is my understanding that you must either have finished your first semester of nursing school which is when you take Fundamentals of Nursing, or you must have a CNA certification in order to work as a tech. As for a unit secretary, I am not sure what is required. You may need to wait until you have completed your first semester, find out what hospitals you school has a partnership with and then apply.

Piedmont Hospital in Atlanta has new grad residency programs. They are accepting applications through their website until Oct. 24th. Good luck!! It is very competitive as a new grad in Atlanta. There is definitely a nursing shortage, however the shortage seems to be with experienced RNs, not new grads. Plus the hospitals that offer excellent residency programs for new grads are even more competitive. Most nursing schools in the Atl area have partnerships, scholarships, etc with the Atl area hospitals so these grads usually get priority over others applying. However, I am sure there are hospitals who are looking for new grads, the trick is to apply early, be flexible on the type of unit you want to work, etc. Good Luck!

It is my understanding Piedmont pays $22 or $23/hr for new grads plus evening, night and weekend differentials. Their residency programs are awesome, 4 to 6 months depending on the area in which you are applying to work. A bunch of us who are graduating from Mercer in December have applied for the residency program. Piedmont is known for their support of the nursing staff. Great place to work. Good Luck!!

I suggest Mercer, 100%. They are switching from a 3 yr to 2 yr BSN program for Fall 2009. All your prereqs must be completed prior to beginning since the 2 yrs will only be nursing curriculum. I am about to graduate from Mercer this December and it is the best 6 semesters I have ever had! You will definitely be prepared to be an RN upon graduation. Good Luck!