Passion4Compassion

I am in tears, thank you so much. I will keep your words in my mind as I am trying to get through what is going to be a very difficult day. I pulled out my Psychiatric Nursing book and found the death and grieving section. Most important is to: say I love you, say thank you, and to say good-bye. You said it even better than the book. I will thank her for the time she took me to NYC. I will thank her for taking me to Boston. I will thank her for helping me pay for school and for always being so self-less. I will thank her for the riddles she would tell around the campfire and the hawaiian sloppy joes and s'mores. I will thank her for being her. I will thank her for letting me care for her at her most vulnerable time. I will thank her, tell her I love her very much and let her know that my grandfather is waiting...

OH, sorry about that, I mean ADN as in Associates Degree Nurse. The bonus being that many LPN programs will prepare you to make the $15+ while your employer pays for the Associates and then you can make an additonal $10/hr. That's what my hubby plans to do. Vanessa

Hi All, I am currently a senior working on my RN degree and then plan to move into my CRNA. My nursing and personal life have come together as my maternal grandmother is in the process of death at this very moment. I am going to see her tomorrow and have learned so much about the fact that some folks feel as if they need "permission" to die...reassurance that their loved ones will be okay and that someone is awating them once they make the transition. One of my professors spoke about end of life care eloquently and made me realize that if I can help my grandmother let go then it is one of the greatest gifts I could give to her. Her eyes are empty. She is 87, suffered first a TIA and then a stroke about a month and a half ago. We moved her from Florida to Vermont, thinking we could take care of her. She was confused and could not be left alone. A week later she was admitted into a rehabilitation facility. Now she is in the hospital and has pneumonia and they are saying she is suffering from some heart failure. Her appetite is gone, she sleeps during the day and is awake all night, fitting, pulling at her foley...just fidgeting. My mother said that while she was visiting her yesterday that my grandmother was having a conversation with someone as if she was on the phone only no one was there. Also, several times, she reached towards the ceiling. My mom thinks she was talking to my grandfather. She also mentioned that my grandmother's eyes are empty and that she is completely out of it. My mother is trying to prepare me for the sight I will see when I walk into her room tomorrow. I am starting to realize how different it is to care for someone when you only know them how they are as your patient. The thing I need help with is that I want to be able to support her and let her know it is okay to let go. To let her know my grandfather is waiting for her and is looking forward to seeing her. I got the sense from her previously that she felt a bit of an obligation because my mother and I did so much to prepare a room for her in what was an office at my mother's house. That we put so much emphasis on holidays and how great it would be to have her in Vermont for a change. I will spend the entire day with her tomorrow, trying to feed her ice cream and rubbing her back. I will bring her rosary beads and a photo of my grandfather. It is so diffifcult when having to do this for someone I love. My mother is emotionally exhausted and this will fall onto me and I want to do things the best way I can for my grandmother. If I can comfort her and she lets herself go while I am holding her then that will be a great privlege. Even if she lets herself go later that evening, I just want her to know it is okay. She is DNR, DNI, only wants pain measures taken...her body is shutting down, how can I help her? Thanks in advance, I am desparate. Vanessa

Come to Vermont, starting pay is around $26/hr for ADNs.

My Essay when I applied to nursing school... Many life experiences have guided me on my path back to CSC for a degree in Nursing. After obtaining my BA in Sociology from CSC in 1998, I went on to work for almost 6 years in varying capacities as a Residential Counselor for the Park Street Program in Rutland, Vermont. In my time as a Counselor I have gained valuable experience working with juveniles in treatment for sexually offending issues. I obtained knowledge of the sex offender treatment and hold certifications in medication administration , First Aid/CPR and Therapeutic Crisis Intervention (de-escalation and physical intervention techniques). I had the opportunity to work to some degree with families and in the role of someone who leads by example. As intense as the residential environment is, it lacks the opportunity for the intensity of hands-on care I wish to provide others. While I have always been a "people person," I have gained a heightened understanding of the unbroken circle of life. I feel that both the positive and negative experiences I have had have created an opportunity to become an outstanding support for those in need. While I was enrolled at CSC I thought numerous times about apply to the Nursing Program and just did not possess the confidence or maturity necessary to pursue that dream. Looking back, I feel at eighteen years old, most people do not make their career choices based on life experiences and the profound internal motivation we gain as we mature. As a parent I have gained a deeper sense of love and empathy for others. As the daughter of someone who was elderly for most of my life, I have gained the experience of losing a parent. Both becoming and losing a parent have had a great effect on who I am as a person. I realize now that every person in this world in someone's "baby." Everyone deserves compassion and respect, someone there to help them to feel comfort when they are feeling pain or fear. Over the past several years, I made the decision to begin pursuit of my MA in Psychology to fulfill an academic goal. As I returned to school for the first time in almost a decade, I realized I had changed as a student while maturing and gaining professional experience. In addition, I realized that deep down, I want to work more closely with people than being a therapist will ever allow. I do not want to spend my life sitting across the desk from someone for an hour a week, I want to be touching people's lives in a more direct way. I have been reflecting on the time I spent working at Mountain View Genesis Elder Care when I was attending CSC. Even though my work was primarily centered around being a dietary aide, I felt satisfied whenever I was given the opportunity to work closely with the residents there. I came away from those experiences with a warmth in my heart I never found in another job. My mother-in-law has been an inspiration to me. She, too, entered the Nursing Program at CSC as a non-traditional student and has grown into an outstanding R.N. As I have grown more confident in myself, I know I too would be an outstanding Nurse. I realize that my inherent attention to detail and my level of organization would only benefit me as a Nursing Student and later, as a Nurse. I now strive for perfection in my academics, a focus I did not have in my late-teens. While I did well in college, I did not have the inner-drive I have today. I also did not have the career motivation and goals I have now. As an R.N. I would work with the confidence of someone who has not only earned a Nursing Degree but who has excelled and has gained every possible bit of knowledge available. As someone who has experienced being a mother and wife, daughter and friend. As someone who understands the uneasiness of going to the hospital or to the doctor's office for care or to learn test results; I know I would be dedicated and consistent in my focus and performance as an R.N. If given the opportunity to join the Nursing Department at CSC, I would thrive in many ways. Emotionally, I would be fulfilling the dream I never had the courage to chase a decade ago. Personally, I feel my sense of humor and the inter-personal skills I have gained in my time as a Counselor will be an asset. In addition, my patience and ability to express myself will prove to be an asset as an R.N. Professionally, I would be proving that I deserve the privilege of being trusted by those who need my help. I believe that I would fully encompass what it means to be both a Nursing Student and later, a Nurse. My level of organization and drive for academic perfection will result in a wealth of knowledge and my drive to fulfill this dream will continue to keep me on track during an intense period of study. Ultimately, I will fully embody what it means to be a Nurse and will give everything I have to doing the type of work that will inspire others to follow this path themselves.

well, the next time you run into her...tell her you have been hoping you'd see her again because wherever you work is really looking for some good rns and that the pay is outstanding...make up a bogus number or if your facility pays really well, tell her the truth. tell her you'd be glad to help her set up a time to meet with the nurse recruiter or hr at your facility and that she would love working there etc... she'll crap herself and have nothing to say or roll into another lie which would be absolutely hysterical! vanessa :lol_hitti