EmBeMap

Wow this is a tough group...your resume is probably fine, however pct/pca is entry-level..keep it simple, make a list of key reasons, Why I would be a good pca for your unit ...print staple to resume, apply for position you want online , go to unit, make contact with nursing manager , say something like , just wanted to stop by so you could put a face to the resume, most managers will speak to you if they aren't in a meeting , let them know you really want to be on their unit and would be willing to grow into rn there. This my recipe and has worked for both ER and now pre-op and recovery for heart and vascular institute ...both specialty units - not just medsurg... good luck.. also go and meet these HR reps at the hospitals as well it has happened that if you make a good impression as a new job that fits you they will call you even.

Guys please prepare yourselves and your families for your time in nursing school. prepare now to have as much time as possible for school. Im doing pretty well and i can tell you majority of the ones who arent doing well are the ones who keep having family and work issues crop up. it doesnt do any good to sign up for this intense of a program then bring youre clinical group and yourself down due to inability to complete assignments and study for tests. Please dont be that person who doesnt contribute in study group because you never did the reading and dont know your stuff... there i vented,, i feel better now "back to doing the group research by myself" ugg.

just my 2cents but especially with kids,,,the more precise the dose the better. if the number is something you can give do it. i mean 0.005 and 0.05 of morphine make a huge difference on a neonate.

well having worked in a "questionable" er as a tech (it was my first position after cna license) there will probably be some practices that you dont agree with. But usually these practices will be staff imposed vs policy imposed by the hospital. the hospital has basic standards they have to keep up and while you can help improve them they are usually designed to meet jcaho standards (tongue in cheek). Keep one thing in mind though, these are your patients, you can make a difference in their care, and the hospital cannot legally make you do something that would jeopardize your license. it sounds like a caring, stand-up nurse would do the place some good. im actually planning om returning to the "questionable" er i started in (when I graduate 683 days to go) because those places are where caring quality nurses are most needed.

A terrible person? Not by any means. Quality over quantity of life has always been my sticking point in Nursing homes. My grandmother passed due to complications from alzheimers, and my uncle from ALS. And yes they do still enjoy some things up until the end. Give her the time and care that you can and seek help with grief when you need it. Remember that while it seems she is often distressed over things these are episodes. She forgets that she was upset about the same thing two days ago. Distractions are great, if you can offer her other things to think about do so. My grandmother would not eat for female nurses but if I came by she would try anything I tried to give her and flirt with male nurses. Everyone needs differrent things in their final hours , assess her needs as well as your and do your best to assure the needs are met. And that is the best you can do. Be at peace even though she will soon be somewhere else, she will no longer be suffering.

I would agree but I'll bet that there wasn't a secondary survey conducted per se, the docs probably did the same our docs usually did which is check xray / ct and view rad report "cleared them" if nothing was questionable I doubt the doc ever even went back bedside. ER has a crazy pace I have seen an MVA patient with stable vitals just hanging tight while looking for somewhere to transfer him to, this is after finding several cervical fractures.. His airway was good, pain but no major distress,,, I'm telling you in a level one trauma center unless you have to be intubated you aren't fun enough for them...lol Oh also I think that they should make it a dx...ED Psychosis,,,where you lose track of time and who you have seen and what has been done because all you think about is pain...ED nurses are a tough bunch, but they do care, it's just a weird way of showing it sometimes.

Motrin is just an anti-inflammatory ...it's 800mg of anvil,,, you should probably consider a hot bath / shower and or some iceyhot as the worst of the pain (stiffness) is yet to come..feel better soon..also consider other over the counter pain relievers such as alleve or Tylenol as either can be more effective depending on your type of pain. If pain control is inadequate go to an urgent care clinic for additional treatment,,, lower acuity less wait.and more likely to offer different options.

The scary part is this happens all the time. I have been on the patient and the tech side and it happens all the time. Unless you are actively trying to die, you aren't their priority. Almost like if you aren't intubated you aren't any fun to play with. There is a long list of medical reasons this may happen from how you were triaged (esi level 1-5) and if any head trauma is suspected (no morphine on head trauma , increases icp, decreases respiratory drive (dangerous if you have thoracic injury such as collapsed lung). But yes when it comes down to it if your vitals are stable and pain is only issue most likely it won't be a priority unfortunately unless your nurse advocates for you with MD in charge. Unfortunately nurses don't write the pain med orders drs do, and from what I have seen they do the bare minimum unless the nurse advocates for more pain control. Lol sounds like you were in a county hospital next time ask paramedic for a private hospital, usually more patient rather than trauma centered care. There is a hospital where I'm at nobody wants to go to unless shot or amputation (county run trauma center) not so great for a cold but if you are circling the drain, it's most likely to save you.. Hope you don't have this happen again to you,,,it's a sad thing to experience when you are trying to maintain a good feeling about a career in nursing.

ok first of all, why lvn vs adn? nw houston has a great set of nursing schools, check out lonestar.edu. After pre reqs she could have her RN in 4 semesters. Texas Workforce can provide full scholarships for RN program. (have her fill out her fafsa immediately at fafsa.gov she will need it asap) They have workforce counselors on campus even. School is tough to get in and job market is tight. At least give her a better chance by starting with RN. As you know nursing school is not easy, well; getting in has gotten even more competitive but it is doable even without a lot of resources. (ps I'm in Lonestar for this fall and workforce is paying the whole thing) good luck.

I think you mean Methodist,,, Memorial Hermann doesnt have a BSN only mandate yet... Methodist does in the TMC location they will still occaisionally hire ADN in the outlying hospitals with a stipulation that you have the BSN within 5 years of hire.

Thanks for the reply.. I really like what if scenarios,,, I have ER on the brain I guess.. too agressive ,,, on a good note... I had a nurse tell me today after she found out I was a student that NCLEX always has a Digoxin question and hers was on how to give a 4mth old PO digoxin.. and the options were with the formula, 2 hours before the formula or immediately after the formula... I thought digoxin=binds to protein , formula=protein so with formula bad...right after formula,,,bad... 2 hours post formula ... opportunity for digestion of proteins to have taken place so... 2 hours before...good.. and I was so proud of myself when she said I was right.. she was surprised because most of the new grads she had asked couldnt answer correctly.. I am so nervous starting clinical seems like I do nothing but read..lol.. and allnurses of course..

oh and depending on reason for bleeding a uterine vasoconstrictive like methergine might be given...

lol well.hopefully they were typed and crossmatched...and i think you mean platelets not lymphocytes because decreased lymphocytes would not be your priority...o neg on a rapid infuser ffp and massive amounts of replacement fluids as well as dopamin to keep blood pressure up while md determines cause of blood loss..fluid management to prevent hypovolemic shock and eventual cardiac arrest would be my priorties..lol but keep in mind i dont start clinicals until august..im just an er tech...rn in would put in large bore peripheral ivs ..sometimes have seen central lines placed during csection just my two cents..if a real rn reads this i would be curious how far off i am ? lol

i went to southeast hcc and loved it..Ms. B was the best, she teaches phleb and ekg tech. i also suggested it to a friend who got laid off, he did his clinical orientation at md anderson and was hired soon after...most people get hired during their clinical rotation as long as you are professional and efficient..good luck..

Check with your state cna licensing agency i believe that you will find that had you not started cpr on that patient you would be held liable for witholding care. if that is the case in your state take a copy of the writeup and fax it to your state licensing agency after informing the don and put in your resignation as that facility is in for a fat lawsuit with an future codes that expire due to their policies. one thing though never leave the patient to check a book about code status, that break in compressiins and ventilation can be the difference in whether they come back in decent condition or with brain damage due to hypoxia. i personally wouldnt want to make it back without all my faculties. but great job otherwise. if the patient had been dnr compressions could have been d/c when nurse arrives.

I completed phlebotomy training at hcc in an effort to become a pct 3 before starting my adn program with lonestar, after the clinical portion you are eligible to take a national certificication test. there are like 6 certifying authorities each has pros and cons with getting their certification. some have harder tests some have just a written part and some have written plus a practical, your instructor for phleb will explain about each. i would reccommend phlebotomy to a pregnant woman though as it is hard in the body with gowning up in ppe for isolation patients and all the bending and stooping required. i would pursue a unit secretary position until lvn school so the hospital would help pick up tuition but you wouldnt be exposing your kid to as many bad bacteria. phlebs are expected to do blood draws on isolation patients as well as really sick patients like hep c. i would just imagine the stress and heartbreak on you with an accidental needle stick while preggers. as to the legally blind part, you can definetly do the job the expect you to palpate the site or feel where you are gonna stick anyway not see it. most legally blind people (like my sister) can see they just require glasses with really heavy correction and never get to 20/20. dont let anything stop you if you really feel nursing is right for you. i do really feel though at 7 months preg you should hold off and give birth first. nursing is tough and while it can be done with baby in hand...baby in womb makes it alot tougher,,,give yourslef a chance to birth and bond some before you start nursig career. just my two cents.

ok first of all take a deep breath you sound frantic. get your pharm book out, look at your insulins, your anti-hypertensives,your benzos, pain meds and definetly your psych drugs especially abilify and donazepril, each population will have that doc's drugs of choice so dont be afraid to whip out drug reference until you get used to your populations drugs. review your dementia patient info such as interventions for sundowning patients. call docs for appointments is easy, its like requesting a consult, know.reason for the order last vitals and labs from chart, who the pcp is and any details like if the pt requires ambulance transport and if so what support level. skills such as wound care, proper restraint use and documentation, and general unit policies on wandering , bed alarms, and special diet conditions are all good things to know..like what should patients with difficulty swallowing or renal impairment not be given. also review what can and cant be delegated to cna. Also remeber to pour yourself extra patience in your coffee every morning dementia patients are special, always in flux, enjoy the good days and wash off repeatedly the bad ones...good luck

Skyscape has some GREAT references for PDA's.. I downloaded the Lab Reference, the RN Notes, NCLEX review and a ton of other TRIAL books.. to determine what will be worth it and what won't ...

I bought the Littman 3200 for Nursing School, and I love it.. I am a little HOH and was unable to use the cheap manual ones doing manual BP,, so I when I got accepted to NS I decided to take the plunge.. I'm a little worried about instructors telling me I can't use it .. but sounds are clear.. and I love the recording / bluetooth feature.. I use an amplified recording of my hear as a ringtone.. I'm such a dork..

ER HERE I COME>>>

Clinicals are as good as you want to make them. You can ask questions, review charts, learn equipment / supplies. To get to do anything cool you need to interact with staff. As a tech there is always stuff to do. I would usually grab nursing students to help do stuff that comes under nursing / like start IV's , draw rainbow's, put pt's on monitors, start on nasal cannula. All of these things are essential with ER patients and I'm sure on any floor initial assessments / skin integrity checks / repositioning / patient interaction (like anything I can do for you) are constant processes. If you are bored look for things to do. There are always extra tasks.

I GOT IN ... 11.826 for NH...HAPPY DANCE TIME:):redpinkhe:jester::lol2:

I can't believe Majors Bookstore closed in Houston.. Fingers crossed in anticipation of the acceptance letter... decided instead of partying I'm gonna order the Littman 3200 Stethoscope.. comes with built in amplifier and recorder .. even bluetooth to tranfer to computer and analyse later.. could come in handy ... since at 31 I'm already hard of hearing.. anyone else crazy anxious ? anybody looking at careplan books yet ? I was thinking about getting careplan book on CD so that I could look up nanda diagnoses and cut and paste relevant diagnosis info into careplan.. would help cut down research time i bet..

UGG Mr. Postman,,, hurry up, I have been a VERY GOOD BOY and all I want is my acceptance letter. :redbeathe

The counselor at north harris even re-iterated it when I turned in my app, she said that your cna license has to be current upon acceptance. I have mine but it just lapsed in january, I will have to retest somewhere soon,