jenj1928

Well I did an emotional compromise, I had three white uniform tops, one of them was bought at the beginning of senior year and not quite as dingy as the other two, so I donated the nice one and I'm burning the other two at my graduation party next weekend! I already had my graduation and pinning but I'm waiting for one special friend to be here to join me in the burning... she's currently a nursing student who just finished her first semester, she'll understand!!LOL!!

as student we get a ton of magazine offers for different nursing topics and interests but I have not seen one geared specifically to pediatric critical care. Is there one you like over another? just a basic peds one? Thanks!

janfrn, you are truely an amazing person. Like you said it is never acceptable but in a scary way understandable in the craziness they live everyday, not that it is ever an excuse I know that but an insight. Bless you for all you do everyday, both at home and at work.:heartbeat

I just accepted my offer this week! Start in May as a new grad in the PICU with a 6mo orientation!! I'm so excited!(and scared) but deffinately excited.

I read this thread and I think two things at once, "this is why I want to be a PICU RN" and "this is why I don't want to be a PICU RN". I did case management for early intervention for 5 years and attended 3 infant funerals. Several families really touched me and drove me to change fields to persue nursing. One was a little boy who seized every 7 second, for his 18 months of life. He tried to die numerous times despite the attempts by his parents to bag him at home and send him back to the PICU, they had the most optomistic outlook for him, and one of the sweetest families I ever had, and at the same time the one that frustrated you the most as well some days, but who were we to say what was right? I developed a great relationship with his primary nurse, who did everything to help them, she had palliative care on board and everything but the parents held on. He finally won his battle to die, I was honestly jealous of the nurse that was able to be there for the family when they needed her most, when mom finally gave in and said couldn't see him go through anymore, I was told her went peacefully in her arms. After that I decided, in the future I needed to be there for my families as well.... I will graduate in May and I'm waiting for my offer from the PICU hopefully next week, the interview went great... but I sometimes wonder what I'm getting myself into, I guess if I wasn't as afraid as I am excited something would be wrong, right?

from what I've seen, kenosha hospitals, Aurora Metro mulwaukee area, as well as all saints are all starting new grads around $22, now the differentials are a bit different from place to place as well as what is considered full time (a .9FTE is full time in racine and kenosha as well as children's but for Aurora metro hospitals a full 40hrs is required to be full time, but not Aurora south) So there are a few other things to consider! HTH! oh and some will start you out .25Cents to .50 cents more if you did an intership there.

I just interviewed in a very large PICU for a new grad position and they have a 6 month orientation, I'm looking forward to that phone ringing!!!

As NICU nurses do you think there is a benefit to a new nurse in the NICU being a former NICU parent? Or do you think there is a downfall of sorts?

thanks for posting! I ended up applying to the FNP program, one of the reasons being the PNP program was at a private school, the FNP a state one. Plus my undergrad is at the same school as the FNP program. BUT besides that I looked a a few postings at the children's hospital and they were saying advanced practice nurse with PNP, FNP or even a CNS with maternal/child focus were all qualified applicants, so that made me feel better. I figure if I really end up enjoying peds I can always do a post master's addition in peds to my FNP? Gosh will I ever get out of school!!LOL!! Best of luck to you and let me know what you find as well.

I'm in the last year of my BSN degree and I'm applying for preceptorships and future GN opportunities and I'm trying to decide which way to go. My two favorite career path choices are in totally different directions, one is ICU and the other is towards midwifery. (I will be doing my masters degree either way) but with the ICU it stimulates my mind, I really get to think about the science behind the patient and I do truely enjoy that, I'm one who will always be looking for the challange and I have to be challenging myself, that's the basis for the masters as well, I set my limits high and always achieve my goals. My clinical instructors have said numerous times I'm very determined and will get where I want which may even include CRNA if I stick with the ICU path. But then part of me really wants to look into labor and delivery and go for the certified nurse midwife degree, I had a clinical in L&D and told my instructor that I never wanted to go back, I was frustrated by the medical interventions to such a natural process. If the're not going fast enough give them pitocin, throw them in bed, monitor constantly (I know it's necessary with pitocin but they even did it for non pit deliveries!) encourange epidurals, give 'em all a foley, after delivery the moms never held the babies for over half an hour! and if the blood sugar was a touch low shove a bottle in them even after mom says she wants to breastfeed. No one walked, used a tub to relax, music, etc, heck the rn only went on the room to up the pit and then walked back to the monitor station to watch her patient only to wait another fifteen and up the pit again! get em to 20 so they go faster! ARGH!!! the rn's were even joking about who was going to get their patient to deliver first, it was a race and very frsutrating. So as you can tell this is something I feel very strongly about but I don't think it will ever change and even more reason for me not to go into that line of practice and frustrate myself further. Or do I go into it trying to change the world ( not very realistic but...) My best friend who is a Doula in MN said that my frustration is even more reason to stick with it, her words were "silly you, that's why you do have to go back to that unit!" of course she's had a good relationship with the RN's where she works/volunteers so she knows the tactful ways to get what her pt's need, lucky her! with the ICU I don't want to say that there's no emotional attachment because that sounds wrong but it's not like I'm against ventilators of vaso drips or anything like that!LOL! The ICU is the right place for all the medical interventions and it does fascinate me how fast pt's can react to vaso drip changes, how vents work and how anesthesia can do what it does for the body etc... But the focus would be on the science of nursing and of course there would be the personal touches and dealing with families and all just not the passion and personal emotional attachment I'd have to midwifery. so I'm really torn and don't know what to do. and please don't say do med surg for a year or two I honestly don't believe that is necessary, I went for my BSN to get the advanced chem courses, advanced assessment and critical thinking pathways. They have encouraged us that "finding your specialty" interest and going for it is okay, it is a different world of nursing now. I'm working in ICU as it is so either I stay or jump ship and do the extreme. So for the CNM what drove you to this profession? if you're on this board lurking and are a RN's what did you go with, head or heart? Did you regret your path? find it hard to change later on? What would you tell to a new RN (but not a young RN without life expereince here, I've spent my time doing other careers enough to have 1/2 a clue anyway and three kids to fuel the passion of the one choice!) Thanks for you insight

I'm in the last year of my BSN degree and I'm applying for preceptorships and future GN opportunities and I'm trying to decide which way to go. My two favorite career path choices are in totally different directions, one is ICU and the other is towards midwifery. (I will be doing my masters degree either way) but with the ICU it stimulates my mind, I really get to think about the science behind the patient and I do truely enjoy that, I'm one who will always be looking for the challange and I have to be challenging myself, that's the basis for the masters as well, I set my limits high and always achieve my goals. My clinical instructors have said numerous times I'm very determined and will get where I want which may even include CRNA if I stick with the ICU path. But then part of me really wants to look into labor and delivery and go for the certified nurse midwife degree, I had a clinical in L&D and told my instructor that I never wanted to go back, I was frustrated by the medical interventions to such a natural process. If the're not going fast enough give them pitocin, throw them in bed, monitor constantly (I know it's necessary with pitocin but they even did it for non pit deliveries!) encourange epidurals, give 'em all a foley, after delivery the moms never held the babies for over half an hour! and if the blood sugar was a touch low shove a bottle in them even after mom says she wants to breastfeed. No one walked, used a tub to relax, music, etc, heck the rn only went on the room to up the pit and then walked back to the monitor station to watch her patient only to wait another fifteen and up the pit again! get em to 20 so they go faster! ARGH!!! the rn's were even joking about who was going to get their patient to deliver first, it was a race and very frsutrating. So as you can tell this is something I feel very strongly about but I don't think it will ever change and even more reason for me not to go into that line of practice and frustrate myself further. Or do I go it trying to change the world ( not very realistic but...) with the ICU I don't want to say that there's no emotional attachment because that sounds wrong but it's not like I'm against ventilators of vaso drips or anything like that!LOL! It's teh right place for all the medical interventions and it does fascinate me how fast pt's can react to vaso drip changes etc... It would just be the science of nursing and of course there would be the personal touches and dealing with families and all just not the passion and personal emotional attachment I'd have to midwifery. so I'm really torn and don't know what to do. and please don't say do med surg for a year or two I honestly don't believe that is necessary, I went for my BSN to get the advanced chem courses, advanced assessment and critical thinking pathways. They have encouraged us that "finding your specialty" interest and going for it is okay, it is a different world of nursing now. I'm working in ICU as it is so either I stay or jump ship and do the extreme. So for those of you who are RN's what did you go with, head or heart? Did you regret your path? find it hard to change later on? What would you tell to a new RN (but not a young RN without life expereince here, I've spent my time doing other careers enough to have 1/2 a clue anyway and three kids to fuel the passion of the one choice!) Thanks for you insight

I looked at the schools that I plan to apply to in the future and they dodn't really specify either way about a MRICU? The hospital that I'm looking to transfer to breaks up their icu's into CVICU, Neuro ICU, surgical etc and I'm interested in the positions they have open in the MRICU... Or should I just stay at our local icu (the accuity level is less here though) that sees a variety of things surgical, some hearts (they do have a cath lab but very underutilized) alot of GI bleeds and is part telly unit as well. just looking to find a good home that will provide me with what I need for a few years! Thanks!

Other than the obvious pain management during surgical procedures do any of you work in a pain management clinic or is this outside the scope of practice of a CRNA and left more for the anesthesiologists?

St Catherine's, part of United hospital systems in kenosha has a good nurse intern program once you begin your clinical courses. Plus the St catherine's campus is going to be going through some big expansion in the next 2 yrs or so, it might be a good time to get in on the growth! I think they're looking for cna's now too and they are flexible with school schedules for the most part as well. Check them out, just google united hospital systems in kenosha. HTH

I was wondering, how many years of appyling did it take you to get accepted into a program? Was it the school you had hoped for or did you take what you could get? Did you have to move? Did you apply at a large amount of schools or bank on one or two? Just trying to get a feel for what lies ahead!