medicin79

The level 1 trauma centers in the SF bay area: San Francisco General, Highland Hospital (Oakland); and I believe Stanford Med Ctr (Palo Alto). Further out; UC Davis Med Ctr in the Sacramento area

Not an L&D type myself; but I've heard good things about Summit-Alta Bates. http://www.altabates.com/

Yes, you will have to pay the annual fee; you must be an enrolled student in order to take the CPNE.

You are eligible for the CPNE if you have; completed NC1 thru 7, and are within 9 units of completeing your general ed requirements. My wait time for a test date was exactly six months. If you have some flexiblity regarding short notice travel, you can also put yourself on a waiting list for openings due to student cancellations. Taking one of the available CPNE prep workshops (Excelsiors', Tina's or Lynne's) is an excellent investment. They go over the "magic grid", which is an organizational method, as well as care plans etc.

The official term is; dilutional hyponatremia. It is a common problem for those doing intense work in hot conditions (firefighters, marathon runners, etc.), who drink large amounts of water without eating. This is actually why Gatorade was developed.

Sheehy's Emergency Nursing: Principles and Practices, Emergency Nursing Procedures by Jean Proehl are both good references.

Yes, you have an absolute right refuse.

Another option to consider: http://www.standingcomfort.com/

Unfortunately; reciprocity between states is limited for EMT's/Paramedics. While it might be possible, it would be time consuming and expensive. I am not aware of any EMS/ambulance services that use short term contract employee's

Your best bet would be to contact the state EMS office; each state has different requirements and procedures. At a minimum, you should have BLS-HCP, ACLS, PALS and ITLS certifications. An EMT-basic course may also be required.

Just FYI; the excelsior website is an excellent resource for this sort of information https://www.excelsior.edu/

California no longer accepts Excelsior grads; if they entered the program after 12-03

It is a handwritten test. They give you a subject and a style to write. Took about four weeks to get results. The hardest part is the time factor; three essays in three hours. Best advise is to spill your thoughts onto the paper; don't worry about punctuation.

The Kaiser hospitals have very extensive new grads programs; in med-surg, and specialty areas. Kaiser-Geary (SF) or Kaiser-Oakland are both near Berkeley

I think you're right; a flame war is likely with this post. The CA decision regarding EC was based on the language of the nursing practice act; which requires clinical instruction to be concurrent with theory. While EMS and nursing share some skills and methods, the conceptual models are quite different. Nursing education, esp at the ADN level, is based on processes rather than specific skills. LVN's are actually more familiar with nursing theory, and are better qualified to provide care in an inpatient environment. EMS skills, while invaluble in stabilizing critical patients; do not translate directly to nursing practice. FYI; I am a 25+ year paramedic, Excelsior graduate, and now an RN.