Tinker

I attended Columbia's Entry to Practice program. I didn't study at all, skipped classes, and somehow still managed to have a 3.6 GPA. No, I am not a super genius. The program was poorly organized and run. Everytime students complained about the educa...

I have had two patients almost code due to too much narcotic. One had a rr of about 6. She was blue and her skin was so cold. I told the Dr that this all started after her last dose of morphine and she did have impairment in her kidneys and liver. Th...

Personally, I think it is pretty crappy that they told you that, and did not help you to overcome whatever barrier you were having. They should be encouraging you to ask questions. I have only been working for 5 months. There were times that I though...

I live in New York City, so we get paid a lot, but don't see too much of it after the high city, state, and federal taxes. I estimate they take about 45% of it. In any event, we get $59k base, $6k night differential, and $1k educational bonus for hav...

I graduated in May. So far it has been a rough go. Everyone says it is going to get better. I really hope so because I don't think I could take much more of it like this!

I went to Columbia University's second degree program (ETP) last year. It only takes a year - which is a plus. The downside is thatit is expensive and I did not feel we got enough practical nursing experience . I have since made up for that in my cur...

I'm at Columbia-Presbyterian. It isn't bad. They are applying for magnet status and I can't complain about the salary. They have been very supportive of my various religious obligations as well.

When I took the NCLEX last month I was sure I had failed. I felt some of the questions were tricky and WAY too specific (ie - who would be more at risk for colon cancer came up like 3 times! I don't think we ever talked about colon cancer in nursing ...

Sorry, but I have to vent somewhere. I started my job about a month ago, and have been on the floor for 4 weeks now. I have had 3 preceptors since my original preceptor was on vacation. She came back this week. Her first day back, was honestly, one o...

I bought SAS nursing shoes. They are dreadfully ugly, but very comfortable. I was determined to toss them out and buy sneakers when I got a job --- only to find out that my job also requires all white shoes!! At least Im getting my moneys worth right...

My nursing school required us to enter all of our daily patient care data into the PDA. I hated it! It caused me to downgrade the PDA from a glorified addressbook to another expensive piece of electronics in the bottom of a throwaway box :) I plan on...

I'm a new grad in New York City. I get base pay of $58k, plus a $6k a year shift differential, and $1000 for having a BSN. It sounds great, but after I pay federal, state, and city taxes, not too much is left over.

I started working at Columbia Presbyterian a month ago. The nurse recruiter is Paula Trinidad. I like it ok. My friend is working at Cornell, and it appears to be almost exactly the same except there is no union at Cornell. I did a few rotations at M...

According to the NCLEX review books I used and what I remember when I took the NCLEX last month, you delegate patients to LPN's that have stable condition with expected outcomes. For example, you could give them someone who had a broken bone, but not...

Well I somehow managed to graduate nursing school and pass the boards. I have no idea how I slipped through the cracks. I still feel like I know nothing. Despite this, I still managed to get a job. I start tomorrow. I know I will have a lot of superv...

Thanks for the support! I am looking foward to the day when I have confidence and I can look back and laugh at myself :)

Hey all. I haven't been on here since I started nursing school. Somehow I made it through the year and I graduated two weeks ago! I have two job offers on the table - one at a hospital down the street for me at night and another about 45 minutes away...

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Well, seeing as I was BASHING Columbia in my post, I would agree with you. Im not sure what point you were trying to make. I used to think that going to a highly ranked school was supposed to give you a better education, but this is not always the c...

I bought a pair of SAS shoes.. the ones with the "weave" on the side. They are super ugly but very comfortable.

I am currently using that book for an Advanced Physio class. I personally hated it and decided not to use it.

For my clinicals, we get there at 8 am and have conference with our instructor. We are assigned a pt and discuss any special circumstances the pt might have. I work on a palliative care floor, so we start off with giving a complete bath, changing the...

I am in my first semester of nursing school now. I am taking physical assesment with lab, science of nursing, Issues, Advanced physiology, pharmacology, and we have 8-12 hours in the hospital each week. We were not allowed to choose our courses eithe...

Hello! I am 24. I just moved to New York for Columbia's ETP program. I am half way through my first semester. I am single, no kids, and one cat.

Today was my first day in the hospital with patients! I got a really a nice little old lady who was pretty much doing everything for me and explaining why I helped out some other students with their more difficult pts and I think I can take it on, ...