christieb01

Jerrika- thank you so much for posting your reply. You are so right- not every child that has a trach and g-tube is a "vegetable". I had the joy of caring for a couple of patients recently who reminded me of that. I did have the opportunity to make a difference in their stay at our hospital. I was thankful to have had the opportunity to care for these kids. I still believe that PICU is not the environment for me. However, I have learned so much in my short stay in the PICU. The best "teachers" I have had are the families. They have taught me the little "tricks" with their g-tubes and trachs. I will still have the opportunity to care for these precious children, I know that through these experiences I can handle whatever comes my way. So I guess thank you to all of the parents who teach us every day!

Final Update- I got the job in Outpatient Surgery!! I start working there the end of August. I am so excited. Since this is a department I have "worked" in before, I know what to expect. The best part is that the schedule is days- with four call shifts per 4-8 weeks. Thank you everyone who responded to support me. This way a difficult decision for me. I am so thankful that I had a supportive environment to vent to! Thanks!

An update- well at the urging of a fellow co-working I went to talk to my unit educator. I knew that I felt comfortable talking to her and that she might be able to help me through my feelings. Well, I broke down crying before I could even say a word! We sat down in the conference room, she asked me how I was doing, and out came the waterworks. She said she knew I was having a tough time of it and figured I would be coming to her soon. (I kind of wish she would have come to me first but I understand that she needed to wait for me to make the first move). I told her that I felt the job was emotionally and physically draining and that I just wasn't sure if it was "right" for me. She said that sometimes PICU isn't the right fit for everyone and asked if I would be interested in a different position in the hospital if one was available. She then got our unit manager- I'm guessing gave her the heads up as they walked to the conference room. Long story short- I have an interview tomorrow morning in the outpatient surgery clinic- which is where I did my preceptorship while I was in school. I am so excited/ nervous. In some ways I feel like I am abandoning my fellow co-workers, but I know this could be a very positive move for me. Another plus is that it's a day shift position- so much better than the night shift I am currently working! To all the wonderful PICU nurses out there- God Bless You! I am so thankful that there are nurses out there who are able to take on this difficult position. Thank you for listening to my ramblings, I will keep everyone updated.

Janfr- I think you are completely right about age being a factor. I work nights with many young people- and they seem to be able to brush off the emotional stuff. I've started to freak out at the littlest things with our son. He goes swimming and instaed of enjoying watching him swim, I freak out thinking about the drowning victim at the hospital. I did my preceptorship in the outpatient surgery area- mostly healthy kids getting ear tubes, T&As, etc. I loved it!!! I think you are right though- I need to sit down and talk to my manager. She's not really the approachable type though so I may go to our unit educator (more approachable) and ask her to help me decide if this is the route for me. Thanks for listening!

I need help from my fellow PICU nurses. I graduated last November and began working (my fist nursing job) in March. When I began nursing school I knew I wanted to be a peds nurse- but I never thought I would be a PICU nurse. My orientation was a very short 8 weeks. A week and a half of that was classroom work. I am working nights now, so I wonder if that is part of my problem. However, I don't love my job. There are some days I don't even like my job. I find it to be emotionally draining and physically exhausting. I don't expect everything to be fun and games- however- these kids are sooo sick. I do find joy when one of these really sick kids gets transferred to a regular floor and then gets to go home. But every one of those kids, I see so many chronic kids who have absolutely no quality of life and lay there in a coma like state. These kids are trached, g-tube, and never even open their eyes. I guess what I am wondering is- is what I am feeling normal for a new PICU nurse? I am torn between possibly finding a job that WILL make me happy vs. the commitment I made to my unit when I accepted this position. My manager told me that it takes her one year to recoup the costs of hiring a new employee. I honestly don't know if I can last a year! Did anyone else feel this way when they started as a new PICU nurse and if so- did it get better? I should also mention that even though I am a new grad, I am 37 years old and I have an eight year old son of my own. I also have about 8 years of experience as a retail manager- also a very high stress job in a completely different way.

I started working nights about a month ago. I am a new nurse but this is my second career. I have had a rough time getting used to the schedule. However, I really like working nights. The pace is so much better for me to learn. I agree with all of the above advice. I have a family as well, so when I have days off- I make the most of them. But when I have to work that night, my family knows that mommy needs to sleep. I have ear plugs and I use them. The hardest part for me has been missing saying goodnight to my family. Their bedtime is an incredibly busy time for me at work so I can't take time to call. I think this week I'm going to write goodnight notes for bedtime. Good luck, you can do it!

Sounds to me like you did the right thing. You had know way of knowing when you called the ambulance that she would get better so quickly. Also, there's know way to know if she wouldn't have another episode that may have been worse. Good call in my opinion.

how long have you been a nurse? just started orientation this monday age?36 gender?female what was your previous career?retail management did you receive a college degree in that specialty?i have a degree in theater, but a bachelor's of any kind was required for my position how long did you work in your previous career?9 years what was the hardest part about changing careers?nursing school- required a lot of time away from my family what was your motivation in changing from your previous career?i wanted a job that would be portable (my husband is usaf, and i wanted a job where i wouldn't have to work 60+ hours/week did you make more or less money in your previous career compared to nursing?so far less, but a lot less hours what qualities do you possess (if any) from your previous career that help you in the nursing field?people skills, delegation was your first career in the healthcare field? no is there anything you would change, in regards to your career choices if you could go back in time?i would have gone to nursing school the first time do you regret choosing the nursing field as your second career option?no rate your previous career, 1-10, or, how happy were you with your previous career vs how happy are you with nursing?previous-2, nursing (so far) 8 what prevented you from becoming a nurse earlier?i was a stay at home mom for 8 years on being a nurse: why the nursing field as opposed to another discipline?love people, enjoy helping people feel better are you worried about 'burning out' on being a nurse? becoming too reliant alcohol or drugs for coping/escape?burn out- possibly drugs/alcohol- no! how do you feel about the glorious american healthcare system? [rate it 1-10, or rant!]i think it's a work in progress- 5 on being a nursing student: did you have another job while in nursing school?i was a mom what obstacles do you/did you face being a student? family responsibilities, husband got deployed, wanted to get all a's but eventually learned that it was ok if i didn't which class is most important for student nurses? ethics which is the least? policy what other classes do you feel student nurses should be required to take? i think there should be a math for nurses class, my school did not have one, also, students should have to take public speaking

Minimum wage was 4.25 and I worked at an amusement park. We worked 60+ hours and did not receive overtime because we were seasonal employees and state law said they didn't have to pay time and a half for over 40 hours. We had to pay about $2-3 a week for uniform rental and $15/month for the rooms we lived in- at least two people to a room, bunk beds, about 8' by 5' rooms. I only lasted a month and then quit because I hated it so much.

I'm not sure if we discussed the GPA requirement in our other posts about Wright State. You do need at least a 3.2 to get in to WSU. The admission is competitive and based completely on GPA. Last I heard the minimum was a 3.2. The way it works here is they only accept so many students (usually the top 100) and whatever the 100th person's GPA is, that's the cutoff. Like Viking said- you may want to retake Anatomy. That is a very important class so you want to make sure you have a good foundation.

I know kids are probably sick of hearing about it but- what about texting while driving? I know there has been a lot about this in the media lately. However, since teenagers feel they are invincible, I just don't think they get it. Maybe you could have them pull out their cell phones and try to text while you recite something they need to remember. Then ask how many can tell you what you just said. That might help them realize that while they are texting they aren't actually paying attention to their surroundings. Also, Oprah has a pledge they can sign making the car a "no phone zone". I know it sounds kind of "cheesy" but this is a huge problem with teens. There have been numerous serious accidents in my area where teens have been using cell phones and gotten seriously injured or killed.

Scheduling is done once per quarter. The lecture portion (with all members of your track) is a set time- usually during the day (one or two classes are evenings). As far as clinicals you have some choice but it really depends on when you are allowed to register and how many people registered before you. (Timing is based on the number of credit hours). Clinical times are generally between 6:30am and 4pm. However there are some evening clinical times available. Duties will depend on the clinical and are assigned by faculty and staff at the facilities. Hope this helps.

1. I took the Hesi. We had to take it at the end of several classes (counted for 10% of the grade for that class). And I had to take the HESI exit- didn't have to pass but I am an A/B student and always scored above the 900s. However, I know about 15 students who did not get above the 850 on the exit exam. 2. Makes sense. I would compare that to a degree from Ohio State as well, they have a very good reputation and are known for excellent academics. 3. You have to pass the NCLEX and be licensed before you can work as an RN. 4. If you take time off (or fail a class) that sets you back 6 months. If you fail 2 classes you are out of the program. If you take time off for personal reasons you need to work with the administration to stay in the program. Everyone I know was allowed to stay in the program as long as they returned within a year. 5. I have no idea what this class is, sorry. Do you know what NARC stands for? Let me know if I can be of any other help :)

I graduated from Wright State this past November. I will do my best to answer some of your questions, but please feel free to ask anything else you might think of. Wright State does not have an entrance exam or a waiting list. Acceptance in the program is based completely on GPA. I think right now the minimum is about 3.3. They do have an exit exam now- HESI. As of right now, they require an 850 to graduate. This is a new requirement- my class did not have to pass the exam to graduate but future classes will. I'm not sure what you meant by Mt. Carmel gets new grads jobs faster. Do you mean a job placement? As far as that is concerned- Wright STate does not have a job placement program and does not provide much in the way of job hunting assistance. They do have the local hospitals come to a job fair twice a year. I know some of my friends have found jobs already while others (including myself) have not. As far as faculty- I really liked most of my faculty. In fact some I really loved and learned a lot from! If you ask for help most are more than willing to give you the time you need. Length of the program- there are two tracks- Fall and Spring admission. The Fall track goes to school year round (including summer) and is completed in 2 years and 1 quarter (not including prereq). The Spring track does not go summers and is completed in 3 years. Depending on when you start- they will be transitioning to a semester based system so I do not know how that will change the times. As far as license- you can graduate from a school in Ohio and apply for a license in GA. Or you can get an OH license and then apply for a GA license after- only do this if you are planning to work for a while in OH. Hope this helps! Christie

I have had success with the local health department. As long as they have the pamphlets in stock they are usually very happy to help.