smrfett76

Does anyone know a website that has pictures or diagrams of the different cervical positions (anterior, posterior, midposition)? Thanks, Smrfett76

I definitely know how you feel. I am new to L&D at a smaller hospital. We have 1-2 patients at a time. We are able to have the opportunity to bond with our patients, which is something we really didn't have in Med/ Surg. I think that the hospital you are at seems unsafe to ask a new nurse to care for that many patients and to only have 3 months orientation. I have been orienting for 2 months and am no where near ready to be on my own, but I know that when I am I will have my girls with me. Where I am at, you are never alone. If there are complications, there is always someone just a few steps away. I would explore your options at a smaller hospital and don't give up on L&D. It really can be a magical place to work. Keep the Faith, Kim:nurse:

I am a new grad working on a surgical/ ortho floor and I so agree. I chose to do med/surg first because I believe it will make me a more well rounded nurse. I have only been working for 8 weeks and have learned more from my wonderful preceptors that I ever did in school. Although while in school, I always had my heart set on L&D or NICU, I am grateful to start in an enviornment with such a broad range of problems. I think it will make me a better nurse when I do decide to branch out.

Here a good one: I am sitting down to chart at about midnight and the tech comes to me and tells me that one of my patients is satting in the 60's. I go immediately to check on her and the highest I could get was low 80's. So I ask her to please go get my preceptor. She comes in and gets the same thing. We have the patient wake and take some deep breaths to no avail. She tells me she is not too concerned since she is a COPD pt. Right before we leave the room, she notices that the O2 connector on the wall looks weird. Someone had got the patient up and rehooked her to AIR, not O2!! No wonder!

I am starting out on a Surg/ Ortho floor and love it. I believe that it is a great place to learn and expand your skills. Although I can't see myself doing it for years and years, (eventually want ER, ICU or L&D) I have learned alot and am grateful I chose to start here. It is hectic, but I think it is most important to start somewhere that has an encouraging enviornemnt and a great orientation program. Best of luck to you!

I'm from Dallas and definitely understand where you are coming from. There are so many schools in this area and too many grads for few positions. I did finally get a job in Denton (about 30 miles north) which is closer to where I live. I guess it just depends on the area. Good luck!

Hi everyone! I'm Kim and I graduated in January. I took the NCLEX in April, 75 questions, was convinced I failed, but passed. I start working on a Surgical/ Ortho floor on June 4th and am scared to death, but excited. :uhoh21:

I am so glad that I am not the only one!!! I do this too, when I'm angry, frusterated, or sad. I even cry at Adam Sandler movies, and that's just pathetic. If I see someone else cry, I do too. We have a dog that was a stray and was abused and sometimes I think about what he went through and I just start bawling. My son tried out for atheletics today and didn't make and was crying, which made me cry as well. I am glad that I am able to react in some way, I just wish it wasn't like this. I will try that rubber band thing. I start my first nursing job in June and am sure I will need it!!!

I worked a full time and PRN job (apx 50hr/week) through the prereqs and 1st semester. Then I dropped my prn job and worked full time(36hr/ week) until I failed 3rd semester. Then I went to 24hr and was fine. I also have 2 kids and a husband who worked out of town alot, so it seemed like I was a single mother at times. But I was able to graduate with a 3.4 GPA (even with the D on my transcript.) I agree with the other poster that said to keep work a secret from your instructors if you can. There were some that singled us out unfairly, but others that were supportive and understood that we had to survive. Just use your best judgement. Take care and I wish you the best of luck.

Hey, I officially graduated in the beginning of January and took NCLEX in April and passed with 75 questions. I wanted to take some time off and study so I quit my job and concentrated on my family and boards, I did do about 2500 questions before the test. (about 4 weeks studying) I do believe that in my situation it was better to wait and relax for a bit. Most of my friends took it within 6 weeks of graduation, but I wanted to wait. I definitely wanted to get my license before I started an internship and I am glad I will not have to worry about that. Good luck in your decision. Do what is best for you.

Thanks for the info. Do you know what floor she was on? When she was there?

Thank you so much for the advice. The only reason I was considering going back there was that I had heard that things had gotten better. She was not riding the techs like she was before and had seemed to soften up a little. Plus since I had been there for almost 3 years it was my comfort zone and I figured it would make an easy transition. I loved the patients and my coworkers and was well liked by my peers. Also, I was able to get an interview with another floor through another recruiter, but he knows my old manager so I am sure that he has talked to her. The interview went very well, but I have heard nothing so I am sure that she said something to him.

I'll be working 12 hour shifts at night. Pay starts out at 22.85 per hour. Eves $3.00 Nights $7.00. Weekends like $4.00 and $8.00. (all apx.) I think there are three weeks vacation and not sure about the 401K and health benifits but they are offered.

Ok, I just wanted to take the time to vent and see if anyone else has had a similar situation. I worked at a hospital for almost 3 years on the same floor. I was well liked by my peers and supervisors. I recieved greeat reviews and had a wonderful attendance record. Everything seemed fine until the new manager came in. She started in Feb 2006. She always came off as being very judgemental and interrogating to most everyone I spoke to. At one point I thought that I would like to stay on the floor as a new grad because I loved my job and my patients, so I applied for the new grad internship to start in January 2007. When I mentioned off hand that I had applied and had not heard anything about an interview, she mentioned that there were no internships in January on my floor but that she would see what she could do. This was in November. (She had told me in Sept that she wanted me to stay after I graduated.) She then asked me why I hadn't said something sooner and if I thought she was hard to come to. I made the mistake of being honest and told her yes. That she intimidated me and I was scared to say anything. Needless to say our conversation went on for over 90 minutes and she appoligized for coming across so harshly. I thought everything was ok. (FYI- our floor was speaking to HR 1:1 regarding decreased morale coinciding with the new manager hire.) In December I was told that she wanted me to stay on as a tech, with an RN license??? She told me I could ask her director if she could make an exception and add an internship spot for me. I did and her boss said ok, if it was ok with her. The next week I was told that they had decided to not hire any new grads and I was stuck in my tech job. I gave a 3 week notice and left on what I thought was good terms. Fast forward a few months. I am applying for internships, studying for boards, ect. I still have a very good friend who works on the floor who mentioned me for the June internship. The manager then said that she had not received my application. So I called the nurse recruiter who very abruptly informed me that she believed that the manager would refuse to interview me because of our "history." I called HR and was reassured that I was rehirable on their end. Needless to say I have accepted a job closer to home and start my internship in June. I do still love that old hospital and would like to return someday, but feel that I have bees branded a "bad seed" without just cause. I keep thinking that I have done something wrong and feel awful. I don't think I should have been honest, even though it was done very respectfully. What would you do?

Even though I have been a medical assistant for ten years, I graduated in December with my nursing degree and now feel empowered to make a difference. I have accepted an RN position at Denton Regional Medical Center on the Surgical/ Ortho floor. Anyone work there or know about the hospital? I know that they are hiring six of us and I would like to possibly get in contact with some of my future coworkers. :monkeydance: