WYRN1

Why not make nursing a "trade" and have apprenticeship programs set up for us to become RN's. For instance my son who will graduate this spring as a Journeyman Electrician has gone through a 6 year apprenticeship. With most of his learning in paid "on the job training" under more experienced apprenticies and journeymen. He also spent one day a week in a classroom setting learning theory. He did this "full time" for the last 6 years and each year advancing a level in skill and pay. He was paid for a forty hour week therefore did not have to work outside of his field and could consentrate on becoming the best electrician possible. He now earns equal to what I am making as a nurse of 19 years senority. The hospitals would benefit because they would have nursing students or apprentices at all levels to help in pt care, nursing apprentices would benefit by having more on hand in the trenches, type of learning, and "Journeymen" RN's would benefit by having lots of extra hands to carry the load, I think this is an excellent way to train new nurses instead of the puny clinical experiences they get now and then we are expected to teach them the reality of nursing on the floor in a 6-8 week preceptorship. Come on people we are dealing with lives here!!!!

I am going through the same situation, and I also am trying to discourage my daughter from following in my foot steps,, I've told her to do any other carreer RT,OT,PT, pharmacist, Radiology tech anything but nursing why? because as a nurse although our job is very rewarding at times it is also a very great responsibilty with very little recognition and sometimes I feel like I am viewed as nothing but a glorified waitress, abused by families, doctors, other ancillary personell and administration. It all comes back to the nurse. So, if she does ignore my advice and become an RN after all I have advised her to at least take a position in a large teaching hospital where I experienced much more autonomy and respect than I do now in my smaller community hospital staffed by private practice physicians. In a larger teaching facility the physicians are employees as are the nurses, and you have interns and residents to help to carry the pt load or at least as I said this has been my experience.

No way! I think its great that you have taken the initiative to make your work place more efficient and organized. She seems to have a chip on her shoulder, and maybe has another underlying issue that she is dealing with. I've been nursing for a long time and find my younger colleagues with fresh ideas welcoming and am all for anything that will make our jobs easier, just try to keep in mind that your older colleagues have put in there time so to speak and also have much valuable insight and knowlege for you to learn from also.

Read with interest many of the postings from fellow PACU nurses. I am fairly new to this area of nursing but I do have to say that one I can't believe that some of you only received a few weeks of an orientation I was oriented with a preceptor for 4mths. Also I do not think this is an area that a new grad would do well in. I had Critical Care and ACLS background from years ago and years of nursing experience yet somedays I still feel wether I am prepared for this enviroment were the patient is most unstable and anything can happen. I sometimes feel I need to know much more. Its good that I am surrounded by nurse colleagues that are understanding and supportive with there many years of PACU experience, and I hope for me too it will become second nature. My manager told me when I hired in that it would be about a year or so before I would feel really comfortable with my abilities and I believe she may be right every day I get just a little more confident but I am also continually learning. I especially have anxiety with the pediatric cases since I had never worked in a pediatric setting except for in nursing school. They are quite scary, and a bit of a challenge. Any advice you seasoned PACU nurses can give me would be gratefullly accepted.