misscece

The overall consensus is the same isn't it? It depends where you live and for whom you work. One thing to take into consideration is whether or not you will ever get a raise. Some starting pays sound impressive, but once you take into account the fact that there is no set raise schedule, it doesn't look so good a couple years in. Benefits such as medical care, educational opportunities, vacation, and retirement, as well as what your schedule will be, are also big factors in determining the "worth" of a job. To the OP - if your focus on becoming a CRNA is money, you will have a hard time earning the respect of those of us who are in it for the love of the work itself. It doesn't matter how much money you make when those school loans come due, it hurts. Also, we all tend to spend what we earn - meaning: the more you make the more you spend. Good luck on step ONE, which is to become an RN. Focus on that and really think about whether you like the work itself.

The majority of my nursing experience (which was all critical care) was in a Level III NICU where I took care of the sickest of the sick neonates. When I made the move towards pursuing my CRNA, I made the choice to change gears and start working with adults. I went on to do about four years of CVICU, SICU, and MICU. I agree whole-heartedly with BCRNA regarding the cardiac aspect of neonates vs. adults - they are two different animals. While NICU experience serves you well in the sense that most people are scared to death to handle a baby weighing less than 1000 grams, a background in handling those preemies will definitely give you a leg up when it comes to the hands on. Also, I believe that NICU nurses tend to be far more precise in minute drug doses as this is the norm. HOWEVER, with adults you are usually dealing with complex coexisting CHRONIC disease processes whereas with babies you are usually dealing with some sort of genetic issue, anoxic insult, or problem associated with lack of development. Pediatrics is a subspecialty of anesthesia, which means you will spend very little time on this and more on adults as a whole. And, even within the pediatric specialty, neonates are but only a small fraction. With that being said, one of my classmates came in with only NICU experience. He worked in a Level III NICU for over ten years and graduated at the top of our class. While he did struggle with the "new animal", he excelled and is one of the smartest guys I know. I would let him do my anesthetic, or the anesthetic of any of my loved ones, without hesitation. Bottom line - don't limit yourself to the schools that will take just the NICU experience. Get the NICU experience if that is what you are interested in, but follow up with solid adult experience as well.

I'm sorry I didn't read all the postings that are attached but what do you mean by "he couldn't keep his airway clear"? If his airway could not be kept clear, neither sedation - and definitely a paralytic (which I would never give without an airway) - would help. My other question is, where was the doc in all of this? Why were you and the RT trying to figure this out instead of paging the pulmonologist? And why give a respiratory depressant to someone who is having breathing difficulty? Just wondering....

Thanks but question isn't for me so I don't have contact with recruiters. Was just wondering in general what would happen in that situation and thought someone here might know :)

Question - what happens if you sign a contract to become a CRNA with the help of the Army Reserve and then fail your boards?

whoa! that's a quick turnaround. i thought i was on a timeline but i think you've got me beat. why did they wait so long to tell you? good luck - once you get past that moment, it gets quite exciting.

thanks ready. there are a couple of people in my class who will be leaving their families as well - i can't even imagine what that must be like. i'm glad to say that i got over it and am quite nervous/excited about all that lies before me.

Hi all! Yesterday was my last day of work. I will be starting CRNA school in January and am taking the time between now and then to relocate, get settled, and spend a little bit of time with my family before the grueling life of a SRNA begins. After being excited about that final day, I almost had a breakdown after clocking out yesterday. I'm moving, going to be living with someone I don't really know, I won't have an income for the next 2.5 years, I'm going into debt with loans, my relationship is questionable d/t relocation, and I'm starting a highly challenging program all at the same time. So my question is - has anyone else had this "freak-out" moment? And how did you get over it? It seems that no one can really understand where I'm coming from so I'm here hoping I'm not alone in this. Any input/advice is much appreciated!!! cece

Applied to Florida Gulf Coast University and University of Kansas. Selected to interview at both. Interviewed and accepted at Florida Gulf Coast and will begin in January 2008. Will decline interview at Kansas in order to stay in Florida.

i don't know - i've done both nicu and adult icu and i still say that adult visitors are a lot harder to deal with. for me, parents were mostly just afraid - imagine how petrifying it is to see your little baby with wires and lines everywhere - or to see them crying with an ett in and not making a sound. i found that education was the key with them in that once they understood that i knew what i was talking about, they tended to "trust" their baby more with me and that they tended to follow my suggestions more readily. in adult icu's you can't even get family members to honor living wills let alone listen to anyone outside of the family. sick babies scare the hell out of people and i think people are more likely to let them be when they start to trend downwards. with adults it's more like "hang in there! you can do it!!" everyone's convinced that despite the fact that grandpa is 96 and on a breathing machine in kidney failure, the fact he's a WWII vet means he's tough as nails to this day. my nicu also had written guidelines that had to be signed. this would be a good thing for adults icu's i agree - but when people act like they don't see the big ass writing (literally) on the walls stating visiting hours (or act like you just made up the hours despite it being in print) i don't know what good it would do.

if my unit had help - we have no techs, the charge nurse takes a full assignment and we often go without a secretary - i might have more time to work out a "partnership" with difficult families. however, when i'm running nonstop trying to keep my patients (often tripled) alive, i don't take well to someone running out of a room to tell me their family member "just moved" or that they need something that they are capable of getting themselves (i'm talking about the family member). a pt who is sick enough to be in the icu needs to have time to rest - this means that family members should not be in their faces trying to get them to talk when they are intubated, should not be holding multiple phone conversations in the pt's rooms on the phone and should not expect me to tend to them. also, there is a certain level of dignity that should be afforded to pt's - if i were that sick, the last thing i would want is for my family to be bringing in extended family or their friends just to see me while in that shape. the "attitude" being expressed are not towards those who help the situation - it is more about those who make our jobs more difficult. sadly, this is the majority more often than not.

south florida - new grads start out making about $21.50/hr. came in w/5 years exp at $27.50 and hour. can't buy anything decent here for less than $300,000. won't be staying here much longer.

we have the visiting hours posted on the door of our unit - no security in front of the door but the visitors do have to ring a buzzer in order to be let in. unfortunately, this is the same door that everyone else swipes to get into so family members will just follow people in even though they are well aware of what the hours are. i would LOVE, LOVE, LOVE a security guard.

i am sorry that happened to you. i also worked nicu for many years but i believe that parents are much more apt to let babies sleep. also, babies don't feel the need to "entertain" or interact with their company. i'm not sure what your dad's situation was - i have no problem letting people stay if the person is doing really badly given they are respectful of the patient's need to rest and of me needing to do my job (i believe most icu nurses are the same).

let me clarify that i have no problem extending visiting hours in cases where the patient needs someone to keep an eye on them (dementia, trying to get out of bed) or when pt's are terminal. i can't stand following a nurse that allows people to stay for as long as they like because then i have to be the bad guy simply by adhering to the visitation policy - which is posted on the door outside of the unit as well as in a handout we give. fellow nurses - please note that when you bend rules based on your own personal reasons (and not obvious ones like the ones i listed above) - you are setting up your co-workers.

just want to get some feedback from those of you who work in icu's regarding visitation. does your hospital allow open visitation or do you have set visiting hours? if you have set visiting hours, are they adhered to? and most of all - what are your opinions regarding this issue? i currently work in an 11 bed sicu and management is considering open visitation. our visiting hours are currently 11am-1pm, 3-4pm and 7:30-8:30pm. i really think i might quit if they make it an open icu. i work in a very wealthy are where it is hard enough to deal with the clientele (let alone their family members) who are used to having everything the way they want just because they are loaded. i'm busy enough tending to my critical patients without having to worry about family member's being thirsty or "too cold". what has this world come to?????

what about people who say "pacific" instead of "specific" - that one drives me BONKERS!!!

never said anything about unions, my friend. i've never worked at a union hospital and don't know how necessary they are. but i do know that until nurses stop accepting lessening standards in how we are being treated as professional employees and keep accepting more and more demands from administration in everything from our workload to our benefits, we will continue to be pressed. if management were to focus on the well-being of their staff - all the rest would fall in place.

Please don't spend another minute worrying about this patient and their complaint. Are you kidding me? If I had even one penny for every ridiculous complaint I've heard in my unit I could retire happily. How nice it would be to tell these folks what I really think (and at times I do in an off-handed manner). My opinion is that hospitals have lost their minds on this whole patient satisfaction thing. Don't get me wrong - of course we want our patients to be safe, happy and comfortable and we, as nurses, should not be allowed to be unprofessional in dealing with them or their family members. BUT...this is not a restaurant and my job is not to appease a patient's every whim - especially when that patient is especially and apparently difficult. I have found that if you really "lay down the law" with patients while remaining completely professional, they usually respond more realistically. Just don't beat yourself up over this issue or lose any more sleep over it.

Look, there's obviously huge problems when it comes to what nurses are expected to do in relation to what the compensation is. It is high time that nurses realize that WE ARE THE COMMODITY here. It also takes a group of nurses banding together to bring change. As long as you have those nurses who will take unsafe assignments, be pressured into coming in on their off days, failing to speak up even when they feel what they are being told/being forced to do is wrong - the harder is will be for us to get ahead as a profession. In my opinion aside from the obvious recruitment vs. retention issues that is so obvious to everyone but management, there is also the problem now of patient satisfaction vs. staff satisfaction. Hospital administration has everything upside down and until we demand that things be turned around, we will continue to be treated as blue collar workers. WE ALL HAVE COLLEGE DEGREES - let's use our noggins and try to work together on creating change. The relationship between staff and management is no different than any other bad relationship - they do what they do BECAUSE THEY CAN. Once nurses start making our own demands and sticking to our guns as a whole, things will turn. This is no easy task, but unless we are willing to continue to be treated this way, there has to be a change.

i previously worked in a level III nicu in omaha (children's) for several years. i would be happy to answer your questions if you email me privately. if i don't hear from you - believe everything you hear about the management issues.

Hello to everyone. I've been reading from this site for quite a while and have found lots of great advice and information through reading other people's posts. I would like to get some input from those of you who feel qualified regarding my upcoming applications for CRNA school. As just about everyone here, I am extremely nervous (and excited) at the opportunity to apply and, ultimately, to be accepted into a program. I graduated with a ADN in 2001 and started working in a level III neonatatal intensive care unit and stayed there for close to four years. During that time I completed my BSN at a state university. It was also during that time that I decided that I was going to "go for it" and start steering myself towards CRNA school. I changed fields and got into adult CVICU. I did this for about a year and then decided to travel nurse in order to make more money and pay off my debt in order to prepare for not working for a few years. While travelling, I started doing adult SICU and am currently in a permanent position (where I did my first travel assignment). I now have a total of two years adult critical care experience. I am proud to say that I have accomplished my goal of having zero debt and am ready to apply. I am thinking now that I would like to practice pediatric anesthesia. I guess I would just like some overall advice. Specifically, I am a bit concerned that I don't belong to any professional organizations. I guess I just haven't taken the time with all the moving around I've done literally and between fields. I will begin the application process in the upcoming months. I am currently studying for my GRE and will probably apply ahead of those results. Oh, my overall GPA is 3.76. No organic chemistry but Chem I & Chem II with labs. I will also be taking a course this summer which combines Gen Chem, BioChem and Organic Chem - mostly as a chem refresher and to touch on the subjects of biochem and organic. Thanks in advance for any input. cece