ange26s

Yes! Absolutely you can ask to work day shift! I have been a nurse for 7 yrs and I only work day shift, from day one! This is my advice I give anyone going into the medical field, you have to be aggressive to get what you truly want! Go in with a smile & dont be afraid to tell managers what you need. Nurses get stuck because they choose to be stuck, dont let bitter nurses sway you from getting what you want and deserve. I started on med/surg day shift. I now work in interventional radiology & just recently accepted a fluoroscopy lab position with the federal gov. I LOVE my job, im not bitter & I am happy. I go after what I want & I have never ever been turned down for the jobs in which I apply for & interview for. Please be very positive & confident! Thats the key! Btw my new salary exceeds the nurses I worked w/ that have been in it for 15+ yrs.. (For 7 yrs in I have worked my butt off to become very marketable) Its all in confidence & drive!! Best of luck!

i work on a busy 37 bed medical/telemetry unit.we have a max of 6 pts day or night.typically i get 5.with the acuity of our pts we should really get 4.i could not imagine getting moe than 6! to me thats compromising pt safety and your license.we have a monitor tech,secretary,2-3 nursing aids,a charge nurse that takes 1-3 pts, a resource nurse that does not take pts but helps w/admission and discharge pp and helps with any questions if ur pt starts to crash or u st to drown! we also have an iv team,respiratory therapy,etc. and to be honesti think i work at a horrible hospital.we all think our ratios need to be less.i always feel so overwhelmed and like im missing something.our pts r really sick and i think if our ratio increased alot of people would quit including me!

I definitly feel the same! I have been precepting for a month now and Im up to 3 patients,but I feel like I have NO clue what Im doing half the time and Im soo slow! Im constantly nervous when giving meds and Im always forgetting to do things.My preceptor has been great,but I feel like shes picking up my slack.My charting is always behind,I forget to check orders or I spend too much time on one thing which messes me up with another thing.Im scared Im gonna be that nurse everyone hates to work with or receive report from.My preceptor wants me to build myself up to four patients next week,but I dont feel ready.I feel like I havent got the balance between paperwork and procedures,and I feel like I never will.Its like as soon as I step on the unit after receiving report Im looking up labs,meds,assessing,then start giving meds(which takes me forever),checking orders,calling the docs over import info,calling pharmacy for not having a med on the unit which puts me behind,changing tubings,st IV,D/C pt,doing an admission,turning pt,etc....... I can't keep up!sometimes I dont use the bathroom till late afternoon.I watch the other nurses just doing their thing with no prob. I feel like Im never going to get to that point.Trust me,you are not alone!

hello all! first i would like to say this thread is not meant to offend anybody,but just give a little personal insight on my feeling about med-surg.i am a new grad working med-surg for about 4wks now.i work 3 12hour dayshifts.when i was in ns i never knew what i wanted to to do.i had friends that just knew they wanted to work mother-baby or pacu,etc. not me! so i made the decision to work med-surg because i felt it would give me a nice foundation and may steer me in the direction of a more specialized area.so with that here i am.i honestly like it.i love being a nurse,i like my patient population,and im just going with the flow.are things perfect? no they are not.we are short staffed,we have some negative people, and it gets tough.im lucky because i have an awesome preceptor.i have taken on 3 patients so far and im building up to 6.what bothers me more than anything is when people say ugly things about med-surg such as "yuck" or "gross" how demeaning is that to my patients? they dont want to be there and when someone says a crude remark about my choice to be a med-surg nurse it upsets me.i have had loved ones that had to be in the hospital on a med-surg floor,and when someone says its a "dirty" floor i feel like they are calling my loved one dirty.and this same feeling i have goes toward my patients.these people are sick and some are dying.i think its great if someone loves what they do for a living and we as nurses need to show eachother respect fo the areas we chose!

Hang in there everyone,before you know it you will have your much deserved title!I can't believe I'm done with NS and I'm an RN now.I remember coming to this site while doing my prereqs and just waiting for the day to say I'm an RN! Stay strong and never forget these days when you do finish.always stay humble and remember how hard you worked and how bad you wanted to become a nurse!I wish you all the best

I believe the pay increases with your raises which are based off of your yearly evaluations.I would contact a nursing recruiter(just call human resources) and one of them can send you an information packet about benefits and etc. They can also let you know which units are still hiring new grads.

Hello, I live in Fayetteville and the new grad pay is $20.20/hr I will be working nights so I have a shift diff of $4 nights and $3.50 wk.ends.As far as I know the VA is on a hiring freeze and not hiring any new grads.Womack army medical center on Ft.Bragg does not hire ANY new grads(you must have at least 1 yr expierence) and vets and army wives get priority.CapeFear has hired ALOT of new grads and has many floors to choose from.Im not sure how it goes right now since most of the hiring has been done,but there are still floors that def. need the help and have positions open.HighSmith Reiney is part of CapeFear and usually hires new grads with no prob(it is LTAC).The cost of living is increasing here and its getting crowded.We're expecting a lg. growth by 2011(approx.25,000 soldiers plus family members).I had no prob getting a job and the orientation has been good so far.Im sure you wouldnt have any problems finding a job at CapeFear.as far as the other places it dosent hurt to apply, you may just get hired! If you have any other questions dont hesitate to ask(I know the rundown on neighborhoods,schools,etc. I grew up here).GoodLuck with school and happy job hunting!(BTW I was hired in March and just st. recently):)

wow, I cant imagine a hospital asking a new grad to be charge after 2-3 wks.I would say that is a horrible expierence.At my hospital (im n orientation now) we are in orientation for 3 wks in nursing core classes, we precept for a min. of 6 weeks and then we meet with our nursing educator every friday for 3 months.We have to be checked off on all of our skills, and we are NOT expected to know anything at this point.I know nurses that have 3 years experience and still feel uncomfortable.My PCM told me during my interview she didnt expect me to be fully functioning till around November or so.The hospital I work for does not throw you to the wolves,That to me is compromising patient safety and ruining your self-esteem.Do not put yourself down and dont settle for less.Try to locate a hospital that has a strong orientation for new grads.When given the oppurtunity you will become more confident.You have the heart, you just need the skill enhancement taught the right way.I wish you the best!

I feel your pain! I have terrible insomnia.I love ambien,but I stopped taking meds b/c I dont want to depend off it to sleep.I have tried everything in the book to try to sleep.The funny thing is I actually slept great the night before I took boards.Now, Im waiting for my results and sleep is not happening! My husband lays down and is out minutes later.Im so jealous.It makes me feel better that im not the ony one wide eyed at 3am!

I understand your frustration Perfectly.I just took NCLEX yesterday and honestly, dont focus so much on the score,but the rationale of the answer.If you got something wrong just make sure you look up the material and get a good understanding of it.The NCLEX test questions were set up differently than kaplan or any other nclex style question I was used to.I did not do that great on the diagnostic and readiness test.My scores were doing a yo-yo dance, so we'll see.I got 75 questions and I hope that was a passing 75 and not a failing 75! stay positive and you can do this!

i take the nclex-rn june 17th! im really nervous and i just keep telling myself " you will pass! you will beat that test!" best wishes to all testing ( we will be nurses ) and congratulations to those who have passed!!

ok, the big day is approaching! after coutless hours of studying, many tears shed, days gone by, im finally taking the nclex! my big day is wed. the 17th of june. i remember coming to this site as a prereq. student wishing i was the one in ns, wishing i was about to graduate and take nclex.so to those of you waiting,your day will be here! i need some help though.does anyone have any advice about what i should eat the day of my test? i am taking boards at 2pm.i dont want to go on an empty stomach, but i dont want to be rolled in the room! i dont want to feel full and sleepy, but i dont want to be shakey and hungry either.im debating on what time i should eat lunch. im really excited and very nervous at the same time.i will graciously accept any and all advice and personal stories! thanx:d

Congrats!! That is a real accomplishment:yeah: I take my NCLEX on the 17th and im so nervous.I have not studied nearly as much as you did.I took Kaplan and I have been studying for three wks as well,but I have been doing 50-150 quest. a day and just reviewing content.I read through the test at the end and study that area I was weak on.I also make focused test of content I scored low on and review it.I really do not feel prepared.I am so scared! By the way, what is a SATA quest?

so i just graduated last week and was cloud 9 unitl i started the kaplan course this week. i left ns feeling comfortable and self-confident with passing the nclex.i had always studied really hard during ns and did well on our test.now, im doing terrible according to kaplan and have a low chance of passing boards.my friends seem to be doing well on their test and are suppose to have a great chance at passing boards.whats wrong with me? how did i go from being a b student to feeling so inadequate on tests? im missing even the obvious questions.i tried talking to the kaplan instructor about it, and was told i was lacking critical thinking on test taking skills.i cant get out of this rut of feeling so dumb and nervous! i will be taking boards in approx. 3 wks. and im scared all my hard work will mean nothing if i can't get my license they really have broken down my self-confidence.

I definitly spent anywhere from 40-60 hrs a week on NS. It was more time consuming the first couple semesters, but the content definitly became harder after each semester. I know people who didn't spend as much time as I did and their grades did reflect it. If you want to keep your GPA high, plan to have no life. Im not trying to scare you, but its hard to comprehend the amount of work, time, and energy you have to put into NS until you are in it. GOODLUCK and STAY POSITIVE!!