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DJLOP - You can call the admin office at EVC (Tammy or Sheila) to confirm, but I believe you need to complete all your pre-reqs BEFORE the application deadline. The deadlines are dynamic. This summer, for example, there was a mid-July deadline for Spring '11. If you had outstanding prereqs and finished them during the first summer session, you were eligible to apply. When I applied, I completed my pre- and co-reqs by fall of 2006 (classes were done and grades were posted by mid-December) to be eligible for the February 2007 deadline (Fall 2007 start). I got my admission letter in May and took nursing skills in June.

On an excellent, rare night I have 5 patients. Average, 90% of the time, is 6 patients. Our unit takes ortho, GI, and gyn post-ops and we have many sick medical patients, as well (CHF/dialysis/oncology, etc). We are a 62-bed unit, and at night we have two techs to cover up to 52 patients (once census hits 53, we get a third tech). I forgot to mention - our rooms have dynamaps mounted on the walls, as well as a thermometer in each room. So when I go in to meet a patient, I strap on the BP cuff, clip on the pulse ox, and run the machine while I'm checking namebands, looking at incisions, checking NGTs, PCAs, etc. I know I'd be less keen on getting my own VS if we had to use portable dynamaps. The individual dynamaps are a huge deal to me, especially considering the number of post-op admissions we have - enough patients on frequent vitals could tie up all the dynamaps fast!

Often, CNAs do need help prioritizing (some don't, especially nursing student CNAs). Effective communication between both parties is crucial. However, I agree with Talondora1. When I have 0300 sugars, I check them myself or ask another RN. There is usually a good reason the MD has ordered 0300 sugars. I think an RN's decision to take on such tasks or delegate them is a personal choice determined by one's nursing style. However, as a former CNA myself and also a recent nurse (~12 months), my observation is that some CNAs have it together and some don't. Some RNs have it together and some don't. That's the way it is. If not already done, I prefer to get my own vitals when I assess rather than wait for the CNA to make rounds. Same with I&Os and accuchecks. If I have the time to do these nursing takes, I do them, and when I am swamped, I am happy to have CNAs on our staff who can take over. Many nurses on my floor, rather than getting up to do their own I&Os, straighten up rooms, fill pitchers, etc. will sit and joke, talk, visit, read magazines, etc, at the nurses' station while the CNAs are racing around to complete their tasks. Because I am willing to do as much of my own patient care as I can, and because I'm willing to help out anyone, RN or CNA, when I am caught up, it is easy for me to find help when I truly need it. That said, these particular CNAs you mentioned may not last much longer (especially if they are burned out) and hopefully they will be replaced by more attentive and attuned CNAs. Good luck to you.

mhayley, I received your PM but do not have permission to send PMs yet. If you can see my email address in my profile please shoot me an email and I can fill you in on my experiences in the online RN program!

Any RNs start this program in the last year or so? How do you like it? I'm considering it and would love some feedback!

Hello! I am graduating from the ADN program in May and I've really enjoyed it. I remember how it felt to not know quite what to expect, so I will try to answer your questions: Typical schedule truly varies by level (semester). I am in the online program (distance learning), which really helps cut down on driving time and class time if you're the kind of student who learns best independently. First semester be prepared to spend approx. 16 hrs/week at clinical (over two days) and at least one day a week on campus for learning labs (you'll learn all skills except IV stuff during level 1). More days if you're on-site, so you may be going in five days a week. Generally no weekends, but there is an occasional fri/sat clinical and you don't always get your first clinical choice (site plus days and times). Second semester we had a lot of labs for IV skills during the first two weeks, then it was just two days of clinical (8 hrs/day) plus the exam days. LOTS OF CLINICAL HOMEWORK during this semester, it is rough! Third semester is a little nicer, since this is when you'll have your maternity rotations and they are generally 12 hrs/day, but just one day a week. Fourth semester is fantastic. One clinical day a week (this varies by instructor, I got lucky!) plus optional class on Tuesday morning. No labs. So much easier! There are hour requirements for each clinical, usually right under 200 hours/semester. So your clinical days will be distributed to make sure you get in the 192 hours or whatever the requirement is. I think we knew about two weeks ahead of the semester start what our clinical schedule would be. I don't have kids, but many students do and childcare can be tricky to arrange on such short notice, so be prepared for whimsical, frustrating scheduling issues! I LOVE the online program, I would 100% do it all over again. I've been able to work 20-30 hours a week and maintain good grades because I can schedule my study time around my work schedule. What I wish someone had told me? Work as a CA or PCT before you start nursing school, it can be a great way to feel out nursing and discover if it's a good fit for you. I start working as a CA after my second semester and it's helped tremendously with school! Best of luck to you - enjoy the ride! It goes fast.

I took phys in the fall with **** *******. He's okay, overall very fair and reasonable. He has 25+ experience teaching physiology. If I remember correctly he curved the exams. I don't recommend any class in the summer! But I know that taking summer classes means you can apply for the spring semester, so if you're up to the challenge go for it so you can get your application in. The prereqs seemed to drag on forever, but once you're in the RN program the time will fly. I graduate in May and it feels like I just started!

I'm a third-semester RN student at ACC. I applied in January of 07 and got in right away with a solid A/B avg in my prereqs. When I was on campus last fall, there were signs encouraging students who were still in the process of completing prereqs to apply because they had too many vacant seats after they doubled the number of students starting the program each semester (in the past, prereqs had to be entirely completed before application to the program). You have a great chance of getting in right away. They are looking to eliminate the wait period altogether, and a lot of that is because of pressure from local hospitals (in the fall of 2006, the local hospitals gave the ADN program an $875,000 grant to fund more faculty positions and student seats).

Double-check their website to confirm this, but I'm pretty sure they take applications for their LVN mobility program in the spring and the mobility track RN program begins only in the fall. I believe the mobility class that entered this fall took a while to fill because ACC has added quite a few seats to their RN program, so right now there are more seats than students. The traditional RN program admitted 150-160 students for this fall alone, plus approx. 40 LVN-to-RN students. As a result of the increase in size, the RN class for the spring was not full as of early September and the deadline for admission is open until the class is full. This is a good time to be applying to nursing school, I guess! ACC is trying to eliminate a waiting period altogether and get students admitted the first semester they apply, and a lot of that has to do with pressure from local hospitals to supply more nurses as the hospitals continue to expand. (There was an article in yesterday's Austin-American Statesman about the number of new hospitals and outpatient clinics that will open in central Texas over the next two years.) Also, I think the only prereqs that expire are microbiology and maybe physiology; again, you can confirm this at their website.

Hello! I am currently an ADN student at ACC and love it. I don't know any RNs who went through ACC's mobility LVN-to-RN program, but ACC does have high NCLEX pass rates (approx. 97%). At my clinical last week I talked to a dialysis nurse who graduated last year - her entire class passed the NCLEX on the first attempt! The instructors are wonderful. Good luck!

I am a first semester online ADN student at ACC and I love it - it's so much better than I expected it to be. At my clinical site, there are a handful of ACC grads (including some recent grads) - ACC students don't have a problem landing jobs in town. The NCLEX pass rate is 97%. It's challenging and very time-consuming, but the instructors are great and very supportive. As far as wait lists, ACC recently expanded their ADN program and as of 9/5/07, they had not filled all their spring ADN class! The wait time to begin the program is considerably shorter than it was a few years ago.

Thanks, austinrnguy. Did you apply specifically for a GAIN CA position at Seton, or did you apply for a regular CA job? I've heard that Seton's benefits include tuition reimbursement - is this true? I volunteered at Children's several years back, and I enjoyed the experience. Most of the CAs on the unit I was assigned to were ACC nursing students, and the nurses were all friendly.

Hi! I'm curious to hear from anyone who's worked for any of the St. David locations in Austin. I'm considering applying for a GAIN position this summer after I finish my skills class but before I begin nursing school full-time. Thanks in advance!

Forgot to add...I think recently there have been about 90 seats for the RN program each semester. It sounds like that could increase to anywhere between 110 and 200 seats total per semester, with the goal of eliminating the waiting period to begin the RN program (or at least capping the wait period at one semester, max).

Not sure if this helps, but here goes. My lab partner worked in a OBGYN office in central Austin and said that LVNs in the office had told her the job market for LVNs is bleak. One LVN said if she left her current job, she wouldn't be able to find another. (I don't know if she meant another nursing job period, or another similar position.) I also considered applying to the LVN program at ACC because I talked to other students who seemed to get into the program quickly, and I'd heard about the long waits for RN programs. However, I decided to forge ahead and just apply to the RN program since that's what I really want to do and I got in right away. At the CAP session I went to in January, the nursing dept. talked about adding many more seats to their program, possibly as early as this fall. It sounds like the hospitals are putting pressure on the schools (both UT and ACC) to add more seats, and the hospitals seem to be willing to do their part by funding these seats and offering more space in the hospitals for nursing clinicals. With the three new hospitals opening in North Austin/Williamson county in the next couple years, I suspect the hospitals are feeling the pinch of the nursing shortage, even here where there are two RN programs graduating nurses 2-3 times a year.