arual56

Thanks. It wasn't easy, but I think I had it a lot easier than those who have kids and a husband at home. I would like to find the person who believes that a mother/father, who doesn't work outside the home, doesn't work. What a load of poop! And for all of those people who have kids and a hubby and work, they are truely the heros of us all. I'm so glad that you are able to take the time off and focus on school. If you need a shoulder, ear, prayer, help, or just a sounding board, let me know. If we can't be here for each other who will be?:nuke:

I am an older single mom with kids who are grown and on their own. Working, even part time while you are in nursing school, is a challenge. Many people are lucky enough to be able to quit thier jobs and just be a student (as if that is not enough to do). I was not one of those. Being single, I had no one to help me pay my bills, but unlike Miarose, I also didn't have someone there that was unsupportive of my decision. I worked full time in the ER (as a PCT during the first two blocks and as an LPN during the last two blocks) during nursing school. It was hard, and it took a great deal of time management and tenacity, especially when I felt like I just couldn't go any further. But I did manage to accomplish all that was expected of me. I never missed a clinical day and thankfully, did not have to call off work. I was very tired most of the time. But I graduated in Dec '07 and took my boards end of Jan '08, and passed! I post this for those who may be in the same position. It is much harder to work and go to school, but it can be done and you can do it. For anyone who can afford to be solely a student, yeah for you. That is great. But for those of you who must work through this time, don't loose faith. And if you need a shoulder, a kind word, a sympathetic ear, remember that there are many people here who were probably in the same situation. Hang tough. Our prayers are with you.

Please be aware that yelling at me will get you no where. My most recent answer to a woman who came to the ER with a splinter less than 1/4 inch long in her finger for two days with minor swelling and redness who yelled at me three times in 20 minutes for taking two patients with active MI's and a pt with a traumatic injury from a chain saw to the lateral thigh all the way to the bone, driven in by his boss: "Miss, I understand you are in pain, but this is not a first come, first served facility. We take patients based on who is hurt the worst, sick the worst or dying the fastest. So in this case, the fact that we are not rushing you into a room to be taken care of is actually a good thing. However, you do have three choices in how to handle this situation. You can have a seat and we will take care of you as soon as we have an opening. You can sign out AMA, which I don't encourage, but it is an option and I will be happy to get the paper work for you. Or, I can call security and they will assist you to sit down and remain calm until we can see you. It is your choice." Of course, as I was saying the part about security I was standing up to reach for the phone. The pt who was max 5'1" seemed to take issue with my 6'2" frame, became very docile and immediately took a seat. I don't know whether standing up to take care of these pt's is a good thing or not. Hehehe.

You are awesome, not just for passing, but for your tenacity! Congratulations. Be proud of yourself and know that there are others who are proud of you as well.

Congratulations! Well done.

I don't know what kind of facility you work in, but our orientation at the hospital I work at is any where from 16 weeks to 6 months (longer if you need it). Don't think you have to put what you have worked long and hard for on the line because someone else can't keep staff, or a decent attitude, together. If they are so short handed that theyonly gave you 2 days orientation, that is a good sign that they treat everyone that way. You complaining may get you nothing but more trouble. Check your agreement. If you can, get away from there as soon as you can. If they don't care about you, or what you are, or are not, capable of doing yet; they don't care how it affects their pts either. If that is the case, you could be the one who ends up getting sued and they wouldn't think anything of it, as long as it isn't them.

Thanks. Having kids wasn't this hard.

Thank you soooo much. I was beginning to wonder if I would ever get done.

I graduated in Dec '07 as well. We were given the option of taking the Kaplan review, which I did, but I tested Jan, 28th and passed. Unfortunately, I had to wait 2 days for the results to post so I could know that I passed. I am surprised that your school is requiring you to take the review. Our employeer paid for us to take it but thankfully, it did not slow down the school getting our paper work for completion to the state board of nursing. And as such, did not delay our ability to register and take our NCLEX tests. If you are not getting your school is not getting your completion papers to the state board until after you finish your review, it maybe a month or more before you can test. That also depends on the state you are in, the board of nursing for your state, and their waiting list to test.

Oh my God! It took two days of tears, depression, and fear:idea: before my results were finally posted on line with the AZBN. And when it finally posted, I wasn't anywhere near a computer. Thank God for friends who called to congratulate. That makes over half of my graduating class passing the NCLEX the first time taking it. YEAH~YEAH to everyone who passed.:cheers:

I tested out of my RN program after the first two blocks so that I would be able to work as an LPN for the last two blocks. I worked in the ER at one of the hospitals here in Tucson. Predominately, I was allowed to operate and function in one of two capacities in the ER. I either helped out in triaging people in Triage, (all but the initial assessment) or I ran the fast track area caring for patients who did not have a high acuity, most of the time. The level of acuity depended significantly on who was running triage since I periodically did get patients who ultimately ended up having heart attacks, peritonsilar abcesses, hot appy, etc. Thankfully, that wasn't too often. The days were twelve hours long and remarkably fullfilling. I was able to give IM injections, start IV's, administer PO meds, perform dressing changes, apply splints, assist with casting, and the most important, relaying information to the doctors that may not have been caught in triage or did not become evident until the pt was in the fast track area. I caught a few pts that should have been placed with an RN in the ACL section, but were mis-triaged. Every day was new, and every day brought new challenges and lessons. How the average day went depended a great deal on the day. If we were holding pts, I might be the only nurse that day that was moving patients. If it was slow, you found that a lot of your patients were much more willing to be pleasant even when they didn't feel well. I would encourage any nursing student to take the interm step. You learn and experience so much more than if you remain working as a CNA or TECH, and when you ask questions about the patients, the other nurses are not as inclined to tell you that the information/procedure is out of your scope. They are often more willing to explain and take the opportunity to teach.

I didn't go through an LPN program but did test out after the second block of the RN program so that I could work as an LPN during the last two blocks. I think it is a great idea and wonder why more people don't go that route. You get more of an opportunity to use the skills you have learned in the first two blocks, and have a greater sense of responsibility and autonomy as an LPN than as working as a NA or PCT. But if you are working in a facility that doesn't utilize LPN's you may be looking for a new job sooner than you expected. Check into what your job can do for you in that capacity before you take that step.

I just passed my NCLEX, (an evil test I might add) and the only part that we were required to do for our classes through MCC was the HESI tests at the end of blocks 2 & 4. I also attended the Kaplan review. From the sounds of it, the Kaplan must be a great deal better than the HESI. It was four days with a 180 question review test to tell you how your were doing and how well they predicted you would do on the NCLEX prior to the review, and approximately 3.5 days of doing practice questions in the class, followed by another 180 question prep test to see if you had gotten the general idea of how to pass the NCLEX. At the end they provided you with another read out as to how you were predicted to do on the NCLEX after the class. Either way, I would recommend the Kaplan NCLEX study guide, which comes with a CD of questions, before I would recommend the Saunders. The Kaplan seemed to me to be more in line with what was actually asked on the NCLEX. For those who have tested and passed, congratulations. For those who tested and didn't pass, you'll pass next time. For those of you who haven't tested; Kaplan told us that the NCLEX was like going through labor. . . only 10 times worse. Just remember that none of these review programs is intended to teach you content the way your nursing classes did. The review programs are there to teach you how to pass the NCLEX test. Smile, you will do fine.

I just graduated from MCC Rio Salado Program. Like every other program, it has its bumps and holes. The third block was probably very much like the third block you just failed. However, be aware that, as many others have told you, a 76% is required to pass. For classes with only a final exam you must earn a 76% or better on that single test. It doesn't matter what you get on the quizzes or other assignments until you have passed that test with 76%. If you have classes with one or two midterms and a final, the requirement is 76% or better average between the tests. After that the grades you make on the quizzes etc. are figured in. The 76% passing is standard for the state of Arizona. I can tell you that for the first 3 blocks that I took with MCC Rio, I would not have incouraged my worst enemy to attend the program. It says a lot for the school that they went through a complete administrative housecleaning between our 3rd and 4th blocks. The nursing program has a new director named Sue Adams, and a completely new staff to work with and assist students. I am still not thrilled with their program, but I have to admit that the new staff seems much more willing to be of assistance to the students. The old staff was not as accomodating. Like any program there are problems, and if you are looking for the easy way out, don't take this class. It is more difficult than the traditional classes simply because you have to stay on top of all of your didactic lessons and be prepared for your clinicals without having a teacher sitting over you reminding you of every little thing. And since you don't have a teacher lecturing to you for 3-5 hours at a time, you must also be willing to expand your knowledge beyond what is in your text books. Make sure that you use all the resources available to you. Look things up on the internet, ask health care co-workers or, if you have questions about the pharmalogical end of things, think about things like calling your local pharmacist. I did that with regard to medications for which licorice was contraindicated. I could not figure out if that meant black licorice, all the colours of licorice or if it was the herbal root licorice and the contraindication had nothing to do with the candy. My local pharmacist was kind enough to help me understand a great deal about a lot of the meds I was having problems with. Don't know if this will help, but do your homework and don't try to transfer without knowing more about the next ground you will be stepping onto.