Elizabeth1

Wow, it's been a long time since I've been on here. Someone asked me if I ever went back to floor nursing. Unfortunately, I have not. I think about it EVERY DAY and miss it so much. I never thought I would say those words. We are now living in a rural community with almost no opportunity for me to go back to nursing. I have not taken a refresher, but have been throwing around the idea of going back to school to become a nurse practitioner. Since we are stuck here for a while, I feel like I should make use of my time. I'm not sure what I'm going to do. I'm as lost today as I was last year, but I'm really hoping that I'll still be able to return some day.

Thank you for the replies. I also wanted to thank JAHRA for her advice. I can't send private messages b/c I don' thave enough posts yet; otherwise, I would have thank you that way. This is all great advice. I've been having fun getting books from the library (2010 or newer) and refreshing my knowledge. I'm surprised how much is stored away in my brain;) I think once I'm ready to go back to work, I'll take the refresher course with clinical hours, but for now I'll just have fun studying on my own and doing CEs!!

Thanks for the advice. I'll leave it at that.

No problem, here it is: http://www.mccn.edu/academic-programs/online-rn-refresher-course.html If you take it, please let me know how it goes:)

You will when you move to VA. I move all the time with the military and you have to hold a license in the state you physcally reside in. For example, if you reside in NC, you must hold your license there. However, you are able to practice in any of the compact states. This is very helpful for people who do triage telephone nursing accross multiple states. They do not have to get a license in EVERY state, only the state in which they reside, as long as it is part of the compact.

Because VA and NC are compact states, you do not need two different licenses. You are considered licensed in VA. When you physically move to VA, you will need to apply for license by endorsment, but until you live (physical address in VA) there you will not be able to get a VA license due to the compact aggreement.

I've been thinking about taking a refresher course because I have been a SAHM for almost 5 years. My husband is in the military so until my kids are all in school, it's just too difficult to return to work at this time, even PRN. When you move every 1-3 years it makes it pretty difficult. Anyway, has anybody ever taken a refresher course, but not done the clinical portion? I'm wondering if it is a huge waste of my time or if it's worth it to keep updated on current information. I can do the entire refesher online, but obviously clincial hours are all in a hospital / clinic setting. Once again, I run into problems with my husband's career. Any opinions? Also, does anyone else feel like they could still go right back to nursing with no problem after 5 years? I swear, I have not forgotten a thing. I think it's terrible that we are considered unemployable after 5 years:(