Reeney78

On all the Kaplan Question trainer/Q Bank quizzes, I scored between 58-72% and passed NCLEX with 75 questions. All of my classmates who have taken the exam also passed with 75 questions, scoring in the same range. 95% on the Kaplan questions sounds really high- I never scored even close to that!!!!! Good luck!!!

I graduated nursing school not too long ago, and have been on orientation for a few weeks- and I still feel your pain! I know the nursing assistants laugh at me under their breath when I am helping them bathe one of my patients b/c I am such a spaz when it comes to bed baths, changing beds, etc. I am planning to spend some time with them on orientation so I can learn what may seem like basic skills to some, but what I find one of the most stressful parts of the day! Don't get me wrong, I can do it at this point, but I never do it as well as they do... Maybe your clinical instructor would let you and the other students spend some time shadowing a nursing assistant on day 1 of clinicals? That might help make you more comfortable. They can teach you the "tricks of the trade."

I can only speak from an undergraduate nursing perspective, but I'll share anyway... Before we started clinicals, my school told us how heavily recruited we would be, both during our clinicals and by hospitals we did not have clinicals at... I didn't believe them, but they were right!!! I found that the reputation of the school's nursing program (and in your case NP program) goes a long way. I am sure UConn's program has a very strong rep. Although my present staff nursing position is on a floor that I did a clinical on, many of my classmates from the second degree program I just graduated from received job offers from hospitals we were not involved with. For my program at least, we used the same 3-4 hospitals, but I have classmates working at hospitals all over Connecticut and many in NYC. Hope this helps...

nursekristy, I'm thinking the same thing... I've been on accutane and I hope I didn't smell either!!! Both my sisters have been on it as well, but I don't remember any odor...

Amreen, You are not alone!! I just started orientation as a graduate nurse on a floor I did one of my clinicals on. I can't imagine in a few weeks being on my own with multiple patients! My fellow nurses are also great, and they assure me that my nervousness is normal and expected. Since I am not an experienced nurse I can't give you any great advice But, I have been told that it is important to be a little nervous- it keeps you on your toes and helps ensure that you will ask for help when you don't know how to do something or are unsure of something, rather then attempting a procedure (and doing it incorrectly) or making a judgement call that is incorrect. I had trouble sleeping the first week of orientation because I was afraid I would sleep through my alarm, it wouldn't go off, etc. Now I set an alarm clock, as well as the alarm on my cell phone to ensure I am woken up by one of them. It helps me sleep better because I'm not constantly waking up in a panic!

I can't answer your question directly, as I just started orientation as a new grad 3 days ago and have never been a part of an inspection or site visit. But, does your organization have a regulatory affairs department (or person) whose role is to oversee that the hospital is operating up to the standards of the Joint Commission, Health Department, etc? If so, that may be a good place to start to get some information.

I am a new grad starting my job in 2 days, so posts like this are really helpful! I think it's great that you are turning this into a learning experience for others.

Hi Laurenann, Congrats on your upcoming graduation next month- I'll be done next month too and I can't wait! I know Connecticut WILL hire pre-NCLEX nurses- I'm starting my job in September and won't be sitting for the exam until October. I am not sure about all of New York, but I know of at least some of the hospitals in NYC will not let you work before you pass the boards. This may be hospital specific or may be a statewide thing, not sure. Unfortunately I don't know about any other states, but hopefully this helps! Good luck in your job search!