txnursingqt

I would take them both together with no hesistation. Micro has been sooooo easy. I have taken Chem and it was easy too. In my micro class Chem was not a pre-req and honestly there was not much chem to it at all (don't know if that is just my school). Just my but I found them both to be pretty simple. I also look at it like this, Biology students do it all the time. So do pre-med students! If they can do it so can I. Good luck.

A lady in my Micro class just graduated in Aug as a LVN. She is working at our local hospital and was hired to float. She said she has loved all the experience but it has been extremely hard and most nights she is sick to her stomach before work. She said they got a very small orientation period and basically was just thrown to the wolves. She is already thinking about leaving nursing or at least finding a new job. There is no way as a new graduate that I would work as a float nurse. The agency that I do staffing for doesn't like to hire any nurse unless they have a years experience, since that is what most facilites require. I won't say it doesn't happen where newer grads are hired but that is definitely not the norm. And if it does happen there might be problems. I just recently had a nurse on assignment in East Texas and she only had 6 months experience, she made some errors and has now been DNR (do not return) by the facility. She just screwed herself there, while if she would have waited and had more experience I doubt that would have happened. They just expect more from agency nurses and it is easy to be DNR by a facility.

My MIL called my DH tonight at work and told him that CPS came today but that they didn't find anything and said they are cleared. She also told him that my BIL got a job driving a truck and is leaving on Monday and that his wife is going to move into an apt as soon as he gets his first check. She said that "Sally" is still going to come there. Guess we will see. All I know is that I did what I could and had to report what I know.

Yes it is very hard to make these decisions. I come from a family that is fairly normal, yet still dysfunctional in its own ways, but nothing like DH family. He doesn't want to live like them at all but I know he is torn because he loves them all so much. Just the other day he told his mother that he wishes he had a "normal" family and she got very offended and said that she is normal, that everyone is just crazy. I sometimes feel sorry for her but then again she makes the choices to put up with it all. She is one of those women who has no backbone and lives in a constant state of denial. Oh, the stories that I could tell. My DH and his siblings got away with murder because she just turned a blind eye. They have pictures from a family trip to the tropics in their living room and the pictures are of the kids drinking beer (at age of 11-15yrs old) and they tell stories all the time about how they bought crack rocks from the locals. She says she didn't know about it, but hello, isn't it just as bad if you didn't know it was going on right in front of your nose? Plus there are pictures of them all together at the table drinking. It just blows my mind. I come from a family of very opinionated and strong women and if anything happens in my family the offender is definitely going to hear it! LOL Plus my older sister is a family law attorney and is very involved with abused children and acts as an advocate. She advised me to make the report that I did.

I have witnessed them smoking marijuana in front of the children. I am ashamed to say that I did not call CPS then. I know that I should have and at that point I didn't want to get involved. I guess the reason that I have had a change of heart is that I see it just getting worse. I know for a fact that my BIL is doing meth, we found some of it in the spare bedroom and that was one of the reasons that my husband and I moved out of the house. My husband and I were living there until around August when his BIL moved in. We also found containers of different liquids, boxes of empty Sudafed, and other chemicals. We got scared that he was trying to cook meth and we did not want to be exposed to that or wake up one day to the house exploding. We told my inlaws but they didn't seem to care. They said that they would have a "talk" with him. That was the last straw for us. At this time BIL was leaving his wife and his kids, it was not until about 2-3 weeks ago that his wife took him back and moved in over there too. It is just one big mess. I have another update. My husband had to call the SW doing the homestudy today at 1pm because she had asked to speak with all of the childred on inlaws. He told them that he has the same concerns that I do and verified everything that I told them. He told me that he thought about it and he agrees that nobody needs to be subjected to that.

Thank you all for you support. When my husband got home from work last night he told me that he did not tell his mother what I said. What he told her is that both he and I have concerns and that we were not going to lie for them or hide anything. He said no matter what he supports me and my decision to tell them. He just felt that they would probably know it was us that said something and he wanted to send an anonymous letter. I couldn't wait to do that, I had to speak up. He was a little upset that I did say something and was telling me how excited "Sally" is to move and that I may have screwed this up for her. I told him not to put that guilt on me that I am not the one who does drugs and that they are the ones who jeapordized things for her, not me. I am not going to feel guilty. I am not the one who has an unsafe environment. I am just praying that everything works out in the end.

I have no ill feelings towards my in-laws at all, in fact they are wonderful caring people. The problem is that they do not have the skills needed to care for "Sally". They currently get her on the weekends and are at their wits ends by the time she goes back to the group home. I don't know how they think they can handle her full time. I just think that if they really cared so much they would not put up with having the drug addicted son there. And I know that this is a very judgemental statement but if you judge on past history...well my in-laws have 4 kids and out of the 4 only 1 graduated highschool, all of them have used drugs, 1 is a stripper and just had a baby (worked as a stripper up until she was 7 months pregnant, but at least she was working) but also she did drugs while pregnant, 3 of them have done jail time, need I go on? So in other words we are not talking about the best parents here. As far as taking "Sally" in myself, well I would do it in a hearbeat if I was in the place to do so. My husband and I are now living with my parents while we both attend school and work and there is no way that we could handle her. Plus we don't even have a home to bring her to since we are living out of a bedroom right now!

Sorry but performing CNA stuff in clinical is nothing like actually taking care of 20 patients on your own as a CNA.

I am wondering if I did the right thing. Here is the backstory. My husband's mother and stepfather are going through a homestudy because they are trying to get custody of their niece (my husband's cousin). Well the lady doing the homestudy called to speak to my husband and he is at work and I asked her if she would like to hear my opinion and she said yes. I told her that I don't believe this would be the best thing for "Sally" because my father-in-law has his son and his son's wife and child living there and they are abusing drugs. My step-brother-in-law is a meth addict and both him and his wife have used marijuana in front of their child. I also know that my FIL has used meth himself and continues to do so, even though he denies it. He will stay up for days then when he comes down....well you better watch out because he is a jerk. "Sally" is currently in a group home and being treated for being bipolar. Both of her parents are drug addicts and have been in and out of jail. She has had an absolute horrible childhood. My heart breaks for her. She is so excited about moving into my in-laws house, but she just doesn't know what she is in store for. I felt that I had to tell the homestudy lady about what is going on. My husband feels like I just jeopardized things for "Sally" and that I ruined it for her. I feel like someone needs to stand up for this poor child. She is currently 12, almost 13. She needs a very stable home. I love my in-laws but they are not the best role models. And what really bothers me is that I believe "Sally" needs to be priority number one and if they were all that concerned with her coming then their drug addicted son would be OUT!!! I know my husband agrees with me on some things but he just doesn't want to make waves. Well too late for that now. I can't take back what I told the lady. Did I do the right thing? I just don't think that I should be made to feel guilty. I am not the one who takes drugs, they are the ones who are ruining this for "Sally" not me. Man this is just a mess. Should I have just kept quiet? Plus on top of this I am pretty sure my husband had told him mom that I was thinking of saying something, so they are going to know it was me who told.

Thank you for explaining why it is that you might call a CNA into a room to clean a patient. You are busy!!! I think alot of CNA's might not get that and just think you are lazy when that is not the case at all. I am glad to hear someone finally give a valid as to why you would do this, totally makes sense to me. :bowingpur

I agree with you. A CNA that thinks that way is definitely way off course. There is so much more that a nurse does and the stress of knowing a life is in your hands...oh my! But being a CNA is hard work (we all agree on that here) and I can't wait for the day that I am a nurse. I am not currently working as a CNA, way too physically demanding for me. I know that being a nurse is physically demanding too, but the nurses in my hospital here do have aides and only assist as needed. I have no problem assisting as needed but I do have a problem doing the work of a CNA every single day for the amount of patients that a CNA has. A nurse (at least where I live) does not have 20 patients and don't have to turn them all themselves, change their linens, give baths, etc. Doing that on even just 8 patients wouldn't be nearly as bad as 20! I really hated being a CNA and just thinking about it is bringing it all back to me. I was considering going back to work as a CNA but now I think that I am going to be a unit clerk instead. Thanks for reminding me how hard it really is!

Congrats on getting accepted!

Thanks for the update. Good luck in your position. So, did you decide to stay with the UC job?

First off here in Texas there is no contract that is signed when you work a job. This is a right to work state and there is absolutely no contract involved. And why would you think it has to be written in rule that you can't fall asleep at clinical. I would think that it is common sense that one knows not to fall asleep. There are somethings that are just no acceptable at work period. And I don't care that you argue that you are not at "work" because when you are at clinical it is your job to be professional.

Well said. AMEN to that. :clphnds:

Well on Tuesday night I figured out both of my unkowns! I have Staphylococcus Epidermidis and Escherichia Coli. We still have Thursday night to complete everything so I get a night off from lab! Yipee!!!

Wow, I am so sorry to hear you are getting negative feedback. I have found the opposite to be true. I hear how wonderful nursing is, how much money I will make, how I get to work just 3 days a week, etc. The people that I talk to think that NS is a piece of cake! I have to remind everyone how competitive NS is and how much hard work and dedication it takes. Nursing is not for every joe blow, but it sounds like you have got it! I am sure you are just venting and know to just brush the comments off. I just wanted to say that I am proud of you...volunteering in NICU for that long, that is awesome. I am glad there are people out there that get into NS with their eyes open and have the chance to make a real difference while living their dream.

I know that you are not a nurse but I just wanted to say that I work for an agency that staffs nurses in hospitals. Our nurses normally have a day of orientation where they do not perform any direct patient care. Well we had one case where a nurse was "nodding off" and she was quickly dismissed even though she did not have any direct patient care and was just observing. The hospital still took this as harmful to the patients. I do not know there exact reasoning but I do know that they will not tolerate it. We also had a nurse that was just "observing" but was caught texting on her cell and she was dismissed. You have to be alert on the job at all times whether you are providing direct care or not. I am sorry but in this case I would have dismissed you too.

I know it all depends on the student but I just wanted to hear what everyone thinks about taking both Patho and Pharm together in the same semester? Here is my situation. I am finishing up Micro and A&P II this fall semester (almost done yeah!). I am pulling an A in both right now. And in A&P I , I made a B in lecutre and an A in lab. I am applying in March for the Fall 2009 ADN class. Our grades for next spring do count towards our consideration. Patho and Pharm are not required, but I wanted to take them anyway since I don't have anything else that I need to take. So, should I take them both in the spring and then have the summer off before nursing school starts in August. Or should I take Patho in the spring and take Pharm in the summer? Both of the classes are only offered online at my school and there is no pre-req needed for Patho and the Pharm's pre-req is just A&P. What do you think? I am thinking I will go for both and see what the syllabus looks like and on the first day if it looks like too much then I might drop Pharm. I was told to definitely take Patho first because it will help with Pharm.

I would not advise doing this because it can get you kicked out if they find about it. And they can find out if you attended anywhere else. How, well when you applied to the school you are at now you probably included any grades you had elsewhere and they put that on your transcript. So if you change schools again or send them your current transcript they will see that you attended other institutions but didn't include them. KWIM? I knew someone who did this and got caught. She got kicked out of the program and they would not take her back. Just a word of caution.

Very doable. I took this in a condensed form as well and easily made an A. It was a very easy class. Some reading yes, but it was open book tests since they were online and so you really just had to previes the chapters before the test so you knew where to look. We didn't have any papers or anything like that. Just read the chapters and took tests, and they were all multi choice.

I don't remember off hand what their system is there at El Centro, but you can look up at the Dallas County College website. But I will tell you that getting into El Centro is very very competitive. You absolutely must have a 4.0. That is because so many people apply there that have a 4.0 they are the ones that get accepted. Also just because you have a 4.0 does not mean you will even get in because there is such a large number of people with a 4.0 that apply. Look at Grayson County College in Denison, TX. It is about a hour drive from Dallas and is based on points system. www.grayson.edu That is where I am going and it is not nearly as competitive as Dallas.

I too thought that highschool was boring except for the class I took on nursing. I took a class where we learned basic medical terminology, cpr, basic patient care and etc. This was my junior year and we got to take all our classes in the morning and then work a job in the afternoons. That helped keep me motivated. However, I maybe shouldn't tell you this but I was still so bored that I dropped out of school and got my GED. I had been an honors student all my life and I was just bored to tears. I knew what I wanted to do, be a nurse, and knew that I could go on to college with my GED. And that is exactly what I did. However, I ended up wasting alot of time because once I got to college I wasn't sure if nursing was really what I wanted to do. My mom is a nurse too and I had known all my life that is what I wanted to do, but when it came time to do it, I found myself very unsure of myself. In some ways I regret getting my GED and in some ways I think you might regret graduating early. I misses out on prom and walking across the stage to get my diploma with my friends. I am now going to get the chance with my nursing friends to walk across the stage when I do finally graduate from nursing school but it isn't the same as highschool. I guess my best advice would be to stay in school and take your time. I thought that I was mature and grown up and in alot of ways I was, but I still wasn't ready. Yes things could be different for you, but learn from my lesson and take it slow. You have your entire life ahead of you. Do now what will prepare you for an easy transition into college. Sounds like you are doing that and are on your way. Continue with your class and do the internship. See how that goes. You could also see about doing some volunteer work after school or on the weekends at the hosptial right now. Good luck!

Congratulations! That is awesome news. Now the fun begins. :stdnrsrck:

How in the world can you be stupid and be pulling a 4.0 or even a 3.5 or heck a 3.0? No you are definitely not stupid, you are just stressed out. Take a deep breath and realize that you don't have to be perfect.