patos1984

hello. I'm in sacramento looking to relocate to portland next spring. I was curious about the VA hospital there and the job opportunities available. I was a nursing resident student for the VA in Sacramento during school and loved it. any way you ca give me some insight about the VA in portland? benefits, pay, nursing satisfaction, things like that? you can PM me if you'd like. thanks a bunch :)

I am thinking about joining the Navy Nurse Corps but would only like to do so If i could move to Europe and work at the navel base in Rota, Spain. It has always been a dream to live and work in spain. I am an ER nurse with a little over 1 year experience. I live in Northern California and I am willing to take the pay cut to join the services. I just don't know how obligated the navy is in regards to placing me where I would like to go. I dont want to spend 5-7 years in the mid west or east coast. I am at the very beginning of the application process but this placement issue is kinda a big deal to me... i need advice big time. thank you sooo much patos

I graduated with my BSN December 2007 and I've been working in a 40 bed ER located in an urban area of Sacramento, CA. My goal is to get my MBA at either UC Davis or UC Berkeley. I have taken college algebra and stats during my undergrad and i'm taking business calculus spring 09. i plan on taking accounting summer 09 and refresher econ classes fall 09. I'm doing this as preperation for the GMAT, which i need to take by summer 2009. i would like to start the part time MBA program by fall 2010. i will be 26 when i start and 29 by the time i graduate. yea, it seems like its far away but its not like i got my BSN overnight either, it took years of planning. How hard is getting into the MBA program at a UC school? does it really matter where i go? which classes would be most valuable for me before starting the program? as a younger new grad, i have very limited managerial experience. what challenges does that incur for me? where should i work until i get my MBA? i only have ER experience, should i stay there? in regards the the GMAT, which books are best for preparation? i have the kaplan review book? what was you experience like with the GMAT? does anyone that recently graduated with their MBA have any advice the wish they had before they went for it? i would really appreciate any input. thank you

i worked as a VALOR (VA learning opportunity residency) for my thrid and fourth year nursing school. i interned in the ED at the VA medical center in sacramento, ca i got an email from the dean of my nursing program.... i dont know too much about this program in southern california as each VISN (division) of the VA has their pwn programs. the VA has different departments. nurses work under the VHA (veteran health administration). they VA has amazing benies if you get hired full time. 5 weeks paid vacation your first year on board. 2 weeks paid sick leave and 10 paid holidays per year as well. they also match 5% to your 401K. the down side is the medical benefits aren't that great and the salary isn't too competative at first (the pay gets higher as you accrue years experience) the VA basically takes care of all veterans that are "service connected". the sicker you are the more "connected" the vet becomes and the more the VA pays for. as far as i know, the VA isnt for veterans families or anything like that. the VA has a unique patient population. mostly white older males between 50-80. they are really complex. usuallly multi-system. CHF, CRF, HTN, DMII, with wither PTSD or dementia. and maybe even a pressure sore. so they are tuff people to take care of in the inpatient setting. but its fun and the vets are really friendly and are appreciative for the most part. my internship was great. i had full scope of practice with the supervision of a buddy RN. i could start IVs, do ekgs, even push emergency cardiac medications like IV cardiazem or adenosine. i did it all the pay was also great. i was paid 80% nurse I step I (about $26/hr) and worked in contracted hours (200 per semester and 400 per summer). i would contact the clinical educator at your local VA and ask for the educator and ask for their VALOR program opportunities. they usually apply each april and start late may early june. i graduated last december and passed the NCLEX in janurary. i work full time at Kaiser Sacramento ED and work per diem at the ED for the VA.

BSN students in either their 3rd or 4th year.

dude... there are a lot of intership type jobs for us nursing kids.... I was a VALOR student for the dept of VA. i worked at the VA in sac and in martinex... they also have an outpt clinic on oakland on west grand ave... its the best in my opinion... they pay 80% nurse I salary, roughly 26/hr. the application is in march for this summer and continues throughout nursing school. kaiser oakland also has a paid intership... i think they pay like 16 to 18/hr and have positions in med/surg, ortho and ER. many kids from my school applied and ended up working there after graduation. it is very similar to the VA in the sense that you also have full scope of RN practice under the supervision of a buddy RN samuel merritt college, is in partnership with JMMC. a lot of students from our school applied to their "scholar" program and end up working at john muir. unlike kaiser or VA, the scope is that of CNA. they pay is great though.... if you work 16 hours at $18/hr then get 8 hours "free" on your time card... same goes if you work 24 hours, you get paid as if you worked 32 hours. the real benfit is that you are practically garenteed a job with a great magnet hospital. UC davis also has a paid "externship" job... it pays less, around 12/hr and the scope is that of CNA, sometimes LVN, but UCD will take extern applicants before outside applicants, which might help in this "new grad" job market. uhm, i think that covers it. i personally know at least two people that have intern'd/extern'd at each of these facilities and each has their own pros/cons. in my opinion, go where you think ou want to end up... i graduated December 2007, passed NCLEX jan 2008. I got hired at the VA sacramento's ED. one of the per-diem nurses at the VA got me an interview at kaiser ER (where they work FT) and I took an ER job there instead... hope this info helps.... good luck ps- which school do you go to btw?

bummer. I would also recommend that you stick through with your original plans and persue the RN degree. now that is also easily said than done. i also lost a lot of my credits (and even had to take extra classes after the fact) when i was accepted into a private BSN program. the requirements here in CA are different for state and private schools. in the end, those credits you lost, will be hardly be missed if you do not have any financial or personal deadlines, ie, need second income or wanting to start a family, then take the time and do it right. cause the sweet ain't as sweet without the bitter... when its all said and done, you are going to be on top of the world... good luck.

wow! thanks for you're honest input. I'm looking forward to applying later this year. thanks again.

I an a male new grad BSN-RN living in sacramento. correctional nursing never occured to me until I started reading posts here and did some internet research of my own. I currently work in UrgentCare for the VA. I really think I want to try it out so I'm looking to apply to either Folsom or Vacaville here in NorCal. My question pertains to what a typical shift is like in Folsom/Vacaville/ Salinas or San Quintin? Is the hiring process the same at each facility and what is it like? how long does it take? are each of these facilities the same in regards to job description/duties. what is starting saleries like? are the rumors true? $$$ I've read posts about correctional nursing and so far it sounds good (as good as good can be) I guess I'm looking for info about NorCal prisons. thanks for your time