Piglet08

I'm relieved to hear that.

No judgment on the specific nurse involved in this story, but when I read the "feel-good" headlines about the Boston Marathon bombing victim marrying a nurse who cared for him, I didn't feel good. Love is grand and I wish them well, but I wish the headlines weren't raising ethical questions. I'm hoping there are extenuating circumstances that add some distance to that nurse-patient relationship before it became romantic. Thoughts?

"You may think it should be, but it's not, anyway. :)" I don't necessarily think it should be. But employers will look at that. Even if "it isn't their concern". That's what I mean, redhead98. We are probably pretty much in agreement on whether it is or is not right, but I'm just sayin, it is happening, and they have a rationale for it. [/url] #143

"Why do "fools" use their real names on Facebook? I don't think there's any other option on Facebook.

"Uhhhh unless I drive for my job, why is this my employer's concern? I agree people who drive drunk are @#$@#$holes but it has nothing to do with whether one can scrape oneself out of bed on Monday and come to work." It is your employer's concern when your job involves judgment upon which people's lives may depend, and involves dispensing controlled substances. You may not think it should be, but it is, anyway.

I don't feel it's safe to say "the only thing and RN has over (an LPN) is more money". I've met LPN's that were great and RN's that were not. And vice versa. At a certain level of care, nursing requires more knowledge. Some of that is going to be book learnin', and some of it is that instinct one develops with experience. An LPN with an eager, inquisitive mind and a caring heart beats a smug PhD nurse anytime. But the choice is rarely that black and white. Usually, there's an RN vs LPN choice, and the thing that is going to show up in statistics the bean-counters can use is, how many RN's do we have? How many MSN's? And so on. LPN's are underappreciated by the people making decisions about the shape of healthcare in the future. The push for ever-higher degrees as an entry level for nursing is not good for bedside care.

I haven't worked OB, but I've had kids, and I watch TV. So I'm qualified to render an opinion of questionable value. And I do realize you didn't ask for advice, just wanted to know if they'd let you finish orientation. But you're here in the Forum, and we love fresh meat! So brace yourself for advice. As far as skills go, in OB you're likely to be starting IV's, inserting foleys, handling emergencies, and honing your assessment, prioritizing and customer service skills, at the very least. No slight intended to OB nurses if I've left out major stuff that you do. Like I said, I don't do that kind of nursing. I think after a year of OB you'll have a lot of very useful experience. And as I said before, do not underestimate the value of a workplace and coworkers that you enjoy, especially in that stressful first year with the steep learning curve.

"C" may equal "RN". But passing the NCLEX is just the start of a nursing career. If your base is shaky, you're gonna have a harder time actually doing the work. This is not like some liberal arts degrees where it's not so crucial in your future career that you really comprehend, say, the Trojan War.

Orientation costs them something. I don't see why they'd let you finish it if you're not going to give them something back for it. Now, if you love the people and the place, think hard before you quit just to preserve hypothetical future opportunities. Liking where you work and who you work with, and having a job in hand, counts for a LOT. If you asked me for advice on what to do - which you have not - I'd recommend you stay where you are. Get some experience in the coming year and then seek maybe some med-surg prn work, or conversely, keep the present job as a prn, a couple shifts a month, if they'll let you. You don't have to be in SUCH a hurry, career-wise.

No. C is not "the new A".

Thanks, Esme12.

yes. And don't list where you work or details that make your workplace identifiable.

well, a little venting is okay. But it's probably better to approach this from a problem-solving viewpoint. For example, are you telling me there is NO WAY to resolve the blood glucose checking problem? Maybe the person passing the trays can be responsible for checking sugars? Or if that's not allowed in your facility, perhaps the offgoing nurses will need to be responsible for checking them before report. And I'm dealing with the same change at my workplace, just started a thread here about it, as a matter of fact. I don't much like it at this point. But I will learn how to make it work. I might even learn to appreciate whatever benefits it offers. Hang in there. The only thing that stays the same is that things change.

Find a career counselor. Not a shill for a private college that wants to sign you up. I mean, someone who can discuss your background and interests with you and help you consider options. There might be something you haven't heard of and we haven't thought of that will work for you.

No one has to deactivate facebook to keep their jobs. If it weren't a FB post causing her to lose her job, it would have played out some other way, because she was right in the thick of misbehavior with staff regarding patients. It was a matter of time. You can't convince me that one incident was the only deviation from professional standards in that crew. The thing is, it doesn't matter if you didn't do anything wrong (although I think you did). The facility wants a professional staff, not hassles. It's easier to just sweep you out and get someone else. You can be fired for no reason at all, you know. They have no obligation to keep you even though you "did nothing wrong". What they want is people who will do things right. That's the world we're living in.

by healing soul : i finally left nursing after working for several years as a cna. honey, i don't mean to pick on you, but what you left was being a cna. it's not nursing. it's not right for you to say you "left nursing". you were never in it. but i wish you luck in whatever you are doing now.

I would have strongly urged you to set up a plan before quitting. Giving in to an impulse to just quit, with no notice, makes me wonder if there's something else going on. Have you been screened for depression or ADD or something else that could be under the surface? Even with the medical experience of your career, it's different when it's YOU, and you might not notice the signs. Sometimes hating your (fill in the blank) isn't always about (fill in the blank), it's about the state of your own soul. Sometimes there's dissatisfaction that will only be resolved with a change in yourself. Some people bail out on commitments of various kinds, enter new ones and bail on them, and don't realize they're needing to change themselves, not their circumstances. I'm not saying for sure that that's you. But I'd be really alarmed if a friend or loved one bailed on a career with no notice, and I'd look for a way to ask these questions. Yeah, maybe nursing was the problem. But I think you'd have been better served with a more rational approach to your career change. You've invested a lot in nursing, and you might have been able to turn it in a direction that you found gratifying, if you'd talked to, say, a career counselor first. I mean, you probably feel good NOW, but if down the road things aren't falling into place you might really regret the way you didn't just quit, you burned bridges. Not just with this employer, but maybe with potential future ones. And not just in nursing. Anyone who wants to hire you is likely to call this last employer for a reference. Suddenly bailing is not going to look good. Sorry I can't be more supportive. I'm not jealous, honest, even if this looks like sour grapes. I don't plan to be doing this work when I'm in my 60's, but I don't yet know exactly which of several directions I will choose. I'm thinking.

We now have a comprehensive holiday schedule on a three-year rotation. It includes Super Bowl Sunday, Halloween, thanksgiving eve, easter eve, etc. Any "holiday" that is hard to staff. We know three years running which shifts we're going to be on. We're free to trade if we can find someone to do so with. Not too many holidays I care about. I do love fireworks, tho. ( I was ever so lucky that I was on call 4th of July and got to see them with fam, and then my phone buzzed that they needed me and I skittered on in. Perfect timing.) The feasting events can be rescheduled. And as you said, little kids don't know and bigger kids can learn there are ways the whole world isn't about them.

I am sure I'll get into the swing of it eventually. I'm not a dinosaur. I can do this. I will keep repeating this to myself.

"Speaking freely" is out of the question. I need to achieve "speaking intelligently" and it's a work in progress:rolleyes:

THAT GUY was not serious in his initial post. Nor was he serious in his subsequent post in which he stated he was serious, a/e/b the googly eyes smiley.

In my facility, if you apply to transfer to another position within the facility or system, your current manager can veto it. So applying to HR might get you exactly nowhere. If the current manager says the person is "essential", or some other keyword, the transfer is off the table. You might need to look elsewhere. Can you provide references other than your current manager as a "first contact", and ask them only to contact your present manager only if they are offering you a position? I haven't had to job search in the last decade, so I don't know what's being done right now.

I am all in favor of a bedside assessment together at change of shift, and of course some "report" information will go with that. I just don't see how I can do report as a performance in front of the family. That's what it would have to be, a performance. Yeah, there's the family dynamics issues that might be a problem. There's also complex medical issues that the family might not be ready to hear about. When I'm speaking to patient and/or family about some aspect of care, I'm assessing their comprehension as I speak, and adjusting accordingly. In report, I'm adjusting to the nurse I'm talking to, too - is this someone who's been around the block and seen this before, or someone who needs to know what to watch out for? And if it's someone who has to know what to watch out for, when I say that in front of the family, isn't that going to decrease their confidence in the oncoming nurse? I'm frustrated, because I think there's variables that just aren't compatible. If admin's edict were to complete a bedside head-to-toe and introductions during report, I'd say, no problem, great. So far what I've been doing is a report at the desk with the chart, and then another one at bedside. I don't know if that's going to fly if higher-ups see me in action. Honestly, at the end of a long night I find it hard to remember, without paper in front of me, the patient's name, age, diagnosis and primary MD. To the family, that's going to sound like I'm a "bad nurse". I don't think I am. Just, after being up all night, I'm exhausted. And maybe it's a bit of stage fright. I am confident in myself as a nurse but not as an actress playing a nurse.

Wow, an occasional all-nighter? Give me all days, or all nights, please. Don't mix 'em. Good luck with that. I have no advice to offer except, sleep when you can and lift with your legs.

New rule at work. I think it was created by someone who has never provided patient care. I'm finding it extremely difficult to implement. I find it hard to organize my thoughts when I don't have the chart in front of me, and to say everything in a way that doesn't overload and possibly scare the patient, but still adequately informs the incoming nurse. I also have trouble feeling I am adequately informed when I take report that way. Not at all sure it's a good idea. Doesn't matter what I think, though, I have to learn to do it. Thoughts? Tips?