TNcanNURSE

I'm from Tennessee, an LPN, and have started blood many times. At the time I worked Oncology at a university hospital. This was about 3 years ago. The only things I could not do were administer chemo, hang TPN, and there were certain IV push meds that I couldn't administer.

Very weird to be reading this post now..... I work in a subacute unit at a local nursing home. Last night one of my patients was asking for her "cream" because she had to go to dialysis this morning. This would be the emla cream. She keeps it with her personal stuff and we aren't required to apply it. I had never heard of it until 10pm last night. She takes it with her and they apply it at the dialysis clinic. After reading your post, I am very glad we don't have this task included with our other duties. I don't think you should have to do it either.

I have never worked anywhere that SUBQ heparin or insulin had to be double checked. We do have to be double checked on those meds if they are being given IV, but not SUBQ. 40 U may not be typical, but I have one patient whose dosage is in the mid 70's in the am, but then again she is noncompliant with her diet and is frequently seen downing sweets and Pepsi. Her dosage is probably too high. On the rare occasion that she doesn't ingest massive quantities of sugar her accuchecks fall into the 20's. Personally I think they could lower her dose and change her BID accucheks with SSI to something more frequent. Things being as they are, she has to be watched like a hawk.

I was a college student. I got married. We were broke. I needed something faster than a 4yr. degree. I enrolled in LPN school because it lasted for only a year. I graduated and began to work and started making a good salary. I still want that college degree so I'm working on it. I will get my associates degree within a year, then I plan to move straight into the bachelors degree. My education for LPN was only introductory IMO. In nursing you get back what you put in and for anything you learn there are a hundred more things that you need to learn. There are crappy LPNs and crappy RNs out there just like there are the ones who go "above and beyond". Still everyone has their bounderies and should stick with them and not be upset about it. You are the one who chooses your level of education, etc. I am not yet an RN so I don't expect to be viewed as one. A CNA is not a nurse, an LPN is not an RN, RNs are not NPs, NPs are not MDs, and MDs aren't God. The money is not an issue with me. If I get a job as an RN that pays what I make today, but has better working conditions I will be ecstatic. Before someone jumps on me........I am not saying that RNs don't work as hard as LPNs or vice versa. My way above average paying LPN job is a total nightmare, but to make the salary I make there really are NO OTHER OPTIONS for me as an LPN. I've had better jobs, but the pay was not nearly as good. My schedule at my job and the salary I make enable me to continue my education without financial burden and without the usual time constraints associated with a M-F job. Basically I choose to become an RN because I know I have the ability to be a good RN and because of the satisfaction and greater career options associated with it.

The CLEP (College level examination program) is a test that you take to "test out" of general college classes. Most of the general ed. and prerequisites for nursing can be clepped. Dantes is another testing program (Defense Activity for Non-Traditional Education support) It is originally for military personnel, but anyone can also take the DANTES tests. Nursing class tests are provided by Excelsior exam. Through Excelsior you don't take online classes. You get the materials you need, study all the key areas and test. If you pass you get college level credit in order to earn enough to meet the requirements for a degree. If you don't pass you can retake the test. Actually if you are up for it, you could begin to take CLEPs now. Anybody can take a CLEP test. You don't have to be enrolled in anything.

The charge for the CLEP exams is $50, but the college you take it at will probably charge you a little extra to line their pockets with. The college I take my CLEP exams charges $20 which I think is about the average cost. Still very cheap. I don't know how much the DANTES exams run. I am in the ASN program and none of the classes I need are necessarily DANTES. The list I have of DANTES tests lists only business and finance type classes which I don't need.

Took the CLEP version today and passed. Would have been easier if I had used the CLEP materials. I studied using EC outlines etc. and the CLEP outlines are totally different. Check out the CLEP study guides and the online CLEP outlines if you plan to go that route.

rue is a publisher of study materials. they gather information from ec (that is free btw) and turn it into one helluva money machine. they sell study guides. thats it. oh and their favorite past-time seems to be spying. maybe i am starting to sound a bit parandoid/delusional, but after signing with a publisher i can promise you they are the college level equivalent of the mafia. their study guides aren't always up to speed either. for the most part i concede that they do cover the needed material, but a lot of times they leave major topics a bit shadey. did i mention the typing errors????!!!???? my favorite one in the course i am studying for now: "in his type of conditioning. the subject is likely or less likely to become exhibit certain behaviors because of past reinforment, negative reinforcement, or punishment, or like behavior" huh?? i may not be a rocket scientist but i promise you i have not got a clue what that means. that is a direct quote and i have checked it for errors on my part.........that is exactly how it is written in my study guide. once again i had to look that topic up in a textbook i purchased from a local college to have any idea what the theme of the subject was. that book is in addition to the nearly $300 i forked out for that study guide. my advice: just say no to publishers. oh and if any of you can translate that statement from my guide please let me know!!!

I signed with Distance learning systems of Indiana.......they are the equivalent of Rue, Moore, and Chancellors, but I find most people haven't heard of them. If I had known better, I would not have signed with a publisher. you can get every thing you need online for a LOT less. My cost was about 3-4 grand. I don't have the bill in front of me, but I know its in that range. That does not include the testing fees, the clinical, the clinical prep, or the cost of Excelsior. Excelsior itself has a warning about signing with a publisher (Rue, DLSI,Moore,etc) When I started I thought you HAD to use one and that was the only way.. If I had the internet or had contacted EC myself I would have saved a lot. A quick warning about RUE: Everything I have heard from others going through them is negative. They seem to be the biggest ripoff among the publishers. I will add that I do not have experience with them personally so my opinion may not qualify. They have a reputation for having employees snoop around BB's trying to sell people on RUE and making sure no one violates their rules.

This one is for the tales of urinals. Had a confused elderly gent. He had a water pitcher that would get filled with ice qshift. Notice one night that his water had been replaced with iced lemonade which he drank from as desired. Later noted pt to urinate into iced lemonade. I'm no rocket scientist but something told me there was something fishy going on with the cool refreshing lemonade. Nevertheless said lemonade was confiscated and he drank lemonade no more.

Hey Yazisizit. We could start a club. The only requirement for membership would be having you skin and scrubs covered with aromatic poop! I had a pt. that loved nothing more than to climb out of her bed so she could walk home. She would get OOB & hold onto her bureau. The problem was she couldn't walk and would proceed to bust her tail. One night I was making rounds and saw her hunkered over the bureau. I rushed in and and started picking her up in a bear hug at the same instant the she began to fall. The good news was that I got her safely to bed. The bad was that my bear hug loosend her colostomy bag and I squirted liquid crap all over myself and my uniform. She thanked me for helping her as I was trying to conceal my gags. Gee, all of the fond memories I have acquired in this profession!

I don't suppose this is an error but it was definitely different: on the results from a UA traces of talcum powder

Once I accidentally charted "pedal pulses present" and "pedal pushes palpable" in haste. The following shift another nurse who is quite notorious for copying rather than performing assessments charted the exact same thing. I found it quite amusing to see in her notes.

I have worked at a private prison in TN. CCA (Corrections Corp. of America) The pay varies with the city and cost of living. As an LPN my starting pay was $12.50 an hour. Another more rural prison nearby starts around $11/hr. Memphis metro makes about the same as I made. I was laid off along with several other nurses due to a change of contract. I took a job that pays much better, but I absolutely LOVED working at the prison. I would like to take up the offer to go back but I guess I'm just too greedy. Prison work is definitely different. If you can tolerate the prisoners/patients. It'll keep you nervous at first. Once you get used to it, it really isn't all that scary anymore. The inmates didn't ever give me any serious problems.