meggiepie24

If you can, I would stay on the mainland for at least a few years to get a good amount of experience. I would also say Hawaii is at least 10-15 years behind the mainland when it comes to hospitals.

I would stick to your hospital job for awhile. You definitely need a good background in nursing before specializing in wound care. Highly recommend looking into the Emory WOCN online program. I believe you have to have one year of experience in order to just start the program. The entire program is 1 year long. If your hospital offers tuition reimbursement start the program in the fall (I started in August) so the hospital will completely pay for the program between the two calendar years. Usually hospitals will make you stay for a year or two after the last tuition payment. You will have to find people who you can do clinical with before you start the program. Good luck!

You just gotta do it! They certainty aren't any harder than the NLEX. I found the flashcards from WOCN very helpful, but definitely not necessary. I mostly studied from my school materials. I recommend starting with the one you feel most confident about, then take 1 test every 2-3 weeks. I thought the ostomy test was by far the easiest, but I've also had a ton of exposure.

I hate to continue being the barer of bad news on this thread, but I would really encourage you not to move here with your current situation. I know multiple BSN new grads who have had a very difficult time finding work. It is very common to have new BSN grads work as a tech or secretary for a year+ before working as an RN ... even if they have worked within a hospital system during school. I had about 8 years of experience when we moved here and I had a very hard time finding a job, which had never happened to me before. It's just a different world out here. As already mentioned, there are very strong unions in the hospital so there's not as much turnover. Queen's has the only trauma level one in the pacific rim (which is mentioned on every TV commercial ...) but they don't really do pediatrics. Be prepared to take care of a ton of homeless people. If you want peds you need to look into Kapiolani Women & Children's. If you husband is military definitely apply to Tripler, you will have an extra point or two on your application. Other than that, you would probably have the best luck at nursing homes. It's probably not what you want to hear, but I definitely wish someone had told me before moving out here! If you do move out here I would work on getting your HI license right away. It took me several months to get mine. I would also get a post office box or an address as soon as possible-employers want to see that you are already on the island. If I were you, I would stay on the mainland until you have at least a few more years of experience and your BSN before moving out here.

I would highly recommend not following through with your current plan. Have you volunteered in any local hospitals? Or done any shadowing/internships? There is a huge difference between what you may think nurses do vs. what nursing is actually like day in and out. There are plenty of ways to have a meaningful and purpose driven live without going back to school for 7-8 years. I would consider volunteering at a local shelter, food pantry, or at a hospital before changing your whole lifestyle. Also, the job market in Hawaii is awful for nursing. I've said it in other posts but I still have yet to meet a new RN grad (who went to school here) who has not had to work 1-2 years as a tech or secretary before being hired on as an RN. So you could be licensed for years as an RN before starting your nursing career. There is very little turnover here because of the unions (the longer you're in, the better your hours, less holidays, better pay etc). I've lived all over the country and this is by far the worst job market I've seen for RNs. If you still want to do nursing, have you considered getting a BSN instead of going to the DNP route? It would definitely shave off a few years of education and costs.

- Don't tell anyone about your liability insurance. - From a lawyer (at an International conference): there are 2 kinds of nurses. Those who haven't been sued yet and those who have been sued. Don't practice out of fear, but out of knowledge that someday you will likely be involved in a lawsuit. - If a patient and/or family member is upset pay attention to your body language. So often patients and families just want to be heard. Many times I've pulled up a chair and just listened to them. If you've never been a family member of a very sick patient you just don't know how powerless you can truly feel. I know shifts can be super busy but I've found repeatedly that taking 10 minutes to listen at the start of my shift can make the whole shift easier and the patient/family relieved. - Reiterate what's already been said ... if you have a free few minutes always always ask if you can help anyone else out. Someday you will need others to help you out and people will remember how you were always willing to help. It's just the right thing to do

Hi! I'm still pretty new to Hawaii too, but will tell you everything I wish someone had told me before moving here. - Definitely get your HI license before moving here. HI BON only communicates via snail mail ... which can take some time. - I have found getting a job here surprisingly difficult. Before moving here I have gotten every single job I've ever applied to (I've been a nurse for almost 10 years). Now while that may be unusual, I haven't even gotten call backs from a lot of jobs I've applied to while here. - Get a PO box right after you get here, even just for a month. A lot of employers will ignore your job application if you list a mainland address. If you apply to jobs before you get here try to mention somewhere on the application the date you are going to move here - Be prepared to answer the question of why you're here, how long you're here, if your significant other is military/civilian. I have had to answer some form of these questions during every single interview I've had. Especially when you have an address on base I think people are reluctant to hire you because they assume you'll be leaving the island in 1-2 years. - All the new grads I've met while here have worked as a secretary and/or tech all during nursing school, then for an additional year (post-grad) before getting into a new nursing role Sorry for all the bad/discouraging news. I think it's better to know the tough truth going into a move rather than being told you won't have any issues moving here.

Make sure you have private (not hospital based) liability insurance. You can buy it as a rider to car insurance, personal property insurance etc. Don't tell anyone at the hospital you have liability insurance.

If you have a wound vac that is leaking... turn the machine so you can see it from the patients wound so you can look at the seal check. Turn off music, TV, no talking. Take an alcohol swab and rub over the vac drape. Once you come across the leak there will be a hiss. Then fix the leak!

This is a good thread! I always write the date and day in the tape of an ostomy pouch with a permanent marker. The patient never seems to remember exactly when it was changed last. Just makes life easier

I always have a clip on permanent marker for my badge. I use it all the time to mark chest tube output, label JP drains (#2 etc) and write dates/times on my wound dressings. I also have a clear ID holder that i clip onto my badge behind my ID. I put money and my credit card in the badge holder.

I'm 7 years out of school and am getting $52/hour. When possible I don't answer those pay rate questions.

Eligibility | Wound, Ostomy and Continence Nursing Certification Board

I've seen this at conferences and I'm just still in shock. And how do you keep the urine from smelling when it's in the suction container? What do you say to family members when they ask you what's in the suction canister? How does this work with intentional progressive mobility programs? These are all questions I had for the reps ... and none could really be answered.

Which WOCN program did you take? I would definitely recommend stick to Cleveland Clinic or the Emory programs. I have worked for several hospitals where they will only hire from these two programs. How much did the program cost? Wound, Ostomy, and Continence Nursing Education Center | Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing | University | Atlanta GA How well did the program prepare you for the certification exam? I think Emory does a fantastic job of preparing you for the certification tests. For the CFCN I would saw that it does not. The bigger problem is there really isn't any general review book for the CFCN. How well did the program prepare you for actually taking care of patients who have complex wounds/ostomies? How confident in your skills did you feel right out of the program? I can't really answer these questions ... I worked on teams before and after the program. However, I definitely understood wound healing and answering the "why" behind the plan of care. I don't think there's another replacement for learning tips and tricks other than being on the job. For ostomy care, it definitely does a good job of the anatomy, explaining the difference in surgeries. Just as with wound care, I don't think there's a good replacement for hands-on clinical care. However, I think going through a program really validates your work and definitely starts you on the path to becoming an expert. What are the benefits of certification? WOCN conference, CE library, database of WOCNs across the country (we use to find WOCNs close to our patients' houses-we have about a 6 state area for ostomy patients), journal for updates, local WOCN chapter (ours includes talking about new products, rep presentation w/dinner, planning local conference) If I decide to leave home health someday, how easy is it to get a job at a wound clinic, hospital, SNF, or other facility? This also just really depends on where you live. I think people on teams tend to stay on teams so there can be very little turnover. I've found some really interesting career paths with the WOCN certification. There are some independent WOCN who do online case reviews, online consulting etc. What kinds of doors does this certification open as far as career advancement? I think this just depends where you work. Most of the nurses I work with have not advanced past being part of the team, none have gone into management etc.