obicurn

My family members seem to really like the South Douglas school system. Of course, we take an active role at home in the kids' education as well, so I'm not overly concerned about what they will be missing at school, if anything. If not done ER before, other than triage on my LD unit. I'd be willing to give it a shot.

Small world! I have some family in Douglasville and the kids and I just love it down there. It looks like Wellstar Temps pays very well for the area. I'm checking into that option too, and I haven't completely ruled out private duty or home care. We won't be moving any time soon, but I want to have all my ducks in a row. Home prices down there are shocking. I found a huge Victorian on the lake for ~150k. Where I'm at, you can't get a decent 1br for less than that. Down there, I can get a 5 br, 3 bath, on 1 acre, lakefront. I can't even stand it! I need to be there right now.

Hi there! I am an RN up north, and am planning a move to Douglasville sometime in the next year. I want to plan well in advance, so am researching area hospitals. Can anyone give me some insider info on the WellStar system, specifically Douglas? My background is MedSurg/PCU, and high risk L&D. What is the typical nurse/pt ratio on the med surg floors? Typical pay for someone with 2-3 yrs experience? Are the nurses generally satisfied with where they work? I'm willing to sacrifice the pay for a job I'm going to really love. Any little bit of info will be helpful to me. I'm a world away up here, so word of mouth is my best option. Thanks!

Any tips on getting into L&D at Cobb or Douglas? I have a little over 1 year of Med-Surg/PCU. Recently hired into L&D in the midwest, and I want to get a little experience here before I relocate. I have no desire to go back to a Med-Surg environment, so I would really want to stick with L&D.

Where I live, we have a hospital that places job postings on the company website and it lists L&D as just that, and Obstetrics refers to their Postpartum unit. I don't know why they don't just call it PP. Confusing.

Any updates from people currently in the RN-BSN program? How is it going? Is it possible to complete in 6 months? I'm considering going back in August while I still qualify for Pell. Would like some insider info first before I jump in. Thanks!

IU Health starts at 21.75 base for RN Associate Partner. No matter experience or degree. There are shift diffs to consider, that can increase your pay. I think it's 3.60 extra from 3p-11p, 4 something from 11p-7??a, 5.50 weekend, 11 holiday. We work 3 12's and every 3rd weekend, with alternating holidays on my floor. You can also pick up extra shifts for OT. Through the career advancement plan, you can also earn extra if you move on to partner or senior partner.

IU Health is hiring to capacity right now, especially at Methodist. We have had high census lately and they are bringing in new grads like crazy. Check out the website. http://www.iuhealth.org

I haven't read all the posts, but I wanted to mention a possibility for anyone interested. Clarian Health in Indianapolis is currently hiring nurses, including new grads. We have 3 major hospitals in Indy, including Methodist, IU, and Riley Children's Hospital. Might be worth looking into if you're willing to relocate. Competitive pay and good benefits. And we are Magnet. My suggestion is to go to Clarian Health and apply for positions listed. After a few days, follow up with a call to the recruiter and mention your application. Recruiter contact information is listed on the website.

I would have to agree with your husband. Take the full time position. Maybe you can pick up shifts at the other place on weekends or something?

Quite a few of my classmates, including myself, recently got jobs with Clarian Health in Indianapolis. Good starting pay, fairly low cost of living here. If you can handle snow and corn, it's a decent place to be.

Dear Lord. That last one about made me lose my lunch. You poor thing!!!

"If only we can be sensitive to different backgrounds and occupations then we will understand that our relatives and friends don't have to be medics." Kind of on the same note, if we all could try to have a little less stick up our butts, we could share little things that make us giggle without being bashed. Lighten up. This is a fun thread!

llg, Thank you for your reply. One of my main reasons for lack of experience is that I really have been trying to dig myself out of a hole for years. I got married as a teen, had kids starting at 17 and have been trying to regain my identity after a divorce and many years of struggling. I pretty much have no existence to speak of before my schooling. Noone wants to hear all the details of that mess, I'm sure. Through it all though, I have gained determination, will-power, and self confidence. As far as before nursing, I did some child-care but the place I worked for has been closed for years and the owner moved out of state. No contact information for my resume. School experiences, I have gotten excellent reviews from clinical instructors, lots of positive remarks on care plans and things of that nature. School projects, the only thing that comes to mind is a group project (Health Fair) that we put on last semester, but it was very generalized and didn't relate to L&D or postpartum at all. The more I sit and try to create my resume, the more I am kicking myself for falling into that "I'll take care of you" trap my ex-husband set for me. I was an incredibly stupid and naive teen and I'm sure paying for it now. I've come a long way and almost have that degree in my hand FINALLY! I'm beginning to worry that finding a job with such a simple resume will be more than difficult. Personal qualities that I'm sure will help me in this career: I am caring, compassionate, assertive, flexible, determined, an excellent critical thinker....everything a nurse should be. I typically don't have a lot of self-doubt but in this regard (resume), I do. With the economy in shambles and so many new grads competing for positions, L&D being difficult to get into already, etc....I just want to make sure I have a fair shake.

I know this has been addressed many times in the forums before, but I can't seem to find a solid answer to what I'm looking for, so I'm posting in hopes someone can point me in the right direction. I am graduating in May with my ASN and would love to get my foot in the door in L&D, postpartum, somewhere similar. My resume, quite frankly, is crap. I've been a professional Mom for the past few years, so no real work experience that applies at all to nursing. I have a section in my resume for clinical experiences, and another for observational experiences and have listed the number of contact hours for each. It just seems very vanilla and I am looking for tips on how to stand out without coming across as "fake" with all the flowery language. In my objective, I'm not sure what to put other than something along the lines of "Obtain entry-level RN position...." Aaahhhh!! Can someone please help me? We had an assignment last semester that required us to create a resume and portfolio. The instructor said it was great, but I am just not satisfied with it.

Nursing classes are tough. You have to be willing to commit a lot of time to studying, but A's are not impossible. My advice is to really learn the critical thinking skills from the very beginning. If you can grasp the pathophysiology of disease processes, it will help you think your way through the test questions. A lot of the test questions require you to know the basics of what is going on so you can think your way through it. If you know why something is happening, it makes it easier to figure out what your interventions need to be and where you should focus your assessment, etc.

St. Vincent's in Indianapolis

I've been looking into area hospitals and I can't believe I overlooked the VA!! I'll be checking into that. Thanks for the info!

deception9999, Are you a current student at Ivy Tech, or a former student?

I haven't tried using it during a lecture before, but when I rewrite my notes, I put them into OneNote. I'm not using the program to it's full capacity but I love it.

I haven't researched it myself, but I was told by someone starting the program that Med Tech will soon be accredited. Just out of curiosity, what are your grades for the other 3 prereqs for Ivy Tech? A B will not automatically exclude you because it is a points based system. If you have A's in Anatomy 1 and 2, and English, and score very well on the TEAS, you would still have a really good shot at the RN program. Say you have 3 A's, 1 B, and score 95 on the TEAS, your overall score would be better than someone that got 4 A's and an 84. The application deadline for Fall has already passed, but you can still apply for Spring 10. If all else fails, you can apply to both the RN and LPN programs, and if you get into the LPN you can apply to the transition to RN program after taking your LPN boards. Wow, that was a mouthfull!

This is truly wonderful advice. I know it wasn't directed towards me, but I'm taking it just the same. Thank you!!

I went over my max time frame this year so I've lost all my funding. Depending on the area you live, and how close you are to graduation, you might look into your local career center and ask about Workforce Investment Act funds. It goes by income and I don't know your situation, but the answer will always be no if you don't ask. I'm a very prideful person but I have to set that aside and pretty much beg for help. I graduate in May and I'm seriously about to resort to shaking a bucket on freeway offramps. LOL Don't give up!! Help is out there....you just have to ask a thousand organizations and you will find something. Also, many hospitals have programs in place where they will pay your tuition if you agree to sign on with them for 2 years as a full-time employee after graduation. Leave no stone unturned.

Congrats to all of you coming into the program this Fall. The best advice I can give is make sure you get a full night's sleep and eat a big breakfast before clinical. So don't try to study until 1 am when you have to be up at 4:30. It doesn't ever turn out well. LOL It is a very difficult program, but you will get out of it what you put in. It's a huge workload and some days you will feel completely incompetent. This is normal!!! Just keep an open mind and don't beat yourself up a whole bunch and before you know it, something will just click for you. Good luck to all of you!!!

If it feels like now is the time, I certainly say go for it. Sacrifice is hard, but ultimately, it is for the good of your family. Once you get through this program, the future is bright. Being away from each other will be very hard, and I can't imagine having to make that decision. I hope things work out for you.