marryweather

When we have employees found to be working under the influence it is handled by the companies hr department however I stress to the hr department that the employee is not fit to drive and that there could be legal ramifications if the employee is involved in an accident on the way home. Usually they make the employee call a friend or family member to come pick them up or a cab if there is no one else available.

It's been my experience that in most instances similar to this these cases are resolved in mediation and a settlement is made. When we have employees suspected of fraud we have them observed and if they are observed doing anything outside of their restrictions their claims are mediated, settled and they are terminated due to their fraudulant actions. You should probably talk with your adjuster, case manager, and the attorney on retainer.

I chose to become an LPN because I wasn't sure if I would like nursing. The program at the school I attended was 11 months and very difficult. It only accepts 20 students a year and to the best of my knowlege has never graduated more than 15 at a time. It was a very intense program and most of our clinicals were done in LTC facilities. However, we also received training in mental health, ob/gyn, pediatrics, and we had a surgical rotation and did med surg rotations at the local hospitals. I have found that I enjoy nursing and am now pursing my associate so that I may become an RN. When I first graduated and was applying for jobs I had a recruiter tell me that her hospital didn't hire LPNs in fact the only reason they had LPNs working for them at all is because they were there before there was a change in ownership and administration of the hopsital. I have fallen in to occupational nursing since then and I love it. LPNs have a broad scope of practice in NC however despite the nursing shortage you still don't find very many in hospitals. Most doctors offices in our area don't even utilize nurses any more they hire MOA's and MA's. It's very frustrating because I have worked with some RN's who can't even recognize an infiltrated IV and I also have worked with some wonderful RN's who were great teachers as well as wonderful co workers. I understand the frustrations very well. During one of my clinicals while I was a student I had the pleasure to work with an LPN who had been practicing for over 20 years and was told that she could no longer hang potassium. Something she had done her whole career. She had a look of defeat in her eyes that I will never forget. With the nursing shortage being as bad as it is I would think that facilities would love to have any nurse no matter what her title as long as she had the skills and experience necessary to provide high quality patient care.

I enjoy nursing. LPN's have a very broad scope of practice in North Carolina. In fact most of the limitations we face come from the facilities we choose to work for. In the Charlotte area most hospitals and even several LTC facilities prefer RN's. The higher ups that do the hiring don't really look at your experience or your knowlege they want the title. For me as a patient personally I say give me a nurse thats got sense enough to get in out of the rain I don't care what her title is. I've worked with nurses who couldn't even recognize an IV infiltrate.

From Charlotte here I'm an LPN and I love correctional or occupational health nursing. I think its the mental challenge the intriuges me. I'm currently working on my ADN then eventualy my BSN and maybe MSN.

I worked with a med tech when i was working at a facility for develpmentally and physically disabled individuals. It was the first time I've ever worked with a med tech and wasn't very comfortable with it. I handled it by following her at different periods of the day and watching her. Turns out I was very lucky she was good at what she did and she was a big help for me. Different facilities have different policies about what they allow their med techs to do. Because I had patients with tubes and patients with out I had two carts one for my tubes and one for po patients. We both passed meds together she would take the tube cart on one med pass and I would take the po and then when it was time for the 1200 and 1400 med pass we would switch. After all med passes were done I would go through the MARS looking for holes. She would also go through the med cart daily and remove any out dated medications and pull labels for medications that needed to be reordered which freed me up to do my treatments and my charting. I was fortunate that I had a very competant med tech.

I think it depends on the individual. I've shocked several CNA's when I've offered to help give a bed bath or put a patient on a bedpan and changed a brief. It just depends on the person. I've come across nurses who wouldn't help who were LPNS and some that were RN's but I've worked with some RN's and LPN'swho were more than willing to help me. I just try to keep an open mind for everyone. I tend to not pay attention to titles because we are all there for the same purpose and thats to care for our patients.

If you are willing for pay for it Educational Resources inc has a great NCLEX review. I was fortunate enough that my instructor made it mandatory for us. They have all kinds of review programs and even have new reviews that mimic the new NCLEX 2005 was the first year with fill in the blanks and multiple choice. It even has a complete systems review. the address is eriworld.com

Working in a LTC facility is very hard and its frustrating and stressful. I used my experiences as a student nurse to help me find a career I would like. I kept track of my favorite clinicals and the clinicals where I learned the most. When I was a student I absolutely hated my geriatric rotation. I don't deal well with dementia. I've done correctional and occupational health nursing. I loved the correctional nursing it was as close as I was going to get to an emergency room as an LPN. Not to mention the criminal element is the unhealthiest of the population so I got experience in all kinds of areas. Occupational health is a little slower paced but I still utilize my assessment skills, my wound care skills, emergency skills and mental health skills. I refuse to push a med cart for 8-12 hours a day. I do however do agency jobs 2 to 3 times a month in LTC facilities to help keep my geriatric and med skills sharp.

I faced the same questions and criticism when I was in school. I chose to become an LPN because I was going back to school after 11 years and I wasn't even sure I would like nursing. LPN offered me the chance to test the waters. The course was only 11 months long and the tuition was pennies on the dollor as opposed to wasting 4 years and 20 to 30 thousand dollars only to find out I didn't like nursing. Turns out I love it and now I'm taking my time and working toward my RN. And there is work for LPNS its just a matter of finding the job you love. Don't get discouraged.

Its been my experience that the hospitals here in Charlotte prefer to hire RN's and reserve the LPN positions for LTC and doctors offices. But even now most doctors offices are not hiring nurses they are hiring MA's.