degraypoole

Having been a varsity educator and now a student I am looking at your posting from both perspectives. I think you may be taking his comments too personally. He is speaking from experience, and has voluntarily offered you this information. I suspect that you doubt yourself and his comments have just stirred up your deep seeded beliefs. If is comments are not applicable, then brush it off. On the other hand if he is evoking some doubt, then you may want to take them into serious consideration. If you do choose to reply to his email, be positive and thank him for his advice/comments, duly noted and food for thought. You mentioned that others have told you that you may be taking on too much. Evidently those people know you, and share his sentiments, and he doesn't even know you, he is just basing his comments based on his experience with students in similar situations. I don't get the impression that he is implying that you are a "slacker". Rather he is the one that is being realistic. My advise to you is to take yourself "out of the box" and look at the big picture objectively. I wish you much success. Stay positive. That's very important.

for what it is worth .... i will be over 60 when i graduate as a rn! it will be a life long dream come true thanks to a former client that provided the funds for me to end my cna career and start my rn career. god is good. my only concern is pulling it off academically; age does not intimidate me at all. i know that my age will give me the upper hand in many respects as a student and as a rn. good wishes to all of you who are brave enough to be all you can be. sandra - pre-nursing

If anyone has already done the research please can you share it with me. I have no college experience, so I will be starting from scratch. ....Many thanks for your time. PS I have tried to "Google" but to no avail!

I would be interested to know what the salary/pay is over there for a RN and for an LVN. Thank you.

As a CNA I would suggest you work for a hospital. I have been a CNA for a few years and about to start nursing school myself at the age of 56! All the while I have been working as a home-care CNA specializing in seniors. From what I have read and been told, I would have gained greater preparation for nursing school by working as a CNA in a hospital setting. None-the-less I have learned a lot in the capacity of a senior home-care giver. As far as to tech. classes go, it really doesn't matter how long the course is, the classes are, or how much it cost, what does matter is their success rate in number of students per class that pass the state exam. I personally believe the failure rate should be no more than 5%. On a personal note I would recommend going straight into nursing school and do your BSN. CNA positions are poorly paid and don't afford you that much more experience. You have to work years for it to really count as gainfull experience.

Variety is the spice of life! I too am one that has to conquer the challenges of a new job or position and then....move on to the next, or I become board and start to dislike the job very soon; I have to have new challenges and learn new skills all the time. My late father told me "A rolling stone gathers no moss", but I beg to differ. In the field of nursing, like so many other professions that have become so diversified, I feel it is a necessity to become a good all rounder and that only comes from climbing more than one mountain.

if senior nurses are expected to teach and don't want to for whatever reason, they should take it up with their supervisors, and not resent the new nurse, who after all never asked to be assigned in the first place, it is jut a requirement. usually a supervisor will not assign a newcomer to a senior nurse unless they think they can do the job. so now is it a personal matter? do these same nurses not remember that they too received training, perhaps from others that also begrudged it but did it anyway? are they not where they are today in-part due to the skills they acquired from them? they should be proud that they have been selected for this honorable position and make the most of it. i know i would. i remember, at the age of 16, i was in an excellerated human anatomy class, when my professor asked me to teach the class the next day because she was going to be indisposed. what did i know about teaching at this age? but i saw it as an honor. i had been asked to teach a class of students way older than me 18-23 years of age, because i knew the subject material very well. i did a good job even though it was not my place to teach. i was after all the student! working for god on earth does not pay much, but his retirement plan is out of this world.

If senior nurses are expected to teach and don't want to for whatever reason, they should take it up with their supervisors, and not resent the new nurse, who after all never asked to be assigned in the first place, it is jut a requirement. Usually a supervisor will not assign a newcomer to a senior nurse unless they think they can do the job. So now is it a personal matter? Do these same nurses not remember that they too received training, perhaps from others that also begrudged it but did it anyway? Are they not where they are today in-part due to the skills they acquired from them? They should be proud that they have been selected for this honorable position and make the most of it. I know I would. I remember, at the age of 16, I was in an excellerated Human Anatomy class, when my professor asked me to teach the class the next day because she was going to be indisposed. What did I know about teaching at this age? But I saw it as an honor. I had been asked to teach a class of students way older than me 18-23 years of age, because I knew the subject material very well. I did a good job even though It was not my place to teach. I was after all the student!

i am about to embark on a nursing career. i have not heard of hospial prgram diplomas. i am in dallas...how do i go about finding out. what are the basic differences between a hpd and a nursing school. i really will appreciate input.

I think the government should give students in the medical field a break! There should be a discounted gasoline cost based on the distance to/from school and/or clinical locations. After furnishing verification of your home and school address (or other related destination to do clinicals), the mileage can be determined and students can be given a coupon/s for a sufficient gas allowance at a discounted or subsidized rate. There should be an income and other guidelines to qualify. I know we get an opportunity to claim this as an educational expense on our tax returns, but that doesn't help the student that has a tank on "E" and little or no money to absorb the absorbent, rising, fuel costs. (Pun intended.) Often we can't choose the school we want due to intake availability etc., and are forced to go to schools much further away. Anyone in the medical field is doing this country a great service, as do teachers. Time to write our congressmen? We represent a very large body of students. (Maybe all students should be included), so we have a voice. Maybe it is time to.

I am so very excited for you. All the best going forward.

TO CametoitlateTexan In what capacity can you work at the hospital and does it have to be full time? I can not see going to school full time and working full time. Currently I am a CNA here in TX. Thanks

TO: CametoitlateTexan Your email was very good. How did you manage to get RN for 1/3 of the cost? I am in Dallas, but may end up going to Tyler to get my RN. I am doing the prerequisites for same at the moment. Do they have an excellerated/fast track program or just the 4 years? I was going to get my LVN, but after joining this web site recently I have decided to get the RN degree. This is just the most fabulous web site as its' contributers afford all of us an invaluable wealth of information. I have learned so much. Thank you one and all. Sandra, Dallas, TX

working for god on earth does not pay much, but his retirement plan is out of this world.

working for god on earth does not pay much, but his retirement plan is out of this world. degraypoole;2815319]i think that is terrible. god will reward you, that you can count on.

I think that is terrible. God will reward you, that you can count on.

TO: bjames_ging In some cities the American Red Cross has CNA classes. I am not sure if they are free, but even if there is a charge I am sure it will be very reasonable. Some Home Care Agencies will reimburse tuition. Also check D.A.D.S., for a state on line program in Home-care. They are very reasonable. I got my Home Care certificate on line through them before I went to a CNA training school. Best wishes.....Sandra, Dallas, TX

Having read these posts and being a pre-student nurse myself it makes me wonder if these seasoned nurses are the ones that need an attitude adjustment. Have they forgotten they were once new to a specialty too, just went about it differently. Well times have changed. Seasoned nurses, specialized or not, should embrace the new students and relish the opportunity to pass on the vast amount of knowledge they have acquired over the years. They should put their energy into that and not so much in fretting over the fact that they have a new rookie on the floor. Tisk, tisk. If they exude this amount of impatience to the newbies, I feel this is probably indicative of the level of the patience they afford their patients! Do the veteran nurses not stop to think about the anxiety the new floor nurse goes through everyday. Sounds like they need to be retiring and pave the way for new, energetic blood, with a new invigorating outlook. To those new nurses that are having to endure the wrath and impatience of the "seasoned" nurses, I hope you will remember the hell they put you through so that when you are in their position one day,you will not make the new wave of nurses lives hell like they did.

I have a couple of suggestions for all the "stop smoking" wannabees. This is what I am going to do: 1. Make a necklace comprised of small notes threaded on a string, neck chain, whatever. Use thick paper or thin card stock. On each note write a reason to stop smoking, e.g. "Smelly breath", "Corrupted lungs", "Holes in clothes", "expensive", "Socially unacceptable", "Stained teeth", "Loss of taste", "Loss of smell", "Dragon breath", "Polluted air", "Home/car smells like ashtray", "Hair smells", "Clothes smell", "Makes me feel guilty", "I'm poisoning myself", "Bad, nasty habit", etc. Every time you have an urge to smoke, randomly pull one off and put it in your old ashtray (or any other significant place). The next time the urge strikes repeat the same and read the one/ones already in the ash tray. 2. Make a second one, in the form of a bracelet. On these tags/notes, make a penalty. If you succumb to a *** (cigarette), pull one of these off and do the penalty before you do another thing. Penalties like "email one of us" to confess. Call the help line given in other threads. Suck a piece of lemon (supposed to be good to curve craving), fore-go a pleasure that day, e.g. no coke for the day, etc. You have to stick to it and make stiff tailor made penalties but not ones that will cause you to stress and want to smoke even more! Put a lot of thought into the notes you will put on tags, and only use the ones that will most impress upon you. I really think this will work coupled with all the other wonderful suggestions contained n these threads. There is a wealth of information there. I am inviting a "Smokefree Wannabee Buddy" to email me so that we can be a support system, accountable to each other and report on our progress. My start date is 01 May, tomorrow. For me I know it can not be that hard to do, as last year I had a 24/7 live-in position. The home was of course smoke free. The day I started I cut down to one cig a day, max two in the days that followed. (I had to sneak this after everyone was asleep.) So I know if I can go from a pack a day to one/two a day, what was I smoking for? I'm sure I just did it because I could get away with it by being a sneak. (I'll make a tag for that one, "Being a sneak"!) No good, no good. I hope this helps.

Interested in knowing what the pay scale is in any and all areas of LVN employment in the DALLAS, TX area, esp. North Dallas. (New graduate). This will help me to know what sort of jobs/positions to apply for, or not to apply for! I appreciate your input.

TO: RaElRa: Thanks for your input. I have been a CNA only in home care settings, but yes I see the experiences as an asset to my impending career in nursing. I have not even begun inquiring at TJC. How long were you on the waiting list and how long is the program for LVN/RN, whichever you are knowledgeable about? I am happy for you; you're well on your way.

This is just what I needed for that extra shove. I too am planning on going to school very soon, and if for no other reason, I feel like a hypocrite advocating and promoting good health as a nurse, and then puffing away behind the scenes. I have one pack left out of my carton which I will finish tomorrow and then I will take a leaf out of your book and do everything that you have done. I will buy all the goodies you suggested tomorrow etc.. ..........Thanks for being brave enough to air this topic. It is subject to ridicule! Success is trying and failing and trying again until you don't have to try anymore, because you can.

I would contact the registra's office at this school and inquire as to why this program is not accredited, and if they confirm that it is not, ask them: 1, What are the advantages/disadvantages of getting a degree through a non-accredited program. 2, If any of the schools' programs are accredited. If so why are they, and why not the nursing program. One of the thread writers is correct in suggesting that you may not get credit for some/all of the classes down the road, if you want to have them transfeRred. Your article caught my attention because I may be going to the same school in the fall, so this is of interest to me. I haven't even begun to look into it. Were you put on a waiting list and if so how long? What is your class size if known. Thanks,.....Sandra.......Dallas, TX

Stay that way! Remember these feelings when the going gets tough and mostly why you felt this way! The very, very best of everything to you in your endeavors. Sandra, Dallas TX

"Don't let you heart rule your head".