John20

I worked at St. John Main for a couple years. No complaints from me. If anything they didn't fire people who needed to be fired, like about 33% of their PCTs who's work ethics were TERRIBLE.

No. Enjoy life before you go senile.

I didn't do any reading at all the 2nd year and ended up with all B's or higher. But I'm really smart.

Who cares? You are waaaaaaay overly hung up on this issue. Actually you sound really weird.

Disimpacting bowels and missing on attempts at ABGs. No honestly I like the fast pace. I like not knowing what I'm going to see. And I also like not having the same patients for the entire shift as we send them home or to the floor as quick as possible to clear out space. There is a bit of adrenaline rush in it as well.

They use you as a colonoscopy practice dummy for residents. Then they hang you.

Hahaha! What? Since female nurses are known to be demure ladies who only speak when spoken to, I'll handle this for them. They worshop male nurses as father figures that lead them. What are you trying to ask?

Testicular cancer highest risk group is teen to 35 in males. A testicular exam is important but even more important is teaching the boys to do their own every month. Nobody knows what their testicles feel like better than a teenage boy(trust me, I was one) himself so teaching him to look for abnormalities is almost as important as checking the rate and rythym of his heart. If there is a hernia the intestine can drop down into the scrotum cutting off blood supply to the intestine. It's rare, but nobody wants a colostomy when they are in high school. I've probably had 20-30 docs or NPs of all ages and sex check for hernias on me in my lifetime between sports physicals and moving from job to job. It really isn't traumatic.

I am boarderline emotionless at work. Which is a step up from many nurses who are downright hostile with patients who don't behave in the manner in which the nurse expects them to. What I am is competent and professional. I take pride in my assessment skills and ability to treat all patients the same regardless of how they treat me. Spare me the melodrama of "Stay away from my and blah, blah, blah....". What an empty sentence. If you or anyone you knows comes under my care they will get quick, competent care. You'll have to do the hand holding and hugging. My point to the original poster was that you can get into nursing(and be good at it) for money/career reasons only if you are mature, hard working, and professional.

Don't listen to the myth that you can't get into nursing for the money. I got into it only for the money and job security and have been doing it well for years. Never even considered nursing until I was getting pushed out of a 9 year job in business. To this day my "passion" is to better my family, nursing is my job. If you are going into nursing for the money what you will need is a top of the line work ethic and professionalism. If you lack either of these, in fact if you don't down right take pride in either of these attributes you will burn out and be an example of nurses who left after "getting in it for the wrong reasons." I hate that line.

Did I just read someone BRAGGING about Amway being from Michigan? Anyone who knows anything about that legalized pyramid scheme is ashamed of it not bragging about it.

I'm an RN and I couldn't care less who(PCT, RCA, IBM, ATT, USA, ect) calls themselves a "nurse". And in fact I consider LPNs to be "nurses". Oh no! The humanity! As long as I'm still paid what I'm paid, whatever.

How's the pay compared to local hospitals?

You cannot discharge a patient until his/her ETOH level is below the legal limit. In fact they can't even sign out AMA until ETOH is below the legal limit(although they won't need to because we boot them out the door as soon as they are beneath .08). We've put drunk patient's in restraints several times who got combatitive and tried to leave. I had no problem with the nurse's handling of the situation. I'm not quite that blunt with patient's but have no issues with those who are. Boundries need to be set firmly with drunk patients.

I think you are thinking and worrying too hard. I feel like I have gotten favored treatment as a male nurse from management and coworkers. They all seem to like working with males. I think the fact that when one of my coworkers starts trashing another to me and sees my genuine disinterest in the conversation and inability to contribute to the trashing they know that I'm not trashing them when they aren't around. I feel like all my coworkers respect me for that. Management likes me because I don't get emotional when things don't go my way. You're in the catbird seat and don't even know it yet. Of course if you come in and start making boob jokes, you will be the "douchebag male". So just save them for your buddies.