MisterArnold

Sorry if I sounded discouraging. 2.4 is a low GPA to enter into nursing school. Perhaps if you got some of the science prereqs done and had excellent grades in those they might consider you for the nursing program. Once you are in the nursing program get the highest grades you can so you qualify for grad school. I believe if you have the perservence you will make it. Won't hurt to talk to an advisor in the nursing program and see what they have to say.

Grad school for CRNA is highly competitive and top grades are a must. As earlier post mentioned they are looking for nurses who have a minimum of one year of critical care nursing.

I stunk in math too during my grade school and high school years. When I took college algebra I spent many nights crying over concepts. Then I started nursing classes and was introduced to nursing math. For someone math challenged, I have absolutely no problem with it. It's basic adding, subtracting, multiplying and division. You won't be expected to do all the problems in your head - once you know how to enter the problem into your calculator correctly you have it made. Learn the correct steps to solve the problem and you should get a correct answer every time.

A RNFA is a Registered Nurse First Assistant. They assist the surgeon with surgery. I would think it's comparable to a 1st year resident in a teaching hospital. They help open up the tissue, retract, suction, and then usually close the incision. They also follow-up with the patient so the doctor doesn't have to make hospital visits. From what I've heard it's a limited profession. Not every area of the country uses them. I'm just trying to find out how I can get more information.

Does anyone know how to find out which cities use RNFA's? I live in eastern Arkansas and they don't use them. I was wondering if Little Rock uses them. I saw on a thread that they are popular in San Franciso, I wonder what other areas use them. If I go into OR after graduation I want to advance as far as I can.

Why do some many nurses and other people think that OR nurses stand in one position the whole day. They don't. Most of the scrub nurses I know are LPN's. They do alot of standing by the patient but remember the doctor is standing there also. Registered nurses are the circulating nurses and they move around the operating room, they also sit during part of the operation and chart. RN's also work in the recovery room or the pre-op section. An RN will scrub in on occasion but it doesn't happen that often. I like what I have seen of OR. It's a close knit group with everyone looking out for each other. You may run across an arrogant doctor but I've seen plenty of arrogant doctors on the floor. Most of the surgeons I know are polite to the nurses.

Here's how I see it. We all have something to offer the healthcare profession. Our main job is helping the patient recover from whatever illness or injury they are suffering. The patient care tech, LPN, ADN, BSN, MD, PT, RT, dietician, housekeeping, pharmacy, and supply personnel all contribute to the same goal. I have as much respect for the patient care tech as I do for the case manager. I don't care what your educational background is - I'm judging you on how well you do your job. I'm choosing the BSN route because I may want an advance degree - not because I want to feel superior to anyone. We need to quit defending our choices. It all boils down to are we helping the patient.

I guess it will depend on the individual reputation of each Healthsouth facility. The one here in Jonesboro, AR has a very good reputation. Staff enjoys working there. If you take the job you'll know soon enough if the people are happy working there.

I'm in a BSN program and I started taking nursing courses my sophmore year. It seems to me there is not much difference between the BSN and the ADN degrees except for the chemistry classes and a few other courses. From reading other posts it looks like the ADN students go well beyond two years to get their degrees. That was one of the things that motivated me to go the BSN route. Since I was going to have to be in school for at least 3 years to get an ADN I decided to go the extra year and get the BSN. This way if I want to go to grad school I'll be academically ready. I think the ADN students probably get more clinical time than BSN but both groups are equal before the nursing boards and NCLEX

Not sure if I agree with above answers. My mother died at home and for a few days before she died she had nothing to drink or eat. Her death was very restless - she did not look comfortable - her legs were constantly moving. It was probably connected to low potassium but I think dehydration may have played a part in her restlessness. I have heard it is a painful way to die. I don't think the pt needs a lot of fluid but I see nothing wrong with a small amount - can't see how it is going to make the patient live days longer.

Are there any other new students who are having a hard time hearing with their stethoscope. I don't understand why I'm having a hard time. With some patients I hear fine and with others I can't pick up a blood pressure or hear heartbeats. I'm using an electronic stethescope too! My clinical teacher told me to get my hearing checked and warned me if I can't hear with a stethoscope I don't belong in nursing. Another student told me she occasionally comes across a patient that she can't hear heart sounds from her stethescope. Would like to hear from others regarding their experiences with stethoscopes. By the way I can hear my own heartbeat and lung sounds just fine when I practice on myself.

When I graduate in 05 I'm pretty sure I want to go into psych nursing. It has been recommended by some of the teaching staff that I do a year of med/surg before I go into psych. If I go that route for a year I wonder if it's possible to spend 3 days a week doing med/surg and 1 or 2 days a week doing psych. Once I go into psych I would like to have some connection to med/surg even if its limited. Maybe reverse the work plan and spend 3 or 4 days in psych and 1 day medical. Anybody else out there that has managed to keep up both specialties.

I have tested positive for many years and have never taken any medications - just had the xrays. Do not have any more skin tests for TB because once you test positive you are at risk for a major skin reaction if you repeat the test. Just tell whoever needs to know that you are a TB reactant and can't take the skin test anymore.

NursesBookSociety.com is a nurses reference book club. I don't know if they have any fiction written by nurses. They have a wide selection of books and have a good introduction package. You can also try NursesBookSociety.com/nur for additional information