PinkPeony7

I graduated from the Storrs MbEIN program in Dec. 2008 and would be happy to answer questions. To answer some previous posts, I'm not sure if there is a preference for UConn students, but probably 3/4 of my class went to UConn undergrad. Also, most of us didn't have medical backgrounds. We had a few students in their 40s and 50s that all did very well in the program. Overall, I am happy with my experience. I had some very good clinical instruction and some great professors in the classroom too. If possible, you'll be a lot happier if you don't work. I had to work about 20 hours/week during the program and was much more stressed than my non-working classmates. I still was able to do well academically though. Good luck to all of you!

Today was my first day on the floor with my preceptor (yay!). We had a patient that needed a rhogam injection and my preceptor gave her a dorsogluteal IM. In school we were taught to do ventrogluteal IMs because of potential nerve damage and increased pain. I know dorsogluteal is still commonly done and I have a few questions for you all, What site do you usually use for Rhogam? In my drug book it recommends using the deltoid, does anyone use the deltoid for rhogam? Is potential nerve damage from a dorsogluteal IM less likely in healthy women because of increased muscle mass or subcutaneous tissue or some other reason? Thanks!

UConn doesn't care where you did your pre-reqs. Most people I know did pre-reqs at a community college. I was lucky and had all the pre-reqs, except microbiology. I was a biology major and felt that I had a very good understanding of the subject from related coursework, despite never having taken an actual microbio class. UConn allowed me to take a CLEP exam instead and I was very thankful that I didn't have to shell out extra money for a class that I already had a good understanding of.

I am a graduate of the UConn MbEIN program if you have any questions about it. What is nice about this program is that after you complete the accelerated year to become an RN, you are actually expected to work as an RN before beginning the masters portion. I know many direct entry programs require you to go straight into the masters program with minimal or no nursing experience. I know plently of APRNs are successful without RN experience, but I think it usually will make you a better provider, and at the very least, give you more respect from many colleagues. We graduate in December and if you want you can start masters courses in the fall. This also offers more flexibility because you can do the masters part-time or put it off for as many years as you want and then have a guaranteed seat in the masters program whenever you want (as long as you maintained a cum GPA of 3.0). UConn's program is relatively affordable. The first year is $21,000 and most students get some scholarship money. If I remember correctly the first year at Yale is in the$45,000-$50,000 range and the accelerated program at Quinnipiac is similarly priced. For the masters program it is much more affordable and many students get graduate assistantships--which means free tuition and a stipend. I also know of accelerated programs at UMass-Amherst, UMass-Worcester and Fairfield University.

Knowing that I would be working in a highly litigious field as a new grad, I had expected to get some kind of liability insurance for peace of mind. Today in my orientation we talked about risk management and liability and now I'm trying to figure out what kind of insurance I should get. How many of you carry some kind of supplemental insurance? I have looked into AWHONN's sponsored policy and I'm a bit bummed by how expensive it is. Since I'm working in L&D, do I have to get a policy specifically for OB nurses or can I get a plan that's just for nurses in general? Thanks!

Its probably a bit premature for me to give my input on this seeing that I just finished my third day of orientation today, but here goes nothing :) I am passionate about birth and women's health. I can't get enough of it. I am absolutely fascinated by it. Now that I'm done with nursing school and will actually have free time, I plan on doing a lot of reading in the area (I have a long list thanks to the suggestion thread in this forum). The last three days i have been in a classroom learning about normal pregnancy and birth and am now geting into some complications with our unit's CNS. For me, I can't see this ever getting old. I hope that my insatiable interest translates into me becoming a good nurse. Nursing is a second career for me. I used to work in a laborotory environment that was truly the same monotonous stuff day after day. I never looked forward to working. I think its important to follow your passion, because you will spend a huge chunk of your life working. You might as well enjoy it. Good luck with school :wink2:

I think it is an excellent book. its very easy to read. Each chapter is divided into several sections. After each section there are 5-10 NCLEX-style questions over the previous material. Each chapter has a pre and post-test with more NCLEX questions. The material is challenging, but the book makes it as easy as possible to learn and study for exams.

I took my acute care final today as well as my ERI exit exam. I don't know how I did on the final, but I did better than expected on the ERI. I scored 911 out of 1000 and was in the "superior" range. I have pinning tomorrow (yay!) and then the 4-day ERI review course. I start my new job on January 5th. I have three months from my start date to pass the NCLEX. However, I'd really like to just get it over with. I am working in maternity and would like to just be able to focus on my new job and not try to juggle it with NCLEX studying. I plan on doing hardcore studying in the next few weeks. However, I am going home for Christmas this year and will probably not be able to study for five days. I wasn't planning on going home (600 mile drive), but my grandfather is sick and this may be his last Christmas. I know I will be unable to study while at home. So, if I take my NCLEX on January 2nd or 3rd, am I giving myself enough time? I will have three weeks to study and have been practicing NCLEX questions for the last month too. Any opinions? Thank you!!

Any tips on how to not get trapped into being a "medwife" and to practice real midwifery? Does it help to be in a large practice or an urban area?

My dad recently found out what a CRNA is and that is a lucrative field and constantly advises me to go that route. I can't see myself liking that role unfortunately. Also, after spending last week during clinicals in a cardiothoracic ICU and being completely overwhelmed by the 5+IV pumps on a single patient, the many chest tubes, and other gadgets I know I'd never cut it as an ICU nurse. God bless the nurses that work in that environment. I met some great ones while I was there. Has anyone chose to go into management or another APRN role? I think once I start working in January I'll get a better idea of what I want to do. The hospital I will be working at had quite a few midwives that do births. Seeing what their lives are like, if they enjoy their job, and if they get to practice true midwifery will hopefully give me a better idea of what I should do.

I'm curious if there are any nurses here that wanted to be a CNM but decided it wasn't worth it for some reason. What were your reasons and are you happy with your decision? Thanks!

St. Mary's Hospital in Waterbury starts new grads at $29.15.

I have a question for David... This is just a curiousity of mine since I will graduate from a 2nd degree RN program in a few weeks and will be starting a L&D orientation in January. I plan on going to midwifery school after working as a nurse for a few years. While I was in college a friend in my chemistry lab told me about how she was planning on going to PA school after graduation. That was the first time I had heard about the PA profession so I did some investigation. I liked everything about being a PA except that I only found that PAs were working in outpatient ob-gyn settings. Through my research I then found out about nurse-midwifery and decided that would be better for me since I was very interested in ob-gyn and birth. So my question is do PAs ever work in labor and delivery? Is there any state that allows them to attend deliveries with a physician or on their own? Or do most work in ob-gyn offices like Women's Health NPs? Thank you!

It wouldn't hurt to at least talk to the admissions people at schools you're interested in and ask them what your chances are. You could also consider getting your RN through a community college. However, I've heard from a lot of people that community colleges can be pretty competitive too and have long wait lists. You could give that a shot too. If those options don't work then an LPN program sounds like a good idea. Good luck from a fellow second degree student!:nuke:

I'll be getting six months of postpartum, then L&D, and lastly scrubbing for c-sections. I can't imagine learning all of that in six weeks as a new grad. Good luck to you :)