TBICU

Univ. of Michigan has a really good Trauma/Burn unit. I worked their the last year as a Tech while finishing up Nursing school (just graduated). They are not hiring anyone right now, I know this because I can't even get hired in my unit. This is due to too many Central Staff nurses and a hospital with a low census like every other hospital for the most part in the Metro area.

What units did you work at in the Omaha/CB area that got you in? I am a couple of years away from applying for CRNA school but have thought already at applying at Mt. Marty. How did you like the PD and what did the students say about the program? Thanks for any advice/comments.

I'm wondering...I had a recent interview at UPenn and don't think I completely answered their questions....Is there a chance I could still be accepted? I haven't heard anything from them yet? Did I truly need to talk about alpha and beta when discussing vasopressors?

Psyche is tough and much of this is due to the fact people do not want to enter this field in nursing and go into the class with a somewhat closed mind. I enjoyed all we learned and our clinical at Heritage had some interesting clientele to occupy our clinical time. Another reason is that the instructor told us certain percentages of the test would be from certain areas, and this turned out not to be the case. We found it quite misdirecting and really not necessary...but we all got through for the most part. M/S III is a good class with plenty of valuable information. I will not comment on what my fellow classmates thought of Thomas(Didn't have her), but will say it seems to be a rather like/dislike with no in-between scenario. Some people do complain even though they passed the clinical. Although they don't know it now, they will be better nurses for having her for clinical. She is a good instructor but maybe a little (lot) harsh for some people. Psyche--study all charts, graphs, etc. she loves taking info for tests from them. And prepare for a brutal final. Get good grades on your first tests to leave some cushion for the ridiculous final. M/S III--Study as you have been to get this far. Read all chapters and know the material even if little time is spent in lecture reviewing material (Especially in the case of the Final) I just finished these up and am appreciating our break (will start studying fairly hard starting Jan. 1) before we start our final semester. Good luck to all.

You might want to check for the hiring requirements for a surgical tech. Most job postings seem to want a "certified" surgical tech (which is a separate program of at least one year at the school I attend). Don't think you won't learn anything by getting a part-time position as a tech/extern etc. in an ICU. Quite the contrary; I have been learning every day I work in my unit while going to school.

I am in the AA area. I am working on my ADN and then next fall right back into a RN-BSN program at one of the yet to be determined schools in the area. I work part-time in a Level 1 Trauma/Burn ICU for the experiences and learning/knowledge and to hopefully move right into a RN position after graduating. If you are just getting started, I would much suggest a part-time position when you are eligible, and also get into an externship between your junior/senior years. The experience is well worth it. Any other questions, let me know.

I am not a CRNA, but that is my long term goal. I will over 40 when I will be at the point of starting to apply to CRNA schools. My advice is don't sell yourself short. If that is your goal why let a little thing like age get in the way. There are various posts on this website that detail older students being successful in programs. Age is not one of the major determining factors of success; willpower, determination, perseverence, a passion for the profession. The list goes on, but age is just a number right? You will be fine, just go for it. That is mine and other's plan. Good luck.

Nobody is trying to suppress your right to free speech on this discussion board. What Zembalina and myself were trying to do was give you our views from within the program and what it takes to successfully enter the program. We are not here to critique anyone; the goal is to help people achieve their goals, and perhaps, use insight from those that have already taken the path. Nothing more, nothing less.

It depends on the institution that you are attending. The BSN program that is predominate at the hospital that I work part-time at does allow the students to select in their senior year the option of rotating through an ICU for a semester (if not more--not sure) of clinicals. My ADN program only allowed us to attend 1 day (sigh). Don't let that distract you though, get part-time employment and work your way into a positon in an ICU as a tech, etc. In my unit several techs have made the jump to RN after graduation. It can be done (I am going that route too) just look at all the options available.

It depends on the institution you are attending. If you don't think that is going to be sufficient to get you employed in an ICU, you might want to consider part-time employment while attending school, that helps to secure a position after graduating. Several people on my unit have/are using this route, including myself.

There are only polarizing views of the stated instructor. I like her in lecture, and have heard from friends that she is tough, but makes you a better student/nurse in the long run in the clinical setting. Actually, not many complaints at all from anybody in the lecture right now. She wants students to learn/pass the boards in the long run and is passionate. I will take that passion any day compared to somebody who really does not want to be there. Just my two cents. I'm sure there are others who have quite the opposite opinion, but very few will be in the gray area.

Too many hoops to jump through to get in? If you step back and look at the big picture you will see that there is a huge surge in applicants trying to get into nursing, especially in this state. Of course it is disappointing that some people do not get into the program, but please don't blame the school for that. 120 people did get in because they had competitive grades (being that the gpa on the application is the biggest, if not only predictor of successful entry into their program). The school is driven by getting successful applicants that pass NCLEX. If they don't have any success with that, they should look forward to recieving a call/letter from the State Board of Nursing. Because of that fact, and the fact they don't have a waiting list, they lean on the gpa for entry. Everyone that applies is aware of this fact. Other schools do not have this protocol, but do have waiting list. It's one or the other--wait for a spot for 2-3 years VS. high gpa and get in sooner. The reason that the gpa is so high (3.7 it appears from posters) is that people are aware of how competitive the program is and either get all 4.0's the first time, or complete the pre-req's until they have gotten high grades in all cases (which in this case requires having A's in most/all classes. This is a highly competitive career choice right now and people need to be aware of this fact and expect high competition because of a limited amount of slots in nursing programs. I'm not saying the school is perfect, because it is not--just like ANY OTHER SCHOOL. But I will say that their system of admitting students into the program is pretty cut and dry. Unfortunately not everyone can get in the first time, but this is hardly the school holding out good students--they just have a very large insurgency of good applicants and have to pare down the applicants somehow (in this case it is gpa)

The one day I spent in their ICU for my nursing clinicals, I really enjoyed. My fellow students that went to the unit for a 1 day experience enjoyed it as well. The staff were friendly and were open to teaching. I don't know what they have for per-diem, but do know that the "telemetry unit" on the same floor, where we had the majority of our clinical time, has a very high Pt./RN ratio. However, one of the nursing instructors from our school, who is highly regarded by the majority that have taken her, works that unit and apparently doesn't mind the high ratios. I did love my time in the OR and invasive cardiology and thought the staff there were awesome too (MD's included when stating "staff").

I am a tech in the Trauma/Burn ICU (I know...not very creative on the UserID) while going to nursing school. We do have agency nurses in our unit, quite a few actually, but I have not run across any per diem in our unit. That might be a possibility through the CSR division. Your best bet would be to call a recruiter. As to how I like it-I love it. I don't know much about the other ICU's, but SICU is somewhat of our "sister" unit, and I have heard good things about that unit as well-since you are a SICU experienced RN. My personal experiences have all been good for the most part, and I do recommend it to fellow nursing students as a place of employment after school quite regularly. There are units that might not be quite as good, but that is the case in every place of work, and I don't know of any in the ICU's. As for parking, yes there are some parking lots that require taking a bus. There are options available that allow you to park in the structures near the hospital on the midnight shift only. It costs some $$ but is well worth the time savings. It seems as though parking is a hot topic with UofM, but you have to take the good with the bad. Let me know of any other issues I can help you with/didn't bring up in this post.

Candygyrl, Accredited schools are accredited because they choose that option. It is an option and nothing more. A voluntary process, not mandatory. As I stated before, for RN's the only time being accredited matters is if you want to attend a nurse anesthetist school, which must be accredited schools if a person wants to sit for the boards through the Council of Accreditation to become a CRNA, or the military, or some other very distinct situation that might require an accredited program. The IT profession is apples to the RN profession oranges.

You do not need to be from an accredited school to get into CRNA school. The minimum requirement is a BSN or another appropriate degree. This is what is found on the AANA website under "requirements". Yes, you will be fine by going to EMU, but so will other people who might not happen to be at an accredited program. Accreditation does matter when selecting a CRNA school, but makes no difference at the undergraduate level. If you go onto any one of the hundred or so programs found in the U.S., I doubt that any have the words "accredited ADN" as a requirement. This subject matter continues to come up even though it really is a non-issue except in very rare occassions like the military and its requirements.

U of M hires fresh GN's. Our unit has a bunch of them rotating through for a couple days for their ER orientation. One said that they are at approximately 70 rooms right now and want to expand to 120 in the near future. Call a nurse recruiter and enquire.

Yes, it is a grant not a loan, sorry about the syntax error. They do not pay for a lot more once you get into the program, at least not through that particular program (If so please state the webpage I can go to so I can enroll in the program and pass it on to others who are in the program with me). There are other funds available such as the Pell Grant, but that is available to all students of course.

Another reason you need to consider different paths that lead to the same goal is money ($$$$). People are starting to take the CC/RN-BSN route due to the expenses related to going to a 4-yr university. Also, do a search of the message boards and you will find that there are hospitals within the metro Detroit area that will pay for your schooling to get your RN-BSN degree (Henry Ford and Oakwood are the two that seem to have excellent programs for this as evidenced by messages on this board). I am doing the ADN then RN-BSN route for mostly this reason. You can continue your education while making very good money and finish up in 2-3yrs. Makes sense for my specific situation anyway. Just some FYI. Good luck and congrats on a good career choice.

There is a scholarship available. It is a Perkins Federal Loan. This loan is available to all people but specific to the career you are pursuing. Men in nursing, women in heating, venting, and A/C etc. If you are a minority gender in a career field dominated by one gender or the other you can apply for this money. Hopefully this makes sense. Not sure about the LPN route either so check up on it. Not sure on the amount though because I applied too late this semester for the money. Apparently the deadline was the 8th of Sept. and I applied on the 11th. Go figure. It may be available on a semester basis, so you might want to start checking for the January 09 semester sooner rather than later. I know I will be.

Most of the hospitals are in the same pay range due to the competitive market within the metro area right now. There are several major expansions taking place that will continue to provide plentiful job opportunities, which is additive to the general shortage in the profession. With your experience start calling some recruitors around your intended locale (Beaumont, Henry Ford-W. Bloomfield, etc) and you will have no problems. Good luck.

RunninDad, If you have a choice of just the two, CVICU would probably be chosen by most trying to achieve their career goal. However, there is plenty to be learned in Trauma ICU and plenty of CRNA's have come out of Trauma ICUs. I work in a Trauma/Burn ICU and there is plenty of art-line, vent, PA, ventricular action. Our latest to leave for CRNA school starting Jan 09. If you do some research and read through many of the posts if becomes apparent that yes, CVICU is great for the future CRNA, but other ICU's have produced multiple, well trained, successful CRNAs. Most school websites still list SICU and MICU as the top locations for nurses to get experience. Bottom line--you will get great experience and get what you need from either venue.

Ditto Michigan RN on applying for an externship program. I just completed an externship this summer and couldn't believe how much info I learned. All 30 of us were very satisfied with our experience.

Pynkladie, You will need at least 1 semester of med/surg and your fundamentals class as others have replied. This will allow you to get your foot in the door as a nursing asst in some places. Other hospitals require 2 semesters of med/surg before they will hire you, and in these facilities they will normally hire you as a nurse tech or nurse extern position. If you have a hospital on the top of your list, start with them and start making some phone calls. Many people say that the online job sights are of little value. Call a nurse recruiter or nurse manager and get your name out there. The reason you might not see many jobs is due to the fact that alot of jobs never make it to the online websites because people take a more direct approach to getting a job. Be persistant and alert to all hospital websites and you will get a job. If you can start out at the bottom at your preferred hospital you want to work at after graduating, you can work your way into an extremely good position when it is time for graduation. Since Dec. of 08, I have gone from NA on a med/surg floor, on to an Externship this summer, and now work as a ICU Tech at a Level 1 Trauma/Burn hospital. If you are in the position to work while going to school, hit the pavement and keep all avenues open. There is plenty of work available for students who want to get some enhanced learning while attending school.

It really all depends on where you decide to continue your education. Some institutions have more pre-req's than others. A nurse on my unit just completed his RN-BSN at Eastern Michigan. It took him two and a half years. Time to completion varies, but a rough estimate is 2-3 years depending on how many classes you want to take while working.