jhoefen

what position did you apply for @ mercy? I was having the same problem when i was applying to only one position at a time. I got a call almost immediately after applying for ALL open positions. I got a call and took the job immediately. given the current hiring situation, i feel pretty lucky to have found this job and so far i am enjoying it. its my first job as a nurse and i'm in the ER so there has been a steep learning curve but i'm hanging in there. good luck. apply for everything.

I did it through excelsior. You dont need anything else. Just go through them. I finished all of the online tests in under three months. When you get to the CPNE just put yourself on the short notice list or else you'll have to wait for 6 months or more. I did it and got in about a month after applying. Yes, Wisconsin accepts excelsior college. NCLEX was a challenge but doable. good luck to all doing it this way. for me it was the best/quickest way possible. The down side to it all is I am currently teaching myself how to be a nurse (on the job) as i was not previously a nurse.

Try Mercy hospital in Janesville. They are hiring. Just apply to every opening and you'll get a call. At least i did last month. Good luck.

I have worked as a paramedic and i can tell you if a patient is dying in the back of my ambulance, i don't care what level your hospital is or if you want to "divert" me, i'm coming anyways. In the hospital you have many nurses, doctors and equipment i dont in the back of the rig. Stabilize the patient, then i'll transport them. Thats what i would want done to me. As far as a report is concerned, i consider them a courtesy, i, as a general rule do. That being said, i have had nurses ask stupid questions (pt. age? did you get an IV, What do you see on monitor, ect). In my opinion, radio reports are only to give the hospital a heads up, 50 year old patient, chest pain, be there in 5 minutes. I've got my hands full in the back of the rig, don't come back and ask a million questions you can figure out when i get there. I've done many clinicals in the ER and know how difficult the job can be, How much ride time have nurses done on an ambulance? I bet if they did some they would understand why sometimes we dont give a radio report. Medics are expected to do a lot in a very short time, most of the time with very little info ( pt. history, ect) and very little help if any and sometimes being very close to a hospital. I'm not going to sit on scene for 10 minutes figuring stuff out and give a radio report if i'm 5 minutes from the hospital. I load and go and do what i can for the patient in the meantime. I have no problem walking into an ER without calling if time didn't allow.

hello everyone. just found out i passed on my second try. The "trick" worked for me. Graduated from Excelsior's program online in 4 months. Took the NCLEX the first time without studying, went to 265. Got a good feel for the questions and where i needed to study, improved on my knowledge on blood transfusions, diabetes, meds ect using saunders. Second time went to 250 questions. I didn't feel any different from the first time i took the test, similar questions, didnt know ANY of the meds they asked. only this time i got a lot more SATA (10-15). I also changed one strategy for the priority questions. ABC's first, then I would take a long look at any choices that had a patient with elevated temps. take it for what its worth. good luck to all.