bluehippo

bluehippo's Latest Activity

1. 

   Flu shots

   bluehippo replied to Aisha29's topic in General Students

   No, this is not required at every school or hospital.
2. 

   HELP>> Advice of grades

   bluehippo replied to reader23's topic in Student Assist

   There was a post recently, maybe within the past month, that was very similar to your post. Try to find that one because a lot of people had some really great suggestions like talking to the department chair, writing letters, and other options. A good number of posters had been in the same situation that you are in. That really stinks (I'd like to insert a much harsher word but...) that you were .5 points away from passing and the instructor is not willing to work with you. I think I'd be pulling my hair out! Good luck to you. I hope you're able to talk/meet/write to someone at your school that can help you out.
3. 

   HELP! Student debt

   bluehippo replied to purple_zen's topic in General Students

   Some of my nursing instructors have told me that there is no difference in pay between a BSN or ADN. Two people that have graduated from this same ADN program are making very decent money, and they also say that there's no difference in pay. I am attending a community college that costs about $1200 every semester, and I will have spent about $1000 on books by the time I graduate. After I pass the boards, I plan to get a job and experience, then maybe next year begin an online ADN to BSN bridge program. The ADN-BSN bridge is definitely more expensive than schooling for the ADN, but I will have a steady income by then. It does stink that you've already spent $20,000 on your first year of prerequisites (would you spend a total of $80,000 for your BSN?), but if money is such an issue, which I can totally understand, then maybe it would be better to get out of there and continue with a community college to get your ADN and go back later when you have more money for your BSN. I wish you the best, good luck.
4. 

   How much is school costing you?

   bluehippo replied to tbell2's topic in General Students

   I also attend a community college in a Chicago suburb. With tuition, books, and child care for one child I will have spent about $9400. Maybe I should add my salon bill in there since nursing school has given me some gray hair that I need to cover up regularly!
5. 

   Nurses love DRAMA???

   bluehippo replied to Missy89's topic in General Students

   Ya, it stinks that people talk so much smack and can be pretty judgemental. 95% of the time I stay out of it. But I don't think RNs talk more than people in other businesses. I can kind of see your point because as students we are taught (or drilled) that we are to act professional and not judge. I will be entering my last semester in January and have been very lucky because most of my class is supportive and honest.
6. 

   Whats the deal with all the crying?!?!....

   bluehippo replied to morningland's topic in General Students

   I cried (loud movie-style sobbing crying) in the car on the way home from clinical. My clinical instructor took me into the conference room, dropped her clipboard on the table, kept standing, and began loudly telling me that that would have been a med error. And how I either chose to ignore her or simply didn't hear her request to listen to what "pharmacy had to say" regarding vanco levels (I still don't understand why she told me to call pharmacy, said that she wanted to hear what they had to say but walked away immediately after- Hell, I'm just glad I passed after that incident!). I had not had the peaks and troughs lecture in pharmacology yet and later went home to double check peak/trough level info in the drug book (which the book did not mention and it's the 2009 Jones & Bartlett). I also went off the printed out MAR because I wasn't able to read the physicians' orders, which was wrong on my part. It turned out that RNs had been giving the medication without the proper orders just like I was about to do, which still doesn't make it okay. I will always check peak/trough levels and always read (or get help reading) the physicians' notes. It's kind of funny, though. Talking to my peers, I've found out that most of them do not read the physicians' notes. Others were not aware of peak/trough levels, too, at that time. I felt like I was the most terrible and the world's stupidest student nurse. I really questioned if I was cut out to be a nurse. I also shed a few tears in the bathroom on my first day of pediatric clinicals because of a child with left side hypoplastic heart syndrome that had absent parents.
7. 

   STOP - Don't buy your textbooks from the school bookstore

   bluehippo replied to DolceVita's topic in General Students

   Barnes & Noble has great prices, too. Lately B&N has been a better deal than Amazon. Especially if you join their member club (it's $25 a year). My books were still cheaper through them, even with paying for the membership, than what the school and Amazon were charging. Free shipping for orders over $25, too.
8. 

   Leukocytosis

   bluehippo replied to 123_y_321's topic in General Students

   Look for interventions relating to infection/infection control, especially with her DM.
9. 

   I don't think I can do this anymore...

   bluehippo replied to mc3's topic in Nursing

   I can only imagine how you feel. What do you think about taking a leave of absence and talking to a counselor before you quit? I used to work for an HMO. The RNs there worked Monday through Friday 8-430p with an hour lunch, with benefits and all of the normal holidays off. They told me that they made decent money (the office did not require a BSN or Master's degree). They also did not have to deal with patients, just hospital staff and doctors' offices. I also have an aunt who works for BCBS with the same Monday-Friday schedule. These may be some options for you? I hope you find what you need. Good luck :)
10. 

    People are dropping like flies

    bluehippo replied to 20mom10's topic in General Students

    I'm in my third semester. We started out with 50 (in first semester) and are down to about 30. And every semester you hear about how many people in fourth semester are told to go home from clinical- meaning they've failed. This time six people were told to go home from clinical within a few weeks. Other instructors say that the fourth semester instructors get irritated that the students are not comfortable with their nursing skills. It sounds like a catch-22. Students only have so much clinical time and instructors assign the patients. I have practiced so many of my skills again recently on my own time, and will be practicing again over xmas break, but doing it in the lab is still very different from your skills on patients. I've actually been lucky lately. I've been getting heavy-needs patients while other students are done with their assessments and bored. But then again, I've upset a few of my clinical instructors so maybe they were trying to weed me out-kudos to them because I'm still here and getting better at my care and judgement! My advice is to help other students and RNs. Ask to watch, ask the clinical instructor for a heavier-needs patient or tell her that you haven't worked with xyz so if she could assign you an appropriate patient. A student really needs to be his or her own advocate in the clinical setting and be nosy as heck to see as much as he/she can see.
11. 

    BMCC Policy

    bluehippo replied to missjayda's topic in General Students

    If you want to be a nurse, and not an EMT or respiratory therapist, please don't follow the suggestions from the counselor. You should really do what your passion is. From my personal experience it is challenging to get into a nursing program at many schools. If a better grade in English would get you in that sounds like the most sound action. But first, since you're getting conflicting information from counselors (I also had that problem), you should go to the chair person of the nursing program to clarify. If you need information on transferring, I've found that it's best to go to the school you plan to transfer to with your transcript. They will be able to tell you for sure what classes they accept and all other pertinent information in regards to getting into the nursing program. From your post you mentioned that the first counselor said that you needed to take English to apply to the program. The other said that the C in English is holding you back. It sounds like English is needed to get into the program but the first counselor failed to mention that certain grades are needed in those preclinical classes, too. That really stinks that some of the information was omitted the first time. If your school offers mini semesters that would be an option. Or maybe they would accept an English class from a community college that offers mini semesters. I hope you find the appropriate info and make it into the nursing program if that's your passion. Good luck :)
12. 

    Withdrew

    bluehippo replied to Nightingale11's topic in General Students

    I have known a few people who have withdrawn or received an F after completing a class. They just re-entered the following semester and keep on going (and passing, too!). Withdrawing does stink but is sometimes necessary and definitely does not mean it's the end of your nursing education! Please remember this is a hard program which is, for most, a totally new way of learning and test-taking. Focus on psychology and pharmacology for right now. Med surg will be waiting for you next semester. I hope this makes you feel a bit better. Good luck and keep your chin up!
13. 

    Help! Advice Needed! Social work vs. Nursing

    bluehippo replied to cjohns889's topic in General Students

    I am still in nursing school. But you really sound like you have a wonderful heart, and I think the nursing profession needs you (and more people like you). It sounds to me that you are on the right track. At my psychiatric rotations I got to listen to many patients' stories. I used less of my nursing skills there but did a lot of therapeutic communication. Again, I am still a student, but I don't feel that I was able to really help patients. Obviously, these people were in a hospital and were very sick. They seemed to need much more interventions than I could provide (even some of the RNs there didn't seem to relate well to the patients because of the severity of their illnesses). It wasn't very rewarding for me. I've also done a rotation on telemetry (using nursing skills, giving meds) and was able to really listen and connect to people. The people on the tele floor were physically ill and probably somewhat emotionally ill but definitely not as severe as on the psych floor. I feel that I made a difference in their lives regarding their physical and emotional well-being which was incredibly rewarding for me as a nursing student. Good luck and keep us posted :)
14. 

    First Clinicals....any advice??

    bluehippo replied to 1234student's topic in General Students

    Even though it's hard, try to act like you've been doing this for awhile. Confidence (even false) goes a very long way. Good luck!
15. 

    Help! I think I won't pass!

    bluehippo replied to lalastudent's topic in General Students

    I am half way through my third semester. I have 3 NCLEX books that I study from in addition to my notes. Also, many textbooks have a CD and website that have NCLEX style questions that correspond to the chapters in case $ is tight. The NCLEX books give you reasons behind the answers so that you understand why it was answer x and not answer y (even though they are both correct). I didn't think I'd use the NCLEX books that I had gotten from a previous nursing student who graduated, but they have been a great help. Another thing that helped me improve my test taking and overall grades is I only read the book if I need additional info. When I read all the material assigned I tend to get lower grades on tests. Plus, some of the info from the text is different from what the instructor lectures on. And at my school the instructor writes her own questions which are from her lecture, not the book. I was also an A student until I hit nursing. Out of all the nursing classes I've completed I have gotten 2-3 A's and the rest B's. Please don't get discouraged. Hopefully you'll get many different replies and ideas and one will work for you. It is hard changing your brain to a nursing brain.
16. 

    Pediatric Dosage Calculation Question

    bluehippo replied to crissik's topic in General Students

    My clinical instructor told us that in pediatrics we are always to round to the hundreth, if applicable. 28 lbs/2.2=12.7272 75 mg x 1 kg 12.7272 kg =954.5454 At my clinical my answer would be 954.55 mg I hope it helps and good luck :)