BabyLady

Hello everyone! I wanted to tell everyone about this new program that rolled out at Walden University about 6 weeks ago that I just found out about today. There have been so many that have posted that are interested in being a Nurse Educator in an academic vs a hospital setting and would eventually like to obtain a doctorate, but had a ZERO desire to get a PhD. Many of us inquired about something "in-between" that would allow for educators to advance their knowledge that may want to stay out of the NP arena or research, grant writing, etc. However, nothing seemed to be available. The DNP program at Walden University DOES NOT REQUIRE you to be a Nurse Practitioner. It is a non-research based degree specifically designed for non-NP's that want a doctorate but not a PhD. No dissertation requirement!! If you review the curriculum, it really has the "meat" of what so many of us are looking for. I talked to a wonderfully amazing admissions advisor...she gave me permission to post her information on here as I stated that there were many on the same search that I was. BabyLady

Breast feeding is not contraindicated with methadone infants or most other opiates as well...so if Mom wants to breast feed, we let them, however, most choose not to because of the inconvenience (I am sure that surprises folks :) ). There are NICU's that don't allow it..and for those NICU's, they typically do not have a lacatation consultant on staff . Hypertonicity is usually the first symptom that shows up and symptoms can start as late as 14 days after birth. However, if the infant can be swaddled and consoled, we typically do not start replacement therapy, however, if they are screaming and out of control, we put them on methadone to get the comfortable and then start weaning the dose down.

The syringes do not have to be in "sterile" packaging because the GI system is not sterile to begin with. It just has to be clean...we use a similar system. However, you have two issues that are more important: Amber syringes and inaccurate pumps. Our facility, some hairbrain decided it was a good idea to get amber syringes and we were so mad we just got out the high $$$ sterile 10 ml clear ones...once they saw how many of those we were going through, they got the other ones back. I fully justified it because I HAD to be able to see the residual. That is part of your assessment for early detection of NEC...kind of hard to see blood in an amber syringe. The pumps, are going to increase an infant's time on gavage feeds because you are not getting consistent flow or accurate flow, which will also contribute to a feeding intolerance. I would get a group of nurses together and go higher up the ladder.

Many high schools have a program where students can get their LPN license by the time they graduate. Then you start at a community college and do the LPN-RN bridge program and that will shave a good deal off your required courses, then transfer to a RN-BSN program. That is another option. I went to school with two that were 18 years old and already working as nurses...they did very well in the program.

I agree with this...now that you know your facility pitches a fit over this, I guess it was a lesson learned. However, I feel fully confident that if they were not bluffing about going to the BON (I still think they are), the BON is going to tell them that unless your facility is claiming you charted something falsely (which you did not), then they are wasting the Board's time. As you can see, just from the board, if this many nurses disagree that what you did is a violation or not (I don't think it is, as long as what you copy is true and would not vary from what you would hand write), I am sure the BON will feel the same way. They never discussed this issue in school, that is for sure. A good discussion for all, nevertheless.

But how hard is it to break into that line of work?

Your legal rights are drastically different when appying for school vs applying for a job or licensure. In many nursing programs (such as mine), the school has a policy that admission practices for one program cannot be different from another. In other words, if you do background checks for nursing, you would have to do it for education, etc. Therefore, they do not. The law changed the year I graduated, nursing students are now required to have background checks because the surrounding hospitals required it of all students before attending clinical experiences. To me, if you have been convicted of ANY crime, you need to do a substantial amount of research before you choose a profession that a background check is pretty much guaranteed before you are offered a job. It is not the school's responsibility, it is that of a student's. Its not like they "forgot" that they went to court and got a conviction....cracks me up every time I hear someone make that claim. However, recent past behavior is a good indicator of future behavior. We had a girl in my class that actually got a felony removed from her record FOR THE PURPOSE of being able to attend nursing school by the court. However, she had an issue with anger management and got into another fight, therefore, another conviction, during nursing school. That pretty much sealed her fate with regards to my school. To me, she got what she deserved.

The purpose of checking for residuals is to check for early symptoms of NEC and one of those symptoms is feeding intolerance. There is no way you can check for that without checking for residuals. Our policy is that as long as a patient has a NGT, OGT or J, we check for residuals. Nurses can remove the tube, without an order, when the infant has been nippling all feeds, within 30 minutes, for 24 hours.

the blue part of your statement caught my eye...you need to be really, really sure you can get in-state tuition after the first year. most colleges will not allow you to have in-state tuition after the first year, even if you get an in-state driver's license, move your car registration, etc. they grade your tuition based on what you were catagorized on your first year...otherwise, every student would qualify after the first year. the only exceptions i have seen is if your parents move. you off-set costs by staying with an in-state school or going to a community college program and then transferring to an rn-bsn program. $45k in loans are going to cost you about $450 per month and that is going to be hard to pay back with rent, a new grad salary, etc. i went to a cc first, total program cost: about $7k. my rn-bsn program: total cost: $13,000 at a major university.

We use swings and yes, they have cloth bases. They are not specialized for hospital use. We do place a blanket on it, but sometimes, there are accidents and our housekeeping staff cleans them off with hospital grade cleaner. They are a lifesaver.

Only if she wins the Miss America pageant. Nothing illegal about what she has done.

But that is not what happened on HER shift. When the OP signed off they were A-Ok. An original note doesn't = assessment. As if an RN cannot write she assessed and then really didn't.

False charting is the problem. It is not true that "all" charting has to be original notes and no photocopies. Our charts are FULL of photocopies. We make photocopies of our flushing protocol where the Neo simply checks off which one he wants to use and the nurse signs off on it. We do that with central lines as well among other things. The OP did not false chart...she only copied verbatim, what she would have otherwise charted...if she SIGNS OFF an original signature and current date, she is agreeing that what is WRITTEN is what happened, copied or not. They would have to prove otherwise, in order to turn her in. I have a sneaking suspicion that this is something that everyone THINKS is wrong, while not the recommended way to go..is probably going to be ok in the end. I don't think the BON will even care.

I would ask the principal if you can send an e-mail or letter to the teachers letting them know reasons NOT to send them or ask if you can speak to them at the next meeting. Present it from the perspective that you feel that the students are losing out on valuable learning time...not to mention the fact that I am sure you have to send a letter home each time it happens...ie. wasted resources.

I have a feeling that the answer to your question will be answered when you receive her transcripts. Also, if I were to guess, it looks like she probably sent that e-mail from her cell.