waggykeeper

Im in the same boat. Its pretty frustrating. What I am trying to do is find a hospital where they are considering nurses with prior hospital experience without ICU/ER experience. Some smaller hospitals are willing to train. Good Luck!

The other day I was covering IVs for LVN, the doc ordered IVF c K+, before hanging it I checked the K+ levels and it was 5.6, the LVN called the doc about it but doc said "just give what I ordered" and hang up the phone. So I refused to administer the IVF c K+. I am a relatively new nurse, but that was a rational thing for me to do. Before making the decision I asked my charge nurse and she just said to document it but did not advise me for or against it. Am I going to get in trouble for this?

I work nights....listen to music or doctor's radio (sad I know) on the way back. Leave shoes at the door, scrubs into separate laundry bag, straight to shower n shampoo. Once I'm refreshed do some yoga or wii fit, get breakfast from next door cafe or fix something healthy/light. Hug my large, chubby & warm dog for few minutes which makes me super relaxed and sleepy, off to bed for the next 7-8 hrs. I have also bought eclipse curtains for the bedroom so its pretty dark which helps to stay asleep during the day.

I took my prerequisites at Santa Monica College, had 3.4 GPA. Took me 2 years to complete it. I applied to 5 different ADN programs throughout LA, some of them had waiting list some were lottery system (after you qualified to be included in the pool of eligible candidates). I got accepted to two programs at first try. Personally I believe that applying to multiple sites largely increases your chances starting the program sooner. Of course if you have preference then just stick to the school of your choice. On a different note, don't get discouraged by the prereqs. It can be overwhelming at first. When I took my first prerequiste (Anatomy) I got a C and the counselor strongly advised me to think of changing career path. I wanted to be a nurse and I continued to pursue it. My grades improved with time, I got into nursing school and graduated with honors. Passed NCLEX-RN on a first try. One step at a time, you can do it. Good Luck!

qcwNEWGRAD09, just wondering if you have started the job yet? Is it hard to be a new grad and start with a prison RN job? Did you receive good training?

I am in the same boat. I have the interview next week and don't know what to expect. Did you have yours already?

Prettytk, How did the interview go? I have one scheduled next week and have no idea what to expect? Any pointers?

Congrats! I'm so happy for you and it gives me hope as I search for a job myself.

My husband is a head of a department and often conducts interviews. When he just started the job he bought a book "how to conduct a successful interview". One of the suggestions in the book was to ask a totally unrelated, strange question to throw the interviewee off in order to get them thinking on the spot in case they have reheorificed answers to expected questions. Once he came up with a question " if you would be an animal, what would you be? " It could be that your interviewer was doing just that.

Tristar, thank you for writing about this frustrating problem that new grads face. The only thing that I would not agree with is working for no pay for six moths (or whatever period of time). Let's say I have no family to support me, I can't live on the street and beg for food while working hard for no pay. It's not like new grads in training just go to the hospital and observe, they work extremely hard and deserve to be payed appropriately. Again, thank you for voicing it out, I hope the paper will shine some light on the problem we face.

Thank you all for your replies. Sorry, I meant intradermal. I got the issue resolved. Had to make few phone calls and explain my concerns but at the end I got all the right equipment. Thanks again. PS. Yes it was administrative personnel. Always trust your gut and what you have learned from the right source.

Next week I am scheduled to do bunch of TB tests. As far as I have learned, since it is a sub-dermal injection, a 1/2 inch needle of 27-30 gauge should be used. I have done a few TB tests in the past with such equipment. This time my employer has provided me with 1 inch needles of 25 gauge ( basically for IM injections) and said to go ahead and use those! So my question is, have you ever used or heard of using 25 gauge needle for sub-dermal inj? My rational mind is telling me that it is too big for such injection and the results could be altered, what do you think?

I think you are good, I had slightly higher scores and passed with 75 qs. Just remember not to stress. Good Luck!

By now you have probably made the decision, what way did you go? I always wanted to be an ER nurse, did my preceptorship in ED and realized that it's not as I have imagined it. I still enjoyed my rotation there, but I think for starters (I'm a new grad) I would go to Med-Surg. Starting first job as an RN is already stressful and going to ED is making the stress x10.

I'm also confused about the application (#1) and the supplemental information form (#4). Is it the same thing? I completed the # 1 but can't find any link to the supplemental information form. Even if they had problems with the form I believe the link should still be there. Can someone please enlighten me? Thanks!