DuluthMike

You need to be persistent. I have worked with the highest acuity patients in the world. I have worked CV surg/transplant ICU, ran Ecmo, worked level 1 trauma ect. I have multiple degrees. I am published. I have applied to 3 jobs in Hawaii so far. ...

I recently had a redo sternotomy endocarditis/sepsis. Afib @70's and dwindled to 40's over my shift. SVR 400's. Midlevel who ordered Amio and Norepi. No pacing wires. Freq conversion to Vfib. Awesome fun night.

DVT can occur in any patient with a pulse. Use your SCD's.

Sink a pacing swan and see where you're at.

I work at Mayo and it is by and far the best place to work in the country, period. I am almost always 1 to 1. We have RNs on the unit with no assigned patients who simply help those in need. From the surgeons down to the environmental services it ...

This is not a male patient only phenomenon. I've had female patients ask me to scratch them in in their genital region. No thanks.

Have a strong resume (clinical experiences, gpa, extra curriculars). Be a strong interviewer. Focus on the patient and patient care. Mayo's philosophy is the patient above all else, and they mean it. Mayo is 100% class. They will pay for your trav...

Figured I'd start a thread for those of us applying to the Vandy nurse residency program for 2011 to share thoughts, feelings, questions and to network with eachother a bit. I'm Duluth! I'm a new grad with a previous degree in Biology. I'm applying...

You need to find a GREAT reason for having waited so long to take boards. Even with that you need to apply broadly accross the nation to land a job with such a large gap. Take ANYTHING offered. It doesn't matter if its the worst nursing job in the...

Apples and oranges. If you want to be a nurse, be a nurse. If you want to be a physician, be a physician. NP's are not junior doctors. They practice from a nursing perspective with nursing training.

Floor nursing and ICU are two totally different animals. Skills that make you a good floor nurse can sink you in the ICU and Vice Versa. I do not understand the medsurg first then transfer to ICU mentality. ICU is not above floor nursing, it is si...

We generally culture above 38.5.

Without getting into a ADN vs BSN argument, this is a false assertion. Make sure you are doing some very good research on the two. If for anything else than your opportunity to practice in that bedside only role that you wish to do will be severely...

I had a VA ECMO with a baseline HR of asystole. That was weird.

I have a bachelors in Biology as well as Nursing. For hiring purposes they will be looking for a bachelors in Nursing, specifically. An ADN with a Bachelors in another field is a plus, but it is not equivalent to a BSN. My honest advice is to get ...

I think this is pretty cute. I'd love to take my puppy to see the pet nurse!

Around 50% of health care providers who were asymptomatic were found to be carriers of influenza in a study I read. I'll cite if you are still being silly and not getting vaccinated. Get the shot.

I work in a SICU that see's a wide range of very critically ill patients. They range from heart transplants, lung transplants, and VADS down to simple CABG's. Given the nature of my patient population, when would it be appropriate to call in sick?

Aggressive new grads are the ones getting the jobs. There is no gender monopoly on this.

3 weeks continuous class. On and off class for a year. 6 months orientation. I love, love, love my hospital.

Letters are out (via email). I will be turning down my offer for Adult Critical Care as I took a different position at the University of Iowa. Congrats to one of the waitlisters :)

I would be wary of posting the actual interview questions.

I would try to get any of the hotels near the Vanderbilt campus. They all seemed nice, but spendy. I stayed at the Millennium and it was adequate but far away. Make sure to spend time taking the tour and exploring the city. Nashville is great!

After a 16 hour drive back, I'm home. What a great visit. Vandy was everything I thought it would be and more. I had a blast in Nashville. Just hope I get to come back as a nurse resident!

The best advice for interviews is to be yourself. Understand that the content of your answers is only a part of how you are being judged. Be HONEST! They will see right through your answer if you give a dishonest example of a clinical situation or...