prisicruz

Hi Nurse Friends! I am the unit manager of a TCU and though the days are long, overly busy & under staffed, & incredibly overwhelming, I love it all. Its much responsibility and it can get very crazy very fast, but its a challenge I took on knowingly. I have always been thirsty for more nursing knowledge & naively, more nursing responsibilities. At my facility, we also have a LTC unit thats slower paced & less acute. They are busy, just not as busy & that unit manager tends to deal with less stress between patients & the staff shes in charge of. She gave her notice, & today, my DON asked if I would like to transfer to the LTC floor for me to run. I told her I would think about this. It would mean a drastic change in my day to day life - positively. More time at home, less time on call, etc. BUT - does this mean I cant handle the fast paced TCU? Am I not doing a good job in the past year? Can she see my stress radiating from me & feels like I am bound to fail? Am I being dramatic?? Possibly..but I dont think that offer would stand if I were kicking ***. Please provide your thoughts. I will ask for feedback from my DON, & I am open to constructive criticism in an effort to make myself a stronger nurse & stronger leader. Let me know how you would take this, if differently from me. have a beautiful day & thanks!

I loved being a CNA, I did it for almost three years before getting my MA. I also wish I had gone for my LPN rather than my MA. I'll be applying to a PN program in November cant wait! Anyway, my day as a CNA was pretty much the same on a day to day basis. I worked the 7-3 shift, so I'd come in, get my patients up & ready for their day, do breakfast, activities, lunch, rounds & changes, and then finish up my books and go home for the day. In between, you'd do bathroom runs with them, answer call lights, report to nursing, etc. However, every day was vastly different in that you're caring for people and their needs change daily, obviously. It's a LOT of work, no time to do any of it really since you get more patients on your assignment than you can handle usually, and the pay will make you angry every time you look at your paycheck. I LOVED EVERY SECOND OF IT THOUGH! And if you're looking to sped a lot of time with the patients, then that's the career for you. If the pay was at all better, I would be a CNA for the rest of my life. Unfortunately, in my area the pay is next to nothing, and it's hard to live on that. I like responsibility and so I do want to further my education and eventually get my BSN, but I'm FULLY aware (from listening to nurses I worked with) that nurses dont get to spend all that time with their patients. Fact is, they're just too busy. CNAs get to spend "quality" time almost with their patients and can even have conversations and get to know them personally. The nurses I worked with didnt have this luxury (it is a luxury in my opinion). This was in LTC btw. I'm not sure if a different setting would have a different vibe, but that's pretty much how it is in long term. Good luck in the future!

I work at Willow Manor, we're on Princeton BLVD. You have to go in and fill out an application in person as opposed to online, otherwise, we will never see the application. It'll get lost in the Genesis corporate office and never get to any of my bosses, which is unfortunate. If you go in person you can ensure that it'll go directly to the director of nursing and she's really good about giving new grads a break. Private message me if you need any further info or if you're not sure about exactly where it is.

Hi Sawyer - This thread has been going for a while now so I'm not sure how much this will help, but I work for Genesis HealthCare at a nursing home in Lowell, Mass and my director of nursing is hiring nurses left and right because so many of them are leaving us to move on to bigger & better things (like hospitals..lucky -_- ) anyway we tend to hire new grads..especially LPN's...and especially from Greater Lowell Tech because they have such a good program. Students that graduate from that school definitely learn a thing or two. SO if this helps at all, msg me and I'll give you specifics as to how to go about applying. I'll be taking the TEAS at Lowell Tech next month so fingers crossed! I went the Medical Assistant route last year and just wasted money, time and effort..not to mention being away from my family while I worked and went to school. Medical Assistant programs are the real waste..Nursing schools arent out to get your money, there are jobs out there. Its just a matter of staying within the field doing whatever they'll hire you for so you can make connections. I've been in the medical field for almost 4 years now, not a nurse yet, but I've met people from all different hospitals and I've made sure to keep contact with these people open...so that when I do pass my boards, if ever, I can apply to where I've made connections, including where I work now. So maybe they dont have any jobs as an LPN or an RN, but that same facility might need a CNA, or a unit secretary or even a kitchen aid...anything to get them to know you and your work ethic...then that one year of exerience wont be so "elusive". You wont make a nursing salary BUT it'll be one step closer to it and it'll probably come with benefits, so that outweighs any grocery clerk job in my book. Hope this helped, Sawyer! Good luck with everything and stay positive!

Thanks for all your advice. I do work in the healthcare field, I've been a CNA for three years now. Everyone I work with, including my bosses, are very supportive and understanding as far as nursing school because they're all nurses. So working only weekends wouldnt be an issue as far as work goes. I'm just worried about bills and how to juggle it all. It helps to have a supportive family, which I do have. But the idea of not working or having to rely on others for that much more support is a bit daunting. I guess you have to really want it bad to make the sacrifices and I want it...BAD!! lol I've wanted to be a nurse since as long as I can remember so, again, thanks for the advice!! I'm def gunna cut down and take it from there. :heartbeat

I'm going to be applying for an LPN program and I'm trying to plan out my entire year (what I can anyway) so that not too many "surprises" come up while I'm trying to focus on school. Anyway, I guess this is the golden question for anyone looking into nursing school, but should I bother trying to work at all? I have a job, which I can easily switch over to part time once I start school. I'm just worried that if I'm working all day, then at school all night for the entire week..what will my family be doing? I feel like I wont have much time with my daughter or my husband, no time really to cook dinner let alone sit and have dinner...and then what little spare time I will have, will probably very likely be used for homework and studying. I'm trying to convice myself I can handle it because I've hear of so many others that do handle it and are awesome nurses. BUt I dont want to set myself up for disaster by trying to be superwoman and manage too much...in other words : all you successful nurses out there ..HELPPPP!!

hey, if you dont mind my asking, where did you go to become an anesthesia tech? i'd love some info :) thanks

OMG CONGRATS!!!! I'm so happy for you!! :cheers: What are you doing, morning or evening? I'm not sure what I'd want to do yet if accepted. I'm so glad you're in! I'll let you know how things go with me

hi all!!! I havent been on for a really long time...I'm hoping everyone's good! I'm taking the test on Feb 6th...little nervous but I know what to expect since I took it and passed last yr. hopefully it wont be too bad this time around! sawyer: HIII!!! I'm assuming you're trying again this yr too?! have you taken the test yet? I'm super excited about it and I'm hoping and praying for nothing but the best for everyone...I feel like we've been going at this for so long! keep me posted on your progress guys...I'll be on a lot more often and checking in too! :heartbeat yay for nurses!

I'm taking it in December...hopefully all will go well! When are you taking yours?

hi guys! I took the NET last year and I passed but I was wait listed so I'll be applying again this year! The essay portion of the test wasnt too hard. And I dont think it'll be a five paragraph long essay that they'll be expecting. Last year they didnt ask for that. Once you send them your application they'll send you a confirmation letter. I absolutely CANNOT wait to take the test and HOPEFULLY pass again this time around and (finger crossed) get in as well!!! Good luck to everyone on their test. Some of my nurse friends say that if you successfully graduated from high school then you should be able to pass the NET...so good luck and pass so we can all become nurses!! :heartbeat

Hey guys!!! I'm super excited for everyone to start their classes!! Please let me know how the first day goes...I'm sending good thoughts your way :anpom: Good Luck!!! Prisi :heartbeat

Sawyer- In his e-mail they said that taking a college course in AP, Micro, Pharm, and/or nutrition can work in your favor. So you don't necessarily need to focus on AP...you can pick and chose according to what will work for you. I do currently work as a full-time CNA at a nursing home. At the time of my interview at Greater Lowell I didn't have the job yet...my interview at the nursing home was that same afternoon, so that's why I got wait listed. I had no experience yet. you'll love being a CNA. And if you take a CNA class and get a job on top of taking a college course, you're golden!

Sawyer - I e-mailed them to ask him some questions about next year and I mentioned getting the NET part of the application process waived. He says they might possibly have a new test next year...I'm thinking maybe the TEASE test...and I'm crossing every limb in my body and hoping it isn't so cause it's really hard. And he emphasized, yet again, how important it is to have some kinda experience in health care or some college credits that can be transferred. Anyway...thought this might be useful to you! Anyone have any updates as to how the program is going?? Please keep us in the loop

Sawyer - Google Shawsheen Tech and a link to the high school will come up. Click on that and then just click on Adult Ed. I called them and had them send me an info packet, so maybe you'll get more info that way. They only have evening classes, not day, so that's not ideal for me. But I'll take an acceptance letter any day! NLN stands for National League of Nursing. There's a study guide you can order online through them for the test. Other than that it's pretty basic; just like Lowell Tech.