SoClose!

I got my job as a new grad (in Oct '09) with a $2000 sign-on bonus. Half at six months and I'll get the other half at one year. Didn't sign any contract, though.

I got pulled over not long ago for my windown tint. It was about 8am and I had worked all night (IOW, NOT a good time to mess with me, lol). Anyway, he came up to the window all puffed up, I rolled it down, he checked the tint, said it was too dark. Then he said, "where do you work?" I told him, and he said, "Oh. Well, we really don't like to see windows this dark.. but I'm just gonna give you a verbal warning. You have a nice day." :whew: still haven't fixed them, lol. I'm with elkpark, though.. I wouldn't have made it a point to tell anyone I'm a nurse. In fact, it took me a second to figure out why he was asking when he did, I had to look down and realize I still had my badge and my steth on, lol.

OMG, yes!!!!!! Or what about, "why is (s)he getting xyz antibiotic?"

RNs wear all white on my floor. I thought it was ridiculous at first, but you get over it. Plus, I used to think, "ew- what if you get ___ on it.." but honestly, I would rather be able to SEE the ___ on my uniform so that I can clean it off or change clothes (they'll just give you hosp issues if you need to change).. rather than not see it at all. Ew! LOL. Honestly, the only thing I've gotten on me so far is a teensy speck of blood here and there.. nothing anyone else would even notice. I've been surprised at how clean I stay, especially being me & all..

Wow. I can remember feeling this way- even posted my own thread about, "do I REALLY have to do M/S for a year?!?" LOL! I have now been on my MST floor for seven months, and it is SO much better than it was. MS is still not my dream job and I can't wait to discover what is.. And sure, I still have my anxieties, and even a day here and there where I feel overwhelmed and dreading the drive to work.. but once I'm there, I relax and realize that I CAN do this. I had the issue of falling WAY behind, mostly with charting. I was too busy doing my patient care stuff (we are ALWAYS short on CNA help and usually have 5-7 patients with at least 2-3 total cares, sigh..) Anyway, over the last three weeks our hospital has placed a computer in every room. I am AMAZED at how wonderful this has been for me. I MAKE myself sit down, and chart right then and there.. I do an assessment as early as I can in the shift, and then just copy it to my midnight assessment column as long as nothing has changed. It is WONDERFUL for me. And I realize that, my problem was, I was holding everything in my head for hours on end until I "had time" to sit down and chart it all. Now it's so much easier if a patient calls me to say, "I'm in a room right now, and will be with you in just a few minutes, okay?" Also, it's great because nosy patients/family can't come and track you down at the nurses' station, as is common at my work. Another thing this thread is reminding me of, is how L-U-C-K-Y I am to work with the guys/gals that I do. I can't think of a single one of them (charge nurses/supervisors included) who hasn't taken me under their wing, reassured me, and told me, "just relax, you're doing great, you're only human, you do what you can, I still have the same problem on a rough night.." Sure, some of them have challenged me and maybe even given me a hard time here and there, but it has all helped me grow- and none of it has been malicious in nature. I love my coworkers. :) Anwyay, OP, I hope you are MUCH better now.. which, judging by the age of this thread you could definitely show ME a thing or two now, lol. And it's great that you shared your feelings so that others can see that they/we are not alone. :)

Well, it's not that I'm hiding anything or worried about bad mouthing at all, just would prefer no contact. But I do see what you're saying and would likely have the same reactions if I were doing the hiring. I guess it's just that I'm so wishy-washy in my feelings for my job right now and where/when to go next, that even *I* don't know what I want. Some of the apps I'm putting in aren't even something I'm sure I'd like but I want to get feelers out. I dunno.. So this is why I definitely wouldn't want any added drama I guess.. it sucks being a first-year nurse, sucks even more being a confused first-year nurse. I guess you have all these big dreams for coming out of school and LOVING your new career, and I've just not hit that mark yet.

How bad does it look if you say no? I mean, I certainly would never leave an employer high & dry without plenty of notice, but I don't really want any boss of mine knowing that I'm checking out the scene until anything is decided, you know? For one thing, it's my own business and of course I also don't want any undue anxiety being an issue. I must admit I'm dumb to the process, though. Isn't this employer contact usually something that's done AFTER a potential employer has pretty much decided to hire you on? If that's the case, then of course I don't mind.. because by that point I would have told my current employer anyway. But I'm just wondering what the general opinion is... never seen the question asked, I guess.

Asthma/allergy. I did end up to HR in detail and was asked to come for an interview, but the pay was nowhere near enough. It sure sounded like a great job, though!!

Hi all. Just a question for anyone who has done both M/S and physician's office work as an RN.. I have less than one year M/S experience, and just as a "test" last week I put in an app for an office position. (It is clear on my resume my amount of experience, btw.) Anyway, well, I got a call back. I was shocked, because usually for an office position they want like 20 years of experience ( j/k), but this one said 1-2 so I just gave it a go. So now I'm nervous. LMBO! Not sure why- it's not like I have to take a job if I'm even offered one, but I would love to hear the differences/similarities in the two areas. Also, I know that the pay rate is not the same between hospitals and offices, but I'm guessing it depends on your experience level and also the particular practice. But what about just day-to-day duties.. a "day in the life" of sorts, I guess. Just wondering if anyone could give any insight to this. Thanks!

Sounds fine to me.. thanks! :) LOL

And I now realize that this may not be the most appropriate forum for this one, so maybe it could be moved?

If there is another thread on this, you may point it out- but I am also specifically asking for the GA/Atl area. I want to further my education, but would like to just go ahead and do an RN-MSN program if possible. I would love to hear others' experiences in this, and to know what school/type of program you completed. Online, on-campus, what kinds of clinicals and how much time did it take up? I am already working (weekends) so I would have to have something that would be doable with that, and I also don't have limitless funds after paying for my first five years- LOL! (five years as in, I took things very slow with core.. ) Anyway, I would love to hear all about it. Thanks in advance! edit: I have been working as an RN for less than six months, so something like Kennesaw- which requires 3 years of working experience- is not an option right now.

And AMEN to that. We do not have last names, and if we did I would not have it. In school, they always kept our first/last names on our badges, but we were often encouraged to put tape over our last names during clinicals.

I don't think it's snotty at all. :) And I am an ADN nurse. That being said, I will tell you that I was taking report from a coworker the other evening, and she made a comment about, "I don't know whether she got her xyz med, because so-and-so was supposed to give it.. because of course I can't push IV meds.." For a second I was SO confused, but then realized- duuh- she's an LPN.. and I had never even noticed it on her badge. Must not be something I notice, apparently. edit: well- that, or it's a terrible indication as to the sharpness of my assessment skills. LOL.

Thanks SO much everyone for the great advice and replies. I am happy to report that- for whatever reason- this weekend went GREAT!! Maybe I was just psyching myself out during those last couple weeks of orientation, or maybe it was just a fluke weekend.. either way, I am feeling much better for now. Friday night I had six patients and it went very well. I have definitely gotten my time management under control now... though I won't say it's flawless, it's certainly adequate for a night without any major upsets. The following night (my final night of orientation) I started with six patients and got an admission after MN. Of course, the timing of the admission helped A LOT (better than an 0530 right?), but either way it was a really good transition from six to seven. As I clocked out Sun morning, I was asked- since I was off orientation now- "wanna come in tonight?" :batting eyelashes: (LOL- you know the look). I agreed and went home for some sleep. Last night was the best yet. SO relaxed, and I had the same six I had been working with the past two nights (plus one very low-maintenance new admit) so I had things pretty much down to pat. Made a couple of med-holding decisions for one patient that I felt really good about, especially when the supervisor agreed (even on one that she originally thought might be safe to give, once I gave my reasoning she agreed ).. had plenty of "bonding" time with my patients since I didn't have to use so much time scheduling stuff. AND I was done with report prep, chart checks and all patient care by 0630. Gave report and clocked out before 0730. Wow, anyway.. it was a good weekend. So maybe this thing won't be so bad after all! I will try and keep updated on my progression, but as of right now I think I can make it to the six month mark, EASY. Of course, there will always be terrible shifts, but that's with any job. Thanks again guys. :)