swirlything

Would someone kindly also forward me the facebook page information. Would love to chat with other student during the program. :)

I'm a neonatal ICU nurse, and I'm in school for FNP. I agree with the previous poster. Go work in a NICU and see for yourself what it's like. I LOVE preemies... that's why I'm a NICU nurse. I don't find it difficult to see sick babies, or even dying babies. Even with the babies you cannot save, you are helping the families. I understand death is just another part of life, and I believe that there are worse things than death. Having said that, the vast majority of babies go home.

I started the South U FNP program Monday. So today is day 5. So far I've completed the work for this week and what of next week that I can. The hardest thing about the week was figuing out APA citations and finding journal articles to reference in my work. That actually took me MUCH longer than actually writing the posts and the paper.

The total program, including books, is approx. $34K

HI ABCKitty, I'm also starting the FNP program tomorrow, Nov 30. Maybe we can commiserate! Future_ARNP, I'm also in Florida... Orlando area. Just thought I'd say hi! -Carrie

I have PCOS too. You might ask your endocrinologist whether or not low dose spironolactone might help. In addition to being a diuretic, it blocks testosterone at the level of the hair follicles. It does take about 6 months for effects to begin to show, but it might help both your facial hair and your thinning hair. I am on it, as is another friend of mine. We've both had good results.

Ok. I had to laugh at this post! Here in the NICU, most of the nurses wouldn't be able to work 1 week per month if we couldn't hold babies while menstruating. That's just preposterous!

An MA, passing herself off as a nurse, lied to my daughter once when she was about 10. She said that a rocephin injection wasn't going to hurt, but knew full well that it was. My daugher, now 3 years later, still does not trust nurses and outrightly says that "nurses lie to you." I say, do not lie to the patient.

It is important for parents to learn how to properly administer medications to their infant that the infant will be getting at home. In order to do this, the nurse must teach the parent how to give the medication and then have the parent actually administer the medication to demonstrate competency. This is the best way to ensure that the parent will be able to poperly administer the medication at home.

I graduated in Jun '09. NICU was the only RN job I wanted. Our school would not allow us to do NICU for our last practicum/preceptorship (other schools in the area did allow it, so there were students doing practicum on the unit). I got hired in the NICU right out of school, regardless of the fact that I did NOT do my practicum there. I just made it clear to the NICU manager that NICU was where I was meant to be, regardless of anything else. So it IS possible... don't give up hope.

I've always said that nursing school is nothing more than 2 years of hazing (or longer). It's just what you have to get through to get where you want to be. Focus on the goal, getting to and passing NCLEX. The semester will suck, but will be over before you know it. You can do it! Additionally, I'm surprised that your teachers haven't worked as nurses for years. In the school I went to, most of the teachers worked both as teachers AND as nurses in the hospital. In fact, some of the former students now work side-by-side with the women who were their nursing school instructors.

You get accustomed to dealing with the icky stuff after you do it a few times. I actually passed-out when I got my ears pierced and went into nursing school with a TERRIBLE fear of needles. I still cannot watch when I get a shot, but I can start IVs and give shots without any problem. After doing it a few times, it's really no big deal.

I have been working as an RN for about a year now, and I'm one of the lucky ones that got exactly the specialty job I dreamed of. I have a much more financial security. Paid off all my debts. I have taken a couple of trips across the country to see my family, I hadn't been able to afford to do that before. Instead of spending nearly every day studying and focusing on school work (like in nursing school), I actually have 4 days each week which are totally mine! Additionally, I have a stronger bond with my older sister, who has been a nurse for 20 years. The bad? Not a whole lot. I work every Sunday and I miss my family that day. I have to work some holidays, and I hate doing that to my kid. 12 1/2 hours makes for a really long day. On the days I work, I'm so exhausted when I get home that I don't have energy or time left to do much other than hug my daughter and snuggle on the couch for a few minutes before I fall asleep. And honestly, I really don't like getting out of bed so early on those days I work... but does anyone?

Depends on where you work. I work on a unit where I feel the nurse:patient ratio is safe, the nurses help each other and are supportive of each other in our work, there is usually a float nurse who is available to lend a hand if you get really behind, most of the doctors treat us well, and we do our own scheduling. It's generally a nice environment to be in. Maybe my unit is in the minority, I don't know. Or maybe it's only the crappy ones that people come online to complain about, whereas people do not go to the effort of telling the world about the places that are more comfortable. Either way, there are hospital units that are not so high-strung.

You can get used to anything over time.