Rugbywingfwd

I have been a nurse since 2001. Started off on a busy medical surgical floor and really learned a load of useful skills that I still employ to this day. After the first year, headed to an Medical Surgical ICU in a Level I Trauma center and did double time in an MICU. One year later went to a Surgical Trauma Neurological ICU and found a home. Three years ago I left full time status and remained PRN for two shifts per month while accepting a new position in a CTICU, which has been great. I have a BA in another area, a BSN, and half a masters in Speech Pathology. Honestly, I feel like I am treading water and am itching to move on educationally. I would like to teach at the collegiate level yet also want to have advanced practice skills. I have looked at PhDs, DNPs, CRNA, and dual masters but am still sorta in a funk. Professionally I hold five national certifications, am a TNCC and CATN instructor, and have previously taught ACLS and BLS. I hold certifications cards in Advanced Trauma for Nurses, Advanced Burn Life Support, and Advanced Pediatric Life Support while I have successfully audited Advanced Trauma Life Support and completed the didactic portion of Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner. In addition, I have taught in hospital orientation skills labs, teach in a hospital based trauma course, and have taught portions of two local hospital based critical care course (Neuro and GI) and a systems review course (GI). Who has some thoughts here...?

I found the Laura CDs very useful for reinforcing concepts that I already had a good grasp on...having said that it also pointed out what I di not know and made me jump in a bit deeper. We had a great study group going and people brought in burned CDs from multiple sources with practice exams on them...we made photocopies of one another's flashcards...and a number of us went to Cammy House Francher's seminar. With all of those things, most of us scored 100% in 5 plus categories. It was not an easy exam. PCCN was much easier...CSC was as difficult and CMC was harder for me. I made it through each of them though. If you are going to do CMC or CSC the discs that are sold by AACN were not that useful to me. You need outside resources. PCCN was far less intense than CCRN.

Dorie sounds a bit sour, but I do agree that one good year of medical surgical nursing is incredibly valuable. I went to a fast paced GI surgery/medicine floor and learned the basics fairly well. I think I got a chance to get organized, learn the role and the hospital, take a few courses (ACLS, telemetry, and evena critical care course sponsored by the AACN). I went to anything education related and it paid off. I learned tubes, drains, wound care, prioritization, equipment, a handful of drips, how to communicate with MDs, and so forth. It really was an invaluable experience that enabled me to head to a fast paced MICU. Good luck.

I took it, CMC, PCCN, and CCRN...and passed each (thank god). Of them all, CMC was most difficult for me as I have little cardiac medicine experience but work in a unit that gets them fairly often. The CSC was cardiac surgery start to finish. The questions that I saw looked like this: A 56 year old man rolls out from the OR after a 2 vessel CABG and AVR. He has a Swan Ganz catheter which gives you the following values. He is on these drips. What do you titrate off first? Most of the questions looked like that. I was fortunate enough to have a lot of drip/swan experience so it went well. I bought the CDs as well...not so great. I bought cradiac surgery secrets which was a good review. Know Swan Values and Drips that you may not always use. I got a few weirdo questions...if you are to know any one drug know Amiodarone backwards and forwards. I recall three questions related to it alone!

I just read through the initial thread and the replies. Sounds like you lived the "nurses eat their own" deal. Sorry to hear it. I have to admit that going to a good medical surgical floor first prepares you for many things in the ICU...learning how to do things is the most important. It takes time to learn IVs, to put in tubes, what drugs are which and so on. While you are on the floor, take advantage of educational opportunities like ACLS and so forth. Most places offer a good bit of education. If neuro is what you want ot do join AANN and AACN. Lots of CE stuff out there with both associations and it all adds up. Most importantly, remember this experience so when you see another nurse getting eaten up like this you will be able to fend off the wolves...