Mike A. Fungin RN

It's not as uncommon as you might think. I know there are a few other people posting on these boards who went from fire/EMS to nursing besides me, and I work in a trauma ICU with another former FF. What region of California are you in? Any specific burning questions, or just general "getting started" type stuff?

I understand from your second post that when this happened maybe you didn't trust yourself to address the issue directly. That was probably a good idea if you were in danger of losing your temper, but there's a happy medium between losing it and your approach. Being passive aggressive isn't likely to help you build a good rapport with these clients. How do you think the patient's mother is going to feel when she gets blindsided with this by your agency? Unless you left some details out for us then as far as she knows you folded the clothes, it's part of your job, and everything is fine. Consider also that this might give your clinical director the impression that you're unwilling or unable to resolve minor conflicts on your own. If I were in his/her shoes as a manager then my first question would be whether or not you spoke with the client already and what was the outcome. I hope they give you that chance, because it's not too late.

There is a nursing shortage, but things are tight right now. That means fewer people retiring or moving jobs, fewer new jobs being created, and employers asking employees to do more with less. That means when staff resign or go out on maternity leave, that position might not get filled. Nursing isn't unique, it's happening to a lot of professions right now. There are no guarantees in life, least of all that a degree guarantees a job upon graduating.

OP, as a nursing student you're hopefully taught to maintain a healthy level of skepticism and know where your statistics are coming from. The 130,000 number you quote isn't from a peer reviewed research article as many posters are assuming. It's from a subscription-based newsletter published by Dr. Julian Whitaker. I'll stop short of calling him a "dubious character" and suggest you research him and draw your own conclusion.

Being a Magnet hospital, given my experience, doesn't necessarily mean anything. They can be just as bad or worse than non-Magnet hospitals.

Most civil service jobs (i.e. police, fire, county nursing) rank potential hires into "bands" or "ranks". This is probably what they meant. Example, when I was still applying to fire departments years ago they would rank from Band V (Veteran's who scored 90% or better overall), then Band 1 on down. I'd call their HR department to clarify.

I work night shift, 7pm to 7:30am, 3 days a week. In theory I am required by law to take a 30 minute lunch break, and my employer also allows for as many as two 15-minute breaks. The reality is that I have never taken a 30 minute lunch break, much less a 15 minute "breather". We don't have any staff to watch my patients so I can leave the floor. Management knows this, and doesn't care. But, I still have to write that I took a break on my time card, and I"m not paid for that time. Oh yeah, and this is at a Magnet hospital.

i'd be happy to actually take the 30 minute lunch break that my employer docks my pay for. as it is i work 12.5 hours for 12 hours of pay.

Some friends and I tried to create a drinking game based on the inaccuracies in House. It was short lived, mostly because liver transplants are hard to come by.

I'm not an organ donor because nothing I've heard has been able to sell me on the idea.

(with emphasis added) I beg to differ. I think the answer is clearly not "stay with the patients and die."

You are seriously misinformed. Kevin, you can try the American Assembly for Men in Nursing. They do a scholarship for male students annually, but it's small.

Classic. I say stuff like this to nursing students all the time.

Not a HIPAA violation. If the patient is making a claim against your friend's auto insurance to cover his medical costs then he has to voluntarily disclose that information about his injuries and treatment to justify the claim.

Why don't you stay where you are until you have a year's experience, then come join him?