Brickman

I have a Palm PDA and I use it for games, MP3 player, and phone(it is a treo 650). But I have to say that I think they are pretty useless on the floor. Drugs and diagnoses can be looked up just as fast on the INTERNET, with more complete information. One thing to consider is that every unit or floor seems to have a core group of drugs that are given to most of the patients. Once you have worked a few months the whole looking up of drugs becomes an occasional thing instead of an every day every patient thing. I do think a PDA is most useful during nursing school, I know I used mine then. If you still want to get one then Palm has the most free medical software and any model will suit. I believe the TE is $199 and will be sufficient for just about anything.

When you graduate from nursing school you can take the nclex for North Carolina at that time. The Nclex is the same for all the states, just put North Carolina down on the paperwork instead of where you are.

I think it would be easier if your fiancé paid for his own grad school through loans. Student loans usually have very reasonable payments that wouldn't even need to start until he graduated and started earning a paycheck. With you paying most of your living expenses, loans could be kept to a minimum.

What I would like to see is the old paper test being made an option for those who failed the computer test.

If you think you can handle the debt then maybe more loans is the way to go. But after reading your wifes original post I don't think quitting her job is the answer. If I understand correctly she is only working 8 days a month. The original post went to great lengths to make this sound like a busy schedule "Sleep Monday", "Take Thursday off" and "Get ready to do it again on Friday". It sounds to me like maybe deppression might be a possibility.

I think it would make far more sense to have a "teaching certificate" that requires recertification every couple of years. Recertification could be an NCLEX style test and a minnimum number of hours actually working as a nurse. It was my experience in school that some of the Masters educated instructors had been out of the hospital so long that reality had become a theory for them. A few were just plane educated beyond their intelligence.

I don't see any reason why Hep C would keep you from being a nurse. I would imagine the hospital is full of nurses that are either Hep C pos or even HIV. It's hard to imaginge how you would be a risk to your patients if you follow universal precautions, which is something every nurse should do with every patient. good luck.

I have been told that UNC NICU has the highest turnover rate in the hospital. While I can't say for sure if this is true, I do know they go through alot of staff.

How did I miss that first thread. I would like to add that I have never heard anyone talk about a female patients attributes in a sexual way on our floor, but if one of the female nurses has a male patient that has been blessed, everyone knows it within the hour. Kinda makes me think that poster might want to rethink her veiws about who can't turn it off. As for the chest hair thread, I see both the humor and hypocrasy.

"unless there is some kind of personality conflict between patient and caregiver, or if a female patient prefers a female caregiver as opposed to a male," (puts on asbestos suit and climbs on soapbox) i'm sorry but this attitude should be done away with. if male patients insisted on only male nurses they would most often be out of luck. i don't see any reason that women should be catered to in this fashion. if i ever need a foley placed in me or to have my backside wiped, then i will be thrilled to have a careing competent nurse whether it is a male or female. i put up with this crap and yes it is crap when i did my ob rotation. every woman was asked if it was ok for a male student to come in the room. i have never heard of men being asked if it was ok for a female nurses to care for them. if people want to pick and choose their caregivers then they should arange and pay for it themselves. (climbs down from soapbox but leaves asbestos suit on)

For me if it is a foley that will be in for an indefinate period of time then it is sterile technique. For an in and out cath, clean technique is fine.

Considered by many to be the worst hospital in the country. Nothing would make me consider working there.

We do all that including Flolan (except for vents) right down the street at UNC Hospital 6 Bedtower. We also are the infectious disease unit. Where did you get the idea that Duke was the only place on the east coast to receive Flolan? While Flolan does have it's own unique protocols I can't beleive it is that rare on the east coast.

The problem that you will encounter is that I have never heard of anyone getting a straight answer from the BON. They wan't you to go through school and then they will decide whether or not to liscence you. While I would certainly try to get them to give a definitive answer, I would be suprised if you get one.

To me it seems cruel not to use the basal dose. In theory the basal dose should be set at the minimum for effective pain control and the on demand should be used for breakthrough pain only. Setting a patient up where they will be in agony every time they wake up is just wrong. I have never had a PCA without a basal rate on any of my patients and would be all over a doc who tried to order it that way. Perhaps your docs need to be patients sometime?