Nurse Mami

I knew from early on that I wanted to do critical care. It's just how I'm wired. In my area, there are multiple nursing schools, so the market is pretty saturated. I took the job I was offered: MS. I'm still here, 2 years later. I'm now a certified MS nurse and, while I feel like this job has taught me so much and could probably do anything I wanted in nursing because of it, I'm more than ready for something new. I definitely feel pigeon-holed. When I graduated, I couldn't get a job in critical care because I had no nursing experience. Now, I can't get a CC job because I have no experience in that area. It's so frustrating! I'm definitely stuck in MS and not because I want to be. I've been applying for transfers/new jobs for a year and nothing! So, I don't think it's fair to say people that are "stuck" in med/surg are so because the don't want to leave. To the OP, take the psych offer! You know that's what you want to do! In the end, you'll be happier doing what you want to do versus what you think will be better in the long run.

As in lost, not expired... Well, this just happened to me a few days ago, and I'm still shaken up about it. I had just started my shift and the craziness they call bedside report (which was just implemented in the med-surg units). His room was my first stop, and he was sitting on his bed wearing street clothes instead of the hospital gown. Odd? Maybe, but he has an extensive Hx of CVAs and dementia, so some things he does are not considered "normal" anyway. So, the outgoing nurse doesn't like bedside reporting and stood at the doorway while giving report. We moved on to the next rooms and all is well. A few mins. later (still doing report), I see my PCA and another nurse escort him back into the room, as he was wondering the hall. When the PCA went back to do VS, he was gone, and she immediately came to tell me. To say I panicked is an understatement! I searched the entire unit (pretty big) and couldn't find him... Stairwells, elevators, even outside, and nothing! I informed the charge nurse who, in turn, called security and the nursing supervisor. Everyone was mobilized, but he was still nowhere to be found! I was so mad because it seemed that security and the police weren't doing enough! The investigator looked like he was on his first day at the job! I spent most of my shift shuffling back and forth between my other patients and the security office looking at the tapes trying to figure out if he had, in fact, left the hospital. The family was informed, but they didn't seem concerned as "he does this all the time." All I could think of was that if this was my parent, I'd be hightailing it to the hospital trying to find him! All the big wigs were telling me everything would be all right, that I didn't need to worry, that my bases were covered, and that there was nothing I could've done differently. After all, it's not like we can physically prevent anyone from leaving if they so desire! Rationally, I understood what they were saying, but that didn't keep me from worrying that this confused, elderly man may have been wandering outside and possibly gotten hurt, or worse. It seemed no one understood that I wasn't worrying about my behind, but about him! Screw the job, this is a person we're talking about! By the time I left after my shift, he was still missing, even though they had "searched everywhere" in the hospital. My coworkers and managers were very supportive, which made me feel very grateful and made me remember that I'm lucky to work with such wonderful staff, even though this job is less than ideal. Thankfully, they found him unharmed, 24 hours later, hiding in plain sight. They took him to ER to get him checked out, and I haven't heard anything else from this ordeal. I'm just extremely thankful that they found him and that he never left the grounds. I can only imagine what could've happened. So my question is, has anything like this happened to you, or on your unit?

That's really interesting and definitely new. I wonder if they'll start out giving points for being a MA, since their training is also related. I still don't think that one point is going to make a huge difference if you have the right grades/GPA/TEAS score. I certainly don't think that dishing out the $$$ for CNA school/certification is worth it just for getting an extra point on the application. Now, if you already have it, it's a whole different deal!

I'm also a 3rd semester student at ATC. Stopthepenguins6, would you mind telling us which nursing advisor told you about that? Or was it an allied health advisor? I ask because the allied health advisors don't seem to have any clue about what's going on most of the time. My class learned that the hard way. I guess I just don't understand how going for your CNA would help you at all for the RN program. They are completely different. It would be like saying that you need to be a medical assistant before becoming a doctor.