tigerlily1234

Around here, hospitals pay more than physicians' offices. They also have more in the way of benefits (health insurance, etc.) than most physicians' offices, unless you work for a large group of physicians, and even then insurance is usually not offered. The hours may be longer and the work harder, but I believe you would gain more experience working in a hospital than in a physician's office. Whatever your choice, good luck to you!

LIke someone else somewhere else on this forum said, you can be a couple of years old or a couple of years older AND a nurse. It's never too late to learn, so encourage your mom to go for her dreams.

I am going to be 50 in December and will start my prereqs in January 2010. I debated many months about making this kind of change this late in life, but after realizing that in 3 years I would be doing exactly what I am doing now (medical transcription for the last 15 years :crash_com) and making the same or less, I finally decided to give it a go. I am excited and looking very much forward to opening a new chapter in my life. I say GO FOR IT! And good luck! :anpom:

Thanks, Williams! I've been studying math like a fiend for the past month. I hope to start NP in fall 2010. Where are you going to school? Good luck with your studies as well. :)

I am planning on attending Angelina Jr. College beginning in January. I am looking to connect with any future, current or recent grads of this school. I am about to take the Accuplacer test and am afraid that I will bomb the math portion as it has been 35 years since I had any math (I'm just now deciding what to do with my life at age 49 and holding!). How much higher level algebra does the Accuplacer have on it, or is it more just basic math (fractions, decimels, etc.)? Any info is appreciated!

thanks everyone! you are all so encouraging! this is a kind of change of career for me as well. i am and have been a medical transcriptionist for the past almost 20 years now. this field is slowly circling the drain with the onset of voice recognition software and electronic medical records. i am hoping that my background in medical terminology will be beneficial to me and help make nursing school a bit easier. i also worked for several years in physician offices as an unofficial medical assistant before the trend toward having certified mas or nurses in the office (we could be had a lot cheaper than credentialled professionals, lol). i guess we will find out! hahaha

thanks for the quick reply! i guess i'm just a little nervous about the prospect of going back to school at my age. i have only been hospitalized twice for the pancreatitis, once for the initial acute attack and once for an attack brought on by an ercp performed to help determine the cause of it. i haven't had any more real problems like that with it, although it does cause minimal pain from time to time.....nothing incapacitating or anything like that. however, i don't know when or if it will ever flare again in a big way. i think as long as i eat properly and take my nexium.....which i need to get refilled.....i should be okay. just want to add that i really like this forum. everyone here is so nice and so happy to share information. i'm glad i stumbled onto it in my quest for more information about nursing.

I am a 50-year-old woman who wants to enroll in nursing school in the fall of 2010. (I hope I'm not too old for this! :chuckle) In reading the web site for the community college I want to attend, one of the qualifications for entering nursing school is "good general health." I have hypertension and chronic pancreatitis, of which I was diagnosed with this year, as well as just generally getting old. (Disclaimer: The pancreatitis is a result of taking HCTZ for my BP, not alcohol related.) My question is, would my pancreatitis keep me from qualifying for nursing school?