JenniferSews

DNP in my state is pretty underutilized and your opportunities are limited, so I'm considering an FNP.

I've been researching this for a bit here and there and can't seem to get a straight answer. I have my masters in nursing education. Is there a route I can take to NP? I work in a hospital providing staff education to the organization. I'm at risk of being laid off again and am considering this option.

I'm going through a divorce and the finances are not great, with a forecast of much worse from an ex who has no intention of being fair. I have 8+ years of hospital based education and a masters in nursing education. I would love some extra income but I'm so far from bedside and my back won't take it. Plus I'm working a full time job and want to spend time with my kids on the weekend. I would love something I could do evenings and weekends and mornings before work. I know this may be a long shot since everywhere I've looked locally requires at least DNP or PhD.

I'm not looking to travel now, but in 3 years when my kids are done with high school. I'll be in my mid 50s by then and my back/body is not okay with floor work anymore. I have extensive experience in education and a masters in education plus about a year in education management. I've looked a bit but it doesn't seem like management/education jobs are in demand for travel. What can I do in the next few years to make myself more marketable? I don't necessarily need travel assignments, just a job that takes me away from home as much as possible that pays pretty well. I don't care if I'm in unpopular locations. I won't get much in social security and have no pension so I will have to work at least another 20 years and live off what I save. I have some retirement but not enough. I need something that pays well so I can save once I've finished paying for my 3 kids college.

Hi all, I am an educator for a unit based EMU. We do long term video monitoring. I'm wondering if anyone in and EMU is willing to share their staffing ratios? I'm also curious if anyone is using CNAs to monitor their patients via video. From what I'm reading most places use EEG techs or nurses for this, not cnas. Any direction you can give me would be helpful! I'm about to start cold calling area hospitals because I can't find this info!

They did taped reports in our LTC ward for a while and one morning a coworker came in to "Everyone's fine, crush everything." It's still an inside joke years later.

Yup! And you know the staff hugged that patient with love 3 times a day in the last x amount of days they have lived with you. Maybe they were an awful parent but someone is caring for them and forgiving them now. So either lead, follow, or get out of the way. :heartbeat But yes, nothing worse than the "I called for directions even though I live across town" family member who shows up on a holiday ready to set fire to the building and call state (but not take their family member out to dinner or even bring them their fav food or those much needed socks) over the horrible care their parent is receiving. They scream while confused staff looks on that mom/dad/etc didn't get x at every meal. The staff is only confused because the resident has professed to always HATE x and if they had asked we would have given it gladly. Also, why is mom/dad incontinent, confused, unable to walk, when they have been that way for the entire 2 years you have cared for them 5 days a week and the admission assessment says the same. So WHAT HAS THIS PLACE DONE to them?!

I think shedding a tear with a patient or family can be completely appropriate at times! If a caregiver sheds a tear with my mom when my nana finally passes, I would appreciate that the caregiver cared enough to share our sorrow.

I do work with a really amazing nurse. Someday I hope to grow up to be as good as her. She gets everything done, no matter how small, she never skips anything. Her charting is amazing and although we don't share patients I sometimes read her charting just to learn. However she never leaves on time despite her amazing organization skills. It's just not realistic to leave on time with 8 hour shifts in our facility.

Well I graduated as an ADN able to do most of the basic skills, thankfully. Because no one was going to teach me in the real world these days. But I guess if you'd have to choose, you might want a graduate nurse who had never done a foley insertion but knew the steps by heart, the reasons you might need a foley inserted, the possible effects of said foley, what to look for before, after and during the procedure, the reason why sterile technique was so crucial, how often the foley should be changed, etc. A skill like foley insertion can be learned easily by most people with enough repetition and a good instructor. But if you don't understand all the other things that go along with the skill and can't consider the implications critically, you are missing the main point of nursing. That is what I think they are attempting to test with the NCLEX. Whether they are doing so successfully or not is up for debate.

Sounds like the path my coworkers and I are on, for better or worse. SNF or LTC is worse than new grad in my city! You learned lots of great time management skills in the SNF, and I bet you'll do fine. Hang in there, and best of luck!

We get paid time and a half, but only if you are a full time employee. If you are part time or prn or were hired within the last 90 days you get regular pay. Needless to say if you have been with the company for a while you WILL be working holidays. Why would you agree to work if you were part time or PRN? It's a great way to reward the long term full time employee, by forcing them to work all the holidays! But also, no weekend or night differential, and only 8 hours of holiday pay while you work 12. If you don't work the holiday, no holiday pay. Pick your poison.

I generally take 15 minutes to shove some food in my face while I read a chart, look at a lab, etc just after getting report. But "breakfast" is usually a cereal bar or a slice of toast. I'm not off the unit, but I just can't eat at 4:30am when I get up. All I can manage is coffee. I'm amazed that people can find time in their day to take a 45 minute break! All I get is 30 minutes and two 15 minute breaks in 12 hours, and those are more theoretical than actual.

I am going to go with- it depends. In my state the hospitals don't count nursing homes or SNFs as any experience. They state it right in their employment listings. 18 months into my career and I am still stuck in a SNF. However some places here in the US are happy to hire nursing home nurses. Some are also happy to hire new grads. I also have to ask what they are offering that means you must commit 2 years right now. How can they hold you to that? But overall I've said it before and I'll say it again: working at a non nursing job with your brand new nursing degree is more a kiss of death than LTC. You may not have "seen" yourself as a ltc nurse but at least you wanted to be a nurse, right? If not, you wouldn't have gone to nursing school (we hope.) So even if you aren't working in your dream field, you are still doing what you went to school and worked so hard for, and that isn't the end of the world. Getting your nursing degree and not using it is the only "kiss of death" for new grads.

True, but when one decides they really want a frosty, I'm not above taking my yearly lunch break to go get it. They won't eat but a bite but it's worth the trip. I'm jealous of those who haven't experienced the overbearing and demanding family and or patient. It would be so much easier to do my job if I didn't have to stop in the middle of passing meds to go fill up the coffee thermoses. And heaven forbid you ask someone to wait a minute while you assess a patient and call the docs and then call 911. The audacity of asking someone to wait for fresh coffee while you save someone elses family member!