Laurel32

Just a thought- as you probably know, antipsychotics increase appetite in patients. Ive even heard that Olanzapine makes food taste better. Maybe this is the reason, also combined with having food (of course milk) readily available. Edit - oops! Didn't see your last post :)

This is kinda a rant... Looking for input too. I've been at my current job for about a year now. Some of the staff love to talk about the patients in a disrespectful manner. Now I'm not a saint, I do vent at times, but I feel like some staff just do it all the time. Almost as if they are blaming the patient for whatever is going on with them. "Oh look how he walks down the hallway pretending to be in pain".. Stuff like that. I love working with the nurses who have a positive attitude when they step into work. Does anyone else get what Im talking about?

I am a new grad in psych. I expect to be here for at least a few years... I just have a crazy dream of being an OR nurse! Psych obviously translates very little to OR nursing except for nursing working experience I guess. I had an opportunity to shadow in an OR in school and loved it. Are there any classes I can take ( I don't mind paying ) in a few years to get OR experience? Does anyone have advice as to how I can make the transition, or even if it is possible? Thanks everyone

I would definitely go for a mental health unit in a hospital. Im a new grad. I love knowing that if things go south medically, I can always get support from ICU trained nurses. I work in a teaching hospital, which means we have residents to call for issues during the night. Awesome! I work the night shift. Usually things are quiet unless there is a manic patient awake:) or a patient with medical needs. I start at 2230. I spend the night passing sleeping medications or pain medications PRN. I go through charts and prepare for the AM med pass. During the night its just myself and another nurse with two techs for 25 patient's. The end of my shift is the busiest because I pass meds for 15 patient's. At this time the techs are taking vitals and managing the milue. I leave at 800. Yes the nurses on my unit run groups. We also have an occupational therapist, CD counselor and others that run groups.

I kinda interested in being an OR nurse. The thing is, I am a new grad in psych. I expect to be in my unit for a minimum of two years... Would it even be possible to move from psych to OR nursing after a few years in psych? Are there any training programs I can do (even at my expense) to gain some experience? Thanks!

My unit's ratio is 1:5. We are always full so it is not common to have less than 5 pts. This is acute psych.

I am new in psych (working as a tech while in nursing school). This post really hit home. We had a patient attempt suicide last weekend, fortunately he did not succeed. I've been verbally and physically assaulted, but this is the first time I almost cried. :hugs:

I know how you are feeling from experience. I scored 64% on my first exam! (except it was second quarter). It crushed me. I was in tears and it definitely put me into a slump. I ended up passing, and you can too. Its hard, but you need to look forward. Dwelling on this won't bring your grade up. ( I wish I had followed this advice at the time.. ) Meet with your instructor to see what mistakes you made and if there are any areas you could improve on. Some test taking tips that helped me; -Wear earplugs to the test. Shuffling papers and people getting up may distract you more than you realize. -Bring a watch to the test and put it on your desk, physically moving my head to look at the clock made me loose my focus and concentration from the test. You will also be able to tell how well you are pacing yourself. -When reading a question, use a paper/scantron to cover up the possible answers, look at the question and ask yourself what the question is asking. Then move the paper and read the answers 1 by 1. This will help to not overload yourself with information all at once and misreading something. You got this far, you can pull this off!! Best wishes

I started the pre-reqs for nursing school while in high school. I started the associates nursing program at 19!

My gosh I was accepted! You must be very close on the waiting list, or even accepted.

Oh yes I meant Winter quarter! Maybe all the peeps with high points were accepted last quarter?... who knows. Watching for the mail person everyday.. (even if it is to soon) and trying to keep my head up.

Oh boy, I applied for Spring 2013 too! I heard that minimum was 104.25 too! I am applying with 101.75 points, let's hope this quarter isn't as competitive. My friend (who was accepted for Winter 2012) told me this quarter was highly competitive. I have a job lined up as a CNA, so I think I can (finally) make it in to Fall 2013 with those extra points. I understand your frustration. I've heard that someone made it with 95 points in one quarter... I don't know if that's true or not. Good luck to both of us!!

Thanks for this post OP. I've been feeling a little discouraged about starting my prereq classes at the local CC while most of my classmates are heading off to the State Universities... I just need to stay focused and keep in mind what is important. :heartbeat

I'm graduating from high school this month. Next month I'll be taking Math 99 (for a chemistry class), and Nutrition 101 online at a community college. I'm excited to start the harder science classes. Most of my friends think I'm crazy for not taking my summer off!

I am having trouble understanding how BSN programs work. From what I understand, out of high school you are applying to the schools pre-nursing program, not the nursing program itself. But that is the beginning of my confusion. How long do those pre-reqs take? Are you guaranteed a spot in the school's nursing program? And how are they finished in 4 years if the prereqs, clinicals, and nursing theory are all included? I would appreciate if someone could explain how BSN programs work and what the timeline is. (Specifically from the stand point of someone just out of high school.) I appreciate the help. (I wasn't sure where this question belonged, I think this is the right place) -Laurel