msdeeva

I've posted the following in another thread. Please come and join in the discussion :)

I'm just entering the field and I've seen that there's not a lot of support. The professional group over at ASRM seems barren (no pun intended), and I've been looking for textbooks on the subject, and the only book specifically written for nurses in the field was published in 1991. I was going to enter the field last year, but wanted to wait. At that time, NPG-ASRM was saying they were trying to get the certification reinstated. Well it's been a year, and I don't see anything on their website, nor in their newsletter, stating they're still trying. That is more than a little disheartening. Anyway, I decided that it's time for people to get together and talk about the field, since there is expressed interest. So, I created a yahoo group to see how many of us there actually are. Here's the link. Feel free to sign up and chat. I'll be updating frequently. http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/rei_nurses/. If you want to join, just use your yahoo account id, or email us at [email protected].

Hello everyone, I know that this thread is over a year old, but I was wondering if anyone has found any luck with the search for REIN information.

Thanks rninformatics. Your reply addressed many of the concerns that I was stressing about. I eventually want to become an informatics nurse, but I might have a great opportunity at an outpatient center after I graduate. If I choose to take the position, I am concerned that it would hinder my aspirations in the long run, but on the other side of the coin, the position might afford me the opportunity to integrate systems into the practice. It's a big committment, but I think I'll see how it plays out depending on if they have a competitive salary with the hospitals in my surrounding area. Thanks again for the advice.

Does it matter where you get your clinical experience (i.e., outpatient services, surgery centers, etc)?

Thanks Mariah for the explanation. That makes perfect sense. :)

Thanks Mariah, I had another question. I'm just getting into informatics (learning about the field), so when you say Nurses with a nursing degree (including the one I have mentioned), will not be qualified for an Analyst position without years of experience as an informaticist or a technical degree does this include the following job title and description?: Implementation Analyst "Implementation Analyst, IDX Care Manager or LastWord 4.1.8. CPOE Application. User oriented RN preferred but will accept strong clinical skills. 4-6 month contract position in Southern California." Thanks for your response. -Tiff

Hi Mariah, When you speak of technical degrees, does this include the MSN Informatics degrees that are popping up?

I'm not trying to be a smart alleck or anything, but I was asking Qwiigley's opinion of the the subject, b/c as s/he stated in the post that I quoted: S/he would like a 5-year requirement. I must stress that I don't intend to get into a debate. So if you're Qwiigley, I would like his or her opinion. If s/he has commented on this before, please direct me to his/her post on this matter. Thanks

Riverside Community College in California has a 2 year certificate (PA). There are other colleges in California that also offer a certificate. King/Drew is a Bachelors; Western U is a Masters. Before I applied to nursing school, I checked out a few PA and AA degrees, and saw later that I could do a residency in anethesia (PA), or go straight into it with an AA. The AA degrees I was looking at, if I recall, were Master's. But I guess I really didn't pay attention to their degree requirements: 1. because I was qualified to apply (I have a B.S. in bio), and 2. It was out of state, and since I knew I didn't want to leave my husband, applying was out of the question. Anyway, I wasn't really referring to the Master's educated PAs or AAs, I was referring to the one's that obtained a certificate. I apologize for the misunderstanding.

Just a question: What do you think about PAs or AAs, esp the ones that get a 2-year certificate, being able to practice in this field with less than the 5 year experience requirment that you desire?

I totally agree. I apologize if I came off harsh or offensive. That was not my intention, at all. You are right in that people will only learn as much as they desire. But believe me when I say, I am not one to believe that LPNs are not educated, they better be if they are going to take care of me :) . But I do believe that they learned as much as they want to learn, and if they so desire, they will continue their education. In my previous post I just wanted to clarify for future readers that they'll be in for a nice surprise if all they think they have to do is 2 years of education to become an RN.

The previous poster had a good point about figuring out whether you are understanding the information presented or if it is not even presented in the first place. But I do object to the comment about ADN vs. LPN school. I'm in my first year at an ADN program right now (I'm finishing up this year), and I can definitely say that in these two years, there are no liberal arts or humanities courses that I am or are going to be taking. Most of my classmates did those courses before they started the program [2 years of prereqs (humanities, liberal arts, sciences-a&p, micro, math) and 2 years of nursing school = 4 years]. I completed most my G.E.s before my acceptance as well. The program does allow you to take some of your G.E.s while taking nursing courses, but most programs in my area do not, and that is why I chose to go to my school. I suspect that most programs don't allow you to have missing G.E. requirments, because you are taking nursing courses from start to finish, and they are not easy (many people fail). You are constantly studying, doing careplans, or in clinicals or taking an exam for two years straight (of course we get summer breaks). If LPNs got that much more education than ADN-RNs, than I would not be able to take the LPN boards and work as an LPN this summer (something that I'm considering). Also, there are bridge programs for LPNs to become RNs, because apparently colleges recognize that LPNs need more training to do an RN's job.

Hey TopCat, I'm going to do the Administration route too. Good luck with your application process.

First of all, I really don't have time for your petty attitude and immaturity. You are the one that decided to get on a high horse and show out. May I remind you that you were the one who decided to post your comments about how much you know about getting into medical school and how your fiance had to apply twice to osteopathic school (so you're the expert, right?), and how you know everything because you went to a "big-time premed college." I don't care that you are a new nurse which seems to make you think that you are the authority on everything medically related. That has no bearing on the fact that you gave incomplete and one sided advice to the original poster, and tried to discount advice from others. Why don't you get your story straight too. Read my postings and you'll find out that I decided that I didn't want to become an M.D. I didn't waste my time and apply, because I decided that I DIDN'T want to become a doctor. I have other aspirations, and it ain't just being a new RN. In fact, I wouldn't be suprised if someday you were working for me. Bottom line, if you hadn't tried to attack other forum users, you would not have received a negative response. And to turn around and act like you didn't do anything wrong makes you look schizo. By the way, I'm not wasting anymore of my precious study time on you, because you are pathetic. Peace :)

You're are absolutely right about an A from and Ivy league being different from a community college level course. I would think that too, but in my experience with conversing with several California admissions counselors and committee members, it's not a huge difference. In fact it almost seemed to be not worth the money to spend going straight to a 4 year university just so one could say, "See look, I took my science prereqs at a top university." Also, I should have clarified a bit more. I am not saying that one should forgoe going straight to a university, I am just saying that there are other ways that may be easier (and I do not mean lower quality education). Instead of competing for a grade based on a ridiculous curve, why not learn at a decent pace and without the competition? If I had known this, I would have done things a lot differently and have a lot less debt :). BTW, I have come to these conclusions based on my college experiences, other's experiences, and a books like Becoming a Physician, and others. Believe me when I say, it's all about the grades, and a 4.0 from a 4 year college student who transferred from a community college would be looked upon as more competitive than a 3.5 from a 4-year top university student. Sad, but true. Of course grades are not the only criteria, but they are important. So like I have said before, "work smart, not hard."

I just read your first post and saw that you do live in southern ca. Well, I hope you get in to Western U. Keep me posted as too how you like it.

topcat, yeah. wow, it's a small world. good luck with that. do you live in southern cali? also, good point with the msn-np comment. i saw that the previous poster's comment, but was too tired to comment. :)

Oh, I almost forgot. I made a mistake with the G.P.A. of my friend who went to Harvard med (now finishing up her 3rd year). She had a 3.6, not a 3.7. Sorry about that :) Please excuse all my typos, I haven't slept in 2 days. Oh and I also wanted to address the community college issue. An "A" is an "A." If you can take your premed requirements at a non-competitive school, than do it. You also pay less in tuition. When I mean non-competitive, that does not mean less quality, it means that you do not necessarily have to compete with Albert Einsteins in a class based on a curve.

typo/correction: I also wanted to add that my ex got into med school the first time. Some advice for Emerald: I wouldn't go around announcing that your fiance was rejected when he applied and had to apply again (esp. to osteopathic school). It raises eyebrows as far as competence. I know if my physician said I was rejected during his/her first round of applications, I would raise an eyebrow. Just a thought.:)

I also wanted to add that my ex got into med school the first time. Some advice for Emerald: I wouldn't go around announcing that your fiance was rejected when he applied and had to apply again (esp. to osteopathic school). It raises eyebrows as far as competence. I know if my physician said I was rejected during my first round of applications, I would raise an eyebrow. Just a thought.:)

While you have really good points, I feel that people should probably hear more than just one side to a story. By the time I completed my Biology major at UCLA, I decided that I wasn't really sure if I wanted to go to medical school, but I had plenty of friends who applied and got in to several U.S. medical schools with G.P.A.s and MCAT scores ranging from 2.8-3.7 and 22-31, respectively. A couple of them got into UCLA's med school (one with a 2.8 G.P.A.), Harvard, Yale, etc. Some of them did not major in science (but other majors, like English, Math, Psychology- a B.A. degree, etc) and they got out on time. ON the other hand, because the units were once all screwed up, it was not uncommon for a Science major to take 5 years instead of 4 years to complete his/her degree. Hence, it really is not that difficult to major in a non-science degree and still be premed there, and get out on time. I would lean toward listening to a tried and true formula. Case in point, my ex-boyfriend is in his 2nd year of med school at UCLA, and he majored in math. He loves math, that's what he's good at. So while the classes he took might look like rocket science to another person, he got A's in them because he was good at it, which boosted his G.P.A. On the other hand he could have taken some pointless Botany or Invertebrate class along with Biochemistry, Organic Chemistry, and Genetics all at the same time. What's the sense in that? Work smart, not hard. As far as foreign medical schools go. It's all in what you make of it. I was once seen by a UCLA intern that finished her medical degree at a Caribbean medical school. She was confident in her medical abilities and I did not question her practice. On that note, if you believe that people are looked down upon for completing their medical degree abroad, you are sadly mistaken. There are so many doctors that are being recruited from overseas (because of a shortage that I am sure you're aware of - being a former premed and all). Obviously they got there education there. And in response to your USMLE pass rate comment: have you checked out each schools pass rate? The school I'm talking about has a high pass rate: I found out b/c I did my research. In addition, many pt.s can question the authority of an Osteopathic Doctor, because it isn't as popular as an M.D. Many M.D.s themselves do not value the DO degree. Hence, it is really important for the individual to determine his/or her goals and values when it comes to there education. :rotfl:

Okay than that's a whole different ball game. In that case, depending if you have already started your RN, you could go a couple of different routes. If you haven't started, I'd do the accelerated MSN-E (MSN entry) program (that is where you get your RN and practice while you're completing the MSN part of the program). I live in Southern California, and discovered this program (only one in my area) too little too late. If I hadn't started my RN program already, I would have definitely went this route (their very first class of students start Fall 2004 and by that time I would be starting my second year). I talked to the admissions/program director and was really considering starting over, but I found a MSN program that would take my B.S. credits and apply them toward my degree. I have already started corresponding with them to build a rapport with admissions. Anyhow, I hope this helps with your endeavors. I really wish you all the best, because without a forum like this and the internet, it would be difficult to pinpoint exactly what your options are in the way of your career. Good luck applying. :)

Both of the replies were very informative, but I would like to clarify a few things being a once-premed student (I never applied to med school because decided that becoming a physician was not for me). As far as medical school goes, you do not have to major in one of the sciences. Actually it is better in some ways not to major in one of the sciences: 1. you have to take difficult science courses already, so if you major in something you like (i.e., math or english) you'll tend to do well in those classes and be able to dedicate more time to your required core science courses; and 2. Medical schools see a lot of applications from Biology and other biological science majors, so those applications don't stand out (quoted from medical admissions board officials in California). I would also like to point out that you do not have to go to a competitive university to get into medical school and your G.P.A. does not have to be phenomenal. A G.P.A. above 3.0 will not guarantee you a seat, but it won't destroy your chance of getting into one of the U.S. medical schools either. Your chances of getting into a medical school are also reflected by your MCAT score. If I remember correctly a 40 (or 45) was perfect, a 30 was competitive, and I've known people to get in with a 25 (which is not competitive). Therefore, if you have a mediocre G.P.A. and a kick-*** MCAT score, your chances are good, and vice versa. Also as far as timeline of undergraduate education, there are some U.S. medical schools that accept students who have only completed the required science courses for admittance (although most don't). In addition, one may decide to take prereqs (science and g.e.'s) at a community college and transfer to a university (or four year college) to complete their bachelors education. Remember there are so many options. There are many nurses you decide that they want to further their education and become medical doctors as well. In fact, I know of an overseas medical schools that caters to medical professionals, such as nurses, and allows them to obtain their medical degree and work at the same time. It's totally up to the individual how s/he chooses to pursue his/her education. In any case, if one is unsure of which path to follow, see a counselor and ask for a career assessment tool (one in which you fill out a form to see what type of person you are and what careers fit you). In conclusion, all in all, most of the prior posters' advice was good and informative, but I had to clarify a few things.

hey topcat, i think you missed the point of the original poster's question, although you have a good point. the original poster does not have a bachelor's degree, so she can't just go and get a masters (at least, not the last time i checked. you can't get a master's without a bachelors or at least an adn-msn program which would still require you to take bachelor level classes). i have heard of an accelerated master's, but i was already in an adn program, and i did the math as far as timeline and cost, and finishing the adn program + starting an msn program (which would take my bs in biology) won out over the direct entry msn-e program. i would be finished faster than if i started all over again in an msn-e program that cost 20k+ a year (the msn-e program was approx. 15 months for rn license + 2 years for master's portion). it is good that you mentioned a different route that worked for you, but i believe in order to be helpful, it is best to give the best possible advice for the question at hand. remember, giving advice is like giving meds: right patient, right "advice," right dose, right route, right time. :)