RN4NICU

The OP said it was a missing BOTTLE of lortab. All the hair follicle tests in the world would not prove she did not sell the pills. Proving she did not use the drug does not prove she did not divert. I'm absolutely not suggesting that she did, I'm just pointing out that she can't be proven innocent with a drug test. The situation could easily turn ugly...consulting a lawyer would be a smart move at this point, IMO. Hoping for the best for you, OP.

I'm glad to see I'm not the only one who has been through this. I worked night shift for 10 years - LOVED IT. Then, one day, it was like someone flipped a switch. I would get in bed by about 8 am and would wake up about 11 am and could not get back to sleep. I tried everything - cool, dark room, white noise, no caffeine, not eating too late in the shift - nothing worked. That was 5 years ago. I was never able to turn my body back around to be able to make it through night shift again. I continued on day shift for a while and then finally left the NICU to become an FNP.

I guess the grass is always greener - many physicians I know have told me if they could do it over they would be NPs instead of going to med school. Not for nothing, unless you go for a high-dollar specialty, the money may not be quite as awesome as you think. You mention pediatrics - it is one of the lowest-paying specialties out there... a lot of hard work, long hours, and debt for a mediocre payoff. I'm an NP and there is no amount of money in the world that could convince me to become an MD. Just food for thought - I hope you find the path that makes you happy :)

No way. I would stay as far away from any career in healthcare as I could get.

always true

Legal and ethical issues? What kind of sport are we talking about here? Seriously, though, what you do on your own time (disclaimer: as long as you are not participating in some illegal activity) is really your business and no one else's. You are a nurse when you are at work and you are free to be whatever you want to be when you are not at work.

The circled C likely indicates who is Charge for the shift

It seems the OP has Plan B confused with RU-486

Spoken like someone who's never worked in a NICU We never, ever waste blood. When drawing labs from a UAC/UVC, we always give the blood back. I was horrified the first time I saw a "big people" nurse waste 10 ml of blood! Some things depend on your background. Maybe the traveler was a former peds nurse.

Non-partisan nonsmoker

That isn't a question that can just be answered as there is no "starting wage for NPs" - NPs all start out at different wages. It depends on what type of work you will be doing, call/rounds responsibilities, working hours, and the local market for NPs just to name a few things. All contracts are negotiated individually.

Gastroenterology is a subspecialty of internal medicine. It is not a surgical specialty. Gastroenterologists (GI docs) do not perform abdominal surgeries. They do endooscopies, liver biopsy, polyp removal, and things like that, but not abdominal surgery. Abdominal surgeries are usually done by general surgeons.

PAs and NPs that work with a surgical group will sometimes first assist in surgery, close the wound, harvest the vein for bypass, assist with joint replacements, etc.

What do you want to do in the OR? You can work in the OR as a nurse, a PA, a nurse practitioner, a surgical technologist, a CRNA. They all have different roles, so the best path for you to take depends on what you want your role to be.

I think you will be fine. I didn't take chemistry in HS and still did fine in college chemistry.