MillieT

I went to their office in person and asked to speak to the office manager. Dressed professionally. I brought a letter of introduction with me with my contact info on it, explained who I was and what I wanted to the office manager and left the letter. I followed up a week later if no response. Still had many nos. Does your school have a list of previous preceptors? That may help. Go to VA's, health depts, free clinics. Our free clinic that was on our list of previous preceptors actually turned me down due to not enough docs. Join your local NP association, post on their message board that you are needing a preceptor. Most have a list of people willing to precept too. Call your state board of nursing and see if they have a list. Good luck to you, it is a lot of work! Millie

Hi, when in school I would concentrate on learning the grieving process, coping mechanisms etc, I use that info a lot with my patients. Also, really know your lab values and what to expect the doctors to treat. Know how to pick up sepsis and how to treat. Know how to treat pain and be an advocate for the pt when their pain meds aren't enough. Oncology is a rewarding field. I have worked with a couple men too!

Well, I find that working on the floor at least, you don't see every death, and when you do the person is usually so ready to go it is almost a relief. The things that haunt me the most are the difficult, painful deaths, but they are few and far between. I work Oncology because like you I enjoy the relationship with my patient. I truly get to see the whole range of humanity from the bottom to the most loving relationships. I focus on making my patients comfortable and helping them to cope. Relieving pain is one of the most satisfying parts of my job. Perhaps if you focus on what you can control of the disease, it is easier to create boundaries. I try to approcah my patients from a professional, yet personable level and do intentionally create some barriers so that I'm not too impacted if they pass. Best wishes to you, Millie

Hi, don't be scared, it is difficult, but it can be done! I'm 45 and exactly 1/2 way through with my program in Adult/Geron primary NP. I work 2 12 hr shifts per week on an extremely busy floor. Ocassionally I work 3 shifts, but have found that leaves me a little exhausted and grumpy. If my job wasn't so taxing full time might be fine. The first 2 semesters were the hardest (patho and pharm). The 4th semester is very manageable. I have sto study a lot, as in most of the day on my days off, but I feel it is worth it. For the first 2 semesters I felt like I would never grasp and retain enough of the information to be able to practice. In the 4th semester I can see that concepts are repeated and expanded upon and that my knowledge is increasing and hopefully will continue to do so. I think if I wouldn't have put so much pressure on myself to "learn it all now," as I did in pharm and patho, things would've been less stressful. You will see things again. It can be done, it is stressful, but it's also somewhat invigorating and challenging to accomplish all this.

Congratulations!! I think the certification is only 500 hours of direct care.

Look for a school that has both. I think the adult NP scpecialty is being retired and replaced by the Adult/gerentological NP. I'm currently in the combo role in school.

I felt the same way when I took patho (different school). I pressured myself to learn as much as possible, since I'll need to know this for actual practice. I was very concerned when I realized that a lot of information seemed to be just passing through my brain. What I realized is that this info will come up again. It is revisited in pharm and will be revisited again in the courses that go along with clinicals and in clinicals themselves. We did read the whole book. I did study most of the day,everyday. I found some wonderful lectures on itunes through the Univ of Washington (I think), that supplemented well. Supplementing with lectures etc has helped me retain the most info.

I'm not to clinicals yet, but I work 2 12 hr shifts/week. 3 ocassionally. When clinicals start I'll prefer to work weekends. My manager is great with working with my schedule. I also work PRN for the increased pay. Have almost divorced a couple times during the past yr and planned to get my own health insurance (most schools offer VERY low cost health insurance to students, that might be your best bet).

Thanks, maybe you're right. Most of my problem comes from being a perfectionist. I would study most of the day on my off days, because I not only wanted to get good grades, but I also wanted to learn and retain as much as I could since I'd actually have to treat people some day, so I guess that's self imposed stress.

I thought this would be a better place to write than the student's forum since you all have been through the entire picture already. I'm almost through with my 1st yr of NP school. Have completed patho, pharm and will take assessment this summer and start clinicals in fall. I started school due to a near divorce which hasn't happened yet, but is potentially lurking around every corner. I've done well and gotten all A's while rasing 2 teens and working 2 12s a week. I'm concerned because due to multiple additional life stressors that have happened over the past 2 mos, I am now nearly exhausted and several people, including one friend who is an instructor have told me that clincials are much more stressful. Is this true? Did you find clinicals more difficult to live through than patho and pharm? I'm hoping for less stress, so that I can hope my life will become more managable. Thanks in advance, Millie

Some more ideas..... I did peds before, much easier than the oncology med/surg floor I work on now. Ask around about other floors. 4-5pts on day shift is manageable.

Some ideas: Would it be possible to work in the education dept? Admit nurse (not sure if they have those in your area) Hospice (ministering really comes into play here) Home health Diabetes educator case manager QA Sounds like you just need to find your niche. ~millie

I agree with OP, Montgomery is a high crime area. Most people who work there probably live in Prattville or Millbrook. Don't know anyone who works at the hospital. Birmingham on the other hand is very nice. Great place to live. My brother worked at UAB as a new grad. Excellent orientation and good nurse/pt ratios. I worked at Childrens as a new grad many moons ago. Best place I've ever worked. Good luck, Mille

Congrats on the weight loss, that is fabulous and will probably help you more than anything. Core exercises such as pilates are great. Strengthening the abdominal muscles will help to hold your back in the proper position. Physical therapy is really wonderful if you have the insurance to cover it. Best wishes, Millie

Yes, medication can cure it most of the time, then there's the lovely fecal transplant I've read about a couple of times. ~millie