CoeKohawk11

Hello all, I'm currently an RN with my BSN. I have long been debating on which route to take to go back to school. I have worked predominantly in the ED, more specifically in in a children's hospital the last year. I want to specialize in either emergency medicine or trauma. I have been getting mixed opinions on which route is the best for what I want to do. My resume for school is a 3.4 GPA. If I chose to go to MD or DO school I would need about another year of undergrad classes part time to finish i.e. O Chem I/II, Biochem, Physics I/II. I know the route to become a physician is the 4 years of school, 3 years of residency, and then usually a 2-3 year fellowship before I'm officially on my own and can practice wherever I choose. I have no problem going to school for a long period of time, but I'm curious about several things. With the new plan the AMA is looking at is that all advanced practice RN's must be doctorally educated (unless they're grandfathered in). I'm not sure which route is better because I want to be able to practice to the full extent of my scope and knowledge. Some of the NP's and PA's I've worked with in the ED usually work fast track or take the non critical patients. I don't want to go back to school for 4 more years and move away from the trauma and critical patients I love caring for now, and begin taking care of the sniffles and rash patients some of them take. I have seen some of the NP's I work with are specialized in trauma or emergency and have a wider scope, or at least the hospital allows them to take the very ill and traumatic patients. I've even seen some NP's working on/with a flight crew or critical transport crew. Does anyone have any further knowledge on this because I would love to hear all sides, and welcome any pros/cons. Thanks a lot guys!!!

Hello, I am currently an RN licensed in Illinois. I am attempting to get my license in both Iowa and California and I have some questions on doing this because the Illinois website is an atrocity. What information do I send first to the state of Illinois? I have already sent my college the request for transcript info. I know I need to send the "Verification of License" form, but I don't know the "fee" I have to pay to the state of Illinois. Also can I send in the form for both Iowa and California in the same envelope? Who do I make the check out to? Do I need to wait for confirmation that Illinois has gotten these first forms before I send the actual application for endorsement? Do I send both my Iowa and California applications in the same envelope? Please help because I am confused and have only been licensed in Illinois and need these licenses ASAP! Illinois is impossible to speak with an actual human being on the phone so I figured someone out here would know some answers. Thanks all!

Hey everyone, I am currently an RN in the ER. I have been working there for a little over a year and worked a year in a peds unit prior to that. I am looking at applying for graduate school and getting into either a FNP program and get an ER specialty or an ACNP program. Now I was wondering, do any of you know about nurse practitioners working in a flight helicopter? Do they have their FNP or ACNP? Do they have any extra certifications besides the required CEN, TNS, PALS, and ACLS? Does this job actually exist or am I just making it up? How would I find more information? Thanks guys for any comments back.

Hey everyone, I am currently an RN in a pediatrics unit. I have loved doing pediatrics and have been working here for a year. The one downside of working here is that the unit can be closed down quite often due to low census and lack of patients. Recently the ER has been having me help out and training me there. I have absolutely fallen in love with the ER. I never got a chance to do clinical there in college. The manager in the ER (Which is quite busy 95% of the time) has offered me a fulltime position there. I don't know if I should take the position and leave pediatrics, or keep working peds and do the ER per diem. Help a brother out guys!

Yeah, I received the notice to pay the extra $50 a week after I passed my boards and sent it the next day. The check has YET TO BE CASHED, and when I call the department of regulations I have yet to speak to a human being for over 3 weeks. I fear I will be done with orientation on my floor before I even receive my official license (FYI I am hired on as a NAII, which is pretty much a nursing student again.)

I am a recent graduate of a BSN nursing program in Iowa. I took and passed my boards about a month and a half ago(Which took forever to actually get my approval to test from the state of Illinois). I have still not received any word on the status of my license and I am becoming very frustrated because my fellow graduates have already passed boards and become officially licensed in no time at all back in Iowa. Anyone know exactly how long before I am officially an RN instead of a person who just passed their boards????

Hi, I am not a graduate of MMC (I go to the rival school Coe), but I have a large amount of friends going to MMC. The reviews differ. Some people say they loved it because the professors were awesome. Some say they learned a lot. Then I have some people tell me they are jealous of how my school does clinical. I also have some people say their senior year was cake and didn't really learn much. Sooooo I guess it all depends on how YOU learn and how much effort you are willing to put into all of this. The nurses who work on my floor who graduated from MMC (actually MMU now) are very good at their job. Good luck with the schooling though.

Hello everyone, I am currently working on a "Quality Improvement Project" as a part of my senior leadership class. We have to find a problem or situation that can be improved, research about it, come up with an idea, and then present said idea to the floor/peers/professors. I am having a very difficult time doing this because I am on a very low census pediatrics unit (2-3 patients/day) that has only one nurse on the floor at a time. Finding something that was a "problem" or needed improving is nearly impossible. The one HUGE thing I can think of is dealing with HIPAA and patient safety. Here's the question: Is there a standard/regulation/law out there that states the MINIMUM amount of professional nursing staff (RN, BSN, MSN, etc) required to be working on one floor at a time? The main problem that I have seen is that the nurse's station is COMPLETELY left unattended if the nurse goes into a patient's room, and I know that HIPAA states that you need to have patient records, information, etc stored in an area where a staff member who does not need this info i.e. house keeper, maintenance cannot reach it without some form of resistance. Another problem is that me as a male could get into trouble with a female pediatric patient. For example, I am caring for 15 y/o Suzi without any form of supervision during a private procedure (Inserting a catheter). Suzi is then able to say I may have sexually abused her or done something inappropriate. Then it's my word against hers. Another situation that may happen is code situations. If there is only 1 RN on the floor and the nearest RN is down a long hallway, then double doors, then another pair of double doors, and a long hallway (You get the point) and a patient codes the nearest nurse will take a long time to reach the patient. These are all dangerous situations especially in a hospital, but I am finding it difficult to find research/information on this. HELP ME PLEASE!!!!

I liked the name, but I graduate in 51 days and will take my boards soon after that. So yes this is a school question regarding my senior leadership class and the project I have to do for it.

Hello everyone, I am currently working on a "Quality Improvement Project" as a part of my senior leadership class. We have to find a problem or situation that can be improved, research about it, come up with an idea, and then present said idea to the floor/peers/professors. I am having a very difficult time doing this because I am on a very low census pediatrics unit (2-3 patients/day) that has only one nurse on the floor at a time. Finding something that was a "problem" or needed improving is nearly impossible. The one HUGE thing I can think of is dealing with HIPAA and patient safety. Here's the question: Is there a standard/regulation/law out there that states the MINIMUM amount of professional nursing staff (RN, BSN, MSN, etc) required to be working on one floor at a time? The main problem that I have seen is that the nurse's station is COMPLETELY left unattended if the nurse goes into a patient's room, and I know that HIPAA states that you need to have patient records, information, etc stored in an area where a staff member who does not need this info i.e. house keeper, maintenance cannot reach it without some form of resistance. Another problem is that me as a male could get into trouble with a female pediatric patient. For example, I am caring for 15 y/o Suzi without any form of supervision during a private procedure (Inserting a catheter). Suzi is then able to say I may have sexually abused her or done something inappropriate. Then it's my word against hers. Another situation that may happen is code situations. If there is only 1 RN on the floor and the nearest RN is down a long hallway, then double doors, then another pair of double doors, and a long hallway (You get the point) and a patient codes the nearest nurse will take a long time to reach the patient. These are all dangerous situations especially in a hospital, but I am finding it difficult to find research/information on this. HELP ME PLEASE!!!!

Thanks for the advice guys/girls. I think I will take the guaranteed job because then I can eventually work at the larger hospital. I would really like to work at the dream job early though because they have an excellent nurse residency program, higher acuity patients (I am have spent a lot of time in the ICU as a student nurse), and the overall relocation (I have been in Iowa WAYYYYYYY too long.) I know I will have to wait at least a year or 2 if I take the guaranteed job because hospitals don't like it if you work for them a few months and take off. Question for you guys. Could I interview and not accept the position until I find out if I got the dream job? Long shot I know, but I'm only 21 haha.

Hi Everyone, I am going to be graduating in 68 days and need to start making decisions on where I would like to work. Currently there is an opening at one of the local hospitals on pediatrics which I NEED to apply to soon. This is a decent job, but the patient acuity is low and I kind of wanted to get out of Iowa after I graduate. This job is 99.9% guaranteed because I personally know the nurse manager (She loves my knowledge and personality), I have 2 aunts who have worked at the hospital for years, and I have an excellent resume including very well written reference letters. This is not my dream job however. My dream job is to work at The Children's Hospital in Aurora, Colorado. I have a friend who might (key word might) be able to talk to the nurse recruiter about hiring me. This job however is not able to be applied for until MAY (when I graduate). Should I take the guaranteed job in the field that I love and wait it out a few years? Or should I wait for the dream job, which carries no guarantee or promise of a job??? I would really appreciate any help or advice you guys could provide. Thanks!!!!!

Depends..if you were turned away by the nursing staff of the OB, your preceptor, or your school clinical liason I'd be po'd as hell. They are doing you are great disservice and a terrible turn for nursing as well and I'd say as much, I'd shame them until next week. At my school we do 1-1 preceptorships so we do one clinical rotation per semester i.e. I did a rotation specifically on ICU, Med/Surg, Oncology, etc. We have a partnership with 3 hospitals here and one has a no male nurse policy in the maternal/OB, and the other 2 frown upon male nurses. I got pediatrics so I was happy this semester, but still felt hurt that I was unable to at least get the chance in an OB unit. My preceptor does occasionally float to the OB/Maternal floor sooooooo hopefully I do get some of that experience. Thanks for the reply though.

I am currently a senior nursing student and was recently DENIED access to an OB rotation because I was a male. I spoke with some of the other nursing students about this (I am one of 2 men in my graduating class) and all the women were in agreement that men knew nothing about what women were going through during a pregnancy and eventual birth. This confused me because 1. None of these women have had a child either so clearly they have no idea what a woman is going through during pregnancy. and 2. Isn't that what nursing is? Caring for those who are ill?? I mean I personally have never experienced severe head trauma, being on a ventilator, being cathed, or having to go through chemotherapy. BUT I have cared for patients who have and was told I did a tremendous job. I am going to school to LEARN how to care for patients with multiple illnesses and injuries I myself have never experienced. I guess it just angered me a little that these women believe I get turned on or something like that from watching a birth. Clearly I wouldn't be a successful (soon to be) nurse if I was turned on by all of my female patients. Any thoughts or comments on this people? I just want to know why it is viewed as ok for women to care for a man, but a man cannot care for a pre/post-partum woman?