nursyperson

I have been an RN for 29 years...some of that time med/surg, office nursing, float pools...but, for the last 15 years in ADN education. I also work in the maternal/child area of the local hospital part-time. I can't imagine being anything but a nurse!

The salaries in OK are in the 30's. Full-time faculty are hard to obtain because of the masters requirements and the salary deficit. Yes, we do work 9 months out of the year, but during that 9 months the work is often done at home along with the school (constructing exams, grading papers, clinical requirements, committees, etc). If you are available to students during your office hours then you are taking more work home to complete. Several of us at my college, have other jobs to make up the differences financially, and also to keep our skills current.

As a nursing instructor, I feel the need to respond to the described plight you have experienced. Students and instructors are all human beings, and sometimes we 'get along' better with some students than others. Dealing with student personalities is much like dealing with patient personalities. You have a job to do and the instructor(nurse) must find to best method to accomplish this. Personalities play an important part in building relationships, not only in the school setting, but in the work setting. It has been my experience that those who have difficulty with relationships in school often have difficulty in work relationships. As I read your posting, I made note of a few things that concerned me. First of all, you have two masters degrees...that should mean that you have experience in learning and disciplining yourself and your instructors actually may have expected more of you, rather than less. Nursing is so totally different from other fields that other degrees are not as applicable to learning nursing skills, etc. Have your previous degrees not brought satisfaction into your life? How will a degree in nursing help you? What is your goal? You also stated that in your life 'doors have been closed more than open' and 'I am not the most beloved person in class' and other comments that may indicate a less than positive self-concept. I am not saying that you may not have some validity to your complaints, but you may want to do some self-examination. How did you present yourself to the faculty? What could you have done differently? I cannot believe that your dismissal was all about drawing up medication with air bubbles. Schools have policies (refer to your student handbook) about disabilities, what behaviors are considered unprofessional and unsafe, and the procedures for counseling, probation, and dismissal. I was also concerned about the comment about 'use of ada issues to exploit my disability'. What do you mean by the term 'exploit'? Does the school owe you? You may want to review the defense mechanism 'projection' As hyperstudent wrote, you seem to see yourself as a victim, and that there may be more to this story that you do not choose to see.