starfish33

Hey vintageandrea, sounds like you got a great placement!! (I'm guessing 6 South? :) ) I'm working on a surgical unit now (up the hill at JH), and I would highly suggest you know LOTS about hypovolemic shock- particularly in trauma. That's something that I always have to have eyes open for with post-op patients, but for you it will be even more so. It would be good to review transfers for ortho patients too- I know that's one of those things we only talked about for a bit in semester 3- for the ORIF patient?- so look that stuff over, it's easy to forget what the 'rules' are when someone has had a joint injury or replacement, and we are always trying to mobilize patients early and often. Any specifics- PM me, as always! Best of luck! :) ~star~

See, there's the problem right there. We're actually killing patients left and right...we're just not skilled enough to know when a patient is dead!

I can help you with the placekeeping... they put those in on your clinical days, and it's just to prevent scheduling other classes on that day. Nothing to worry about. Just do your best with Paramed... have all your paperwork together and it will work out eventually. Nice deep breaths, everyone! Your first day IS going to feel overwhelming and confusing. You will be ok. I promise!! I know exactly how gunned you all are, and congratulations on taking this step! Feels like yesterday I just started, now I'm staring semester 4 in the face. Have fun guys, and try to keep perspective... it will all work out! :) ~starfish~

^what Andrea said. :) I unloaded a small fortune on books the semester before they introduced the e-books, and to be perfectly honest- I rarely crack them. I'm a Google kind of gal. One I did like for semester 1 though, was the Nursing Diagnoses book by Ackley. The dx can be tricky to wrap your head around at first, and when you're sweating over your first few Gordon's assessments, it's a great book for helping you sort your diagnoses out and write decent care plans. I notice it's not on the semester 1 list though... I find that kinda strange. If you're tight on cash, then honestly- wait a bit before deciding to plunk down on a textbook. I know I wanted to have everything and get it all prepared ahead of time and go in guns blazing- I know exactly how you all feel!- but seriously, you will not be sorry to try a few classes first, and see what you're really going to need. What you CAN get all ready is your uniform, stethoscope, and other small essentials for clinical. Scrubs in ciel blue, as has been mentioned, everyone loves the Littmann Classic II SE stethoscope, white shoes- if you're going sneakers, be careful about how much colour is on them. It's tricky to find them in all white... some teachers are more strict about these things than others, and it's better to err on the side of caution than have to buy another pair. I've seen that happen. The scrubs, shoulder badges (ask at the cash desk), and stethoscopes are all available at the health sci bookstore in the lower level of the hospital. Also, try In 2 Uniforms on Concession St on the mountain, they have lots of styles if you are harder to fit. And they have shoes too, and other little accessories. Sorry if I went all over the place there! I'm in finals...what can I say. As always, feel free to ask any questions! ~starfish~

Hey Andrea, You will probably find that the work becomes more difficult this term. Looking back, I can't believe the amount of time we spent making beds, when now we're learning to hang blood in half the time!! Insanity. LOL Most of us got placements on rehab units in area hospitals for semester 2- and they're 12-hr shifts. Takes some getting used to! :) Mine was at Brantford General, which I really enjoyed a lot. I don't recall buying any new books last term... you probably already have what you need, unless you haven't bought a med-surg text. But, lots of people have done fine without it. I think I would have bought fewer books in semester 1, knowing what I know now. Like the one for PD for example... barely cracked that one! Although now I might, since we have it again in semester 4. Who knows. As always, feel free to contact me anytime! ~starfish~

Contact me anytime, I will do my best to help you! ~starfish~

Hi guys... Just to add my $0.02, I've had a day off each semester (I'm now finishing semester 3). It does ease up a little bit time-wise as you go along too (ie- lab goes to 3 hrs after semester 1, and fewer classes overall), but the work becomes quite a bit more difficult. Not to scare you... it all feels very overwhelming at first, but you will get the hang of it, I promise! The early starts at clinical are a drag, no doubt, but just wait until you start doing 12 hour clinicals! That's a new kind of tired. But again... you will get through it! I hope you don't mind me jumping in here. ~starfish~

@Magal...don't panic. I had to get hepatitis shots too, and most people will show immunity on their bloodwork after the first 2 shots. I did. I think I scheduled another blood draw about 2 weeks after my second shot, and they cleared me. Do the best you can! Lots of people had issues with their clearances... it will work out! Good luck! *starfish*

Hi guys... just popping in quick here to say that I'm half way through semester 3 now, and if anybody has specific questions, please feel free to PM me and I'll do my best to answer them for you! I remember exactly how it felt to be where you are. :) Good luck to all of you- don't sweat the HOAE, honestly... I had that amazon prep guide too, and totally agree- WAY more complicated than the actual test was. Just try to relax as best you can and give it hell. *starfish*

Hi again, everyone! @vintageandrea: Second semester is a blast, and going by REALLY quickly! I had an awful time with all the doctor's visits too, and going through the song and dance with Paramed- if you have any specific questions, I'm happy to help. Just use the checklist of the items you need to keep yourself on track! @Poko: the waiting is truly awful, there's no escaping it! But- bear in mind, last year there was the strike at the colleges, so our acceptances may have gone out later than usual. So stay cool... hopefully you won't have to wait as long as we did! @tissy2012: Please, don't go by what I scored- I am extremely fortunate to be very comfortable with that style of testing, and I believe my grade was probably among the highest of those tested for that intake. I don't mean that to sound at all conceited, but I mention it because I know for sure there were lots of people who didn't score those numbers and still got in. That said, I do believe the test is timed for a reason. I 100% agree with you, that doing things correctly is essential in nursing. Mistakes can be fatal. But having been in the clinical setting now for a few months- I also know that I have to do things correctly, AND quickly. If I were to spend minutes calculating and re-calculating all of my patients' medication dosages, I would get behind, and then medications wouldn't be administered when they were ordered to be administered. The school is looking for people who can do both things- be quick, but not careless. Be thorough, but not waste time when there are patients waiting for help from a nurse. When we are writing exams at school, we generally have 50 multiple choice questions to answer in 1 hour. They are ALWAYS timed, and if you don't finish- you don't get the marks. No exceptions. So, it sounds harsh, but there is definitely a reason for the way the admissions process works for this program. I wish all of you the best of luck! It's very hard work, but so rewarding. I'm just a note away if anyone needs help! ~starfish~

That was me that posted originally- I never did find out what the deal was with those scores. I did find out what each section of the test was worth, though, so I found what my overall percentage was for each area... I don't know how they weight them, though, so probably that doesn't mean much either! If it helps you guys to get a timeframe in mind, because I very clearly remember how awful the wait was!- I didn't get my acceptance until the very end of September. I think it was the 30th. So... put it out of your mind as best you can until then! (yeah...right!) Hopefully it will be sooner than that. Any questions, please ask!

Thanks, @takeabreath- my mentor! :) Yeah I was afraid that would come as a surprise... I tried to get them to change it when I started the program, but looks like it still hasn't happened. All the PN students do all 4 semesters in a row, with a 1 week break mid-semester, and then 2 week breaks between semesters. If the September people took the summer off, then we would all be starting semester 3 at the same time- when the January people would catch up- and they are definitely not equipped to handle that number of students all in the same classes. Not to mention the clinical placements would be that much more difficult to find. So- I'm glad I mentioned it, I guess, but I'm sorry to hear that this isn't good news for you. There were actually several people in my class that were surprised by this- one of them is getting married in the summer!- but they have worked it out, as far as I know. I hope you can sort it out as well. Let us know if there is anything we can help you with!

Just another little tidbit before I forget... if you don't know already, you should hear that the program runs straight through the summer. As far as I know, it still says on the website that it doesn't do that... but it definitely does. Unless they change something this fall, which is always a possibility! A couple of people got a nasty shock on the first day when they heard that. On the plus side... you will be out of there by December of 2013, instead of April of 2014! I personally really like just getting it done all in one go. Just FYI! The RN program is very different from what we do- but the same in some respects. We learn the same skills, but we do more of the hands-on aspect- as you said, 'practical' nursing. :) The RNs get a 'broader' knowledge base... we really focus on the core subjects, and hands-on skills. The RNs are required to take quite a few more non-nursing classes to complete the degree. Personally, I can't imagine languishing in a classroom for a whole year before getting to lay hands on a single patient! That would be so hard for me- and that's why I am where I am! I think the PN program is a great place to start. When I'm done, I can go out in the world and practice nursing, or I can choose to bridge to my RN, if I think I can handle 3 more years of school. It's great to have that option open if I want it. The answer to your other question is... we DON'T know anything about nursing after 3 weeks. lol! Your first semester will be in a long-term care facility, and we spent our first day finding our way around and getting oriented, and then shadowing the PSWs that work there. We are obviously not responsible for any of their nursing care, but we are each assigned a resident to focus on and we help them with their morning care (using the bathroom, dressing, freshening up). As you learn more skills, you can take over more responsibilities. It has been a really good experience... it's tiring, and sometimes sad... but there are laughs too, and it's very rewarding to help someone that can't help themselves and make them feel respected and important. I've enjoyed it more than I thought I would, but I'm also looking forward to moving on to acute care next semester. K

Hey! Excellent news about communications- that will help. I was exempted after I wrote the Assessment for Success- everyone has to write it, so don't worry about it. It doesn't affect your admission or anything. It's just to help place people that might need extra help in English. Well... it's a lot of work, I'm not gonna lie! :) But it's manageable. I have two little boys, and I need quite a bit of help with them from my husband and other family, but we make it work. Some weeks are much heavier than others. The first couple of weeks feel the worst, because everything is so new, but it has started to feel easier to me at this stage. The learning model at Mohawk is different from other colleges- here, the idea is that the teachers don't teach- the students learn. That's not exactly accurate, but there is definitely a lot of emphasis on taking responsibility for your own learning. They provide you with a TON of resources to help you- things like Peer Mentoring, tutoring, and extra help in the Learning Resource Center. The teachers are all lovely, and they won't leave you out to dry. They will always help you find the resources you need to learn. I wouldn't say I have NO life... it just feels like it! lol! It's an intense program, and you do have to be prepared to be accountable for your own learning. Not to scare you- but the clinical placements actually start on week 3! I know- I was terrified to be let loose on the public at that stage! But you start out slowly, and there is always someone there to help you out if needed. It becomes much easier as you learn your skills in the classroom. On the subject of clinicals... I can't stress enough, it is imperative that you start getting your medical clearances as soon as possible. It probably seems like it's a long way off right now and there is plenty of time- but you'd be amazed at the ways it can get held up. You will need CPR at the health care provider level, and a mask fit test (both available from Mohawk- you will get an email about it later). You will also need blood work showing your immunity to varicella, measles, mumps, rubella, Hepatitis B, and a two-stage skin test for tuberculosis. If you haven't ever had Hep B vaccines before, I strongly recommend you get the ball rolling on that right away. It can take a long time- as much as 6 months (although you're probably good after about 2). You will also need a vulnerable sector screening from your local police agency- the forms are available at the IAHS. Depending on where you live, that can sometimes take a while (some people it took a couple of months). If you don't have your medical clearances complete by the time your placement starts, you won't be allowed to attend until you do. But- if you're not cleared at first, they will help you with activities to do until you can go to keep you caught up as much as possible, but it's obviously not ideal. The IAHS is lovely and modern- no complaints! If you haven't been in already, you can book tours through Student Life and they will show you around. If you have any more questions, please don't hesitate to ask. I know exactly how you are feeling right now, and I'm happy to help you out! cheers :)

Congratulations! I started there this January- almost have first semester done. (Yay!!) I know exactly how you feel- dying for information! I'd be happy to answer any questions you might have- there have been a few students ahead of me that helped me out a lot when I was first accepted and was full of questions, so I'm happy to pay it forward. :) Feel free to message me anytime! Congrats again! :w00t: