MurrR

Depends. Where I work we have no such thing as OTC treatments or meds, everything must be by doctor's order or be covered by a protocol that's been reviewed by my supervisor. It's a company policy - regardless of the legality, I'd probably lose my job for doing it without an order/protocol. Legally, in Oregon at least, a CNA can apply heat and cool - as long as they're not a total moron about it and leave their patient sitting on a heating pad for more than 20 minutes without checking/removing it. Ditto for cool. It has less to do with the OTC nature of the treatment and more to do with how smart/educated is the aid applying the treatment.

I was about to say this. I could tell you, roughly, how nurse delegation works in Oregon that allows me to work as a caregiver and perform certain tasks for my clients - like giving insulin, epi-pen, etc. etc. - but you don't live in Oregon and the administrative rules might be very different in your state. Also, I have a CNA license but work as a caregiver and unless I have special dispensation I cannot do things as a caregiver that I would do as a CNA - i.e. I cannot give suppositories without going through a nurse delegation training as a caregiver, even though I'm familiar with them from my CNA education. Working in an unlicensed position while holding a license is very, very tricky as I have found every day at my job.

I feel your pain. I'm at a job I don't particularly care for right now because I need the health insurance. It sucks to feel stuck some place you don't like. My advice would be to stick it out *if* you can and transfer, because that sounds like a solid track and even if you learn nothing else you learn what you can do when you're put in a bad work situation. Otherwise I'd be tempted to take the Per Diem position if I were you. Gets you your experience, you get cross-trained, you'd get good support and training, charge nurse seems awesome. Who knows, could work out into a full time job on its own or open doors to other positions you wouldn't be considered for now. If you're not getting enough hours, you could hire on with a per diem agency to fill in the rest of your schedule. A lot of per diem nurses do that - and agency pay is frequently higher than standard pay.

I had an instructor once who was filmed by a local news crew performing CPR on top of a gurney coming out of a helicopter into the hospital while 8 months pregnant with twins. I wouldn't advise such a thing, but I think it just goes to show that if you want to do something you can find a way! By the way, the hospital got angry letters from locals about it to which they issued a public resonse: "Let her? You think we let her do that?! How about you try to stop her!" :lol:

I work one 12 a week, which gets me 3 days off a week. It's just about perfection, haha!

Depends on your employer, although a totally sporadic job would probably be described as "on call" rather than "part time"

I can't believe this doesn't fall under the Americans with Disabilities Act! Very sad that they don't see the value of your knowledge and experience. To that end, is there a nursing school near you that could use a skilled classroom instructor?

depends on the type of facility and what the delegation laws of that state are. in my state, aides pass meds in assisted living after receiving on-site med training. after working as a med aide for six months you're eligible to take a cma class and become certified by the bon to pass meds anywhere. nurses may legally delegate certain tasks to unlicensed staff according to the administrative rules of my state, things like checking blood sugars and administering insulin come to mind but it includes things like changing dressings on wounds and other forms of care that usually require a nurse's specialized knowledge. there is a strict procedure for doing this so that nurses can assure that the unlicensed staff are performing these tasks appropriately before the nurse signs off on it.

You only get one body, why abuse it needlessly? That hospice job is just a-callin' your name.

There's a reason I like swing shift - I don't have to get up early, and I don't have to go to bed early. If we went to a 12 hour schedule at work, I'd probably start a riot.

I'm not sure if this is as true in nursing as it is in some other fields, but international work can show that you're adaptive and flexible enough to handle anything - even working in a foreign country, and with a foreign language! Even if it doesn't count as "experience" it counts as an experience that shows off what kind of a person/employee you are.

Well, it's true, don't kill yourself for anybody. BUT! There's a lot of quality care to be provided between not killing yourself and doing your job! Besides, you don't do anybody much good if you're dead, know what I mean? If the resident can lift her legs, asking her to do so nicely is a helpful way to keep her functioning at her highest level. If you do it for her all the time, eventually she won't be able to lift them at all because she hasn't had to. Encouraging our residents to do what they can is part of providing good care. HOWEVER! Yelling, cussing, screaming, laughing inappropriately...these are not okay. Roughness is not okay. I'd write a letter to my supervisor/whoever's in charge of this aide on a managerial level detailing what you've seen and heard. Keep a copy for yourself, make sure they're both dated.

That leaves lots of other options though!

Yesyesyesyes! What's it going to hurt?! If they decide to hire the new grad, you know you tried. If they decide to hire you, you get the job you wanted! What're they going to do, put you on some kind of list for applying to transfer too early?! I doubt it.

One of the best things I got from my school wasn't my certificate or the education - although they're essential! - it's the letter of recommendation from the program director. I think that paired with a really good resume that I worked hours on was what helped me get my last few jobs. (Been through three since I got out of school, if you can believe it.)

If I'd stayed in college the first time around, probably would've been finishing my BSN by now and be a RN. Now I'm coming at it from the other direction, and that's just fine with me!

Medication Aide, definitely. In LTC of any kind med pass is gonna be a primary duty on any shift for the person responsible for it.

Not a nurse, but I am a CNA.. At my last interview they flat-out asked me why they should hire me at one point. I said, "Because it'd be a mistake not to. I'm hard working, I want to become one of your best employees, and I want this job." This was an appropriate response given the way the rest of my interview had gone. I had already proven I was more than qualified, had some experience, then it was just about being up front with the facts: I am an awesome employee, and even if I'm not perfect, and even if I need help, I'm worth the investment because I give it back tenfold in job performance. Selling yourself is a lot easier when you're confident in your skills and your judgement - trust that you are good at this job, and you won't have any trouble letting them know that in whatever way suits your personality and the interviewer best. Nursing school a year from now? I don't think they need to know. Say that you intend to become a nurse in the future, or if you want to be even more vague-but-corporate say that you have plans for "professional advancement in your current field." :lol: :) To some employers, it might be a downside that your attention will be divided in the future - don't let them think about it. Let them have the year to see what a great employee you are and then when you go back to school, they'll be happy to hang onto you.

Not sure if I'd ever date somebody who worked in the same field - it'd be like living in an echo chamber where all you hear about is the same kind of stuff all the time. In this case, nursing. On the flip side, somebody who can empathize and understand would definitely have a big advantage over anybody who couldn't. All in all, I don't make many rules about where to find love but I doubt I'll find it at work. I've got too much to do there, who has time to fall in love on shift?!

Like when some of my fellow CNA students and I were discussing the BMs we had seen before lunch that day in clinicals...While ordering our lunches at the teriyaki place down the street! The guy behind the counter looked absolutely horrified. I guess if you don't know that poop can be so many different colors beforehand, you might be horrified at first...

I'd think that you wouldn't want to cut a kid's hair before they were a year or two old because it's just FUSSY holding somebody that small down for a haircut!! lol!

As somebody who's got a lot of baggage at the moment...I totally agree! Nothing adds stress to my shift like listening to a coworker's trials and tribulations when we should be getting on with our jobs. I'm not saying I'm not up for friendly chats or hearing how they're doing, but in previous jobs I've seen people get cornered by an emotional coworker when they're trying to get things done - usually right at the end of shift, or when something is urgent. When things are rough outside of work and coworkers ask me how I am, I tell them honestly, "I'm happy to be here."

Learning another language has great benefits besides being able to speak Spanish or French or whatever. A variety of studies have shown differing degrees and types of positive impacts on the brain and thinking, but overall I'd say that somebody who uses their brain as much as a nurse does could hardly go wrong with picking up another language if he or she has the time and the interest to do so.

I think a fruit/cheese or veggie plate sounds way more refreshing mid-shift than a bunch of carbs and fat. I like to save those for when I don't have to get up again!

When it gets too much, I cry in the bathroom or take some deep breaths in the laundry room. I've got a friend that I can almost always expect an immediate response from when I text him, so sometimes I ask for some support while I'm taking a minute. For the most part, I have enough on my plate that I'm all about work while I'm there and that's a blessing.