backtoharmony

Dear Zen: I graduated from Jeff's BSN program in 92, and from Community College ASN in 85. So we are linked with Jeff in common. Great!!! I loved Jeff. Dis Jeff still have that Community Health Semester in Holland when you were there? What an experience that was, OMG. I'm sure we may even know each other to some degree if you have been working in the mental health/Addictions feild for 25 years. I'm also a Certificeted addictions Counselor, although I did let that certification lapse once I achieved other certifications that made that one unnecessary. I do love the field of addictions andsee it's importance in treating the patient as well. The article I had published, "The BRENSA MODEL" is a diagnostic tool I created with an addictions MD at Penn. geared to help DX the elderly with addictions problems and then swiftly get them into age approprtate treatment and into age appropriate support groups. So I see we have even more in common, as colleagues, that is.

Did you know what the results of a major study funded by NIH discovered that looked at NP's successful intergrating into health care verses PA's? What is the number one group not accepting NP’s? What is the group that is hindering NP’s from progressing and being integrated into the America’s health Care system? Yep, you guessed it, "RN’s". As a result, over all, PA's are more generally accepted than NP's at this point. I find this unbelievable!!! And unacceptable!!!

dear zen: it's been nice chatting. i'm sorry if my response offended you in any way, you seen to think i'm assuming a superior position in this chat? is that true? please don't feel that way. this is not a competition. i just finished something your just starting so i was offering you support. i'm sure your much smarter than me and could kick my ass in every way. i was just offering you some friendly, kind support. i am 100% about nursing supporting itself, like other professions do. i for one have had enough of nurses ripping each other apart. this is a competition of me against myself.

congrats on your published work as well my friend. if interested my article is called "the brenda model", in journal of gerontology. you'll never guess where i graduated from with my bsn? jerfferson. i did my jeff community health semester in holland, amsterdam. it's a small world. well it's been a plaesure.

zen: with our paper's, the professor's run ever peper we do through that same program, once we turn them in, and if we get caught with plagiarism, we get placed on suspension and most likely expelled immediately. they are strict about that. but i understand what you're saying, i like that method that your school uses, i wish we were giving that opportunity. they basically just threaten us with expulsion, and they meant it. as i saw someone get the ax for that very reason. when i said, if your nice, i'll share. i was just kidding, relax dude. i'm on your side. just trying to be a nice guy that's all. :redbeathe i am a male by the way. got to get back to study for now. and i know you don't need me help to kick ass in your pmhnp program!:yeah: i just wish i had someone offer me support when i was at the very beginning of it like yourself. so i did what i wished was done to me. shoot me!!! have a great day my friend, and good luck with everything:smokin:. again, i know you'll kick major ass.

OK, great, I thought you spoke with the tone of someone like myself. As I also did the ASN to BSN to NP route. As I have 26 years experience as a psych RN, most of that time workng at Penn. I hope I didn't insult you when I mentioned that? If your interested I can share things I've done for my classes with you when your in those spots. And I agree with your decission on holding off on Patho until you can do it when you can take some vacation time. I can see you've heard it was challenging. And congrat's on the "A"" on the Nursing Research class. As, I say that will be the corner stone in untilizing research for your PMHNP course work, as I'm sure all the NP programs will be heavy on the use of current research in all paper's and presentations. Good luck and enjoy the ride.

Dear Zen: Also, I'm interested in the classes you may have taken out of curiousity as to compare our program's. And if your real nice, maybe I'll share some of my resources with you. AS with every Penn PMHN class we had to do 2 paper's, using 3 current drectly applicable published valade research projects, one's where the researcher's had no financial connects to the research, etc... as their foundation as to validate the fact's in your paper. So after your 6th paper you get use to this basic criteria. Each paper has to be no less than 23 pager's in length, and at the end require a full research anaylses comparing all 3 research articles. So, yes, as you can see Penn's NP program's are all very heavey on evedence bases practice. And after your 2nd class you become fluent interpetating and doing searches on topic spacific research, that makes your paper indisputable. And yes, when you turn in a paper you must defend it in front of the class, as they do all they can to punch hole's in it for you. At first I didn't really appreciate that part of it, but after you get ripped apart a few times it motivates you to do a paper that is untouchable, and this is what I did. As one of my classs paper's was picked up my a Nursing Journal and published as their feature article on that month's Journal. So it pay's off. I was told other school's only ask for 1 research article for every paper, is that true? I can understand why they ask for 3, because when you incorporate 3 it's hard to dispute.

Dear Zen: My advice to you is to go into your PMHNP program with full force, full time. No excuses!!! Let nothing get in your way. I also recomend not working as you do this program because this program, at least Penn's soes, comes with many hours of clinical per week. No one I know was able to work as they took the program, with exception to one who previously had a Psych job, and easy one and she worked every other weekend, except when her clinical started then she was not able to. Because once your finished the PMHNP program, the job's come to you. As I just graduated in June and have not looked for a single job. The recruiter's have been calling me off the hook with non stop job offers. So put first things first and you'll also be there, and again, let nothing else stand in your way. Because it's much more challenging than any undergrad nursing program any where, trust me. Respectfully

Oh, now I see clearly. Hum, so how do you like their program? I've heard good things about it. Have you taken Advanced Patho-Physiology yet? And what classes are you taking now? I have been studying nd preparing for my Bpards exam which I will be taking in approx 2 week's. I know in Penn's program the Advanced Patho-Physiology class is the one that weed's people out. As about a quarter of each class fail it and drop out of the program. I'll never forget it, I never studied so hard and it was 2 semesters long. I tool it in the sommer. sommer 1 and 2, intensive 6 hour classes 4 days per week. I assume your not taking that at this point or you would have mentioned it to me right off the bat, asking me how to survive it. So have you taken it? Because once you do, it's all down hill from there. I am proud to say I received a B+ in that class, but that was with many hours of one on one tutering. It's a game changer that's for dam sure. And for your future motivation interest, by the way I already have a job in Philly, all set up to start once I complete and pass my Boards, this position starts me out at $95,000 a year, then it increases to above $100,000 in year 2. Then it increases yearly from there. Which at that point I will start my own Private practice. So work hard and be focused and you'll be there too, very soon. :yeah: So your a new BSN with no experience. That's OK, 3 of my Psych NP class mates at Penn were also and they (all 3 of them) landed job's that started them out at $110,000. Lucky sucker's. They had to move to the Pocono's area for that position at a new private inpatient Psych hosp.

Where did you go to school for your PMHNP? I'm sorry to hear about your struggle, I know you'll pass it the next time. I'm getting ready to take the exam in 2 weeks, I also have tons of experience and worry over analysing as well. Hang in there we'll pass it.

Sorry for the poor spelling in previous thread response. I never was a good speller. What I was trying to say was, it always pays off, every time, personally and on the job. Read the post from the 27 year vet in here somewhere, I also have 26 years experience. So trust us, as we speak from life's experience. It's a small price to pay for many unspoke and spoken benifit's. And I never cracked a book when I took it, and passed it on first try and I'm a terrable test taker generally speaking.

Take the test, it pays off. Trust me I habe been a psych nurse and am a PMHNP now. I will open door's that otherwise are closed. I always helps.

I'm also getting ready to take the Family PMHNP exam. Any encouraging tip? I just graduated from U of Penn's program. Any and all of your kind advice would be appreciated. I'm a wreck worrying about it at this point. D Day is approaching fast like in 2 week's max. So your responses would be greatly appreciated.