jad623

My face is under a surgical mask the majority of the day, and my hair under a cap... so my beauty concerns are minimal... that being said: -Moisturizer with SPF (tinted works as a light foundation) I walk 2 miles a day out side to get to the train station, subway to work and back - You can find a primer that has a matte effect so it will absorb oil throughout the day - Cover up (yellow undertone works best under the eyes for those dark circles) if you have some blemishes you can get a cover up with salicylic acid to both treat and cover it -Some powder on the t-zone - Waterproof mascara -Blush (NARS multipurpose stick in orgasm is great and looks good on EVERYONE and doubles as blush and lip color) 5 mins to apply and I'm out the door But since we're nurses our smiles (sometimes while gritting out teeth) are usually enough

See if you qualify for the NSL (nursing student loan); I think you're automatically considered when you apply for FAFSA loans, but I could be mistaken. Also I believe there are additional loans that are private albeit through the government for students specifically pursuing degrees in healthcare. Also a little known secret-- people who take on student teachers are often rewarded credit vouchers. I went to a private university and even with $12,500 in student loans, $2,000 from the NSL and a $7,000 scholarship I STILL had a balance each semester, and commuted from home. So what I did was search credit vouchers on Craiglist. My university was 850 a credit for upper level division courses... but I would buy credit vouchers for anywhere from $1200-$1800; thus saving a significant amount of money. Granted I did pay cash for them and made many financial sacrifices as a result, but I didn't have to take out private loans which will affect your credit score (unlike student loans) to cover the differnce. Again, this is not necessarily true for every school, but it is quite common. If you decide to look into this, you have to be careful. I personally never had an issue, but make sure the voucher has a serial number (which you can validate with the school) and that it's been signed by the principal, you can ask the person selling the credits what school they work for and the name of the principal and Google the school to make sure it's legitimate. I know what a financial burden nursing school can be... but hopefully this will help you out!

Check out NYP, HSS (OR, PACU and inpatient residencies), Mt. Sinai, not sure if NYHQ still does, NSLIJ (Long Island) has a critical care and ER Residency... These are just a few off the top of my head that have residencies. My focus was on hospitals that have residency programs so I'm not sure which hospitals are likely/open to hiring new gradds (hopefully some other members can help you with that). You can ask your professors if they know of any as well The residency I got into hires every 6 months, I think NYP has one that coincides with the end of each semester (January, May, August) Good luck on your search!

I absolutely would encourage you to get some kind of hospital experience if you can now... CNA, PCT or even volunteer. You will absolutely stand out more than your peers and in my experience many of the "competitive positions," specifically stated that to be considered as a new graduate you must have hospital experience outside school clinicals (for example NYU), many others describe this as an "ideal," candidate... This isn't all hospitals, but again experience certainly helps. I graduated in August 2011, and while I was very lucky to find a job quickly, many of my friends are still struggling to find jobs. Some residency programs require that you are licensed before you apply, and many other positions do too. What you can start doing is getting your "ducks in a row." Contact professors now (keep in mind some hospitals require that one letter be from a clinical instructor) and ask them for letters of reccomendation, they appreciate you asking them in advance. When you contact them I would also suggest that you provide a "goal statement, list of your relevant activities, etc." it gives them a framework to create the letter and tailor it to you. It would reccomend getting two reference letters. The career center and my school was incredibly helpful in assisting me perfecting my resume and cover letter. You can also ask a professor or two to look it over and get their feedback. I would highly reccomend getting the business cards of the nurse managers on the units you're currently doing clinicals on and asking them if you may contact them when you pass your boards. And unless the job post says otherwise, contact the nurse recruiters directly. You can do this before you're licensed; it shows interest and iniative. I think part of the reason I got an interview was because I called the hospital, got transferred to the nursing department, transferred to nursing recruitment and got the recruiters email off her voicemail (it was not listed on the website) in essence I practically hunted this woman down. The residency was also not listed on the website, I read their annual reports and newsletters etc. )The fact that I "did my hw, and went out of my way to contact her (and attached my resume and cover letter) indicated my strong interst from our very first contact. Finally, I would definitely take the time to personalize your cover letter. Research the hospital, mention a recent program they iniated and why you find it attractive, (for example you were impressed with their professional certification rates in 2011). They want to know that you want to work at their hospital, that you're not just desperate for a job (but who are we kidding, as a new graduate in this economy you take what you can get before that first student loan payment is due, with a smile on your face and count your blessings). Good luck to you on the rest of nursing school and passing your NCLEX (questions, questions, questions) and on your job hunt! You're very wise to start preparing early on and I'm sure it will serve you well in the future!!

I'll start off by saying that I am one of those young 20 something year old females terrified of childbirth... I realize that this "miracle" may be an inevitable avenue if I wish to have kids... but I involuntarily stutter when I even talk about it. I saw one lady partsl birth and that was more than enough for me (while encouraging the mother to push I was looking over at my friend mouthing the word "never")... it was kind of like that scene from "Knocked Up." That being said I had a two guys in my OB clinical that weren't permitted to witness a birth as per the mothers' preference (my professor did her best though). I decided that when and if I decide to have children that I would specifically ask if there were any male students that day who wanted to come in. If I'm focused on pushing out an 8lb bowling ball I would venture to believe that I don't care who's looking at what as long as I'm getting my pain meds. As far as I'm concerned this is the most effective type of sex ed there is for both sexes... it's good to know what you could "accidentally," get yourself into if you're not careful. Hopefully more women will develop this perspective as well and in the future male nurses will be able to see more... but for some of you a YouTube video or two might cover it. :)

CheesePotato This is completely off topic, but in January I posted about an interview for a Perioperative nurse residency program you may or may not remember responding to, (and for some reason I am no longer able to locate the post.) But I just wanted to thank you for your response and advice, it was incredibly helpful and definitely put me at ease, and I went in feeling that much more prepared. I got the job at the top orthopedic hospital in the nation and start in February. I always enjoy reading your other posts as well (this one may be more informative than my suture book lol). Also a big thanks to all the other nurses who post on the OR forum--many of your responses have been very helpful and informative as well, and I always learn something new every time I log on!

I'd like to start off by saying that I am a recent graduate (August 2011), and was lucky enough to land a competitive OR residency position in the NY metro area in January. The reason I mention this is because I was very recently in your position, and also know what lies ahead of you, so my approach is not as a seasoned nurse trying to educate you, but rather a peer sharing her experience. While you have read this from many other members, I would have to agree that you're taking things too personally. I don't think a mistake on an accucheck would be a reason to refuse to write you a letter (if you had given medication without supervision etc. then that would be another story). From what you've said it doesn't sound like she led you on. When she said that she'd write letters, she said it to a group as you said, not to you as an individual. She said you were doing well, students are often evaluated in regards to a "standard deviation/learning curve," if you will. While I don't know what her exact comments were, from what I gather she said you were doing "well," which means that you may have earned the right to pass, but still require improvement. If she did not say that you were excelling (let's say top 10% of the bell curve) she may not have felt comfortable writing a letter. Look at it this way A=excellent B=above average/good C=mediocre, but a B will get you a 3.0 gpa. And this is not a personal insult but scholarships are often reserved for the top tier of students, this is not to say that you are not worthy of it, but that based on her assessment of your skills, she may not felt that way. Professors do care about patient safety; they put their license on the line simply by teaching us. They simply do not pass below average students, all my professor made that abundantly clear. The other thing to consider is that once you confronted her with her quotes, she may have declined to write the letter simply based on your approach. Truthfully your response to many other post has been defensive, aggressive and borderline rude. Professors are super busy and despite their best efforts are not always able to respond immediately to emails, especially if it's not a lecture course; I don't think she was intentionally being rude to you. Sometimes emails get mixed in with so many others that they don't see it etc. It was good that you followed up, but I hope you were cognizant of you tone. During my interview I was asked what my "strength" was and I replied that I knew how to be "assertive and confident, without being aggressive and confrontational;" it's a delicate balance that I would venture to say is essential for every nurse to master if they wish to be successful in their career, and something to start practicing in nursing school. Also nursing is the successful and practical application of theory to practice. You have to know the why behind all your actions. What I'd take away from this is to actively seek feedback and constructive criticism. In nursing there's always room for growth. If a professor, preceptor or nurse manager later on in your career provides you with a positive evaluation, inquire further. It's ok to say thank you for the positive evaluation, and then ask them what else you can to do improve. Even if it's not evaluation time, ask them--they'll appreciate your initiative. While you may not ever come to a resolution that you find suitable in regards to you professors denial, It's likely that if you seek out feedback in the future you can avoid situations like the one you experienced in terms of evaluation. Lastly I'd keep in mind that professors, preceptors etc. do talk. Many members of the faculty are also staff members, affiliated with or know someone at a hospital. It's very important to be gracious regardless of whether or not you agree with someone's actions because you never know what situation you'll find yourself in. During my application process my former professor (who also happened to be the CNS of the hospital), went out of her way to speak to the nurse recruiter on my behalf (without my asking her to), but told me that she declined to write a letter for another applicant because she was uncomfortable recommending her. This is not to compare myself to you, but just an example to keep in mind for the future.

I'm also looking into moving up to Albany and was wondering what the cost of living is up there (rent etc.) I've read what the starting salary is for Albany Medical Center on some forums, and granted I'd just be grateful to get a job as a new graduate in this economy, but the salary just seems ridiculously low. Of course I'm from Long Island where the starting salaries at the surrounding hospitals are generally 75-85k (with BSN and night differential) and yes, the cost of living is higher here, but is it really that much cheaper in the capital region to "justify" that salary? Thanks for your input!!

I am a new graduate and spent my senior clinical rotation in an inner city ER/Level I trauma in NY and the first thing you learn is there is textbook nursing and there is "real-world" nursing. While you're studying for the NCLEX you're in "Utopia Hospital," where you always have stretchers for patients and doctors have neat hand writing in their charts, but that's just not how it works when each nurse has 9 patients and you've just triaged 150+ patients in 12 hours. The most important thing that I've learned is not to short cut anything when it comes to the safety of the patient; there's a reason there are standards of practice in place. And as a new nurse I want to do my best to do things the right way, I simply don't have the experience to know what I can side step. Am I going to clarify meds that are contradictory to the patient's condition? Absolutely; you cover you're a$$. Would I DC the foley of a discharged patient? Yeh, I probably would, especially if I was comfortable with the physician. Keep in mind these nurses have established relationships with the doctors and they've learned the way each of them practice etc. It's good that you noticed all the things the nurse did wrong, it means you paid attention in class and you know the right way. (Personally I'm a BIG fan of gloves when I come into contact with any blood product, that includes injections). I've had the misfortune of having some wretched clinical experiences with unfriendly nurses who lacked compassion for their patients and warmth towards the students, but do you know what you take from that? You ask yourself what kind of nurse you want to be and how you're going to treat students and co-workers etc. We're privileged to be at these hospitals, so much time and money goes into acquiring clinical placements in hospitals and most students don't realize that. Despite the supervision we receive from our professors the ultimate accountability for patient safety lies with the RN assigned to that patient, even after discharge; this translates to their LICENSE and therefore their LIVELIHOOD. I adored my senior preceptor and never forgot that whatever I did was on her license. And that being said I don't know how on Earth you managed to get your hands on meds, furthermore in the fridge for the mag citrate, but there is not a Professor in my program that wouldn't [rightfully] BEAT ME SENSELESS if I ever gave a medication WITHOUT PERMISSION and UNSUPERVISED. If they got wind of it my a$$ would be out of the program so quickly that I wouldn't know what happened to me, and you can kiss any chances of getting into another program... it's just not worth it. And what if that patient had bottomed out etc? In a sense you just put that nurse's "life" in jeopardy let alone the patient. How old was she? What were here electrolytes like? Did she have a history of renal insufficiency? I'm sorry if you felt bad for the patient but quite frankly you had no right nor did you have the medical expertise if you will to execute that order. How did you chart it on an eMAR without a password or even in a paper chart (I'm assuming you also need a Professor to sign off on any charting)? That's a LEGAL document and you're not LEGALLY LICENSED. If something bad happens to that patient and a lawsuit ensues (and you better believe that it will) that nurse is going to be going to court, not you, and I promise you that two years from now if you're an RN you DO NOT want to be sitting in that chair. There's a chain of command in hospitals and you'd be wise to learn that quickly. If you see something that you know puts a patient at immediate risk, (like if you read in the chart that a patient has a penicillin allergy and they're about to hang Ampicillin) then speak up, but do so respectfully. It's also ok to say, "I'm sorry but I'm not comfortable doing that." Otherwise take it up with your professor in post conference. These nurses can be your best friends or your worst enemies, and yes there are some nurses who simply can't be bothered, but find another nurse to gravitate to and if you're paired up with her again keep your mouth shut and stay out of her way, or simply ask your Professor to be paired with someone else. Yes you showed up early and eager to learn, you did everything right, but it seems as though you approached the clinical situation with a little bit of arrogance; you don't need to list your experience, they'll see it as the clinical progresses and I'm not exactly sure why you'd be calling her cell during the shift (no offense if this was not your intention, but the example alludes to that approach). Bottom line is know you're role and be grateful, be confident, but don't be cocky, and if you take initiative and work hard without over stepping your boundaries the nurses will trust you and will be happy to help and teach you and even ask you do things for them. The Professor is obligated to supervise and teach you, the nurses aren't... Believe me they know who works hard and knows their sh*t etc. and those are the future nurses they want on their unit. If nurses look at students as a burden it's because of situations like this; when you do something like that you ruin it for the rest of the students too. Sorry for the lecture, but I'd rather pass on the lessons I've acquired as a recent graduate than see someone have a miserable experience or be kicked out of a program.