PillarofAutumn

Moving to Jacksonville huh? It's a HUGE city, tons of places to work that's for sure. Our weather is also nice, if you like the sunshine and don't mind the occasional random downpour of rain haha. We have several major hospitals, so I'll try to just give you some info about each one. - Baptist, which is a great place to work from everything I hear. I've been there as a patient and its great. They're a magnet hospital, so they typically want a BSN, but will hire ADNs on occasion. I don't know much about pay here unfortunately, I just know the general new grad rates here range from like $20-23/hr. -Shands (now called UF health) They are the highest paying hospital here (weekend nights earn an extra $10/hr I believe, on top of like $24-25 depending on the area), but you earn every penny. It's in the urban center of the city, and doesn't have the prettiest appearance lol. They are a teaching hospital though, so you will learn a lot, see a lot, and get good experience. -St. Vincents: They are doing a lot of layoffs right now, but are also opening up a new hospital soon. Starting pay is around $21 for new grads. Pretty good place to work from everything I hear. My aunt has worked there and loved it. The places I wouldn't recommend quite as highly would be Memorial and Orange Park Medical Center. They're decent, but they're very much for-profit and don't have the greatest reputations. They're not bad exactly, just not anywhere I'd be thrilled about working as a first choice. Also, Flagler hospital in St. Augustine is great from what I've heard. It's a nice facility near the water and the nurses there seem pretty happy. If what I've heard is true, they also might've just lowered their nurse to patient ratio to 1:5, but I could be wrong. Most places around here are 1:6. As far as what the job market is like here, I'd suggest just looking at openings at those hospitals and seeing what's there. I've been looking for myself (I take my NCLEX in a week, but would like to move to Orlando), and it's not like we are just booming with open positions, but since you have experience, you definitely have more options than myself haha :) Any other specific questions you have, just let me know and I'll try to answer them as best I can!

I'm in a 2 year ADN program and about to graduate at the end of April. I have a huge passion for women's services and know I want to work in that area, whether it be L&D, post/antepartum, or possibly as a IBCLC eventually. I begin precepting in OB next week and have been told by my instructor who spoke with the head of the department that there will likely be a job opening by the time I graduate. She was told that if I do a good job, they could potentially hire me. I have limited OB experience outside of what I gain in the preceptorship, so I want to get as much education and as many certifications as I can. New grads aren't hired into this field much, so I want to make my resume look as good as possible and show that I'm serious about working in OB. Anyway, my questions are :) Is it better to get my CLC before graduation, or after? Also, if you have taken the course, what can I expect to do during the 5 days? Lecture mostly? Or active participation? Any projects or just the exam at the end?

I'm 18 years old and just started my second semester of nursing school. Ever since I was 12-13, I've wanted to work with people and in the medical field. I volunteered at hospitals and clinics, and just really wanted to work with people in some way, especially kids. But lately, I've been second guessing it, mostly because of how hard this upcoming semester is looking to be. I look at the calandar of all my classes and just start crying. I just don't know that I can do it. I get horrible migraines every day (nauseous, can't bare any light, curl-up-in-a-ball and cry kind of migraines), from stress, numbness in my arms and legs, chest pain, and shooting back pain, again from stress, and frequent anxiety attacks about how I'm going to do all of the things expected of me in nursing school, plus the two extra classes I have to take to keep enough credit hours for my scholarship. I know there are people who do this in much less ideal situations than myself, I know compared to others with kids and husbands, I have it sooo easy. But it's really taking a toll on me =( I'm miserable. But, at the same time, I know I should stay in. I KNOW I should. If I'm going to do this, now is the time. People have done this with SO much harder cirumstances than me and, I don't know, I feel like it'd be such a waste for me to quit just cause it's getting tough. I don't want to have that quitters mentality. I'm on more than enough scholarship money, I live with my parents (who really want me to stick it out), and I've already invested a couple years into pre-reqs and my previous nursing semester. Plus, I feel like giving up a decent paying job at 19-20 years old would be completely stupid of me. Right now though, I want to quit and go back when I'm a few years older, after I've had somewhat of a normal late teen-20 something life, as opposed to being a miserable, constantly-crying 18 year old who spends all her time having panic attacks about care plans and simulations. Opinions? Advice? Anything is greatly appreciated.