mg2312

Around Boston, or up to an hr away

Thanks!

thank you! I will look them up tomorrow!

Thank you!

I'm looking for private duty home care. Sorry for the confusion!

Does anyone know of private duty companies in or around Boston?(other than PSA). I have been trying to look it up, but am mostly finding home care agencies that do visits, I need to find a private duty agency.

I'm having the same problem!! I kind of feel like a fool applying to these positions due to my address being so far away! This certainly doesn't help you, but hopefully someone will have some good advice! Good luck!:)

Wow, this thread is interesting(with the varied views from actual nurses to prospective nurses)! my opinion: you do have to be passionate about nursing to get into it. otherwise you will be miserable at your job which will affect the quality of care you give to your patients(yes, I realize this is an assumption). HOWEVER, it is just a job and people need to realize that. to claim you're fully passionate and will continue to thrive on passion alone as a nurse is very naive. (my opinion) you need to look at it as "a job" and leave your work behind at the end of your shift or else you will get burned out very fast. I don't mean to sound rude with this: but it seems as if the "future nurses" on this thread are a little judgmental and unrealistic. Pre nursing, nursing school and actual nursing are very different worlds!!

I just took ACLS in may with no previous ECG experience(other than nursing school). you definitely DO NOT need to spend more money taking a class! Prior to the ACLS course i read through the entire manual and just looked up any information I was unsure of. reading the information prior to class was a huge help! I took a 2 day course(AHA) so after day 1 I reviewed the material from that day and went briefly went over what was to be covered the next day.

nrskaren & zookeeper, thanks for the advice, I'll have to look into those areas

not much:( I have 7mos experience in pedi home care

Hii, I'm just curious to know If anyone knows what states/cities are good for finding nursing jobs? I realllllly want to relocate to Boston, but I'm finding the job market in MA isn't that great. I'm not giving up on the dream but I'm starting to realize I might need to have a backup plan and gain a year or 2 of experience in a good hospital. I'm currently in NJ and probably could land a new job if I try hard enough, but I don't want a new job in NJ, I want to get out of here!! haha:).

After you take the NCLEX go to Pearson vue And try to register to take the test again(pick a different date). if you passed it should say you're already registered. if you failed it'll let you continue to register. good luck!

For a situation like swimming the way I see it is if the parents are allowing this child to swim, they are going to swim regardless if I'm in the pool or not - so either way it's my responsibility to make sure the child is safe, as I'm the only RN on duty. I am very protective when it comes to water(even while bathing the child.) This kid(4y/o) will make comments in the pool like "let me swim by myself", that's when I nicely tell her I'm going to stay right by you or you don't swim - this way she really doesn't have a chance to go under because I'm right there. Also when I'm there she has to have one of the swimsuits with a built in float. Like cali said make sure it's within your agency guidelines and document that you had the conversation with your agency. Some nurses suggest to be by the pool and watch over, that situation makes me totally uncomfortable, esp with siblings in the pool. God forbid she started to go underwater it would take me a lot more time to jump in and go under to get her than if I'm standing next to her the whole time with my hands right there just in case. I've never been to court for any nursing issues so I don't have experience on the issue, but my thinking is as a PD pedi nurse we are 100% responsible for the child through out the shift, no matter what happens(and as you know these kids manage to get in to a lot!!) So as long as we're there and act within reason I don't see a problem. Without having extensive water rescue training, as nurses it is within our scope of practice to know how to handle any emergency that happens on our shift. CPR/911 etc.. I personally don't see how swimming/water rescue knowledge is different from reacting to any other emergency that may arise in the home setting.

When I did my orientation to my first case with a trach I just pulled the nurse who was with me aside and told her that I had no experience with a trach. She was very nice about it and explained everything to me and let me watch her do everything first. That was a huge help. Also, she knew not to ask me to do something on my own in front of the patient or family members. Of course I also reviewed how to do trach care before arriving to the home. That was enough for me to feel comfortable to go back and care for the patient. It mainly depends on you're level of confidence and how quickly you can think things through. As far as vents: either take a class if they offer it or I would demand a minimum of 2 fulls shifts of on the job orientation.

ventmommy, I couldn't agree with you more!! sadly, this is a Medicaid cAse - with the case I mentioned, I do give meds often throughout the day and Tube feeds (for whatever reason the family isn't able on keep track of meds/feeds and administer them on time) but it does seem like abuse. on the other hand I recently had a pt. with a trach, gt, ostomy, cath, wound vac, you name it, he had it..now this case Medicaid decided did not need nursing care so the family had to struggle to pay for around the clock care on their own. it really is ashame how our system works! care doesn't always go to the right people, and there's no reason for that to be happening

One of my cases is very similar..mostly healthy active 4 y/o. I do all of the same types of things, working on potty training, teaching her letters/numbers,take her to the park, bath her etc even though her mom is usually home all day. i also was told to bring a swim suit for their pool - at first I was uncomfortable with it but after talking to my agency and other PD pedi nurses I am more comfortable with the concept. the way my agency is, is that while I'm with the child she is 100% my responsibility even if her mom/family is home. basically anything the mom wants me to do with her, it's my responsibility to do(obviously within reason - safety/maintaining professionalism) PDN really does take getting used to because it's not just care for an illness but also developmental milestones - and with toddlers that's a lot of "play time," which we don't usually associate with being at "work" hope that helps a little, to know you're not the only one in this position :)

GLOVES!!! even if the agency/family tell you they're going to supply them..you WILL run out at some point and it can take DAYS to get them replaced!! not to go against the post above me...but I do pediatric home care and a baggie of 12 or so gloves - I would not recommend(I learned the hard way!! YUCK!). I keep a box of 50 gloves in my bag at all times! and always make sure I have a replacement when I get to a little less than half.

I always wear scrubs, even if the family says I can wear street clothes. I do pediatric private duty, and always come in contact with BM, mucus, blood etc (not to mention with children they manage to spill stuff on you, get dirt on you, markers while drawing, the list goes on).. I wouldn't want to be wearing my "good" clothes for that. Also, I find that the more casual/friendly you get with a family, they will start to get too comfortable with you and ask you to do things that are non nursing related.

I have been in contact with a couple of agencies but they're saying to start the interview process I need to already have my RN license in that state(which is OK) but then also I need to be around the area prior to starting the interview process. I'm not sure if that's a normal response or not. Also, I thought about trying to get with a travel agency and get a contract to get started, but my problem with that is I only have 7mos experience working as an RN and from what I've read on this forum you need a year or 2. And unfortunately my 7mos is in home care because that was the only job I could find as a new RN without experience - this doesn't seem to leave me with many options for travel nursing.

Although making your patients and their families smile is a very great thing, I would say that is not enough to stay with the job. I have a similar problem - working 6 days/week and WAYY over 40hrs/week. Although I love the patients I have, they're great kids, eventually you burn out with working that much. I give you credit for doing it for 2 yrs(I only made it 5 mos). I found another company and started off with just 1 day/week with them but they recently asked me to go to FT, but this time I set boundaries on days I'm willing to work (as compared to my previous job, I was just desperate to get an offer and told them what they wanted to hear!) Now I'm still at just about 50hrs/wk but only 3 days. Of course this helps with having my own life, but also I'm finding out that I'm a better nurse when I'm not so tired and burned out.

Hiii, Ok, so this isn't about actual travel nursing, but it seems like the best place to post this question:/... I'm trying to relocate but finding it extremely difficult to land a job without living in the area. Has anyone relocated (permanently, not for a travel assignment) prior to having a job offer? I know moving without having a job is extremely risky(I don't know how long I could live off of my savings act) however, it seems like taking a risk might be my only option? I would love to hear any tips/advice that you have?! thanks:)

Wow, I was actually considering PSA til I read these numbers. Their pay (or should I say lack of) is insane! I started with pediatric home health private duty WITHOUT having my BSN yet or any experience as an RN and make 30/hr at my primary job and 25/hr at my per diem job(only one shift/week). - in NJ.

Pts. address is a violation of HIPAA. If you work in a hospital it would not be ok to go home and tell your husband your pts. address, so how is this any different? And as far as taking a cab, most agencies will not hire you without having reliable transportation. If a pt or family member decides to complain about this and/or sue they would probably win. If you're that uncomfortable going to these homes only do it during the day or tell your agency that this is an area you're not willing to travel to.

Hello, So I've realized that I don't have enough experience yet to do travel nursing(wouldn't want to jeopardize my license!) But I desperately want to get out of my hometown/state, so now I'm at the point of just applying to specific hospitals in other states. The part that scares me is that I will just be picking up and moving, leaving my family and friends behind. Has anyone else done this and went to a strange city ALONE? If so, did you regret it or was it worth it? Any recommended cities to go to? Of course getting a great nursing job is #1 priority, but at the same time I am 23 and would like to maintain a social life. That is what has held me back for this long(afraid of not being able to make new friends!) I'm still terrified of going alone but I am so ready to do it!!!! Any advice/tips would be greatly appreciated and very helpful!! Thanks:)