My409

I'm sure there have been other nurses with worse experiences who picked themselves up and kept going. It sounds like your intentions are good but your expectations are unrealistic and your idealistic view of how things *should* be is clouding your ability to use good logic. The world is cold, hard, and unfair. At first I thought you may be just a young girl, maybe 20 yrs. old, but it looks like you are a mother and wife, hardly a person who should be so inexperienced with life. It would be wonderful if we could be coddled and walked through everything that made us uncomfortable, but that is just not reality. Just be thankful you didn't harm anyone, learn from the hardships and take that with you on your next nursing adventure. I reread this after posting and want to edit because I realize what I said sounds tacky and flippant and I really do NOT want to come off as being an inconsiderate hag. I have been thrown to the wolves before and it isn't fun. It makes you feel inept and unworthy of being a nurse. My reaction to the harshness wasn't to run away. I got MAD. I got on my own high horse and those snooty nurses who rolled their eyes at me because I didn't know something came around after all. It was tough climbing upward when it seemed like there were those who would have been glad to see me fail. But I proved them wrong, and you can, too. Don't feel defeated and never feel like there is something wrong with you if you don't succeed at a certain job. We weren't all born in a nurse's uniform like *some* nurses. Good luck to you.

I must say (sadly) I have seen this done several times, especially in LTC. Rather than take the time to stop the feeding, disconnect the feeding, mix the meds with water, flush the meds, then reconnect everything back, some nurses take the shortcut and just dump the crushed pills in the feeding bag while the pump is running...then the next nurse is usually the one who is greeted by a clogged feeding tube. That is the epitome of laziness. I would advise a new nurse to never feel badly they don't know everything. Nursing is a very broad profession, no way to learn everything there is to know in school. Most of your education will take place on the job.

I think some nurses get a little power and it goes to their heads. It annoys me to hear LPN's say "my CNA's". Even RN's. They aren't "your" CNA's. They are the aides you work with. Like on Gone with the Wind, when the slaves are out in the cotton fields and one of them looks up and announces, "Quittin time!"and this other slave says, "I'm the foreman, I'm the one who says 'quittin time." Then he hollers out "Quittin time!" In the nursing home you are all slaves. I am looking forward to the day I can wash the brown off my nose and be my own boss. At least when I brown nose it will be to my benefit! Quittin time!!!

A&P and micro are very difficult. A B on either of these tests is quite impressive. But a C will take a person as far as a B or an A. Once you are an RN you are an RN regardless of whether your transcript says A, B or C.

A&P and micro are very difficult. A B on either of these tests is quite impressive. But a C will take a person as far as a B or an A. Once you are an RN you are an RN regardless of whether your transcript says A, B or C.

Anyone who wants to embrace the American way and Americanize themselves is welcome here as far as I'm concerned. I just feel resentful when people come and try to turn their environment into what they are used to back home.

Most all fruits and vegetables have loads of potassium, as much as bananas. Bananas are usually what people suggest because they are so handy to grab and eat. When I was in nursing school I was under a lot of stress and there were times I would feel my heart would do flip slops and it was pretty scary. Scary enough I went to the ER one day after school (the hospital was right next to my school). They told me my potassium was low. It still makes me cringe to remember that bill I got. Just do what you need to take care of yourself.

That is a difficult test. Congratulations!

I am looking into NP programs and from reading several of the posts and a little disappointed to see that NP's seem to be a dime a dozen. I was hoping the job market would be good. Is there a NP specialty that is more needed than another? I was having fantasies about no weekends and a less stressful work environment (like a small clinic) but I can see now that my fantasy will likely remain a fantasy In your opinion is it worth it to pursue any type of NP career? Thanks

Maybe we should sign on with the local sanitation department?

The times can vary, depending on where you are going to test. Someone willing to travel can probably get in faster than someone who can only test at one site. I say give it 3-4 months. I took mine four months after signing up.

I don't think he is trying to be totally obnoxious. I can see his point.

If you are an Excelsior RN coming from out of state to California does this make any difference? In other words, say I am licensed as an RN through Oklahoma (through EC) and later move to CA...how would that work?

If you go through Excelsior before the state decides to stop accepting them you will no doubt be grandfathered in, as the Excelsior RN's in CA are being grandfathered in.

I work in private duty nursing and am considered a private contractor by the agency that hired me. Tonight I got a needle stick from an insulin shot I gave the patient, who also has cirrhosis of the liver (I don't know for sure why but I am going to assume hepatitis C.) I know that facility procedure is to write up an incident report and draw blood for an array of tests, but being considered a private contractor does anyone know what the policy would be if I wanted to be tested?