aprilrazz

Well I did not go to the meeting and was written up and I was told that a second write up will put me on probation. I wrote a rebuttal and included a copy of an article that was in the AJN about a nurse that was killed in a car accident due to similar circumstances. I have an exemplary work record with them except for meeting attendance. They will not budge on times and say that they hold them when the most people can show up. When I brought up any kind of remote attendance I was told due to security reasons it was not possible (I work in corrections) and that I would have to "plan my time better". I love my job but management will not be reasonable about this. They have another in-service planned from noon to 1500 right in the middle of a work week for me that is, you guessed it, mandatory. I have had enough and I am putting in my notice. I have another offer and I have an interview tomorrow (going on my way home, they were very accommodating) and will see if the grass is greener. I don't' want a write up over something ridiculous as that to ruin a good track record. Thanks to everyone for their input and I am glad I am not the only one that thinks this is unfair.

I work nights and my job requires me to attend mandatory meetings twice per month as well as any in-service training. The problem is that they are all scheduled during the day (meetings are at 1400) and I work 7p to 7a. I have worked elsewhere where the nurses meetings were held twice a day, once in the mornings and again in the afternoon. We are required to be there and get written up if we don't show. For the last two months I have had to work the night before and the night the meetings are held. The last time I had a med error (caught fast thankfully) that I honestly think was made simply because I was tired. Management refuses to change the time of the meetings or offer more than one and I am afraid someone will be injured because of this. I read a while back about a nurse that was killed in a car wreck because of a similar situation. I live an hour away from work and that is three plus hours at least that I can't sleep due to meetings and training. Of course day shift sees nothing wrong with the way things are now. I love this job but don't want to hurt myself or someone else because of lack of sleep. Should I go above their heads or look for another job?

Depends. The last place I worked tolerated nurses constantly coming in late, like 7:20 every morning when shift starts at 7am. I show up around 15 minutes early every day and the nurses I relieved were out on time every day. Me on the other hand was told to clock out at 7am because I was constantly going into overtime. They went after me rather than correcting the issue with the late nurse (who they constantly made excuses for) and I now work elsewhere.

Push both experiences. Former mil seems to do well in this specialty.

I am 2 months in at a city jail and I love it. I have similar experience as well as time in military medicine. I do anything from sick call, med passes and booking right now and it is never a dull time. You get to use all kinds of skills that you may have learned and pick up a few along the way. You do need to watch for manipulation as the inmates have lots of time to figure out how to get things from you. I feel really safe as there is a deputy with me at all times and I am never alone with inmates. Read up on things as there are a few good books on the subject that will help you find your way. Also talk to the other nurses that have been there a while. They are full of advice.

Don't feel bad we all have our crosses to bear. I came in to nursing school having worked as a Corpsman and an EMT. I can see brains lying all over the street or horrific accident scenes and it doesn't bother me. But... Poo is my kryptonite. I have no problem smelling it or seeing it but when you combine the two its gag city! I'm slowly getting used to it but it's not easy. I have a grown son and you would think with all the stinky diapers I changed for him I wouldn't have a problem with this. Lately I've just been wearing a mask with an alcohol pad under my nose and it seems to help. The good thing is I'm using it less and less now. You do manage to get used to things and after a while they won't bother you. But it sucks in the meantime! lol Just hang in there. :)

I was in a similar situation a while ago. But in this case several people noticed and took it to the instructor. The instructor walked towards the back of the classroom and saw her do it (she had a notebook sitting on her lap). I'm not sure whatever became of the incident but this particular person washed out after that class anyway. This is also the same girl 4 weeks into clinicals came up and asked me to take a blood pressure so honestly I'm glad she's gone.

With a BSN you will enter as an O-1. With a MSN you go in one rank higher(O-2, I.E. more pay). Now this is for the navy and may not be the same for other branches.

You are probably looking at San Diego, CA, Bethesda, MD or Portsmouth, VA. Those are the big 3 navy hospitals and where most new nurses go. There is a lesser chance of you going to a smaller hospital in CONUS. As a prior AD Corpsman (now nursing student) I have worked at Portsmouth and Bethesda and it seemed that most of the nurses on the wards were O-1's. You may know nursing but you don't know the navy yet. It is going to be a big culture shock. One nurse I worked with suggested going with a fleet surgical team for your second duty station. You will be going out on the big deck ships and will get to see different places and get the feel of real military health care. As far as later duty stations overseas Rota Spain is where it's at!! I was stationed there and I absolutely loved it!

Don't do it!! If you are not one already you have to go through their LPN program first and that is 15 months alone. Then another 15 months for the RN. While there are a couple of really good instructors the program is horrible. They are so disorganized it isn't funny and don't even get me started on the business office and financial aid people.