kpalffy

I agree with several other posters. When I graduated, I was so fatigued from school and debt that my future seemed bleak. Now two years later life is running smooth as a nurse. It took me 4 months to get a job after graduation. I worked in a hardware store for several months after graduation! Just keep your chin up! I love nursing, don't regret my choice.

I have had the experience that most things are not always charted, so getting a few minutes to ask questions is helpful. There is nothing worse than receiving an patient that was told many things, and having no notes or orders to back up what they say. No notes if family is at bedside and coming with the patient. No IV charted, no Foley charted. Meds charted as given hours ago, but the IV med clamped and hanging on the pole not finished. The EC gets busy just as the floor does too. I realize that charting sometimes has to wait, so a two minute phone call can help buy some time. I really miss receiving report from the EC.

I work on a hospital unit where a lot of families pressure Physicians to tell them only the outcomes they want regardless of the reality. As a nurse, I sometimes have to find ways to present information to families so they become open to hearing less than positive outcomes. No one wants to tell families they need to change their beliefs and think about their loved ones dying. I am proud to work on a unit where nurses and physicians are working together to tackle these tough situations. Tiffany is a great nurse for advocating for her patient.

We have an IV team where I work. There was talk that the team would be discontinued. I can't imagine a day at work without them. Patients benefit from an IV team more than the staff that relies on them.

I just graduated from nursing school in March 2014 with an Associates Degree in Nursing. I am scheduled to take my NCLEX exam May 6th. It has felt like torture waiting to take the exam since I have felt ready since the day of graduation to get it done and passed. I am ready to be a RN. What I am struggling with is finding my place out there in nursing. I enjoyed each clinical rotation except for labor and delivery. OB just didn't give me that feeling that was where I need to be. Entering nursing school I thought that hospice and geriatrics was where I wanted to nurse, and still think that is a possibility. Then a mental health clinical rotation gave me the feeling that I would do well there too. My precepted clinical right before graduation was in a critical care unit, which to my surprize, I did excellent with. My preceptor felt I was a great candidate for an ICU nurse. So I like a lot of things in nursing, and don't have a single passion for just one type of job or unit like some of my fellow classmates. They all seem to know exactly what unit they want to work in. My favorite part of nursing is connecting with my patients. Hearing my patients talk about theirs lives is one of the fun parts. My preceptor told me the one skill she noticed about me is my ability to read my patients and be perceptive about the subtle things. My instructors have told us that our goal should be hospital jobs that allow for us to use all of our new skills and get us experience. Long term care facilities should be last resorts for jobs because we won't be able to find jobs in hospitals after jobs in LTC. Same was said about taking a job in mental health. I was advised to save that for later in my career. I could really use some advice from nurses out there about where to start my nursing career out. Can you choose to start outside of a hospital and still have options later? Anyone start out in somewhere besides a med-surg unit? I would love some honest answers from those of you. Thanks!

I have to agree with some of the other posts about instructors pushing graduates into hospitals for first jobs. The adage is that you will loose your skills, get no med-surg experience, and have trouble changing positions down the way. Maybe there needs to be more visits at nursing schools from nurses that work outside hospitals. Being from Michigan, I don't think that I could take your offer up. It's a shame that the LTC that I have seen openings for always want experienced nurses. As a new graduate nurse, I would be open to working outside the hospital.

Study up on your math, and take your time. The clock in the screen corner adds extra pressure. I got into the program on a second try. The first time there were alot of re-applicants and I was just .4 points short of making it. Just a few more points on the Kaplan test would have made the difference since 4.0 was what everyone had.