SubSippi

They are definitely diploma mills that make our whole profession look bad. People who went there for school always defend them because nobody wants to admit that their education was subpar. I know you don't want to get a BSN, so hopefully you can find a reputable program that works for you. But if not, consider it. You owe it to yourself and to your future patients to get a good education!

UAB is a great school. I'm in school there now and the teachers are all very supportive and invested. I'm also local to the school and I can also tell you that they have a reputation for producing well-prepared graduates. Aside from all that, the most important thing about UAB is they line up all of your clinicals for you. If you have preceptors you'd like to use the school will establish a contract with them, but otherwise they will do it for you. I'm relatively new in town and don't have a single contact, and I haven't had to do any of the work of finding a preceptor myself. Which is the way it SHOULD be since I am paying them tuition!! USA is a decent school from what I know but it doesn't have the same reputation as UAB. And they make you find your own preceptors.

My orientation date isn't until June 15-16, but I live in Birmingham and wanted to let you know to park in lot 5A. It's at the corner or University and 16th St., just a couple blocks down from the school of nursing building

I just got accepted for the PMHNP track! I'm super excited! Are any of y'all local to Birmingham?

Well that's good to hear. I'm nervous enough as it is about trying to be a nurse again in some random ICU, lol.

I've been unemployed for 16 months, due to having a baby and then a move across the country, among several other reasons. I'm finally able to get a job again, but it's looking like my only option right now is going to be PRN work. My clinical background is almost a full year of telemetry nursing, and then 2.5 years of working in a CVICU. I am really nervous about jumping into an ICU with minimal training, but I'm worried I might not even be able to get a job because of my gap in employment. Will it count against me too much? I live in an area that usually has a pretty good job market for nurses, for what it's worth.

Don't feel guilty. If that patient was feeling well enough to be such a turd then you were obviously doing something right!

Which often begs the question... If someone is vegan AND does Crossfit, which one do they talk about first?

I'm also more of an easy going person who works in an ICU...my solution? Night shift.

I've heard stories about there being orders for a glass of wine at bedtime (to help with sleep).

I currently work for a director with a business background. He is very hands off when it comes to the nurses. I think in the year I've worked for him, I've gotten a total of two emails from him.

You're right. Nurses get paid exactly what they deserve and shouldn't complain.

Twist the tube between your fingers a little bit the whole way down, not just when you're trying to get over the hump. It'll help the tube glide down past the tongue instead of getting caught in the mouth.

If you ask yourself all of Lev's questions, you should be able to figure out what the rhythm is. Unfortunately there aren't very make tips or quick fixes, it's the kind of thing that just takes practice. If there are specific rhythms you're having trouble with I may be able to be more help, but the whole topic is a little too broad for me to think of suggestions that may be helpful to a student.

I would still go to the interview...it would be good practice and get you used to the kinds of questions that you'll be asked. I'm saying this because I acted like a total weirdo in the first interview, and I was really glad it wasn't for a job I was really excited about. Each one I had after that I got a little better.