danedsel

I've always found travel nursing similar to working for a temp agency. I did these temp assignments for about 5 years in Los Angeles. Within about 3 hours you'd know if an assignment would work out and you'd be back the next day. Sometimes, your recruiter would call on your lunch break and say you were done for trumped-up reasons or deluded suspicions. Basically, the client (hospital) is where the money is and virtually any reason justifies cancellation. Just remember that (unfortunately) half of all nursing is now from the computer. All outstanding tasks and required documentation must be completed. In other words, anything that can be readily checked with mouse clicks must be addressed. This includes medication being passed out on time.

Having done the Kaplan test prep and predictor tests myself, I can tell you that you want to stick with as many Kaplan resources as possible. I hate to say it, but content and what is more emphasized can change from vendor to vendor. Let me be clear that I don't work for Kaplan, nor do I hold them in any kind of high esteem. If you have to pay for the extra stuff online, it's worth it. You'll probably want to do that anyways before you take the NCLEX, so it might be best to go ahead and purchase the access (you'll likely get a 3-month subscription, so it'll last). Here's something you may not know: you can actually pass (and do quite well in some cases) if you do enough questions. Many of these companies are now stingy with what sample questions they give because of the rigid constraints imposed by many state boards. If you have ATI, I'd do those questions until I was blue in the face. Hurst UWorld is what enabled me to pass my NCLEX with some ease. They give you around 1,200 questions. I realize I'm kind of contradicting myself, as I said to stick with Kaplan earlier, but that amount of questioning is enough to (theoretically) cover the margin of error. The problems with the comp predictor tests is that they vary considerably from test to test, which is why you want to answer as many questions as possible in as many different modules as possible. One thing I would not do is spend too much time with content. You spent the majority of nursing school doing that. At this juncture it's all about being able to find the best answer in 4 or 5 options.

Wow, thanks purple! Those indeed are good questions to ask! One of the previous commenters mentioned 'shadowing.' I didn't know that some facilities allowed that sort of thing, but then again, I never asked about it, either. If I can, I may apply and test the waters elsewhere to see if shadowing another nurse provides any insight. The unit manager on my floor is constantly pressed to be more transparent and honest to slow the speed of that revolving door. I interviewed with her twice and didn't get the slightest impression at all that the floor was understaffed and ill-equipped. So, yeah, I guess that is a common dilemma on floors in general. The question you asked about 'sticking it out 'til I reach the 1 year mark' is currently what I wrestle with the most. Sustaining the physical and psychological demands is no problem - assuming we're still talking about the 1 year mark and nothing longer. It's the severity of patients, assignments, and subsequent impact the two may have upon my license that I'm worried about. A tech told me the other night that they were giving me and another nurse the more difficult patients likely because we don't take breaks or a lunch and patient satisfaction is high with us. Also, I seemed to have rubbed a few people the wrong way, so there's that... Everyone has such a big mouth - I can't believe it. I can get virtually any information willingly from someone else. What you and Boston said about teamwork is really important. I currently don't have this. Sometimes, we don't have a tech and so we're having to get vitals, I/O's, etc. in addition to other things. The techs that are there have virtually no presence, so I often wind up doing everything myself anyhow.

A wise and well-constructed response. I agree with everything you and the others have stated. I'll likely stick it out for as long as possible. Thank you.

Yes, I do think days would be better because of the 10 shifts I've worked here and there. The difference is - well - like night and day. =| Sorry, couldn't help myself. On this particular floor, there are more resources and fewer meds to give during the day. The pervasive mentality that 'night shift doesn't do anything' is probably what influences some of this, but it's like that in almost any business. Only 1 day shift position ever opened up since I've been there. ...thanks for the reply, btw.

I graduated nursing school last summer and got a job on SICU working nights. The transition was jarring and hellacious (to say the least), so I transferred to med-surg thinking it would be smoother. You can probably imagine how that worked out... I've been on the floor for about 5 months now working nights. Some shifts are better than others. Sometimes we have a tech, sometimes we don't. I thought I had reached some sort of stability a few weeks ago, but learned in my most recent shifts that chaos and disorder have no bounds. Basically, I'm consistently having to work in and out of my scope of practice (or at least I feel). The night shift severely lacks in resources and I'm always 2-3 hours late clocking out. The floor hasn't been able to find a new hire in 4 months. When I peruse the job listings for other hospitals, ultimately, I have no idea what to expect if hired, and the 'frying pan-fire' scenario could be a real possibility. In retrospect, I should've stayed with it in SICU. Can anyone suggest another department that will allow me to continue employing my nursing skills without the surrounding mayhem? I believe I'm probably asking for the world but thought I'd give it a shot... Not asking for an easy job, just for the chance to simply keep my head above water.

It shouldn't be an issue - in general. If your age is the real concern, it is true that some employers like to hire young, new grads simply because of the rigors of physically sustaining a 12-hour shift.

Context? You mean 'subtext.' The context is pretty clear.

Bullying can take many forms through many outlets. For example, virulent passive-aggression could exist in behavioral or verbal form. Someone coming up to you explicitly conveying their disdain for your existence can now be considered hate-speech, assault, a physical threat, a future promise to conduct and carry out an act resulting in physical harm, etc...the old 'Scut Farkus' days of classical bullying (unfortunately) consisting of some stolen lunch money and a fat lip have been replaced by social media posts consisting of almost a whole 6th grade class of kids encouraging one student to kill them self. She was absolutely bullied.

California is infamous and has been for a long time with its sluggish administrative process! Worst case scenario, you have to re-submit. I hate to say it - but if you've got the money and resources - a trip to Sacramento getting everything knocked out in one day at the BON has been worth every dime for a lot of people. Things get processed way faster and with better organization. Plus, the money you spent on the trip allows you to start working quicker, so you're making money sooner.

Uworld is most likely harder than the NCLEX, so when you take the NCLEX, you're more prepared. Content and mastery, therein, are very helpful foundations for directing you to correctly prioritize and execute effective management of care. This helps filter inappropriate answer choices.

I fought this battle and succeeded, but it was going to another local community college in the area. Here's the thing: A previous post suggested just going for your ADN, which is 2 years (5 semesters), to shorten your tenure. That might be good advice. I tried to transfer back to my home state after first or second semester. The problem with the local community college was not that they were unwilling or didn't accept transfer students, it's that they didn't really have a protocol for it. I remember one of the administrators encouraging me to push the idea so they could come up with some policy at the next committee meeting applicable to all the affiliate colleges in different locales. This may be a problem at a lot of schools: lack of a transfer policy. Another administrator mentioned GPA's, entrance testing, and "...having to prove myself." It sounded like they didn't make it easy, as the competition was probably pretty fierce just to gain acceptance starting first semester! I was able to find another local community college in the area I was living in that would accept transfers. There was entrance testing, a dose cal test, and a skills check off. The best advice I got here on allnurses was to just bite the bullet and stay with the school or try and find another local college that would accept transfers. The problem is a lot of colleges have different pre-reqs, state to state, causing you to have to take additional classes. What's more, is that most colleges won't take you if you've been out of the program for 1 year or longer. My advice: Take the pre-reqs to get in, which'll transfer just about anywhere, and do the ADN (2 year) program and commit to it, regardless of your husband's situation. This is ONLY if you REALLY want nursing, as I assume you and your husband don't want to be separated. I doubt, however, that if you were a year into it (half way) and your hubby did get transferred, you'd risk losing your place and not at least try and find a way to make it work. This is after you see just how difficult nursing school is...

I realize that this is all subjective and many variables exist, such as the state you live in, the school you attend, etc.; but, I can conclusively say that - through experience - nursing school never got any easier or less challenging from semester to semester. The general consensus upon asking new grads about what to expect from school was that it got "easier" after the second semester. Although, the curriculum and workload will vary and you may have periods of respite, the demands and stress are pretty consistent throughout. This post is not meant to be disheartening or discouraging by any means, just a caution to heed and not let your guard down or become too comfortable...

I like it, Lev. Nevermind the public stoning...

Primary cutaneous tuberculosis in a 27-year-old medical intern from needle-stick injury: a case report