Tashia

Thanks for all your tips and encouragement. Ingrid m: ~I found that you really need to stay on top of all the meds. Make up flash cards and keep them handy. ~ Keep on top of all your lessons. I found it's a good idea to read in your text before class and then again after. That way you hear it 3 times and it helps to stick in your head. ~ I heard that 3rd and 4th semester are easier because you are basically just adding onto what you've learned. Such as IM injections, hanging Iv'x (only specific). So keep that in mind. ~ What I found to be very helpful in studying all the objectives, or the ones you are having problems with, write the Question on the front and Answer on the back in your own words. Keep it handy, then studying for the exams will be a breeze. ~ Good shoes are really important!! ~ Don't forget to have fun. It's very easy to get caught up in the stress of school and clinical. Definately Clinical. Take each day as it comes. Keep a note pad with you in clinical, jot notes down, research your client, this helps to use your critical thinking skills. ~ Most importantly don't give up! You might (probably will) feel stressed and feel like you can't go on. (I did) but keep plugging along. It gets easy the more you do the skills. Good Luck! Canadian Princess, if you don't mind my asking, what is a DSM-IV-R?

I too agree with NOWORRIES. Yesterday I just finished the first year of the RPN program (Yay! ) and I have heard that alot of people in our class had the same kind of trouble deciding what to do first. It really depends if you have the funds and if you are really prepared to go 4 years through school without having much income, keeping in mind your children. I know quite a few of single and married woman with children our class who decided to do the RPN course first and work a couple years then take the RN course. Their decision to pick the RPN course was because they wanted to work and get some experience (and $) and to just see if it is really what they wanted to do. My clinical teacher (who was a Nurse Practioner) mentioned that you can always go back to school, and if you really enjoy it, and can do it, then go for it!! As for phazing the RPN's out, that's not going to happen. Yes, there are some hospitals that don't hire PN's but I know a lot of hospitals that do and they are utilizing their full scope. Nursing homes arn't the only ones who hire PN's. I know that Labour and Delivery, and ER don't hire PN's for their floor just because the patients are not stable, but keep in mind that there are a lot of courses that you can add on the side to boost your knowledge and point you towards that dream job you want. PM me if you want to talk more. Good Luck in your decision. Whether you pick one or the other, you won't regret becoming a nurse!!

:balloons: Whoo Hoo!!:balloons: Hey Everyone!! I just had to tell someone... I just finished the last day of clinical today of the first year of the 2 year RPN diploma course. Yay for me!!! Just wondering if anyone has any special advice for entering the 2nd year? e.:monkeydance:

Welcome! I am in the RPN program at Conestoga, in the second semester and enjoying it!! Although it requires a lot of studying and dedication to stay on top of the objectives set out for you in your packages, make sure you don't get all flustered about it. Just remember to have fun and you'll do fine. If I can do it then anyone can!!!! If you have any questions you can PM me. Hope you have a great semester 1!! Tashia

Hi, I am a RPN nursing student at Conestoga College in Kitchener, Ontario, going into my 2nd semester and we are learning care plans. We have: The Data (behaviours); Cause (stimuli); Client Problem/Nursing Diagnosis; Client Goals; Nursing Interventions; Rationale; then Evaluation. As far as I'm aware of, we do it here in Ontario.

Hi, I live in Drumbo, Ontario (by Kitchener). I started the RPN program last September at Conestoga College and I love it! So hopefully, Godwilling, by April 2007 I'll be done!!!!

Ok, I have just finished the second week of school (RPN diploma program) and I am totally overwhelmed!! It seems there is just soo much material to cover and I'm starting to panic :uhoh21: I know some colleges just pack on the work in the first few weeks to weedle out the slackers, but will it slow down just a little? Anyone else starting out feeling this way? Am I just the only one? Any advice you can give? Anything will help right now.

Just started the PN course this September at Conestoga College. It's a 2 year ,4 semester course. If you need any questions answered or just want to chat.........

i am going to start the rpn/lpn program in september and i was thinking the same thing. i am just hoping i can get a job in a hospital after graduating. i too, find that working in an ltc facility would be very depressing. i had my grandmother live with our family for 3 years. she had parkinsons and passed 2 years ago last feburary. she lived with it for 10 years and i saw how she just went downhill. i don't think i could deal with the emotional part of it. i know... working as a nurse i will see alot of this but i would like to try to stay out of the ltc, retirement , etc part of it. maybe work in the surgical, delivery, whatever. i live in ontario and i am just wondering if anyone else in the kitchener, cambridge area had any luck finding a job in a hospital after graduating?

Can anyone tell me... I just asked a career advisor if it is possible for me to get a job working in a hospital after school. This is what she told me, "It is more difficult to get a job in the hospital...mostly due to RPNs keeping those jobs forever because of the salary and job (challenge)". Just wondering how many of you RPN's are working in a hospital, and was it difficult to get in? Did you have to take any specialty courses? If someone could give me an idea, I live around Kitchener, Cambridge. How is it in your area of Canada? :)

I recently asked this question to a career advisor from RPANO and this is part of what she had to say... " The RPN is not being phased out, as a matter of fact the number of seats available in the program across the province has increased.".......

Thanks for all your help. It helps to know a little bit before to calm those dreaded nerves!!!

Thanks!!

i hope to start the rpn program in sept. at conestoga. i am just wondering what kind on shots you need to have? do you get them done at the clinic in the college or at your doctor? is there a specific date that you have to get them done? hopefully not the course start date. i would guess they would probably give you a little bit of time as long as it's before your clinicals. right? any advice would be appreciated. :)

I was just going to ask...

I tried to copy and paste. Didn't work. Do you know another way?

:uhoh21: Maybe you Georgians can clear this up! I just got an email with some pictures of a man who got bit from a brown recluse spider. It said they are in Georiga. Are they? The pictures are really grotesque.:stone I really want to know if it can do this in 10 days. If anyone is curious, email me at >> and I'll send them to you....

I thought this was the norm too.

Let me know your thoughts on this paper. I think I got it off the rpano website.....

i have this info that might help you with what the role is of an lpn. keep in mind this is for ontario. it might be different where you are.....take some time to read....it's 3 pgs long................the effective use of registered practical nurses (rpns): addressing a nursing crisis in ontario hospitals [june 28, 2001 08:00 pm] introduction there is a registered nurse (rn) shortage in our ontario hospitals today. however, this is not the crisis the media may portray it as. there are many registered practical nurses (rpn) working and available to work in ontario. the crisis is that too often rpns are not being allowed to work in the entire hospital or to work within their full scope of practice. the crisis is that rpns have been pushed out of some ontario hospital units (for example, mother-baby units). the crisis in ontario hospitals is this waste of rpn nursing resources. rpns are skilled nurses and their training and nursing resources are being wasted. this study surveyed more than 2000 rpns and other hospital workers in order to determine: 1) what skills rpns were using and where, 2) how many rpns were working and where. by using telephone interviews and focus group sessions, we discovered: 1) rpns were not using all of the skills that they were trained to do, 2) rpns were not in every unit in every hospital and that rpns had been pushed out of units they had previously worked in which resulted in a very inefficient nursing team. rpns are professional and competent nurses the following statement from the college of nurses of ontario shows the competency of rpns: "rpns can provide care in complex clinical situations in a variety of practical areas." (college of nurses of ontario: entry to practice competencies for ontario registered practical nurses, september 1999). the registered practical nurses association of ontario (rpnao) also describes the professionalism of rpns: "registered practical nurses are nurses and are accountable to the cno. they are educated and regulated for quality care. registered practical nurses are valuable and cost-effective partners of a health team, especially when used to the maximum of their scope of practice." rpnao utilization survey, 1998 instead of wasting valuable health care dollars, ontario hospital administrators should be using an appropriate number of rpns to their full capacity. appropriate ratios of rn:rpns allow all nurses to work to their full scope of practice. in order to improve patient care and working conditions in ontario hospitals, there is room for both rpns and rns. an integrated health care team includes all types of nurses. section i - rpn skill utilization our research regarding rpn skill utilization uncovered startling results. rpns are being pushed out of hospital units they have traditionally worked in, have never worked in some hospital units where they are badly needed, and are often not allowed to perform some of the skills they have been trained to do. rpns are being pushed out of some hospital units. mother-baby units, intensive care, emergency and pediatrics, are all examples of such units. rpns have had a tradition of exemplary service in these units. rpns are trained to work in every hospital unit. rpns can work in surgery and other acute care units just as they work, for example, in chronic care. at some hospital sites, an ochu/cupe rpn committee member reports, "rpns are on all the medical, surgical and obstetric floors (while at another site of the same hospital) rns are only on these units - go figure and then they tell me we are 20 million over budget...i wonder why?" rpns should be active in every unit and their training allows for this. rpns are trained to do a wide spectrum of skills which should be fully utilized. we found that in some hospital units, rpns were trained by the hospital or through a college course to do the following skills, but are not being allowed to use them: - medication (and narcotics), intramuscular injections, packing, irrigation, recording, tube feeds, sq meds, trach. care, dr.'s orders, insulin, sublingual, transcribing of meds, catheterization (intermittent and indwelling), wound irrigation, pack-wound management, suctioning, ivs, sutures, clips and drains. too often rpns are not allowed to utilize the above skills in acute care hospital units. sometimes, this occurs, in the very same hospitals where rpns are allowed to utilize these skills in chronic care or long term care units. however, rpns in some acute care hospital units are utilizing most of their skills. sometimes skill utilization can even vary from floor to floor within one unit. for instance, within one unit in one hospital, rpns can catheterize whereas on another floor within this same unit, rpns cannot catheterize. a standardization of full skill utilization should occur across all hospital units and throughout all hospitals in ontario. rpns can perform many of the advance nursing skills within their scope of practice, especially if working with another registered health care professional (ie. doctor, rn). this means, that rpns can be in every hospital unit using all of their training - no matter the predictability of the patient's outcome. full rpn utilization frees up an rn to use all of their advanced skills. as michael hurley, ontario council of hospital unions (ochu) president indicates; "the hospital should use every member of the health care team responsibly". this means allowing both rns and rpns to use all of the skills that they have been trained to do. rpns should be using their full scope of practice. however, full rpn skill utilization could lead to excessive workload with the present number of rpns. a staffing change may be important to ensure patient and nurse safety. therefore, in many cases, more rpns may be required. with more nursing staff, utilizing all of their skills, hospital patient care will improve drastically. hospitals will be able to afford such a change, if rn:rpn staffing ratios are altered. as it becomes increasingly difficult to replace rns, full rpn utilization becomes essential and is both a cost effective and healthy direction. section ii - rpn/rn complement (staffing) rn heavy staffing complements when rpns are not allowed to use their full scope of practice, in some cases, rn hours have been increased. consequently, many ontario hospital staffing complements comprise of too many rn hours which is not cost-effective health care. presently, there is "duplication of nursing work", says one of the ochu/cupe rpn committee representatives, "there is such a difference in education levels (four years of university for rns compared to 2 years of college for rpns), would you want duplication between an rn and an rpn? each should be doing the job that she or he was trained to do." increasing the number of full time rpns full rpn utilization will mean increased workloads. an increased number of rpns will be needed in order to prevent overwork and excessive rpn workloads. the new staffing complements mean improved patient care and safe working conditions for all nurses since the savings which result can be used to hire more full-time nurses. the following are the results of our rpn focus group sessions. the rpns were asked about their present hospital staffing complement and how they would like to see this change if rpns were fully utilized. significant hospital cost savings were discovered. there are many hospital units without rpns. conclusion patient care in ontario hospitals is diminishing. better patient care means increased hospital staffing. rpns, who are trained professional nurses, are not being fully utilized, which is wasting valuable resources. the rn shortage provides ontario hospitals with the opportunity to implement an appropriate rn:rpn ratio, where rpns are using all of their skills and training. rpns are trained in a wide variety of skills. rpns should have the opportunity to work to their full scope of practice. hospitals need rpns to work in all hospital units: acute or `active' units, as well as chronic care - consistently throughout ontario. past hospital accreditation reviews have suggested such changes. many ontario hospitals, however, have not implemented them. the nursing crisis in ontario hospitals today is not necessarily the shortage of rns. the real crisis is the ineffective use and lack of rpns. rpns are key to finding a sustainable solution to the crisis in our ontario hospitals. appendix 2 the following provides is a "skill list" for registered practical nurses (rpns). a skill list is only one part of the rpn competencies and scope of practice. registered practical nurses are nurses. they have the educational background that provides quality care in diverse settings. airway management -deep breathing and coughing -positioning -percussing -vibrating chest -providing postural drainage -collection of sputum specimens -oxygen administration -nasal cannula -face mask -venturi mask -rebreathing mask -oxygen tent -lung and thoracic assessment -suctioning: -oropharyngeal -nasopharyngeal -pulse oximetry -pulse doppler -care of chest tubes -care of chest drainage system -provide client teaching elimination management -urinary catheterization -intermittent catheterization -care of indwelling catheter -removal of indwelling catheter -application of condom catheter -urinary catheter irrigation -continuous bladder irrigation management -care of ileal conduit -bladder training -assessment of urinary retention -collection of urinary specimens -provide appropriate client teaching -laxatives -suppositories -enemas -fecal impaction removal -insertion of rectal tube -fecal/stool collection -ostomy care/stoma management -stomal irrigation interal feeding management of a kangaroo pump -calculate flow rate -management and maintenance of j - tubes and g - tubes -provide client teaching medication management -oral medications -eye medications ear medications -topical medication -inhalation therapy-medications via g - tube -subcutaneous injections -intramuscular injections -oral narcotics -narcotic count -provide client teaching wound management -provide medical/surgical asepsis wound care -care of drains -removal of sutures/clips/drains -simple/complex wound care -irrigation of wounds -packing of complex/simple wounds -provide client teaching infusion management -assess client with iv therapy -maintain peripheral venous lines -calculate flow rate -set-up of iv lines -hang non-medicated solutions/infusions -discontinue an iv -document rate/solution of an iv -monitor blood transfusion therapy -monitor rate of blood transfusion -co-sign blood transfusion administration -provide client teaching assessment skills -abdomen -cardiovascular system -head, eyes, ear, nose, throat -integumentary system -musculoskeletal system -neck, lymph nodes, breast -neurologic system -peripheral vascular system -respiratory system -elder assessment -obsterical -mental health -pediatric assessment -pain assessment -documentation and client teaching additional competencies blood glucose monitoring -renal dialysis -operating room -scrub nurse -circulating nurse responsibilites -taking physician orders over the phone -transcribe physician orders -transcribe medication orders registered practical nurses are educated and regulated for quality care.

What does a CRNA do? What's their job description? $130-170,000 a year is a lot of $!!!

I was waiting to see if anyone caught what the doctor said about how he hates nurses. They wouldn't be able to survive we wern't there!!!

I have orthotics and I recommend them it everyone. When you get fitted, they mould your feet onto a block of sponge and they get custom made to fit every crevice in your feet. Although I must say, the first time I wore them my arch hurt, but it was only 'cause I walked the wrong way. After a couple of times of wear you start to walk how your supposed to and by the end of the day your feet don't hurt. Trust me it's worth a couple days sore feet to have good shoes for a couple years at least!!!

Thanks suzanne4.

A PSW is Personal Support Worker. They can work in retirement homes or LTC. They basically can do everything for the patient but give medications. Bathe, groom, feed, talk to patients families etc.