extowboater

I work at UCSF and highly reccommend AGAINST working there. They are under intense scrutiny from the State CMS after a number of sentinel events and are at risk of having their medicare/medicaid funding pulled. The result has been a monumental increase in paperwork for the bedside nurses, making it difficult to focus on the patient care. Morale sucks and management just keeps piling on new burdens to the bedside RN, covering their ass but leaving us exposed to more liability. Like to go home on time after a 12 hour shift? Not likely. There are so many sign offs for the change of shift it takes over a half hour per patient to do report in the ICU, and if you are new to the unit you will always have the doubled assignment making it impossible to fulfill all the new requirements and get out at a reasonable time. They do not have an electronic time keeping system and many nurses are afraid to sign the overtime sheet when they work past the end of their shift. This is truly a bad time to work at UCSF and a worse time to sign on as a new employee. If you don't believe me, take the job and see for yourself. Good Luck!

Hello everyone. I am a new grad getting ready to start work and am fortunate to have a difficult choice in where to accept work. I have offers for new grad programs at two hospitals. One is a county hospital level one trauma center in the trauma/ surgical ICU. The other is at a major university hospital in the med/sug ICU. I am leaning towards the med sug ICU because I think I will get a broader base of experience. It is in the UC system (UCSF) which is also a plus. It is a tough decision and I would appreciate any input from others on which would be the best spot for a new grad to gain good critical care skills. Thanks.

Texas has some well respected programs. Try Parkland Hospital. They have a 6 mo program for new grads and it is a top notch trauma/burn facility. Also try Baylor.

It sounds like you are a good candidate with all your experience. It also sounds like you need to look at your resume and references with a critical eye. There is a nursing shortage and UCSF is not immune. They have travelers there just like many other hospitals. Maybe you need to use different references. Something is causing a red flag. Are your interview skills adequate? Practice with a friend. Review a management textbook section on hiring interviews. I was hired at UCSF as a new grad without any difficulty. Good luck

I am an HPU grad. My advice is to go to KCC or UH. The HPU program is very expensive and for that extra money you get less. You do not get a senior preceptorship. When you go to look for a job after graduation you will realize that this puts you at a competitive disadvantage especially if trying to get into ICU or other specialties. The program has low entry standards (2.75 gpa). This means that HPU gets the students that can't get into UH. Class time is wasted on stupid questions from people who should not even be there. Instructors spend 80% of their time helping those with the lowest gpa while those with greater potential are ignored. The administration ignores input from students on issues such as the amount of time it takes to release transcripts after graduation. This causes HPU grads to miss the deadline for the Queens new grad program start date. Recently the HPU school of nursing used a group of grad students to teach clinicals. This alone goes against HPU marketing literature which tells prospective students that grad students do not teach under grads. To make matters even worse they put MSN after the names of these grad students on the syllabus even though they had not earned an MSN. This brings into question the morals of those in charge of the program. The administration treats the school of nursing like a cash cow with little interest on making it a stellar program. My best advice to you is to try to get into UH or KCC or go to the mainland. Hope this helps.

Just curious if anyone knows how it is at Northbay in Fairfield? Thinking about an assignment there but would like to hear from someone who has been there.

Have any of you with felony or misdemeanor convictions looked into your states' process for executive clemency or "Pardons"? It may behoove you to do so. You have nothing to lose by petitioning. I'm sure you are all resourceful enough to find your state's pardon board and get an application. You may be surprised at the results. I was, (and quited pleased) Good Luck!

You can dowload the Hawaii RN license application from the Hawaii Board of Nursing website (do a web search). It is in PDF format. Fill it out and send it in and follow their instructions for transcripts etc. When they approve you they will tell you how to get a date to take the exam. When you pass you will get your license. You can then apply for a license by endorsement in Ca. You shouldn't have to take the boards twice.

Hi Everyone! I am a recent graduate and took a job in the ER where I worked as a tech while in nursing school. I feel fortunate to have this opportunity, though I wanted to work in ICU but they were not hiring new grads at the time. I am worried now that I will have a hard time getting into the ICU with only ER experience. Some CRNA schools say that they occassionally consider ER experience. Is this true in reality? I know alot of nurses go from ICU to ER but I have not met any that went the other way. Do I have a chance of getting into CRNA school with only ER experience? My BSN is solid with a 3.8 gpa. Any advice is appreciated.