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Just wanted to get some advice and see how other new nurses handle grieving families and loved ones. I work in a smaller emergency room, Trauma II level with 3 fast trak beds, 12 rooms and 4 trauma rooms. Last week we had three codes in one night, all three didn't make it. This was a first for me and I found myself having a hard time knowing what to say or what to do. As ER nurses we respond to all codes in the hospital and have no previous knowledge of the family or the medical situation that has lead to the code, so we find ourselves just quietly leaving after the time of death is called. I feel that even though we talked some about death and talking to families in school, we really didn't discuss it enough or even practice what we would say or do in these situations. I found that it was hard for me to just walk back down to the ER and go back to my patients without taking a moment to gather my thoughts but the other nurses with me seemed to think that this was strange. Maybe it just takes time to get used to it, but that seems so heartless or uncaring..maybe I am just naive. If anyone is willing to share their experiences or thoughts on this, I would greatly appreciate your insight. Thanks so much, Wendy

Hi!! I am finishing my last year in a BSN program at Goshen College in Indiana, my husband and I have been hearing some great things about clarksville and the opportunities that may be there. Can anyone tell me about them? He works for an Excavating company and I currently work in an ER and want to stay in the ER. Any suggestions or thoughts would be much appreciated:) I am wondering about schools, job opportunites, cost of living, etc. thanks so much for your time!! Wendy

I just left a parttime LPN program and have started a full-time BSN program. The reasons for this vary, most importantly is that I want to be a NICU nurse and you have to be a BSN in my area to be hired. The reason that I felt that I had to reply to this post is the arguement over "broadness" of education between the LPN ADN and BSN programs. In the LPN program we had 1 semester of geriatrics, 3 sems. of med/surg, observed one surgery, and then 1 sem of peds/obv. Does this seem like enough experience to you? Not to me. In our BSN program we will have 1 sem geriatrics, 1 sem home health care, 1 semester acute care, 1 sem peds, 1 sem. OB, and two semesters where we can pick the areas that we would like to do, such as ER, etc. This amount of clinical experience speaks for itself to me. When I finish this program I will be 60.000.00 in debt. I feel that the time, effort, and commitment I have undertaken to reach my goal Should Be Compensated. A professor makes more than a teacher, A lawyer makes more than a law clerk, A doctor makes more than a nurse.............. Education is the difference. Sorry if I offended anyone, I believe that a person's commitment, morals, caring and ability make them a good nurse or a bad nurse, not their education, but you have to give credit where credit is due and nurses with higher credentials, have higher credentials because they have worked for them.

HI, I took the PSB two years ago but I don't think that it has changed much. Focus your math on algebra and math basics. Science was all over the place, like what color does copper change to when it gets wet?-- Green duh. The other portions are Reading, comprehension, spelling, and general questions that determine whether nursing is a good career choice for you or not. Really dumb dumb questions like, if you saw a wet towel on the floor, would you-- A- pick it up, B- tell the floor supervisor, C- call maintance or D- ignore it. Oh and there was one of those sections where the same question is asked many different ways, shows your honesty, etc. Don't worry it's really not that hard. Where will you be going?, Good luck, hope you get in. -Wendy :)

Ok, for me the worst ever has got to be when I was in school and observed a surgery. It was a reverse-colostomy procedure for a guy who had broken a beer bottle up his butt!!! Between the smell from the colostomy and the cauterization I thought I would never make it through!!! Others that really get me are GI bleeds, Chessy groin areas and the dirty body odor-just had a smoke smell combination. Ugh.

Hey Jhawk- Find out what "escorting services" means (if you don't already know for sure at that particular facility) In the E.R. that I tech. in, we have Pt. liason escorts who have a really cool summer job. They take all of the pt.s from triage to the rooms, make them comfortable, gown them, take basic set of vitals for the nurse and get to be in the rooms during all kinds of learning experiences!! Oh and by the way- They get paid. I got my first job in this ED as a Unit Secretary while I am in nursing school. Now I've started as a ED Tech. I even start I.V.'s Very cool idea to get your foot in the door anyway possible. It worked for me. Good Luck.

I love E.R. the tv show, I love Trauma, Life in the ER, and I love the ER that I work in. And one of my new fav's that is always Tivo'd is HOUSE! House, is soo interesting and I have actually looked up some of the more esoteric diseases that he comes up with, and they are true. But, think about the wierd twists in real life, that end up causing grief for our patients. I just recently heard about starfruit killing people with renal deficiency!!! Who would of guessed that? And one last thought-- I have to say for every doc. who has ever made me feel less important, etc. I have had just as many patients, people in the grocery, bank, etc. Tell me "Thank you, bless you, and you are very special person for becoming a nurse" Those are the people who get me through all the others!!! :)

Well, I could be wrong, but I know that both my mother and her best-friend have both told me that Mem. is on a hiring freeze. My mom's friend is the computer trainer for every employee in the hospital who ever would have access to a computer, so she would know. Unfortunately, I think we all know that a lot of hospitals keep jobs on thier hiring lists, and then never call anyone in for interviews. What I have heard repeatedly, is that both hospitals have become overextended financially due to all the construction projects going on. Like, I said I may be wrong but, I have heard from many people that you cannot find jobs at either hospital right now.

Hi Nellie, I actually can tell you alot about both hospitals. I live in the area, work in another area hospital, and my mom has been a NICU nurse at Memorial for 36 yrs. She loves it, it is my goal to eventually get into Memorial. At the hospital I work as an ER tech. And I am in school getting my LPN. I will do the RN completion program when my two toddlers are in school full-time. Then hopefully, I can get into Mem. Because they do not hire LPN's in house. The NICU at Mem. is incredible. Almost all preemies, etc. in northern Indiana, south mich, and other areas go to Mem. If they can't be helped there, they go to Riley. Memorial has a life flight, St. Joe was just approved for one. Did you know that there are two St. Joe's? South Bend, and Mishawaka. They are both Catholic based, and it does play a role in thier beliefs in pt. care (just some info) The hospital that I work at is a magnet, so I am thinking of staying there, if I don't get into Mem. Memorial is always expanding, and The NICU is going to be completely re-done (again) by 2009. St. Joe is supposed to be building a whole new hospital in Mishawaka, but I havent heard anything about it lately. Unfortunatly, last I heard, both hospitals are on a hiring freeze for the next 6 months. I know that If you call Memorial's job line, you only get maintance jobs listed. Good Luck, let me know if I can answer any more ?'s Wendy

We just changed to the EMR charting, lots of problems. Hopefully most of them will iron out, in the meantime we are dbl. charting, computer and paper. UGH. Plus, one of the most common probs. we have is with the nurses and the unit secretaries recieving the same pt. Once the pt. is in the system twice, the orders can go to either med record. Big mess. Also now they want the doc's to put in thier own orders and now paper hardcopies are not coming from the lab. It's all on the computer. Only of course, right now, no one can find anything, ever. Esp. if there is an MD after their name. :chuckle I'm hopin', wishin', prayin' that it will all get better. We've had pts have to wait in the ER for an extra hour because the doc hasn't figured it out yet. Frustrating!!

You know you are a mom in nursing school when.. You assess your baby's diaper for color, size and consistency You have a "no blood, no foul" rule for every arguement between your two and four yr olds. When said two and four yr olds are bored, you give them makeshift waterguns out of old practice syringes (without the needle of course) When you know that a spiked temp can be brought down with alternating doses of tylenol and motrin and a cool bath, and you actually try this before calling the pediatrician at 3am Of course by the time you do call the pediatrician, you are convinced that they have every incurable disease that you learned in lecture that week and you tell all of these concerns to the pediatrician at 3:30am When you have to change from your really cool flared, low-waisted scrub pants and the adorable scrub top that you wore into work that day, into the dreaded see-thru white pants, and scrub shirt with the giant school emblam on it letting everyone know that you are still "just" a student. (And of course, you are doing this in your car while listening to lecture, going through your care plan in your head, stuffing something in your mouth that at least kinda looks like food, and praying that the guy in the car next to you is admiring your determination to succeed and not your Victoria's Secret miracle bra!!)

Thanks for answering me, I completely agree that it will be nothing like having an actual clinical experience- Totally bummed! At least we got one sem. of med/surg in before this happened. Hopefully we will get instructors soon but for now, we still have none (2nd week of class). You gave me some idea for what to expect and I appreciate it! Thanks!

Maybe someone out there can help me? I'm a second yr. LPN std. and just recently both of our clinical instructors quit on us, one to finish her master's and the other to accept a DON position, (Can't blame them) but at the same time, this left us high and dry with no one for our 2nd round of med/surg clinicals. There is talk that we are going to have virtual clinicals, anyone ever done this or heard of it. I'd love and appreciate any advice or head's up that you could give me. Thanks!! from Indiana. :)