suewolfie

New nurse and new poster here! Just curious - how late is "too late" to get my assessments completed for my patients? I realize this is the first thing I should be doing when I start my shift, but I am finding that it sometimes takes me 4-5 hours into my shift to finally complete them all. Is this too much? Do I need to re-prioritize? Thanks for your help and input!

Well I certainly didn't expect my first post on here to cause such a reaction!! It is obvious to me that this is important to many of you. And I think that is great. Some of your responses were truly helpful, and I really appreciate that. Personally, I do not want to rush into things and miss out on any foundational experience that is going to be crucial to my performance. It makes sense, for me, to just go get the master's degree later. I appreciate all of the advice and good wishes. Thanks!

Thank you so much for all of your responses. Your advice is really helpful. The last thing I want to do is get into over $100K in debt for this Vanderbilt program and graduate, enter the field, and be perceived as some hotshot who really doesn't know what she's doing because she doesn't have the clinical experience. I think a lot of what you all are saying has a lot of merit. It makes sense to me that getting the BSN first, working for a few years, and then going back to get the master's degree is the way to do it. I am only 25, so it's not a HUGE rush to me at this point. But I am excited to get through school and get on with things, I'll admit. I want to be careful not to jump the gun though. My philosophy is that these programs wouldn't exist if they were total crap. But I want to be the most confident, well-trained, and competent nurse I can be, and if that means taking a slower route, then so be it. I'll also be saving a TON of money doing it this way.

I do already have a bachelor's degree; everyone who was accepted into that program has a bachelor's degree in something and has completed a certain amount of prerequisites, which is why the initial part of the program that leads up to RN licensure is so accelerated. There is a small chance of being able to switch specialties, but I think it's a difficult process. I would say I am 75% sure that I want to do midwifery. There is an outside chance that being exposed to other fields would spark an interest I don't even know I have.

Hello everyone! My name is Laura, and I just registered here after reading these messageboards for a few weeks. I am trying to make a decision about where to go to nursing school. I was just accepted into Vanderbilt's Master's of Nursing Program in Midwifery, which I am very excited about. However, it is extremely expensive, and I am trying to decide if it is worth it. It's a 6-semester program. After the first 3 semesters I would take the NCLEX and become an RN. The remaining 3 semesters would be spent in the midwifery specialty. The other option is to go to a cheaper school, University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, for 1.5-2 years, get a Bachelor's of Nursing Degree, take the NCLEX and become an RN, then work for a few years and go back to school to get the master's degree. I have no nursing experience. I have been taking my pre-requisites at a local community college and will start my program, whichever one I decide on, this fall. My question is: is it better to get the lower degree first, gain some experience, and return for the master's? Or is it worth the money to just do it all up front? Any advice is greatly greatly appreciated!! Thank you! -Laura