InformaticsRN.MA

Are you willing to relocate? That would be my first suggestion - you will have a lot more opportunities availablee to you. You could also try to (professionally) ask the person that interviewed you if there was a particular reason that the position went to someone else. If that person had more experience than you, then you can't really change that, but you might get some helpful feedback about the way you interviewed, or something else that got the other nurse the job. If they won't tell you why, I'd tend to agree with the other poster and wonder if you should change your list of references. Good luck, let me know if you have any other questions-

Hello Starbuck4, My degree is an MS (not MSN) - in Nursing, with a concentration in Healthcare Informatics. Not really sure what the difference between an MSN and an MS in Nursing is, however... For electives, I took eHealth and Human Computer Interaction - both were very good - yes, I would recommend them. The program is all online - you can go to Colorado for graduation if you'd like, but it's not required. The defense of your final project can also be done via webcam, but I chose to go to the campus to do my presentaiton and was really glad that I did. Let me know if you have any other questions. Good luck!

Hello, (I tried to respond to the message you sent me, but it told me that you didn't have enough memory to receive it) Regarding UCDenver: Dr Skiba is excellent - I had 2 courses with her (eHealth and Systems Life Cycle), and she was there (along with 2 other faculty) when I presented the defense of my final project. She's very responsive, and proactive about setting up phone calls with students prior to the beginning of each semester. If you are willing to relocate to the Colorado area, you might be able to get a position there during or after your program if you are good at reaching out and making connections. I had another awesome professor for Nursing Research/Statistics. The others were all very good, except one (I think it was the Nursing Policy instructor). No school is perfect - but I learned A LOT in 2 years, and almost all of it was fascinating. Other highlights were my practicum - I logged 270 hours and developed a 40 page paper about the use of Health Information Exchange in the Management of CHF - and many of my classmates, especially those (about half) who already had informatics positions (another opportunity for you to network if you are willing to relocate). I did feel there were a few too many group projects - but I have heard that is true with most online programs. Let me know if you have any specific questions about the curriculum. PS I chose to apply to UC Denver based on my call with Dr Skiba, the description of the classes on their website, and the fact that the tuition was lower than any other program.

sufernan, Dr. ******* is the program director - did you try emailing her? Here is a link to a web page with her info: | CU College of Nursing | University of Colorado Denver Let me know if you have any other questions about the program.

2 years online, full-time. At the end I did a 270 hour practicum (I could have done 135 hours but wanted more time to fully develop a project). It was 100% online but I did choose to travel to Colorado for my comp exam, where I had to give a 1 hour presentation about my project (and also submitted a 40 page paper). You can look up the numbe rof credits and other info at their website: Master's | CU College of Nursing | University of Colorado Denver Good luck!

I graduated from UC Denver with a master's degree last year - I can answer any questions you might have about that program.

I feel bad for the patient and family for having that bias - to generalize that all female nurses are more caring than all male nurses. How sad to have such a limited worldview. As the nurse caring for that patient, I would try to educate them if they were making those sort of comments in my presence. On the other hand, I feel if a patient requests a female care giver and it is feasible, it is the resposibility of the hospital to meet that request. But does this patient request only female doctors care for her? I doubt it. My husband is an x-ray tech and he has been told that there are some hospitals that have only female techs do certain procedures - whether the patient is female or male. I think that's ridiculous. As a female myself, I generally prefer female PCP's and OB's and will choose a female myself ahead of time if possible. But if I were in a hospital I wouldn't prejudge a doctor, nurse, or other person ahead of time - I have met great male doctors, and worked with some very mediocre female nurses over the years. I think you have to wait to have a conversation with someone before evaluating their ability to care for you. If I needed something like a bed bath I'd want a female, other than that gender is a nonfactor.

"Well, this is the worst reaction to bedside rounding that I have EVER gotten."

You have the nerve to criticize my body language? You have the personality of a piece of spaghetti!

The Joint Commission is here! If you don't start smiling soon, we're going to have to throw you in the laundry room with all the broken equipment!!

(Sniff) Oh, I see you're back from your "non-smoking" break.

So where's the rest of the flash mob?

Believe it or not, my dog did eat my ID badge. What's your excuse?

sufernan, I got my MS in Nursing (online) from UC Denver with a concentration in healthcare informatics. Send me a message if you have any questions about the program.

Thanks for the tip about Columbia:-) After doing a bit more reading, I am interested in hearing from anyone who knows anything about the School of Nursing at Duke University. They offer a PhD focused on informatics, and some of their areas of research seem like a good match for me (e.g. self-management and human-computer interaction). Has anyone gone to Duke, or heard anything about the school or faculty?

Agree with previous poster - if you have someone willing to train you that is great. I am in my first job and my training has been a bit spotty - I'm sort of being left to figure it out on my own:-) A few of the nurses (ones that were already working full-time in the field) in my MS program wrote papers for their practicum - the program director was their advisor and the goal was to try and get it published (eventually). Would your school let you do this if necessary?

I got my MS from UC Denver and our program director had us start setting up our practicum 6 months ahead of time, since there can be so many issues in finalizing them (legal paperwork, slow communication, etc). I had a site that I know would take me, and it still took about 4 months to get it all done. Are there any nursing schools in your new location? If you haven't already, I'd try to meet with someone from those schools, and find out if they have any advice. I'd be happy to email or chat on the phone with you if you need any additional advice. Good Luck! PS I'd also be interested in hearing about your experience in getting a job with the VA (I read one of your other posts). I've always heard that it is really hard to get a job in the VA. What was the secret of your success?

Have you thought about becoming a CNA (much shorter time/financial commitment) and seeing if you can get a job at a hospital doing that? Granted, it's very different from being an RN, and the pay is much lower, but if you are able to work at a hospital and enjoy the work enough to stay there for a year or two, you could then talk to your employer (who would likely know you and trust you by then) about doing clinicals there. And there are some major similarities with nursing - caring for people, listening to their needs, and working in the hospital setting - that it would give you some idea of whether it's the right career for you.

Thanks for the feedback everyone:-) I will definitely research each institution and the scholarly strengths and weaknesses of each program will be at the top of my to-do list. Primarily I was looking for some input about which nursing schools offering PhD degrees are well-regarded, yet reasonably priced. If anyone received an especially good fellowship package, or highly recommends the state school they attended, I'd be very interested to know both the name of the school, along with its pluses and minuses.

I am wondering which PhD programs in the US are most reasonably priced, while at the same time maintaining a reputation for excellence. For example, which state schools of nursing are the least expensive, or offer to pay full tuition and room and board in exchange for some sort of teaching requirement? I prefer to relocate to a medium-sized city with warmer weather, although I would also consider an online degree.

I agree with 2ndChance - in my area of New England, it's very hard to break into the analyst role as a nurse without prior IT experience. On the other hand, there is also a lot of competition for bedside nursing positions, and the better ones (Monday-Friday, full-time days, etc) tend to go to nurses who have been in the union for years. If you were to work in IT for a few years, and then want to go to bedside nursing, I don't think the IT experience would be a huge advantage - you would sort of be back at square one, and need to take a part-time position at a hospital, on the evening or night shift, or work in a nursing home. But that may be specific to my location. We only have 3 hospitals in this part of the state, 2 of which are very small, and the largest city only has a population of about 50,000. Regarding hospice, if there was enough demand that a hospice agency was hiring, and no one applied who had prior hospice experience, it would seem you would have a good chance of getting a job (and your IT knowledge would be a bit of a plus if the organization documents electronically).

Hello, As an RN who recently moved to the IT world, I will be spending the next few years helping to improve the electronic documentation at my hospital. I was wondering if anyone could share your experiences, both positive and negative, with computerized documentation. -If there was one specific part of your EMR that you could change, what is it, and how would you change it (realistically)? -Is your employer educating staff about Meaningful Use? -What system do you have (e.g. Meditech, Epic, Cerner, etc)? -What % of your day are you spending on the computer? -How do you think your patients feel about the growing role of computers in healthcare? Thanks for your feedback:-)

Are you able to work per diem? That is how I broke into the field. My hospital was so short-staffed for case management that I was able to pretty much pick my own hours once I was done with orientation. I worked 2-3 days a week and it was perfect, since I was getting my Master's degree in Healthcare Informatics and a full-time student. I could have worked 4 or 5 days a week if I had wanted to. I had benefits through my school, so didn't have to worry about that.

Calling All Newbies! As a newly hired informatics nurse, I've been perusing the website and reading similar stories about graduate programs, job searching, learning the role, etc. I'd like to start a network of new informatics nurses (either in school, or in the field for less than a year or two). It seems like we are all going through nearly the same process, just at slightly different points in time. If you are interested, please reply here. I cannot send anyone a private message yet (I have to create 15 Quality Topics before I have the ability to do that), but I'm sure we can figure out a way to connect. Thanks!!

Do you get paid when you go to the hospital for training? If so, they may not want to pay you if you are watching a webex in your pajamas at home - just a thought:-)