Lossea

Yeah, I agree that giving 2 weeks notice is generally a common courtesy and it is deserved if the employer provides a safe place to work with respect and follows all the rules and applicable laws. Like you said, stuff happens, no notice. Sometimes employer just doesn't deserve that courtesy. Other times, it may hurt the employee to give their notice. In my case, one company I worked for was continuously breaking the state wage act by withholding payroll by much longer time than is legally allowed. All the employees were kept in the dark about the future of the practice, and I personally feared I would come to work one day with the door locked and the sign taken down, with no pay. There was little respect in the workplace toward nurses, the morale of the practice was in the toilet. I also had a personal issue going on where I thought I would have to relocate urgently. I provided written notice effective immediately and did an exit interview with the manager. Staying for the sake of taking care of patients is being a martyr, and it can hurt you if you are in an unsafe situation. You have to take care of yourself. If the employer upholds their end of the deal throughout, safest bet is to leave on good terms by providing 2 weeks. Getting fired or treated unfairly during that notice period is a valid concern too. It's a decision that one needs to make considering the culture of their workplace.

I am an RN in a cardiac clinic. It sounds like you have a lot to offer to a doctor's office, and I think you will have no problem landing a job! It would certainly be a lot more tough to transition from a doctor's office to a setting with high acuity patients, where you are working now. Working with ill patients a lot, you develop critical thinking, assessment, and time management skills, all of which are really important in doctor's offices that frequently see high volume of patients and receive high volume of telephone calls. I think you'll love the sanity and the predictability of work in a clinic. I definitely encourage you to start researching this...So that when March 2019 comes around, you are ready. Crying before going to work, days before, is absolutely the worst. It just sounds like this setting is not for you, and it's totally okay.

It sounds like you are seeking advancing your knowledge, to be challenged, and grow professionally, and your current organization does not provide this for you. It is great that it provides financial security, but it sounds like keeping your nursing skills sharp and using your experience is really important. If you have the time and energy for a second more challenging job, I say go for it! Most certainly, slow pace and predictable routine at a clinic is not for everyone. As a side note, I work in a cardiology clinic and, because we are a bit understaffed and are busy, each day is never the same. I think in clinics a lot depends on the provider(s) you work with. Some expect you to assess the patient critically and basically tell the provider what is wrong with the patient, while others are okay with doing it themselves. Good luck, I hope you find that place of professional fulfillment. :)

Cardiac clinic nurse here. I will input the general responsibilities I think will be true for most clinics: rooming the patient (specifics depend on how much time you're allowed with a patient; I think in family med the volume of patients is high and therefore you may only be responsible for med review, vitals, and asking the patient about major concerns), drawing blood to run an in-house lab the provider requests, possibly administering immunizations, telemedicine with addressing calls/ messages from patients, sending prescription refills and dealing with prior authorization requests from insurance companies, requesting records on patients, charting, and following up on test results that patients have completed. I think that these days telephone and patient portals take up a huge chunk of time, so much so that in some practices there is a person dedicated to doing just that (great luxury to have!).

This sounds really rough, I'm sorry! The volume of calls is outrageous... I deal with telemedicine as well and understand how frustrating it can be. In your situation, this is just too much, and they definitely need to get more help! I'm sorry that you were working overtime with no OT benefits. I find myself doing this too out of dedication to the practice and patients, though everyone tells me this is unacceptable. Looks like it's been a few weeks since your post, how are things going?

Thank you! Very helpful overview!

I'm in the ADN program, and this last semester it's total of 240 hours. Sole clinical time on the med-surg floor is 11 11-hour days (120 hours). For the whole 5 semesters, it's 820 hours or so.

I was thinking, have you checked out your program's student policy manual? I just looked at my program's manual, and it describes specific guidelines and policies. It may be helpful to get more information if you feel like it could alleviate some of the anxiety and the unknown. Just a thought.

I'm sorry about what happened to you. No one is perfect and sooner or later we all make a mistake one way or another. The most important thing is to recognize the mistake, ensure patient safety, report the mistake, and to learn from it. It is highly unlikely to be expelled from the program in this case...Like someone said, honesty goes a long way. People are people and will generally work with you when you are honest and show that you take the incident seriously, as opposed to if you tried to cover it up. My instructors all emphasize the value of honesty because, when we go on to be RNs, they want us to be honest for the safety of the patients. This will likely result in a warning of some sort, and getting a warning doesn't mean that you will be a "bad" nurse (just wanted to say it in case you may feel discouraged). My school issues a probation for an incident and it generally would take a few probations with unsatisfactory clinical performance for dismissal. They would look at the whole picture, how responsible you are and how you have been doing. I got a probation (warning) once for doing a pretty simple procedure with just the nurse guiding me, without my instructor there. It was discouraging but...You learn to be more careful and double-check things. Let us know how it goes. I hope that your school will show you compassion.

Hi charmingcarmen, I completely agree with mvm2, who posted above. Places s/he listed, especially LTC, are usually always hiring, and being a new CNA will not reduce your chances of employment. Unlike you, who actually has healthcare experience, I had zero. I applied to an assisted living facility to start with, to get comfortable with patient care, and they hired me. Nursing home is more demanding, but I can see that many are understaffed and need all the help they can get. So don't give up, if CNA is what you want to do. Regarding that, you said you are waiting to hear from a dialysis center as far as the job...I always think of how the job I'm thinking to pursue aligns with my future goal. If you compare the two positions, which one do you think would benefit you the most?

Thank you to EVERYONE for amazing, helpful input! I have been working as a CNA in regular Asics gel sneakers, but am looking to get a more cushioning shoe for clinicals. I ordered a pair of black Alegrias based on some of the great reviews! Can't wait to try it out!

Congratulations on getting through this!!! Good luck to you in the future.

I started my higher education in a community college, but, unlike in your case, I always felt that campus was made for people not just to come and study, but also enjoy their day. It was clean and there was lots of room, nice landscape, and good parking. I can relate to your feelings of discomfort, though, to a degree. When I transferred to the university, I often used the library, and the chairs in that library always looked so filthy to me...Most chairs in the auditoriums were also quite worn out, and that bugged me. I know this is only one very little thing in my instance, of course, and is trivial comparing to the quality of instruction at the facility. I knew I can't have it all, and overall the facilities were exceptional... In your case, however, it seems that you feel that the place is just unpleasant. It can be distracting when you aren't comfortable in the environment and are constantly upset by the lack of something. I suppose you are paying less money, but also you have the power to influence things. For sure, things are supposed to be put away and all the facilities clean. If you see that it isn't that way and it interferes with your learning, maybe you will feel better if you bring it up to the people who are in charge? Has any of your classmates felt similarly? You have a perfectly valid point. I realize that maybe in the military it can be bare and not very comfortable, but educational facilities in civilian world should make you feel comfortable and safe. Online degree is a possibility too. PS: I actually realized just now that labs aren't always tidy here at the university. I have been teaching cell biology lab this past semester (graduate student - teaching assistant), and one of the two days I taught, it was after this guy who never asked his students to clean up. So I came in to a lab with desks that often had spills on them, or something else. It is up to instructor to oversee that students put things away and clean up! So I would say something. It's unpleasant to come in to a lab/classroom that is in a disarray.

ThePrincessBride, I also thought, at first, that you got a B instead of an A, despite being so close! I suppose those are the rules...no rounding up policy just does not make sense to me. I am a pre-nursing student and grades were always rounded up, but I can feel your pain. I am happy it's an A- at least. Congrats!!

Thank you! From the title, I thought the post would be about something that upsets you (vent...), and everyone can learn from that as well, but it is particularly nice to hear that you are happy and like your job. Thanks for sharing.

I agree in that it depends on how useful would the particular MSN be to you, for your career. I don't know how MSN programs are set up comparing to, say, Master's of Science, and the choices of projects you have to research...If you find a subject that is relevant to you, and agree with the costs (money, time and effort the program will require), I think you should go for it. No offense, but, to me, Master's (that is relevant to you) is a better investment of time and money than BSN. In some places, BSN is required to work as an RN, that is true. But not everywhere. With Master's, you have more opportunities for the future, and you would undoubtedly take something useful out of the program while doing research. As have been said earlier, sometimes you discover what you like by accident. I would never think I would enjoy teaching, but I had to, for my Master's (Science), and I found that I really enjoy it, because I saw the students enjoyed coming to my class. Tell us, what you think about getting MSN?

Congrats to you all!

Knasels.babygirl, congrats! This is great that you are starting now instead of having to wait until Fall, when most Nursing programs begin (from what I heard). Have fun.

Congratulations, newnurse1986! I hope the new job will work out very well for you.

GundeRN, thanks very much for the tips. I appreciated the OK on the older/previous edition books. I will check with my instructors, and hopefully for most it will be fine to get the previous edition. There will likely be something missing out even from the latest book... The tip on studying the right answers was very original to me; maybe it will work for me too! On the CLEP, I will need to follow up on that...I have never come across the possibility of taking these exams...Thank you for bringing it up.

I was going to say. Your situation is unlike most students who have the time to wait until after the 15th and that if you talked with them, they will most likely make an exception and will be able to let you know whether you're in or not a little sooner than most students. I'm glad you got that worked out with them. First week of September sounds like a good time to call them. It will give you some buffer, in case they aren't ready and need to get back to you with a definite answer. It's good to have extra time...Waiting until telling everyone until after the 15th will likely going to be so hard, especially if you're in. I hope you are in!

ORnurseCT, thank you very much for sharing your story, and the tips! You have been through so much and kept determination and focus throughout. You sound like a very strong person! I was also thinking about how Nursing programs are often portrayed as "the hardest thing you will ever do"; it is probably so that the students expect the worst and are prepared to put in their best effort. Good luck to you with the BSN and your job!

GrnTea, thanks for the book suggestion!

on eagles wings, I join the previous posters in their advice...Select the simplest route to meeting the degree requirements for either PA or CRNA. As far as I have seen, PA schools accept people with all kinds of professional backgrounds; the requirement then is Bachelor's degree in any major. For CRNA, it's BSN (or "other appropriate baccalaureate degree" as per AANA). It sounds like BSN opens doors to either route for you, while a degree in Biology might not qualify for CRNA. I find it should also be easier for you to get an online RN-BSN instead of Bachelor's in Bio, since a lot of Bio classes and labs need to be taken in a classroom. The flexibility of an online degree sounds like it will fit your full-time work life so much better. I know you said that thinking of taking more Nursing classes drives you up the wall...But maybe it will not be so bad. Like others have said, the hardest part is behind you. Lastly, I don't think you would even need to get Bio classes to qualify for PA or CRNA. So if you don't need to take them to qualify, I would advise to not take on extra work. You are already working full-time...

~*Stargazer*~, congrats on the great news! HeatherGurl84, I hope you'll hear back on the job next week! pbuttercups, any updates on your new job?