kate4rn

I think every kind of nursing gives you psych experience, with patients and family. I hope the OP is happy and kicking butt as an Advanced Practice Nurse.

I don't think you should concern yourself with it unless it is so debilitating you feel it will affect your ability to perform, as a student and a nurse. I've been on an antidepressant for most of my adult life, and am now getting my Master's in nursing. Just like any other disease managed by meds, if it works, use it. I have no problem letting people know about my own struggles, even in school, because I'm damn tired of the stigma. Diabetic people don't hide the fact that they need insulin, and there's not a diabetes question on an application. People with asthma aren't asked to list what inhalers they use. Yeah, I have a serotonin problem. Medicine lets me excel at life and perform at my optimal level. It's not a character flaw, it just is what it is. If your school has a problem with that, find another school. Or sue them. That's some ******** right there.

I really appreciate everyone's input. I think being upfront, with full disclosure, is the way to go. It's definitely a fine balance.

I appreciate your reply. I'm sweating it, but also know that everything works out the way it's supposed to.

FCNP is a primary care role. I would be working as an office RN, taking triage calls for sick patients, warfarin therapy, immunotherapy, depo-testosterone, calling patients with test results, being a go-between for the providers and their patients. I currently work full-time nights in an ER, but will not be working as an ER NP, so this experience would definitely help give me a better perspective on the course of study. It's been hard, definitely, working full-time and full-time grad school.

You can drop someone's blood pressure and potassium very quickly with lasix. I would re-visit the side effects of lasix before you give it again. To the OP, mistakes happen. Own them. Learn from them. Move forward in a positive direction.

Hi there, I'm currently beginning my second semester of grad school (Family Community Nurse Practitioner) and will be interviewing Wednesday for a position in a family community clinic (how perfect is that?) My question is this: the hours for the job are M-F 0730 to 1630, I have synchronous classes one day per month, and will be going to the state house for one day for a legislative session. I also have "intensives" on campus in May, for one week. Should I be totally up front about this in my interview? The job has been posted for months, there are no other applicants, and I want to be honest from the get-go. However, I also really want this position; it would get me off night shifts (which are KILLING ME) and would get me great experience in the very clinic where I hope to practice after graduation. Thanks in advance!

Hi there, I'm currently beginning my second semester of grad school (Family Community Nurse Practitioner) and will be interviewing Wednesday for a position in a family community clinic (how perfect is that?) My question is this: the hours for the job are M-F 0730 to 1630, I have synchronous classes one day per month, and will be going to the state house for one day for a legislative session. I also have "intensives" on campus in May, for one week. Should I be totally up front about this in my interview? The job has been posted for months, there are no other applicants, and I want to be honest from the get-go. However, I also really want this position; it would get me off night shifts (which are KILLING ME) and would get me great experience in the very clinic where I hope to practice after graduation. Thanks in advance!

Hi, same poster (BS'n), different name. I got a 96 on the first part of my theory paper, just wanted to let you all know. Now I'm working on the second part, and trying to porifice out the fluff and get it down to the basic framework. Thank you all for your input. I have to remember that I'm not going for a Pulitzer here. . . :)

Sats, not says. Sorry

Wait, I was being a nuisance? I've called rapid response before, and yes, it gets you an MD, but if it's not an emergency, it gets you a lot if ****** off nurses and MDs. My patient wasn't in respiratory failure. Her says came up, I needed orders. It's a weird situation, and I don't think I understand all the undercurrents in this hospital. Like every other job, there are politics. Administration was gone, I called the RT, who also does STAT EKGs, and whom I trust very much. Had it been an emergency, RR would have been called. I was just very frustrated that the doctor never called back.

Also, thank you all for your thoughtful replies. I'm a relatively new nurse, and feel like I did the best I could in the situation. Nurses rock!

RT are the first responders in my facility's rapid response. I called them, he assessed the patient and asked if she was being diuresed. That prompted my first page to the MD. The patient's weight was 10 k more than it had been a month prior, second call to the md. BP meds weren't ordered, had the operator connect me to his cell; voicemail. I asked my charge what to do, the pt. was stabilizing, sats increasing, I gave a PRN Beta Blocker PO, so bp was coming down. The charge said "keep paging him." So that's what I did. I documented everything. At this point in the day, all administration has gone home. I emailed my nurse manager today, and her boss, she is going to send it u to the admins. I feel bad if I get the physician in hot water, but I feel worse for my patient who went through all of that.

I called his office, had the operator connect me with his cell, where I left a voice message, in addition to the pages. I feel like I followed procedure for the most part, I don't think there is a lot of precedent for this. But ultimately, as my patient's advocate, I felt helpless. As far as the ER goes, I called them out on the lack of O2, they blamed radiology, so I asked my patient. She said she wasn't wearing O2 when she was taken to C-T. It was a perfect storm, and no one would take any responsibility.

I work in a small hospital, we have hospitalists, and we also have a few general practitioners who admit their own patients, and are usually easily accessible. However, last week, one of the practitioners admitted a patient through the ED and after I assessed her, I realized she was having severe exacerbation of CHF. I paged him SIX times, and he never called back. There was no diuretic ordered. Her bp was through the roof because she hadn't taken her ACE inhibitor that morning, none was ordered. The admitting doc does not have any partners, the hospitalists aren't allowed to write orders for his patients, I was stuck just trying to get her O2 saturation above 82 (the ED sent her up WITHOUT O2!) and her BP down. What do you do in this situation? I gave report to the oncoming nurse (this all started about an hour prior to shift change), documented every page I sent, and clocked out. I did call back the next day to check on the patient, and I informed my charge of every step, but it was infuriating. WWYD?