jallen326

It depends on the hospital. When I graduated I had to rotate between day and night shift and I absolutely wanted to shoot myself! Thank god where I work don't require that. I think if you can provide medical proof why you cannot work night shift, then you maybe able to get your wish.

I have no idea what I got for nursing week since I am on leave!

You will gain an invaluable experience in the ER. We typically don't like nursing students who stand around with their hands in their pockets! There is always something to go do like starting iv's, putting in foley, NG tubes, straight cathing a patient. Helping with chest compressions or bagging in a code. It looks great for you if you actually get involved instead of being on the sidelines. Ask a lot of questions and don't ever feel like you are in the way! Good luck!

As a former oncology nurse, I can tell you that you have 4 hours to transfuse a unit of blood and if you are worried about congestion then get an order for lasix from the prescribing doctor. Most of the time I am giving 2-3 units of blood with lasix in between each unit.

I only had a year and a half experience as resp/ medsurg nurse when I did travel nursing. If u r looking to buy I would suggest get a feeling for the area. I had a condo I'm Miami but now I want to buy a house in central Florida. Cost of living in Miami is a bit more than in central Florida. And then you have to be careful of those home associations and there ridiculous fees and rules!

I felt that I made enough when I was single and childless. Now with 2 kids it gets pretty challenging. Cost of living is just as high especially in Miami. One or two bedroom can cost you from $1000 and up and to rent a house you would be lucky to get $1500 but that depends on the area that you choose to live. My hospital will pay you based on your experience and education. I must Warn that you need to have a bsn or be getting it in the next 3 years.

I don't make the announcement that I am a nurse but when I had my c-section about 1.5 weeks my doctor did it for me. I work in the ED so I hardly would even go to the L&D floor for them to recognize me.

I moved to Miami back in 2002 and I first had to get my license endorsed by the state of Florida from my previous state. Not sure how much that cost now. I then looked into travel nursing in order to secure a job before I actually moved to miami. I was able to so do 3 assignments and the eventually was offered a position on staff which I gladly took. I have only worked for one health system since I moved down here and it's one of the best. I did a few local agency jobs just to see what the competition had to offer. I have never regretted my decision to relocate but I must warn that miami has become even more populated. I don't know much about boca raton but I am sure u will find a few good hospitals there. I currently work day shift I the ed and the nurse-patient ratio is 1:4. For nights it can go up to 5 but they try to keep it at 4.

It's policy at my facility to recheck the blood sugar if low or high and it even directs you to do do on the machine in case you have a mental lapse in judgement

Each ED is different and so I think that maybe you should give yourself some time to adjust to your new surroundings. You mention that you want to maybe move further south. The ER that I work in there is a patient ratio of 4:1 but at night that tends to change to 5 or 6:1. It has 16 main ed beds and 6 fast track beds. There is one over night doctor and then a mid level that leaves around 3:30 am. The fast track usually closes around midnight or whenever the last patient gets out, then everyone waits to be seen in the main ed. I have worked both night and day shifts and I prefer days. I am curious to keno if you are in central or northern florida? I am looking to relocate up there.

I moved from Ohio about 12 years ago and I was able to secure a travel assignment after 1.5 years of nursing experience in a hospital setting. I must say that a lot has changed since then and it is a lot more competitive. Depending on the area of Florida and the demand for nurses it would be wise to ask around. I have been in Miami for a while now and I am ready to leave the congestion of traffic, among other things. Also being bilingual would be plus down here. Best of luck to you.

I recently applied for the and infection control nurse 2 position and they would like for the candidate that gets the job to obtain CIC certification in 2.5 years. I just want to know if anyone has taken this test and how hard is it? What would you recommend for study materials?

I think you will be fine as long as you keep an open mind. I came from a med/surg oncology background and transferred to ER about 7 years ago. I am still there. You just have to remember there is no specific routine like on the floor and once your patient is admitted your job is to get them out ASAP and not to continue doing stuff unless it's ordered stat! Part of you will want to help out the floor nurse and they may use it to their advantage but you have to remember that you are going to be getting another patient. The floor nurse will have her max patient but in the ER there is no such thing since you can't tell EMS to stop bringing patients. Good luck to you.

I don't do too much OT these days since to me it's not worth my sanity! Now if I picked up the extra two days each pay period then yes! It all depends on the type of unit that you work as well.

The art of just saying NO works for me too.