bward

What state do you practice in Kelly?

I have been a nurse for 38 years, started as an LPN went on for my ADN, then my BSN and a year ago obtained my MSN in Nursing Education through Grand Canyon University online. I have a tremendous amount of clinical experience and have practiced in ICU (am a CCRN), have been a Director of ICU, IMCU, and Dialysis for the past 2 years. Have practiced in diversified settings over the years Home Health IV Therapy (CRNI), Hospice, Subacute Coordinator, Radiology Special Procedures, Med-Surg Trauma Progressive Care Unit, Telemetry, etc. All through my career I have taught patients, new nurses, and lectured as an expert nurse in many subjects. I did an onsite practicum at the end of my MSN program with a local college. The Nursing Coordinator at the college requested I teach as an Adjunct, at the time I was too busy being a Director. I just recently left the stress of that position and set out to teach! I am becoming quite discouraged as everyone wants a Doctorate degree, or 3-5 years of experience! Well I am not interested in going back for a Doctorate degree to find they still want someone with 3-5 years of academic experience and can only work as an adjunct! I find it quite ridiculous that we hire and precept new grads of nursing and our colleges of nursing do not reciprocate. In a time with an unprecedented shortage of nurses predicted and the need for nursing faculty I find articles and blogs about Adjuncts as Sharecroppers as schools are saving money by only having a few fulltime faculty members and sourcing the rest out to adjuncts for low pay and no benefits shameful. I can only hope that as the Healthcare Reform hits there is some recognition of Academic Reform needs!

Thank you! We just did this last week, and it is falling into place piece by piece. The biggest obstacle is the people that do not want to be involved.

We are trying to institute unit-based shared governance in our ICU. Has anyone taken the journey and have advice or suggestions for us?