aWiiPeanut

I was instructed to pass the VA-BC before attempting the CRNI exam. My problem is that the content list for the VA-BC is extensive. It lists 14 items (no problem right?); however there are 4 books referenced plus several research articles (some greater than 200 pages) and even an entire website with nothing referenced...so I guess the whole thing? One of the research articles isn't accessible and after making my list of what I will need to study...it seems extensive. How in the world do I condense this? If the outline had stated what topics to cover from each resource then maybe that would direct me a bit but it isn't listed like that. Any help is appreciated. They only test twice a year, the next one being in June...and in trying to see if that will even be enough time. thank you!!

You make your choice, but management still has to approve which unit you will be on. If your choice is fully staffed (like they ever are), then they would look at your second choice, etc. I'm not sure how nursing was when you graduated so I cannot really speak to that but I do know that I chose a more difficult unit to gain more experience and we are pushed to the limits. We are always at our max patient/nurse ratio. They got rid of phlebotomy so nursing staff is responsible for ALL labs. Even during my time off of orientation, there aren't always people to ask questions. We have had an entire staff of new grads fending for themselves multiple nights. I mean you can ask upper management but you may not get an answer and then you end up getting yelled at by doctors for not doing something when you did everything in your power to get it done (including asking for help), which adds stress to the next nurse coming on shift because more needs to be done. They typically start new grads out on night shift as well and there is only one nursing supervisor that works at night so they are pushed to their limits as well... which leads back to staffing issues. It's just a full circle it seems.

While I think 16 weeks of additional training seems nice, this unfortunately is not the norm for new grad residency programs. The one I was in said 12 weeks orientation (4 wks on 3 different units before choosing your favorite) and a few extra classes online and a CPR refresher, along with a 'liason' that helps keep track of progress. We were also told if 12 weeks was not enough we could ask for 1 or 2 more. Reality was 8 weeks then I had to politely fight for more time because they thought it was time for me to make a decision already. In the end I was still shorted a week and the liason was less than helpful. I heard from her probably once a month and she was terrible at answering emails. I did not even know which unit was my home unit after I turned in my choices because at that point they were done with me. ALSO, the preceptors that people keep saying need to be paid to help new grads, at my hospital, are not paid ANYthing extra. They come in their normal shift and sometimes they might have an orientee and sometimes they won't. All the burden of training a new grad is put on them with no extra pay or benefit. So this does not cost the hospital any more money. From my experience the only additional training that I would receive versus a nurse with experience being hired is the extra little classes. Both get "12" weeks training (if you're lucky), and have a preceptor during that time. ALSO, all the hospitals in my area (like the OP) have contracts that you must work there for 2 years to be accepted into the residency program and they DO NOT hire new grads outside of the residency program. This FORCES new grads to sign a 2 year contract no matter where they go (this is with no sign-on bonus for those that do not realize what a new grad residency means). This is why I had such a difficult time deciding which hospital I wanted to work for because I hate contracts ( they smell of red flags ). I was lucky, however, that one hospital just changed to a 'promise' instead of a contract when I was applying and that is the ultimate reason I went with them. This is why OP said these contracts are normalized...because new grads have no other choice. The OP does not have to state she was sexually harassed. It is clear she did not WANT to disclose she was sexually harassed because that wasn't the purpose of the post. The purpose of the post was to find other peoples stories of predatory New Grad Contracts. She can choose to deal with the sexual harassment in another way, that was not her purpose to do on this forum. And IMO LovingLife, you were very condescending, whether or not you are a regular contributor really has no bearing on that fact. You also assumed she got a sign-on bonus for the contract she signed instead of asking. I can't answer your question to her specific contract about what amount she has to pay back because I don't know her but I do know that typically there is a dollar amount assigned to the new-grad residency contracts stating what amount you will have to pay back (their $$ lost for training you). The dollar amount attached to the hospital I work for was $20k before they decided to try it without a contract. And I believe she already addressed the lawyer statement before you stated it. ---- I think this is such bullcrap that a nurse, like all of us on the forum, comes here to gather stories and then gets attacked from all these different posts and not one person has actually posted a story that she asked for in the first place. I wasn't even going to comment on this post because I hate it when the topic strays but I have to say something. We are supposed to be supportive of each other and more often than not we FAIL at that. It doesn't honestly matter what OP's experience was, she asked for stories... so if you didn't have a story, then why are you choosing to pick her apart instead of giving her a story?! This is part of the problem! This is part of the mentality that nurses eat their young! This is unacceptable! Kudos to OP for standing up for herself in this forum and quitting a job that was toxic. If we do not stand up for the things that make our lives worse, things will never change and we will always be battling those things that make our lives worse. Just because it always has been doesn't mean it always has to be.

Hello! For those of you that have done the Hurst review: after each section there is a Qbank but when I made a test using the Qbank, it covers everything not just the one section I just completed (ex: Fluid/Electrolytes). I’m wondering how everyone uses the Qbank. I know the assessments are supposed to wait until after the entire review but should I wait to do the Qbank until then too?? I was hoping to do them as I go to keep up the practice but I don’t want to waste them if its over content I haven’t reviewed yet. Any suggestions? Thanks!

Luchador, I had not previously considered agency work only because I know the place that I worked did not treat agency workers very well and it was a deterrent to signing on with an agency. Maybe this was their tactic, who knows. It is something that I will consider, though. I have 3 weeks left of school and can research local agencies after finals are DONE! Lol $18/hr is also tempting...and I don't mind wiping butts, its all the same after awhile =) Thank you!! Tonyl1234, yes it is more difficult to find those types of jobs, but I do know they exist. That's why I was asking for some direction since I don't have much experience in that area. And it isn't about rejecting work because i don't feel like doing it... it has to do with studying for exams and finishing a day earlier than expected or you read all the chapters for the week already and finished your assignments and you have a half a day or even 2 days (i wish) to make some cash. On the flip side, I may also underestimate the content for my reading for the week and barely finish in time. You just never know. This is why I'm trying to find some sort of balance between the two. Realistically, school is my priority and I don't want school to suffer because I've committed to work and I don't want to have to cancel a shift because I have 12 chapters to read in a weekend, because that isn't fair to the employer. Angel0309, that is fascinating! I had not heard of this line of work before. I do like the blocked time aspect; I will def look into this! Thank you!! Mergirl, I didn't even realize that temp agencies had weekend or daily shift jobs ( I thought it was more a few months at a time). This is good to know! Thanks! Thank you so much to everyone that responded, its given me a lot to consider and has opened my eyes to the possibilities! =) Have a great weekend!

Hello! I hope this is posted in the right spot. I'm in nursing school and its pretty overwhelming at times... I had to quit my part time job. What I'm looking for is ideas or places to start to look for work that I can pick up here and there when I get a day or two. I was thinking something like keying up papers (not writing them, just keying them!), or some type of data entry. I have a lot of office experience but I do not know where to begin looking for a side job that allows me to only work when I get a chance. I'm sure there are websites go to but I don't know what websites are reliable and I'm looking for someone with experience. Thanks in advance!!! April

Hello! Today was my first day of clinical and we basically followed a nurse around for 6 hours and assisted her with various things...ausculatating before/after meds, etc. So we also have to complete an 11 page 'Assessment' on one patient each clinical day. We can get some of this information from the chart; however, the huge portion of this is the physical assessment. Here comes my question... is there a way to group certain parts of the assessment together to make it more efficient? I feel like there is 'dead air' because even though I read over the paperwork several times before clinical, there was a lot of time spent doing one thing and then asking questions and taking notes, then doing one more thing...etc, etc. I hope this makes sense.

You can get around the flash issue by downloading a free browser that supports flash from the App Store. It's super easy...I use safari 99.999% of the time and then the other browser for that small portion when flash is needed. Easy peasy!

I did, but I was forced because the daily homework came straight from the book and it really required you read it in its entirety to get all the answers. I do think it helped because there were little things in it that maybe we didn't discuss in class. I do like details though and I enjoy the "why" behind things.

Hello! I'm at a crossroads while doing my gen Ed classes. My question is: what exactly does a first assistant nurse do? Is it common for an RN to become a first assist or do facilities prefer a lower paid person to fill this position (like a qualified surg tech)? I'm trying to figure out if I want to become a surgery tech/first assist later or become an RN. The circulator position, only being able to read about it, doesn't seem as interesting but I may just not be getting enough information. Any advice is appreciated! Thanks!

that is sad. They just don't care.

I don't know why she would do that but I did see on the news that she called the CDC several times asking if she was allowed to fly with a 99.x temp. They told her the high risk temp was 100.6 and since she was under that temp then she was fine. What a mess

Nobody?

Hey everyone! In the next 2 years I hope to start my general education courses for pre nursing. (I'm doing a medical coding program right now through my job and cannot start until that is satisfied.) I live close to volstate so my plan was to do the gen ed classes there and maybe transfer to MTSU. However I'm not sure if I want to get an associates at volstate and then complete the BSN at mtsu or just go straight for mtsu. I'd like some advice from people that have gone through volstate and see if the education is comparable to mtsu for the first 2 yrs or if I would be much more beneficial to skip the associates at vscc. I hope that made sense, any advice is appreciated! Thank you!

Well unfortunately auto mechanics isn't recession proof, either. My husband just got out of that field. You would think that people always need their cars repaired, however if people don't have the money, they end up walking, taking the bus or riding their bikes to get where they need to go. I don't think any profession can have all positives all the time. It's just not how life works. On the other hand, I did like the idea of multiple professions in different fields to balance out your lifestyle =) very smart!