BertG77

what was the time frame between sitting for your exam and receiving results? I am taking it on June 30th and am trying to get current feedback. I recently attended an event where the head of the CA BRN was present and talked about how streamlined and updated the process is becoming. Just curious.

what was the time frame between sitting for your exam and receiving results? I am taking it on June 30th and am trying to get current feedback. I recently attended an event where the head of the CA BRN was present and talked about how streamlined and updated the process is becoming. Just curious.

It really really frustrates me that the main reason that so many people lack the time and energy to adequately care for themselves is because their jobs are so engrossing and demand so much of them. It's the fault of the system and the institutionalized culture/expectation that you work yourself to death as a nurse.

It gets better if for no other reason than you will begin to notice that everyone working around you feels that they're behind and frustrated or trying to cope. It's hard work, give yourself time and you'll get in the groove.

I am a guy, the oldest person in my BSN cohort I might add, never one for ceremonies or recognition. I don't want to go to my cohort's pinning or my graduation ceremony. I'm almost 40, my parents are old and live far away and I'd rather just celebrate with my wife who bore the brunt of the emotional wreckage that nursing school has caused our relationship. She deserves a freakin' pinning for wife of the decade for helping me get through these last few years.

I must admit that as an "older student" with plenty of life experience working in different industries, and a person with anxiety and depression I am saddened by the callous/jaded attitude many of you have developed in response to your experiences. As much as I want to protect the original OP from sentiments like yours I suppose it's beneficial for them to see that attitudes like yours are pervasive in the nursing field. Yay reality check. See, it's happening to me too!

In response to the first person to reply: What was the point in stating this?! As a 2nd year BSN student who has battled with sever anxiety and depression his whole life and is currently on medication to help with these issues I feel like your comment is representative of the kind of attitude that makes nursing school more crappy and unnecessarily difficult than it needs to be. I think it's common knowledge that nursing school is hard as hell yet a person like me and the OP need to actively avoid people who make comments like the one you posted. This was the opposite of therapeutic communication. Thanks but no thanks. And you're a NURSE? Yikes! Wouldn't want you to take care of me.

There are many medical staffing agencies throughout the country that will help you get per-diem shifts at local hospitals. I found one here in the bay area that took new CNA's with little experience and got me into one hospital here. The fact that I was in a BSN program was what gave them the confidence to staff me with less than a year of actual CNA experience. I would say, look for agencies like these and market yourself, tell them about your clinical skills learned in school. Now, one year later they've gotten me into several other big hospitals here and my network has grown exponentially. In regards to your question about whether there's value in being a CNA during nursing school I would ask, "what do you expect to get out of being a CNA?" Some responses to your question said things like, you don't NEED to, but went on to say how much it helps. I agree, wholeheartedly. You don't need to, but once you've had CNA experience and you go into your clinicals next to your classmates who have little to no patient care experience and they are stiff, uncomfortable, stumbling over their actions and words, you'll be grateful for your patient care experience. So will your patients. They'll respond more favorably to you than to someone who lacks confidence.

I am super busy as I am on the BOD for my school's SNA, working, volunteering and I live 1.5 hours away from school and am married! Anyway, people always ask me how the hell I do all this stuff and aside from knowing myself well enough to understand that I thrive when my workload and time are very structured, I live and die by my CALENDAR! It amazes me that when I tell people I have the calendar app on my phone synced with my google calendar and my desktop calendar they say, "I wish I knew how to do that!" My response to that (and to many other claims people make about their ignorance) is "you can find out how to do it on the internet!!!!" In case this wasn't obvious to you or many other people out there, almost any freakin thing you have the slightest curiosity about or want to try, learn about is online!! We live in an amazing time where info is readily available at your fingertips like never before and yet, so many people forget how to use it for actually productive reasons. So, in short, my answer is 1) CALENDAR -as soon as something pops up, a task, an idea, meeting, assignment, it goes in the calendar 2)THE INTERNET - duh, it's amazing 3) EXERCISE - if you value feeling good and clearing your mind then you will make time for this regularly and you will schedule it in!! 4) Be flexible!!!!! Though I went off on having everything structured, there comes a time when you just can't push through and you got to stop and chill. Knowing yourself, your capabilities, health, etc make this easier to implement. Good luck! There's no recipe/formula how to do this. Try things and be okay with stumbling and failing occasionally. No one's perfect, be kind to yourself, this will help you empathize with your patients.

I just got back from a clinical experience in various hospitals in Cuenca, Ecuador which I absolutely LOVED. At each hospital I asked what was needed for a US citizen to work there. The nurse managers stated that our BSN degrees are recognized in Ecuador as the equivalent of their "licenciadas." The licenciadas are usually the nurses running each ward which are heavily staffed and operated by their equivalent of CNA's and LVN's. All the facilities we visited stated they are in serious need of nurses and would welcome any nurses from the US. Apparently the only thing needed is to complete some bureaucratic paperwork in order to begin working. How long this takes or how complicated it is, I have no idea. I can tell you that it would be a dream to work in Ecuador. The culture, geography and the people were beautiful. Just thought I'd share this in case you find it interesting.

The fact that you are complaining about how long you think it's taking to start your nursing school journey just illustrates that you are in fact very young and have a lot of life experience to catch up on. There's more to life than school, and your career, etc. I wish someone had helped me realize this truth when I was your age and fiercely pursuing all the ridiculous aspirations I had at the time. Try and be kind to yourself, chill out, don't compare yourself to others.

No CNA schools/courses I've heard of have anything to do with the science courses/ pre req's for nursing school. CNA programs are vocational programs that give you the very basic training necessary to go out and do a specific job safely. While of course there is a basic understanding of some anatomy, having taken anatomy and Physio would probably not count toward or replace any subjects/units you'd need for a CNA program.

Yes, it is worth it. I am in my 3rd semester of 6, in my BSN program and have been a CNA since I began. The experience has helped me in so many ways. First, it's exposed me to so much more than school can/does, it has provided networking opportunities, it has helped me to solidify and better understand all I am learning in school and you'll have so much more respect for the CNA's when you do become a nurse.

I applied to 5 programs, with a 3.8 GPA,and having scored an 89 on the TEAS. I also had 1 year of volunteering in a hospital, and doing public health research as an intern with a university. I got into only 1 BSN program, but on a wait list for another. The one that accepted me is 90 miles away from where I live, and I am now 1/3rd of the way through the BSN program. The one I got on the wait list for is only a subway ride away from where I live. When people find out where I live and then where I go to school they ask me why didn't I go to school somewhere closer. That's when the conversation usually ends. People have no idea.

Mine was a 3.8. I had volunteer experience at a hospital, recommendations from them, and a public health internship with recommendations too. I got an 89 on the TEAS, and got into a BSN program.

The positive things about nursing school are those moments in clinicals when you connect with your patients and realize that you're helping people in an immediate and direct way. When a patient smiles at you and is put at ease by some words or intervention you've offered, is also one the best moments. It'll make all the anxiety and doubt about the next Pharm exam or paper due completely go away for a little while, and it's worth it.

The ones I know of in northern California include UNI, Star Nursing, and MGA which is the agency I work for. Agencies seem to be the perfect solution for people with changing or limited schedules. I am starting the 3rd semester of my BSN program after having worked 40+ hours a week as a CNA with the agency and they are totally cool with my limited availability during the semester. The process entails calling them at the beginning of each week and telling them what my availability is for that week. Then on the days that I've said I'd be available they call me that morning to confirm that I am "on schedule for the shift that day" and if there is ever a cancellation or I'm not needed, they usually call me an hour or so before my shift and let me know. It takes some getting used to, not knowing if you're working until the last minute, but it's a trade off for having semi-reliable work and so much flexibility.

Hey thank you for chiming in! Now going into 3rd semester I am gaining confidence yet still quietly freaking out inside (all the time) based on what is expected of me, by my instructors, patients, etc. I am eternally grateful for my CNA experience as it just exposes me to all the nuances of bedside care, how to act and talk with patients and their families, and the inner workings of the hospital. This semester is going to be particularly freaky as the clinical rotation is OB and PED's and as a male nurse I am nervous about how I'll be received by patients while they're giving birth. I have heard stories of male nursing students being asked to leave the room during L&D clinicals and the thought of that happening just sucks!

Oh, cool, thanks for clearing it up. Obviously I'm totally unaware of what was actually going on here. I misunderstood.

Oh gosh, reading these posts makes me anxious! As a CNA I certainly hope I do not come off as some of the people that are being complained about here. I am a new(ish) CNA as well as a BSN student and there are times when I have to ask questions at my job and I feel that the verbal responses I get from certain nurses is accompanied with A LOT of attitude that makes me feel like A) they think I am stupid, B) they think I should have known the answer (aka should have been able to read their minds) C) they don't want to help me (help them!) D) they are just generally put out or unhappy in general which (surprise!) just plain sucks to be around. I often see on AN that it is recommended for nursing students, new RN's, CNA's to "ask questions," but honestly, being met with responses like those listed above makes one less likely to want to do so unless it's a dire situation, hence the pass the buck or it's not my job response. Also, I don't doubt at all that a big reason many people don't take initiative or act on certain assumptions( do "their job" ) is that they probably did (said task) at one point and then got an earful about it from somebody in the chain of command about how "it should've been done or handled THIS WAY," and were told so, with that negative kind of attitude mentioned above. I try to stay constantly vigilant against ever becoming complacent or succumbing to this apathetic way of operating but honestly, many people in the health care field make it incredibly hard NOT to go down that dark road. I guess I am writing this to ask those who initially posted here, "what would have been the ideal turn of events in these situations?" is it a matter of solely changing attitudes or is it more than that? And whose would you say should lead the charge in changing these attitudes? As a future RN I'd love to know more about this aspect of the nursing culture.

Retaking it can only benefit you! Sign up now to take it again as soon as that one month time frame has lapsed. Your score isn't horribly, BTW, that's what I scored and go into my BSN program with however I did have all A's in my science pre-req's. You have to look at it from the perspective of the point system. If you're low in one area (your overall, or science GPA) then you need to make up for it in some other area (like, with a higher TEAS score). Do some research into the criteria that your school uses to choose candidates. Some schools will only accept the scores from the 1st attempt at the TEAS, others structure their point system differently, giving more or less weight to different things (GPA, TEAS Score, etc). Also, look into all the other little things you can possibly claim during the application process that might earn you points, such as paid clinical work experience, volunteering, being a resident in the area of the school, etc). Don't freak out, your score was pretty good for "not having studied." The only thing that stands out to me is that it seems as though you have a tendency to sell yourself short by not trying "hard enough." This is evident by your less than perfect scores in A&P classes (B's instea of A's) and the lack of initiative in preparing adequately for the TEAS ( no studying???). I am just pointing this out as it seems like something you might benefit from taking a hard look at before you get into a program and get in a tough situation later because of this tendency of yours. It seems as though you know this pattern is not benefiting you at all so better to recognize it now and try to work on it before it becomes too habitual and ends up coming through in your practice as a nurse.

I don't complain to my wife that much because her job is insane and horribly stressful for her (she's a social worker/ CPS) and she also can't relate. She often tells me that she can't fathom how I am able to learn, understand, and retain the technical/clinical stuff in nursing school, and she compares that with the "make it up as you go" approach she applied to all the paper-writing she had to do in her MSW program. She also didn't deal with exams in which a perfect score was needed to continue with the program, or ATI's at the end of each semester. While this doesn't bother me as much the only thing that sucks is that when I am really freaking out (during exams), she kinda can't really help in the way that I "want" or "need," which is probably just due to the lack of relate ability, so during those times I lean on those in my cohort.

My wife graduated with her MSW about a year ago, right around the time I was finishing my nursing school pre-req's. Since then it's been interesting to see the differences between what each field demands. She was hired by the state (California) to work in CPS and we're lucky that the county she works in has one of the highest pay scales in our region. However, the type of, and amount of work she has to do is insane. As a 3rd semester BSN student with some clinical, and CNA experience in LTCF's and hospitals, I would say her job seems WAAAYYYY harder and stressful than that of the nurses I've been exposed. The hardest part of her job is that she spends her entire day at the office (I've seen what her day entails when she works occasionally from home and is often on call) on the phone with clients. She has to basically do everything for them, in terms of bolstering their confidence, counseling them, as well as suggesting, implementing and following up on logistical things like organizing housing for them, then figuring out transportation to and from the new housing, transportation to medical and other counseling services, day care for the kids, fielding non-stop calls from nosey relatives, etc. It never ends. So as her day is spent stuck on the phone, there is little to no time to do any of the extensive documentation that is required. I'm taking about huge legal documents that can't be skimped on or fudged in anyway. And these exist for each case and she has many all at once, always. SHe often stays up all night, several nights a week completing these legal court documents and forgoing sleep, while I'm snoring away for at least a few hours. I'm not saying this to say that the field of social work is a nightmare, my wife does tell me that it is often very rewarding, but it is taking a toll and she says everyone in her office works just as hard if not more than she does. I get to leave my "work" at the hospital, she doesn't. Granted, right now I am in school and do have to study a lot, but my clinical days are the closest I get right now to being an actual nurse and once you're off the floor, you're free. Same thing with being a CNA. The pay is definitely better than a social worker, and yeah the nursing program is hard, but so what? We do have the mandatory math exams every semester and we do have to score 100% but we're given more than one chance and the schools DO work with you. They want you to succeed. I would say you should do some real soul searching and ultimately (like my wife said to me years ago) just pick something. It doesn't have to define you or change you dramatically, you can perceive it as a "job" but own it and do your best and move forward.

Just thought I'd put this out there: Patients' perceptions of patient care providers with tattoos and/or body piercings. - PubMed - NCBI I find this interesting and ridiculous, though I understand why these findings are the way they are. I'm curious what others think about this (especially the double standard between the genders). I'm a male nursing student with many tattoos (that I cover up) though I would love to work somewhere where I didn't have to (like either of my local general hospitals).

You could look into being a patient care associate or cna at a ltcf or a hospital. Even a non clinical job as a unit aid is good because it allows a person to get their foot in the door with that institution. As far as recommendations go, anything that will help you be exposed to the day to day realities of taking care of patients and how the nurses do their jobs is a great opportunity. I was a caretaker for a home health agency, then got a job in a hospital as a CNA after taking a CNA course (while I was talking my pre req's). All of these jobs have been beneficial in many ways.