cinlou

So there are many different situations that may have caused the pregnancy, and the answer to those can not be provided by we as nurses, because it isn't our choice it is the persons going through it. No question is meaningless. I know of men who were capable of being single fathers and if they had of known that their significant other was pregnant they would have chosen to have the baby. But the abortion was done without their knowledge of the pregnancy and without any input. Now I know this is another different issue and it becomes the personal responsibility of the relationship. But I wanted to put out the question and I see the majority of the responses here appear to be against the father and more supportive of the mother obtaining an abortion.

each state is a little different, so I suggest you call your state BON and ask them. You could look at it as collecting data not assessing so I would think you could do it but I defer to your state BON.

C4-5 Fusion L2-5. Transitioned from ER and hands on after about 48 years to education, now I tutor and do NCLEX review

I started out with only 2 males in my class and then I worked specialty areas, critical care, EP, ED and always worked with many males so when I hear nurse I think of both along with first responders.

I have a question to add to this already complex issue. Does anyone think that the father of the baby, within a consensual sexual relationship, should also have a say within the outcome of the baby he has helped create?

Patients refuse care by nurses for many reasons, I had a patient that told me they didn't want me to care for them because I was fat and therefore must be lazy. We as nurses were taught to be non judgmental and I hope the majority of us are. We have to protect ourselves and our license because this seems to be the time of suing in order to obtain financial security instead of working. I usually told the patient that I was their nurse and would provide them the best care I would give any of my patients, then I would kill them with kindness, even though on the inside my heart may be hurting. Nursing care is supposed to be about the client not the nurse, that being said we also have to protect ourselves.

Every time you try something new there will be jitters. It is normal to be nervous about new things, that is what can keep you a safe care giver. It sounds like you know what you want and need to do to get yourself back to school, now all you need to do, is do it. Good Luck

We have slid backwards in nursing, and because of this I think we need to go back to basics in nursing schools. We cannot continue to teach more management than basic skills. The new nurse needs the skills first. Once out of school the opportunity for advanced knowledge is available within the facilities through advanced training towards certifications etc. We cannot look at our generation and the changes we have went through to help this generation. We came out of school with the expectation of a 15 to 30 patient load on a general med/surg unit and a charge nurse roll right out of school. We had high acuity patients but we had them longer so we could balance the assignments out instead of having all high acuity patients. We were gradually provided new technology from DOS charting in computers and having to put each piece of a swan together manually instead of picking up a package that has all the tubing put together, we had to mix all of our own medications, now we have unit dose, we did not have respiratory therapists to do treatments, because we did them. We now have pharmacists available even at codes at the bedside. We had to calculate all of our cardiac measurements and learn all the formulas, now the monitors do it all for you. But the changes were somewhat gradual, so we learned as it came to fruition. The present students are thrown out there with management skills they haven't had a chance to practice, and skill levels that have had minimal opportunities to be put to the test. All of this also depends on the state and the type of nursing school and clinical sites that may or may not have even been available for students to get into to even practice the skills. Also, the skill of the educator, were the facilities set up with appropriate mentors. Many of the skilled practitioners have left nursing early. We already knew we were going to be down nurses when the BB generation retired, but now we are even more short due to all the covid rhetoric that caused a great deal of anxiety along with missed clinical, more remote teaching, and questionable learning, along with the change to the NGN (a plus, I might say), but they were all changes that required a rapid change in the education. Ultimately, I say back to basics and do a restart/rebuild of all curricula, back off the push to the BSN, I know that is going to get me some negative responses, but, sometimes pushing through something that isn't working, and is just burning all the new nurses out, isn't the answer either. Times and old ideas need to be adapted too. Bring nursing back to the caring profession, and the rest will fall into place.

Honesty is always the best policy when dealing with state boards of nurses. Having a letter of recommendation by your therapist/Dr. could potentially go a long way. I would anticipate that you would need to follow up with drug screens through the board, but I am not totally familiar with Pa's rules and regulations. Most boards that I have delt with really want to support nurses and those who want to improve themselves. Be up front and speak with the board to find out what they require from you. Good Luck and congratulations.

So, let me get this right? Presently you are working as a CNA, but you want to get your RN, and you are wondering if going back to phlebotomy would help you more than your CNA? If I have your question correct, this is my thought process, and from my experience as an educator. Yes, as stated earlier phlebotomy is different from starting an IV, but the process builds confidence in doing invasive procedures to a client. That said, working as a CNA provides the opportunity to be involved in patient care for an all-around process. If you are able to become more involved in what the nurses roll is for your clients by asking questions and learning the why's as to what is being done for and to your client, this could better prepare you for nursing school. You could, if possible, split the 2 rolls and work part time for each, then once you get into a program decide which one fits your schedule better. The CNA will keep you in closer contact to complete patient care for learning while in school, but you need to look at the pros and cons for you such as financial, schedule, responsibilities, and learning potentials.

If I look back to when I was precepting on a unit, I wanted my new grads to be able to go into a patient room and provide basic care and comfort, such as a full assessment and be able to do the skills needed, foley, IV, NG, etc. Then when there was time we talked about the why. I think too much time is spent on upper-level knowledge ie. management and not enough on basic nursing skills, they will learn the higher level once out there, that is if we still have halfway decent mentors left at the bedside to provide it.

Does your physicians come in early for their rounding? One of the ways I worked around this when they dropped that on us, was to go through patient report with the physicians at the nursing station so off going and oncoming nurses knew what was going on, then round with the physician and go over the rest of the specifics at the bedside, neuro, lines etc.

Option full time at home and pick up a part time bedside position to keep your hands in the activity so when you are ready to go back to hospital you will have the ability to get hired back having maintained your skills. Are three 12 hour shift available on weekend? I did night shift 12hr straight weekends when mine were young, Dad was home, then I was home during week. It really comes down to what will work with your schedule and not necessarily what you would like to do, but what you need to do to be able to be at home with your children as you want.

As stated earlier there are many reasons why hiring you into an RN position on your unit may not be able to happen. As a previous manager I can also offer an opinion. Sometimes staying on the same unit when moving up can be more difficult because peers may still see you as a CNA and call on you often for that roll instead of allowing you and supporting you in your new roll. Definitely speak directly to your manager to find out what the situation is, and then go to HR to apply and look into other options that can afford you the opportunity for growth. You may find yourself to be happy you tried something new even if it may be a bit more frightening.

sounds like you took on your responsibility to the best you could to prevent that from happening. Unfortunately there is lack of education at home and in schools for prevention methods other than abortion. Don't get me wrong, I am not against abortion as a last resort method.

exactly, and thank you for the stats, but that is not what the people hear, they only hear the word abortion and think that is the only choice (my opinion)

Ahh, where are our Ethics Committees now? I personally do not agree with the tattle tail portion of the law. I came out of the late 70's and I was very naïve. I had no clue about the political back stories about Planned Parent hood, I thought it was set up to educate women about their available choices related to pregnancy, and that the main portion of education was preventative, and that abortion was the last resort choice. Nursing students went to these clinics to learn how to educate clients about their choices. Back then we didn't have many choices in birth control. Now there are many options, injections, pills, morning after pill that can be requested at the pharmacy,(I am not sure without researching if this is state specific or not). So my point is over time we have many more options prior to ever reaching the choice of an abortion, but it seems to me that education was reversed and has made abortion the main part of the conversation instead of all the other alternatives. I grew up very rural but learned about BC in school during our separated (boys vs girls) health classes. Even back then with parental approval one could get BCP when you were in your teens. Now prophylactic's are available for anyone both free and low cost. It seems education has been the failure to maintain and/or even keep up with the changing tides. I think we all have our own strong personal feelings about abortion, and I even grew up during the time of back ally abortions and the legalizing of them, I felt then the same as I do now, abortion should not be the first choice, both pregnancy and abortion it not good for the physical and mental health of our young girls. I know a few who have had one, and more often than not they have their regrets and have had to learn to deal with it the best way they know how, so it does effect mental health as well as physical. We have to do something to reverse the idea that abortion comes first rather than last.

perhaps people feel they do not have enough information to make informed consent. There continues to be a great deal of mixed messaging out there. It is my role as a nurse to provide the best information available and let the patient make their decision. It is not my role to push my opinion or be judgmental of the patient. Everyone has their choice. Those at high risk know they are at high risk and will do what they feel is right for them. What is my opinion is that the nurses that have been providing care to patients pre-vaccination should be able to continue to provide the care to the patients in the same manner they were providing the care without vaccination. If you are thinking I am against vaccination, you would be incorrect, I am fully vaccinated, that was my choice.

I was noticing the similarities in responses based on years as a nurse, and I find it very interesting. I went through many different diseases throughout my nursing career such as AIDS, H1N1, SARS and not once did we shut down the world, even though there were always the high risk individuals with comorbidities. We didn't even shut down when ebola hit the US. I took care of many of these patients before we had information. (What is the total death rate of people with MI, car accidents etc. that are hospitalized and also happen to test positive for Covid? What did they die from?) I would get frustrated with the antivaccination parents, because I saw children die from measles, and these vaccinations had been proven to be effective. I was one of the last generation of people to get the smallpox vaccination which eradicated it. Measles and mumps are returning to the US. Covid is a virus it will do whatever it can to survive, and that means we will see many mutations with or without vaccinations. I say, don't make your decision based on fear, do your research and follow your beliefs. As professionals we will always be involved in new diseases, as well as being exposed to them. It is not our role to force others into complying with our beliefs, it is our role to educate and let those people make their decision based on informed, consent. Many people do not feel they have enough information to make that decision. Look at all the nurses that worked for months without a vaccination and helped their facility stay up and running, and now they are being threatened to take vaccination or lose their job. Is there not an option, just as there is for the flu (mask if not vaccinated, routine testing?) Let's continue to be kind and compassionate people, let us listen to others, ask questions learn from others, not close ourselves up from educational opportunities because someone else has a different opinion, let us learn from it.

Often times these patients have had bad experiences in the past and are afraid of being forgotten. If they are on the light often stop and ask the person what is not being met in their care. example: It appears that we are not meeting your needs, what is it that I can do for you right now that you have not received, then give them a return time and stick to it, gaining their trust is the first part, then being honest and transparent without judgement.

I know how intimidating it can be to be the new person/rookie. As nurses we watch over other nurses, aides, techs, medical students, residents and Dr's. to be sure our patient's are receiving the best care, and yes I have had to stop a resident and told them to call their attending or I would. It is important to support, but also call out when assistance is needed. When I heard the girl on the cell phone telling them to check his pulse and look at him and tell the other officer to intervene, and she was ignored, and at the same time I am seeing Floyd on the ground all of a sudden stop moving, and as a nurse I am looking at this thinking what are you guys doing do you not see, I wanted to reach through the TV. I don't know what I would have done if I was there. I would like to think I would intervene, but one never knows unless placed in that situation.

I look at this no different than the elderly lady who didn't want me to take care of her because I was fat, she thought I would be lazy. I took care of her anyway. Or the patient who didn't want any male nurses. we said we would accommodate as best we could but could not be guaranteed. Any special requests are looked at and taken into account, with honesty to patient for providing them the best we can.

Hunter, I have worked with many awesome second career nurses. I hear you want to give back. Have you thought about starting out doing some EMT to be sure this is the field you want to go towards. I teach nursing students and some find out in their first semester that this is not the place for them and others unfortunately take longer. Shadowing, or joining your local EMT's, shorter course to be able to start working in the high adrenaline field of health care.

try joining a float pool. Never stop, keep trying new things, don't let yourself go stagnant, be active in shared governance, do as much as you feel comfortable doing without it becoming too much. I found floating was awesome, the staff was excited to see you there to help, you usually had a fair assignment, you did not have to get caught up in the politics, and when you were done you left for the day knowing you did the best you cold do that day, and the next day you had something new and exciting.

I'm old too. I always told my son that if he was being cussed at the best comeback from him would be coherent intelligent words, it makes the person stop and wonder what you just said. The English language and the semantics within have changed so much I'm sometimes not even sure what I can or cannot say even if what I want to say from my educational upbringing and following the true meaning of a word is neutral, but now means something different in the urban dictionary. As someone who also talks with my hands I guess I need to make sure I am not making any motions or gestures that would be offensive. The use of the F-bomb really gets my goat. I hear my nursing students say it and they think they can say it to the faculty/professors. I'm like "excuse me?" (with my look). I hear nurses, patients, young children etc. saying these words like they are the most important words, and the only ones within the English language available to use. See told you I was old ?