RNbubu

Instead of “how did the patient do last night?” Ask a specific question, maybe a question about something that you are concerned about or that you need to understand better. That will show the nurse that you did do your research on the patient before showing up. ICU nurses have a lot of knowledge, use them as a resource. Also, try asking the nurse: what in particular are you concerned about? And: what do you think this patient needs next? Also, know that when you show up in the morning, very likely another medical student or an intern or a resident have already stopped by and asked the nurse the same questions. The night shift nurse might be busy trying to finish tasks or charting, or the day shift nurse might be busy getting report and doing an initial assessment. Be respectful if they look busy. Oh, and introduce yourself. Who are you, what’s your position, what team you are working with. That way I can answer your questions more appropriately.

Give it more time.

I’ve taken both and there’s a lot of similarities. If you know CCRN stuff you will definitely pass PCCN. CCRN includes all that was tested in PCCN plus titratable drips, vents, ICP monitoring, invasive hemodynamic monitoring. PCCN was easier in my opinion. Do the option that will pay you more definitely!

Northern California (not Bay Area though). $70/hour. Other hospitals in the area pay up to $90/hour for same level of experience but don’t have the same benefits.

Yes you have been calling in sick too much.

I live and work in Sacramento. I make roughly $63-66/hour depending the shift differencial I'm making that day. Just bought a 1600sq ft home for $375K. If you have money for the down payment you can do it. I am a single mom and was able to do it. But as others have said, prices and wages vary a lot. California is a big state. another important factor to consider: taxes are really high around here. Plus, depending on where you live you have to pay extra real estate taxes (Mello roos) which aren't common in other areas. We Get paid well but pretty much 50% goes to taxes.

It seems to me you don't have a good understanding about the roles of an RN. You need to know all of this. Knowing pathophysiology is a must. Knowing how to do nursing skills is only one part of the job. Everyday physicians are asking for my input when developing the plan of care. I always ask myself, why are they ordering this (whether it is med, a new treatment, or a diagnostic lab) and is this appropriate for my patient. And countless times I questioned orders that were inappropriate. Countless times I also questioned orders and the MDs helped me understand the reasoning behind it. It is a partnership between nurses, MDs, RTs, PTs, and everyone else. The more you know the better - better outcomes for your patient too.

I'm so jealous to hear a lot of people get to pick the days they work! I have to work whenever they tell me I do get my schedule at least 2 weeks in advance but I never know which days I will work.

Transfer to a different unit before you decide giving up on being a bedside RN.

invest your time in becoming an RN. Don't think only about the next 3 years, think long term, it will be well worth it.

In my unit, new grads get 12 weeks of orientation and nurses with experience in med-surg or tele transferring to ICU get 6 weeks. 14 weeks seems a reasonable amount of time. With that being said... try and do your best not to leave so soon. It will be hard to explain in need interview why you left after only 3 months and before being even out of orientation. It will look like you are blaming others.

Wow that is a lot of studying. Good for you for the effort, it paid off. I took my NCLEX years ago. I did no studying the weeks before the test, passed with 75 questions too. I feel we all know the information - we all spent at least 2 years in nursing school learning. It is good to know what works for you individially. But remember that what works for one doesn't necessarily work for another.

Why the patient is here; what has happened so far; what is the plan. Then important orders or things that need to be clarified. And any significant assessment findings. Then I answer any questions they might have and I do refer them to the pt's chart. I myself arrive early so I can check my pt's chart and be prepared when I get report. I appreciate when the oncoming nurses do the same so we can focus on the important things. I had 12 hours to learn all about this patient and so will the oncoming nurse. During hand off I want to focus on what is most important. We need to get/give report on multiple patients. Finally: it is super normal to feel the way you feel. It will get better.

Yes it is doable. As long as you have some flexibility with your work schedule because you won't have with your nursing classes and clinical s. They will pick the days/times you need to be in the classroom and hospital and you need to work out everything else around it.

Nursing management that needs to be implemented: ask for a CBC, a lactic acid, BMP. Those are important pieces to the puzzle that will help figure out what is going on, otherwise you are pretty much just guessing around. Do something about that low BP and address the low UO quick (and yes, always check for kinks on the foley first, you'd be surprised;also: Do a bladder scan to determine whether the pt is not producing urine or if it is the foley that is not draining. besides a kink in the foley, another thing that could happen is a blood clot occluding the foley - who knows if there's any bleeding in the bladder, specially considering it was a hysterectomy). I'd be on the phone asking for orders and implementing them as quickly as possible.

I get interrupted all the time where I work (tele floor). Interrupted by charge nurse, manager, Mds, secretary, my pt's roommate. Sometimes there are 3 people wanting to talk to me at the same time, all while I am in the middle of doing a task. It is one of the things that frustrates me the most. It seems to to be the norm where I work. Nobody thinks it is a big deal but me. We carry these awful pagers that people use to reach us and that serve kind of like a phone. Sometimes I am with a patient and a case manager or an MD or pharmacy or even a co-worker nurse calls me - you pretty much can't choose to not answer it because it connects to you automatically - and they start talking about whatever it is, they don't even ask if you are busy or not. Sometimes I am with a patient and the charge nurse is calling me to say my New admit is here, or what time I am discharging the other patient because they need the bed. The MD calls you to ask a question about a different patient. So many interruptions. So frustrating. I usually say, I am with a patient and can't talk now. Still, that was an interruption.

I applied mostly because I feel stagnated in My current position. I am thinking of all the learning I will get in the ICU. and also about more doors possibly open if I have that experience in my resume. Thank you everyone for your input!

Yes it is hard. And so is an RN job. And yes both are very physical. If you already have back problems it might be tougher for you.

So hard to get it! And as someone already said, the application is really long. I put in a lot of time into it. My debt to income ratio is high. I have worked on a qualified site for over 3 years. Every year I try and never got it. The closest I got was an "alternate" in case someone decided last min they wouldn't want the commitment. They have really detailed instructions online on how to fill out the application and there is also a number you can call to clarify any questions. Good luck!

I have just been offered a position in a medical ICU. I have worked for 3 years on a tele unit. For those of you who have worked in ICUs after working med-surg/tele: did you like it? why I am hesitant: I will be giving up a day shift position with a set schedule for a night shift position with unpredictable schedule. 3 nights 7pm-7am but it could be any day of the week. I feel it is time to make a move after working 3 years on my current position. So when I was approached about this position I thought it would be no harm in interviewing. But now that they have officially offered me the position I can't avoid the thought "what if I hate working in an ICU and gave up my good day shift schedule ..." please tell me your experiences if you have worked in ICUs. Thank you!

Wow I loved the comment from Been there, done thst above. Right on point and exactly what I was going to say. No job or money is worth taking the time away from being a mom. Kids do grow way too fast. I would choose the position that would give me balance and ability to spend quality time with my kids. With that being sad, my experience working nights was that I had to arrange for child care for 14 hours at night, then I would come home and sleep during the day so I could work that night again, or If I had the night off I would try and stay awake like a zombie. Now that I work days childcare is mich easier and cheaper to find and I am actually awake and available to my kids on my days off. I am a single parent though, things might be different for those who have a spouse since many that I know favor night shift to work opposite hours from the spouse. As someone else said it is a personal decision. Too many variables, what is needed or important to one person is not the same for another person. Best wishes.

Keep your job. Get a per diem job to work on a hospital floor on weekends and/or holidays when you are off. That will give you your hospital "fix". Usually per diem positions only require a minimim of 4 shifts a month.

If ypu decide to pursue this, go straight for the RN program. With that being said: I do not see how you can keep your current job and do all classes and clinicals. At least my nursing program was not flexible at all. They told us what times/days the classes and clinicals were and you had to be there. If we wanted to work we had to find jobs that would work around our classes/clinicals. Not to mention the time you spend stydying and doing preps/care plans for clinicals. I agree with somone who said, be aware of the duties of a nurse and research the job market where you live. I graduated from nursing school at 38. My oldest classmate graduated at 54 and got the job of his dreams at a very busy ER. Good luck.

It took me 8 months after graduation to get a job. I hear you... The most stressful months ever. Single mother unemployed and student loan bills starting to come and no job. I have been employed now for 2 years and every single day I say a prayer beig thankful for this job. I probably would not be so thankful had I not struggled for those 8 months. You will get a job, keep applying and in the meantime be ready to interview. In 8 months I got offered only 2 interviews. I was terrible in the first one. When I got a call for my second interview, I was so much more prepared. I had practiced mock interviews, knew everything about the hospital and unit. Do not give up.

Wow and I complain of my 3-patient assignment... 8 patients is insane even more when some are not doing so well. I would have gone home crying too.