stoli914

Thanks for the response however after 6 years as an army medic, 5 years as a paramedic and 8 years total in the ER I understand I'm a "newish grad" in some eyes as an RN but I've been in this environment for quite a while. I was planning on waiting at least a year. I was not looking for sympathy, I wanted an answer from others who have made the switch, not snark. I'm guessing you looked at prior posts of mine when I was stuck trying to take my NCLEX after finishing school but dont mistake RN education for lack of experience and knowledge. I not only understand most of what you mentioned but also had to make the call on my own when I wasnt an RN. I can anticipate orders and confidently make suggestions countering a doc. I started in the ER because I was already working in the same ER and it was an easy transition.

I'm not sure if this is the right forum. Here is my background I'm an experienced ER nurse with my CEN. Recently (in September) I moved from my small level 2 hospital to a well known level 1. I was thinking I needed a change due to boredom and a level 1 would give me the learning and experience I was thinking I needed. Now while I'm becoming comfortable there I'm still not feeling satisfied. Granted all the critical medical and trauma patients go to the bay which I cant apply for until I hit 6 months. Good policy but not what I was expecting. So I'm babysitting psych and low level 2s and 3s which makes for an easy day but adding to my current burnout. I'm really interested in pursuing another speciality specifically OR/perioperative nursing. I've come to find I like critical cardiac and would be interested in CVOR in the future. My faculty is an LVAD and high risk cardiac surgery facility. How soon would it be appropriate to apply to an OR position since I've only been with the ER for 3 months? I don't want to burn any bridges and I want to stay with my current hospital for the benefits. Thanks for the advice!

Hello, I don't know if I'm posting in the right place but here goes. I am stuck in limbo with a crappy situation. I looked at other topics and nothing really matched my problem so I'm hoping for the best here. Sorry it's a long story... I am not an RN yet. However I completed an accelerated BSN at George Washington University as a military veteran. I am also a nationally registered paramedic which is why GW was appealing because I could do an accelerated program as a vet with medical experience and no prior bachelors. I had my GI Bill for 2 semesters and my husband was going to sign over his for the last 2. We called and verified it would be ok before I started the program and as far as we knew it wouldn't be a problem. Apparently it wasn't ok as I found out after I had enrolled in my last semester the VA hasn't paid the prior semester and wouldn't be paying my last either. I tried appealing but me againat the government after the election wasnt happening. At this point I missed the drop deadline without financial penalty and my FAFSA had paid out. I pleaded with the school to set up a payment plan but they refused telling me I missed the deadline for their 3rd party company and they no longer accepted plans with students because "they don't work". I was also not forced to drop. I reached out to as many head ups as I could with no luck. I also reached out to various hospitals in the area to see if they could help me in exchange for a contract and again no luck. I worked full time as a paramedic in a trauma center the entire program and even my hospital wouldn't help me. I also applied for about 10 different private loans and was denied for all of them as I have no cosigner. There were no scholarships or grants to be had either as I also missed those deadlines at this point. Fast forward, I finished the program meeting all requirements to take the NCLEX with a 3.8 GPA. However GW is holding my degree and ATT for the NCLEX hostage in a sense until I pay the debt in full which I understand crappy as it may be. I have literally tried all I can think of to fix this. In March they sold my debt to a collection agency and added on about 35% interest. I called to try and negotiate a settlement however apparently GW still owns the debt so they won't allow me to pay any less and would only offer me a payment plan if I put 60% of 24k down which I do not have... Does anyone know of any resources or help out there for people in my situation who finished a program but are stuck for an issue like this? Again I'm an honorable discharged veteran who works in a hospital as a paramedic. I would move anywhere or work in any hospital at this point. I just want to take my NCLEX and transition to the career I worked so hard for.

Hello, I've been glued to this forum for the past couple of days trying to answer this myself so I apologize if I missed something. I am a current NREMT-Paramedic working as a tech in the ER and volunteering on an ambulance. However, my long term interest is midwife/FNP (totally unrelated I know). To start I understand getting into a LDRP type unit as a new grad will be very difficult. I have been trying to arrange shadowing opportunities at the hospital I work for and I am currently already ACLS, PALS and I do have some live birth assists under my belt :) Obviously I plan on obtaining a BSN in the more immediate future and working LDRP for a couple of years before trying to get into a CNM/FNP program. Now for my main question. My area has an ADN program. As I have a high school son, I promised him I would not apply to BSN programs until he graduated because the 2 in my area aren't really my cup of tea. I have 3 years left so I was wondering if it is still worth it to obtain the ADN then doing an RN to BSN program? Do I have any chance of getting a job while I wait to apply to BSN programs? Will having my RN help me get into a good well know BSN program (I have my eye on a few) Or is it just better to wait the 3 years and do a straight BSN program? On top of this do any current LDRP nurses or midwives have any advice of what units or experience I can use to seguay into that field? Is med-surge or ER nursing counted as experience to get hired? I could probably easily get an ER job which I would prefer to med surge but I'm willing to do whatever I need to get to the place I want. Would looking in doula work be of any benefit or more of a waste of time? Sorry for all the questions...I'm really looking forward to hearing from current nurses on recommendations based on what they see as trends now a days :) Thanks!