JRaphasRN

I went through this program and would not recommend it to anyone. In the past few years, several programs for nurses have begun. In contrast to the program from NIWH, these programs are full of cutting edge information as well as the basics. This could have been an awesome program but they are so fear-driven and centered on themselves instead of the students that it takes away from the program. Communication is very difficult and much of it is defensive and unprofessional. Questions are answered with non-answers, contradictions of previous statements, or blame. The videos used (at least when I went through) were full of valuable information, but they were very old which means some information was outdated. Two examples: ******'s lecture was from when he was still an Emergency Department physician. (He's now one of the world-leaders in functional medicine.) Some of the information presented in *****'s lecture has since been proven otherwise. Overall, I felt that NIWH was always looking out for themselves. They appeared to want what was best for the student only if it would result in a good review or accolades for NIWH. I'd look elsewhere for your education, certification, and support. There are many programs available now for nurses, there are several I would specifically recommend over NIWH.

Thank you for this list! I was just coming over to ask if there are any good Emergency Medicine podcasts that I'm missing out on.

Every time I've given an immunization I have had to log the expiration date, lot number, and manufacturer. There's a lot of documenting to go along with them. I would not be comfortable assuming anything and placing that assumption into a legal chart. Good luck reasoning with your DON!

Are you in the USA? If so, I believe the CMS indicators call for an EKG on STEMIs within 10 minutes of arrival. Most EDs make sure that happens by encouraging staff to get an EKG on all patients with chest pain within 6 minutes. CMS is very tied to reimbursement. I cannot believe your department manager hasn't implemented something like this yet. You mentioned that you surprised them in the interview by discussing this. Perhaps they were thrilled about your experience and are hoping you can help change triage. We just heard from our manager that CMS is going to officially start looking at door-to-doc times. You can make a huge change in your ED--exciting!

I have been looking into the right program for a couple months. I am 99% certain I will apply to start the NIWH program. I found everyone's comments very helpful. Thank you for sharing. WholeHealthBSN, I have a question. You mention that you have not yet (at the time of your posting) finished the program and yet, In what capacity are your partnering with the PT? Are you independent in their office or working under them? Since you are not a graduate of the NIWH program, you don't have an independent insurance number. (Tone is super hard to type; I am not accusatory at all, I am intrigued and trying to explore options of how I can quit my current job before I complete the year-long program.)