keener

I'm an RN in Cincinnati and have been tentatively offered a position at the VA. I don't know any RNs who work at the VA and wonder what it's like there. Anyone care to share? Thanks!

I'm happy that our hospital has decided not to allow visitors. that went through about 2 weeks ago.

mixed ICU in OH. hospital wisely ramping up staffing. one extremely ill covid+ patient, 6 other rule outs just in my unit. testing protocol is not adequate since mostly testing extremely ill patients with recent travel and NOT for community exposure. (not hospital's fault, it's ODH recommendation to ration tests). testing is taking a long time (5-6d). hospital is working with dept of health to get faster tests. VERY low on PPE. surgical masks, plastic face shields and 95s are being rationed. CAPRs and PAPRs are also very scarce. We are being asked to reuse PPE (even gowns). I am concerned that we will all get sick, especially respiratory therapists because their staffing numbers are already low.

i work in a mixed ICU, i'm 28wks with twins and have NO intention of staying at work up until the end. i'm already pretty dang miserable and not able to do my job as well because of physical issues. my co-workers are supportive and helpful, but we are severely short staffed and regularly tripled with sick ICU patients. there's very little help turning and cleaning patients. I am going to try for another month of work and will NOT feel badly if i cannot make it. i have another child (a singleton) and this pregnancy is SO MUCH HARDER.

grngirl88: I attended Univ of Cinci for my accelerated BSN and I was very displeased. The BSN program was extremely disorganized and communication was exceptionally poor. The coursework did not include ANY pharm, except in our mental health nursing lecture. I could go on, but I'll spare you. While I'm sure the grad program is perfectly adequate, I never advise anyone to go to UC. I am about to start my last year (clinicals) at OSU. I've done it all online, part time. I think the coursework has been a bit heavy on "leadership", but overall program is coordinated, communication has been very good and I'm happy. I'm proud to attend OSU; you probably know their online grad program for MSN is very highly ranked. I have three bachelor's degrees, and this is my first master's...all with student loans so honestly, cost was not a consideration. when you have as much student loan debt as i do, it's going to take a lifetime to pay off anyway. I figured I'd go for the best. you should too!! OSU!

Thanks for the comments, everyone. I used to take Melatonin and it now makes me itchy--I can't take it anymore. I do have some nice herbal teas but they don't keep me asleep. I don't usually take medicine, so even trying Benadryl showed my desperation. I may have to try a prescription, because I cannot leave my position; I'm in a nurse residency program and have a 3 year agreement. If I leave prior to that, I owe the hospital 10 grand. I feel sick all of the time, and I never see my kid. It is horrible.

I'm a newer nurse working nights in the ICU. The team helps me out a great deal and makes me feel supported. I like the unit, and I'm learning a lot. I have no trouble staying awake at night during work. My issue is that I cannot sleep more than 3 hours during the day, and after a few nights, I am a complete mess. I can't stop crying and feel extremely emotional. I dread going to work not because of the work itself, but because of the loss of sleep. It takes a few nights of regular sleep to feel normal. I've talked to my manager; there are no day positions unless I want to leave my unit. (I don't!) I take magnesium regularly which helps a lot in general, but not with staying asleep. I have tried benadryl, but it did not help. I have a very dark room, white noise, and do not get interrupted. I just wake up and cannot get back to sleep after 3 hours. Any suggestions?

Nursey43 - go with OSU. you can PM me if you like!

They are one of the top 25(?) in the country, so I figured I could not go wrong! I love the women and children research center. Amazing. I am finishing an accelerated program but definitely don't want to complete my MSN with the same school. I'm ready to move on to something awesome!

nursey43, glad to hear that yours went well! I thought mine was pretty terrible, not having done anything like that before. Ah well. :) I haven't heard anything except that they will make decisions by mid-May. Keeping my fingers crossed!

I'm wondering if anyone has applied to OSU's MSN program and been invited to submit a video. I am guessing that they are looking for a video version of the goals statement; does anyone have any input on this issue? Thank you!