abittooreal

at least your environment isn't toxic. based on what the per diem nurses at my facility (who hold FT positions elsewhere) my hospital is about as ****** as it gets. we are understaffed, there is no sense of comradery, and there is a racial divide amongst us. i work in 1 of the most (if not THE MOST) competitive job markets in the US and we're consistently hiring NEW graduates. high turnover. i am a new graduate, also. i know exactly how you feel... it could be worse. shift by shift... after i gain some experience, i am going to get out of this hellhole.

well technically, you're not supposed to be working OFF the clock... if you're in early, you're already "LATE". with that being said, there are seasoned nurses on my staff that arrive 30 minutes early, and some leave 30-60 minutes late. we're understaffed, the patient acuity is high, and have NO CNA. 25% of our nurses are per/day nurses who started at our location ONLY to bail after obtaining that golden year of hospital experience. they tell me, if you make it here, you can work ANY hospital... sometimes, you just are not going to finish on time.

i would volunteer and shadow an Registered Nurse (RN) as opposed to being a CNA. there's a night and day difference between them.

subscribed...

congratulations

this could be said about the majority of allnurses. old or new members, this forum seems to be an outlet/medium to displace anger because of one own's ****** life circumstances. i been lurking here since 2008. ANYWAY. thanks OP.

THIS is solid advice.

try and absorb as much as you can. you will not learn everything in these 6 weeks. always ask questions and never assume anything. DO NOT rush through anything because you're behind. that's the quickest way to lose your licenses. don't sweat getting fired because of being "SLOW"/time management... there will ALWAYS be other jobs.

interesting... i am on orientation and at least half of the nurses stay after to finish. this is a med/surg 1:4/5 patient ratio. i keep reading this is a generous pt/nurse ration, though this happens frequently. even with the experienced nruses. from what i was told, somebody took legal action and sued the hospital over this and nothing changed. i can see how this happens in california because people are afraid to lose their jobs because the market is saturated here.

i would look somewhere else, IF your pay is not adjust. when i was looking for employment (los angeles) there were more ICU/ER jobs available than med/surg (even for new graduates). i was able to land an ER position, prior to my current one. you're supposed to get "speciality" pay for ER, also. they are REALLY stiffing you at 29/hr.

i hope things are going well for you... i was in the exact situation and requested a change. in addition, my preceptor left me ALONE with 2 unstable (about to code) patients (separate instances/days) and i had to call other nurses for help. i had to say something at this point.

were you not a cna/lvn (not exactly a new nurse) before your RN title? i work with a couple of people who transitioned through the ranks and received no orientation at all. i am also in california (los angeles) my friend got 3 months... go figure. but it's true about the job market here. i was lucky to land my position. OP, put your best foot forward. "i'll ask for extension" might land you in the unemployment line.

my hospital also gave me 6 weeks... my preceptor told me (30+ years experience) 6 weeks isn't enough time. it took her longer than 6 weeks, and the patient acuity in that time was lower. she's worked with almost everybody there and NOBODY was able to be 100% self operational in 6 weeks, including the director. is it possible ... yes. likely, not.

find a highly rated CONTENT book or review... get the lacharity book and do the questions. that is all you need. i'm not the brightest person in the world or a great test taker. i passed the NCLEX in 75 questions and thought it was fairly simple. only took it once, also. you do not need a strategy based book/review. the lacharity questions are enough practice. i never did any questions in nursing school or preparing for the nclex.

the only issue wrong with your equation is what i placed in bold. i have seen a combination of everything else.