sorensic

Any update as to the consequences of the positive result?

Wow a lot of premature negativity in this thread. I'll start by giving you the benefit of the doubt and close with a positive message for you. Simple answer: All you need is a letter from your doctor stating that this is a prescription medication and you took it as indicated (even though the source was questionable). Option 1 (honesty): If you do not have an Rx it might be as simple as informing them that the medication does not need to be prescription in the country you came from. Then offer to retest after a reasonable period. Don't be surprised if they ask you which country and to prove that you were there recently. They are not so gullible and it is easy to verify which countries place alprazolam on a schedule versus which sell OTC. A quick cursory search online suggests some Asian countries such as Thailand and Pakistan do not. The more detailed answer suggest you may not be sharing the complete story: If you took this medication with you and consumed it in the U.S., however, you technically violated the law as it shouldn't have been brought into the country. When you pass customs you have to declare your medications and provide prescription. While a lot of people think they can get away with it, getting caught has grave consequences. Count this as a close call and familiarize yourself with the norms and expectations of nursing schools here and the laws regarding controlled medications. Since you aspire to be a nurse, this information will be useful for the rest of your career. Option 2 (preferred, better chances, still honest): Try to book an appointment with a primary care doctor, PMHNP, or Psychiatrist as soon as possible to get an Rx from them. Some PCPs might not be willing to do this without an expert consultation (e.g. a psychiatrist/NP). Share this with the school and this might allay some of their concerns and boost your chances. There should be some sort of reasonable follow-up from the school stating you failed your test and what recourse, if any, you have. Take advantage of whatever you can, but don't lie. It is resonable to expect you might not be admitted and might not be eligible to be admitted to this specific college in the future. If so, chalk this up to a learning experience, humble yourself, and try another university or college of nursing. A lapse in judgment like this will not doom your chances forever, but might just be a setback. Remember that for all grave mistakes that we make in life, we can choose to learn from them and turn them into something positive. If you've burned your bridges with one institution, you still have a great chance at another. The fact you were more-or-less admitted to Broward suggest you have what it takes to get admitted. Don't beat yourself up over it. Even if you made a grave mistake, I don't think it was intentional or egregious enough that the door to nursing should be closed to you. There is no permanent record that would prevent you from applying to another nursing program at a different institution. You will read stories of people failing drug tests for far worse and getting a one-time pass from their college. Sometimes this will require heightened scrutiny at the beginning of your studies. Hope for the best.

To follow up on Tricia, I am very interested what region you work. I'm actually living Canada and intend to go back to the U.S. because I cannot stand rotating shifts! Employers here in Canada cannot accommodate in many provinces because the union bargaining basically forces everyone to rotate. There are many staff who would prefer straight nights. No issues getting straight nights in the USA :-). If you don't live in Canada, the easy solution I have for you is to consider moving to an employer who can put you on straight days or nights. I know that is easier said than done if you have family ties and regional issues that prevent you from changing employers (e.g. rural vs urban). If you live in Canada, it sounds like you might need to focus on a specialty area that is not 24 hours in order to get on a solid stable day shift. Certain positions only have office hours Monday-Friday. Rotating shifts are terrible for one's health even without the medical conditions that you described. I don't have fibromyalgia but I do have chronic headaches and more mild concerns, yet I cannot possibly see myself surviving rotating shifts long term. As a last resort, you may be able to force your employer to accommodate you based on disability documentation, but this would likely need to be amassed over several months with years-long track records that implore the employer to accommodate you.

Hello, Short answer from my perspective: I didn't do the direct-entry MSN, but rather the post-BSN option. I also went to Saint Louis University for my 4-year BSN. As such I cannot really speak to how manageable the course load is. Since I already did all the BSN-RN related coursework, I only had to take the MSN-related curriculum. The MSN-related curriculum for SLU's CNL program allowed me to work full-time with a 2 year completion (I took classes during the first summer). Regardless I can assure you that SLU offers a high quality education for the region and is frequently highly rated. I'm sure you have already looked up other CNL programs and the pros and cons of direct entry Masters versus BSN. The faculty at SLU are generally nationally recognized in their areas of expertise, and you shouldn't be disappointed at all with any professional networking opportunities if you are interested in taking your nursing career beyond the bedside and to academia. You will absolutely graduate as an attractive RN candidate and will likely have a job offer near graduation. Many of the DE students I spoke with were lucky to have firm offers in desirable areas such as ER, ICU, and L&D. The DE CNL students get extra clinical time contributing to their RN hours and as such often have extra exposure to areas that mix academic critical thinking (think: Physiology, Fluid and Electrolyte balance) with direct patient care such as ICU. Long answer with nuances and personal biases: Other than a few courses that I took with NP students, I took classes with the direct entry students. The criticisms of direct-entry MSN-CNL programs can be seen here on AllNurses. I think some criticisms are unnecessarily negative, but overall the criticisms have merits. I can definitely think of some classroom discussions where the few experienced nurses rolled their eyes at some of the questions the DE MSN-CNL students asked since they had little-to-no bedside experience. It is also odd to see nursing students doing projects on masters-level clinical questions and liaising with teams of nurses at larger urban hospitals with very little experiential knowledge. The DE CNL programs could definitely be implemented better ? . Firstly with SLU, like most other direct entry CNLs, you are looking at a very expensive educational pathway to become an RN with 0 years of experience. Do not expect any management-related or leadership-related roles for at least 3-5 years to be fair to yourself. While you might hear stories about CNL-prepared graduates moving up the clinical ladder quickly (say 1-3 years), this is likely the exception and not the rule. As long as you enter nursing patient, humble, and don't come across as a brag, all of these great opportunities for advancement will fall into place if you want to go further with your MSN. Secondly, the CNL is not an APRN role. You should not expect extra money or compensation to show up early in your career. By pursing the MSN-CNL first, you will be equivalent (on paper) to an RN-BSN hire. You will likely start at the same wage and be treated the same. You will not get some magical formula applied as you gain seniority and raises -- they will be based either on your union wage scale (if union) or your performance evaluation/cost of living increases as deemed by the nonunion employer. For as long as you remain a staff nurse, you will be equal to all other staff nurses (Diploma-trained, ADN, BSN -- doesn't matter). Thirdly, some people with insecure personalities might be harder on you because they have an axe to grind. As I've been a nurse a bit more than 5 years now, I've experienced it firsthand. It's a shame that some nurses cannot be genuinely happy for others. I think this is really a commentary on others' insecurities. They hate the idea of having an equal who has a masters degree. Oh the stories I could tell you about. Lol at my most recent job a patient care coordinator thought I was "after her job" that she has been in for years just because I had a Masters. I had no interest in her job ? but you gotta love the gossip. You will find some nurses to judge you or look down on you for choosing to work at the bedside with a masters. Don't let this minority of toxic personalities phase you. Some will claim the CNL is pointless, but they don't understand that this role has sound theory with bright prospects in the long-term. The CNL is hard to define because it is a generalist masters focused on quality and patient safety. Here is an example: I choose to continue to work at the bedside because I am focused on my professional legacy and future. I'm not apt to leave bedside nursing due to frustrations and chase the money/prestige of a more senior position at the moment. In fact, some of my friends who have gone on to do management and DoN-related jobs regretted it and realized the that 60 to 80 hour workweeks make the extra cash not worth it (because the salary says you only work 40). I now have enough experience to enter a CNL-related role or a management-related role but I choose not to. The reason why is that I prefer to get a few more years experience working at different type of emergency departments (I've done smaller urban community ER and remote rural ER -- and now I'm finally going to a large 35-ish bed urban ER). It just so happens that, by definition, an experienced ER nurse should have 5-10 years experience in multiple departments before taking that next leap forwards if they want to be an efficacious future leader. I choose to work there a while, hopefully pursue increased responsibility (charge RN), and then decide from there how I want to use my advanced education. I don't expect any leadership-related positions to be handed to me. I have strongly considered being a university faculty member, but I think there is a huge difference between someone who entered academia shortly after being a staff RN versus someone who worked in multiple staff RN roles with career progression and then becomes an academic. I hope this nuance makes sense. One of the concepts I'm lamenting is that so many nurses these days are chasing higher education to get away from the bedside and this is worsening the beside for those of us who want to improve it. The great thing about already having my MSN is that I can pretty much choose where I want to go from here with my experience level and remaining in a staff RN position is entirely my choice. For example, as a SLU-MSN graduate, I can do a post-certificate NP program at any time. Since my MSN-CNL program included the 3P's, I can jump straight in to the clinical focus areas of the NP program. On a last note, the CNL is very poorly understood. It is intentionally generalist. There is a big debate about the CNL replacing the CNS which I don't want to get into, but generally speaking the CNS role is awesome but unfortunately dying out due to some stupid decisions hospitals made along with economic conditions in the 1990s to early 2000s. There really shouldn't be a rivalry between those educated in the CNS and CNL model. I fully support the CNS and wish it would be revitalized and restored to its proper function. In ideal hospital settings the CNL focuses on the microsystem and is frequently in contact with the CNS who focuses on the hospital or system at large. There are some hospital positions that are specifically for CNLs and line up with the White Paper well. This includes multiple positions at the Veterans Administration. However, generally speaking, you will find that a CNL who has 3-5 years clinical experience and good references can consider any of the following career paths: - For direct entry RNs who actually want to do APRN roles, the MSN-RN programs prepare you to enroll in any post-masters certificate program for any of the APRN roles. Criteria will vary by educational institution and some will require you already have an APRN to get the post-grad cert, so you will have to do due-diligence and research. - An actual CNL position (rare, but not unheard of) - Nursing leadership roles and nursing management roles [Even though the CNL is not made for nursing management, your MSN would make you attractive if you want to go down the management route as there is a lot of overlap in theory] - University and college instruction (clinical or theory) - Most types of clinical educators (e.g. Diabetic educator, Staff educator) - Most types of clinical coordinators (e.g. Stroke Coordinator) - Clinical research (e.g. pharmaceutical industry or university) There's way more than this, but I think it is great to enter nursing with the MSN behind your belt for sure, and negative people shouldn't persuade you away from the CNL. However, if you are financing it, it sure is an expensive way to enter nursing!

Thanks for all the info. I ultimately decided to go staff in a heavily unionized west coast region since the hourly rate was basically the same as the travel rate once you considered all the benefits included.

Swellz and Hiddencat make very good points. I don't want to discourage you because only you can know what is best for you. The difference between academic centers and smaller community EDs can be quite shocking. They are completely different types of ER nursing. At 1 year of ER experience, I would say you are just beginning to become proficient at your own hospital's work environment, and you are just entering the "real learning" phase in ER where you start to learn what you don't know. I remember year 2 to 3 of ER nursing was my largest area of growth. Entering year 3, I can really step back and analyze the big picture. I started to study for the CEN exam this year. There is also a lot to be said of the experience of working in both a large academic ER (level 1/2 trauma) versus a rural or small community hospital ER. The learning curve between the two can be dramatic enough for a regular full time nurse nurse who commits to working in one for at least a year and then transitions to the other for at least a year. Depending on what environment you work in, the challenges are just different. I just worked in Canada in a rural ED after working in a larger hospital in the US and we did not have any respiratory therapists to help us. Imagine jumping right in and being expected to manage your holds/admits who are ventilated with no RT and still churning through all of the triage level 4 and 5 patients who are not critical-- with a ratio of 1 nurse to 6 patients. I highly recommend taking the Certified Emergency Nurse (CEN) exam prior to doing an agency assignment as it will solidify where your knowledge gaps are. It will also be a way to shout out to hospitals that you take your specialty seriously despite your lack of experience.

Definitely had nothing to do with working in a level 1 trauma center. I worked in a small ER for my first ER job and nothing more when approved without requirement for OSCE. I think that U.S.-educated RNs are generally well received with minimal hassle. After following up and reading some posts, I think that ADN-prepared nurses who did online programs to bridge should be less concerned now. I still feel NNAS is an unnecessary layer of bureaucratic mess considering how similar the practice is in the US and Canada. I had minimal culture shock adjusting to the Canadian system. About the only thing that was a huge shock was that for the rural area in which I worked, there was no respiratory therapy so we had to run the vents/BiPAP/give nebs in the ER setting and transition care over to ICU without any respiratory therapist to help.

Hello, This is a two part question: 1.) I had a question about housing for someone who is itinerant. I was planning on taking an assignment and also moving to the area where the assignment is taken and then taking subsequent assignments after completing the 13-week assignment in the new home. I would be establishing a tax home in a zero income tax state afterward. I hope this makes sense. I'll make up an example scenario to maintain anonymity. Let's say I'm moving from Vermont to take an agency assignment in Texas with the intent of moving from Vermont to Texas permanently. While on my initial assignment in Texas, where I am both moving to and completing an assignment, I would be itinerant during those 13 weeks. Upon completing my assignment in Texas, I plan to keep my tax home there and take subsequent assignments in California. At that point I would no longer be itinerant as my tax home and primary residence (mailing address, drivers license, etc.) would be established in Texas. Would that make sense and is that doable? 2.) Now I have another question about what makes most economic sense to avoid high moving expenses. I have no intention to defraud the IRS, so I am completely okay with paying full taxes on the income I make given that I would technically be itinerant when moving to the area where I take the agency assignment. My question is, are there situations wherein you could extend the lease at the agency-provided housing to make it a permanent home? I have not travelled as an agency nurse yet so that is why I'm seeking clarification from someone more experienced. My thoughts are that rather than signing on a 12-month lease with only a 13-week assignment (I could see why some landlords would be weary), that I could simply take the agency-provided housing and then extend beyond the 3-months once moved in.... but I'm not quite sure if these short-term housing stock require people to leave after 3 months. Thanks for any help and advice you have!

To address your concerns: 1.) I am honestly not at all sure how they will assess you in light of having an accelerated BSN. My hope is that they do not give you any issues. There are regulatory assessment frameworks that might work against you. I hope they simply assess you as equivalent to a 4 year bachelor degree in nursing. 2.) Work requirement --- I'm not sure (or I don't recall) what the hours/years required are. I would assume they want 1 year of full time work experience in the last 5 years, or a minimum of 1400 or so. My 1400 hours comment comes from my experience getting a job offer in BC. The BC nurses union seems to require about 1400 hours of work per step on their union contract. This is just a rough estimate and I'm not sure exactly what CRNBC requires. Unlike the US, nearly all jobs in BC (at least through a health authority) are union jobs. They have a pay grid that is public knowledge. Less nepotism is always a good thing. I've always thought nurses should be paid based on years experience and education instead of whose cousin is the health administrator at XYZ for-profit hospital. I'm sure 2800 hours is more than enough. If you had problems vouching for blood bank experience, I'm sure they'd only need your L&D certification of hours from your current/past employer. They will still recommend that you get ALL hours certified to help maximize your chance for success. 3.) I have heard from some other nurses, that CRNBC seems to treat U.S. educated nurses as if they were from another province (assuming they're done with the NNAS part). I don't think it matters what specialty area you worked. I think they will likely deem you equivalent assuming you are assessed satisfactorily as addressed in part 1.) This is good news, as many new nurses have to take what they can get (e.g. nursing home only, private duty only, etc.) ---- Note for American nurses wanting to go to BC ---- If you are coming to BC, I specifically recommend HealthMatch BC to help with placement. They will not be able to help you until after you get registration in BC. After such time, if you are a U.S. citizen, assuming The Orange Great One does not do away with NAFTA, you can basically move to BC with a work offer via NAFTA and then upon arriving in Canada, they can sponsor you for permanent residency. This is much quicker and way cheaper than going through the express entry system, but it only works for NAFTA eligible nurses. HealthMatch helped me get job interviews in remote areas and they were willing to hire after Skype interviews and phone interviews. Northern Health specifically uses a 3rd party reference check service called BackCheck and they will do a GlobeX check on your international criminal history. They will check your USA references, past employers, etc. it's very streamlined and international hire friendly. I just accepted a position with Northern Health and I will be going to BC as soon as I graduate my MSN program in May! One really interesting thing about BC is that their ER nurses are expected to get a certificate in emergency post-graduation. So, while I'm waiting to arrive in BC, I took a formal 2 credit-hour ECG course which including topics such as troubleshooting pacemakers. They then have 3 ER theory course (1, 2, and 3) and two ER clinical courses. For experienced ER nurses like myself (at 2+ years now), they let me test out of the ECG class by scoring 80%+. The ECG cousre went above and beyond ACLS and asked some detailed free-response questions (e.g. implications on cardiac output, atrial kick, ventricular filling time, etc.). They also went into the pharmacology in quite a bit of detail, e.g. how does atropine affect ion channels. I loved it because it solidified what I already knew to the point I can basically be an ER nurse educator. They will also allow me to test out of Theory 2 and I can do a portfolio assessment for ER Clinical 1. I am taking the full version of ER Theory 1 because it goes over the Canadian assessment framework CTAS, and some differences, so they thought that would be in my best interest. CTAS is similar but not equal to ESI in the states. ER Theory 2 seems more pathophys/system heavy and will likely be review. I think ER Theory 3 is more akin to an advanced TNCC. The program is through British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT). I'm very impressed that Canada has such higher standards for their critical care nurses. It's almost like a formal CEN and CCRN (they have a critical care specialty that you combine with the ER cert.) More here for any interested people (this will make it much easier for you to get a job offer if you are interested in ER or ICU): 400 Bad Request

Hello, I decided to make this post to share my unique experiences with NNAS and CRNBC as an U.S.-educated RN who recently passed assessment for licensure in BC. I did not have to to an SEC or OSCE. I was granted my BC Canadian license rather seamlessly. The most time consuming and annoying aspect of all of this was NNAS. I do agree with some of the posts that others have shared that the NNAS could potentially be doing a disservice to certain areas of need for IENs in Canada by putting up unnecessary hurdles. Here is my bio: U.S. license granted: July 2013 - No criminal history - No investigations or infractions on my license (clean record and history of practice) 1.5 years of rehabilitation ("after the hospital" aspect of nursing home, respite, and a limited amount of in-nursing-home hospice) 1.5 years of pediatric home care (picked up part time) 3 months of psychiatric nursing 1.5 years of emergency room / ED nursing Certs: BLS PALS ACLS TNCC (Emergency Nurses Association) - Also recognized in Canada Once you get to the final step in CRNBC's assessment, your employer is allowed to make positive or negative remarks about you, your current job, and your performance. It is entirely free-reign and the types of remarks your employers/HR department make (or don't make) will likely be governed by your own institution's HR policies. Luckily my employers have been friendly and helpful (although in one I had to get a corporate HR member involved, because the other institution was dragging their feet), so I anticipate my remarks were either positive or blank. No worries if you were "between jobs" and one or a few did not work out for you. CRNBC does not require you to list jobs you have held for less than 3 months and you can always call them with concerns regarding waiving required paperwork from a past employer. However, you will not receive any credit towards your assessment if you don't have the forms completed. You might as well have a long employment gap without them. STEP 1 - NNAS The National Nursing Assessment Service (NNAS) is new, started in 2014 and is -------- a big mess in its current iteration. Each time they receive a document, it takes roughly 2-4 months for their systems to reflect they have actually received it. I started my application in August 2014 and did not rush through the process. Hence, even though I only recent obtained my registration, I probably could have gotten passed the competency assessment within 1 calendar year if I had sent all proper documentation immediately. A big factor in your assessment depends on your current and former employers' HR departments and whether or not they are competent and timely with submissions. If the HR person sends the wrong document, or sends it incorrectly, that alone can delay your competency assessment by a few weeks to a few months. The same goes for you. If you do not have your forms notarized properly, you could inadvertently delay your application by several weeks or months -- ditto if you send documents but they are missing components. Another time-dependent and potentially lengthy process: - 1.) Your university / school of nursing --- You'll have to trust them to not mess up when sending your past proof of completed coursework and clinical work. --- I got very lucky here because my University is used to dealing with international licensing on a regular basis. They are a relatively large university and used to offer a dual certification at their Madrid, Spain campus. Unfortunately the dual certification option in international nursing is not offered anymore, but students may still complete part of their RN education in Spain, and finish in the States. I highly recommend this route if your life and financial circumstances allow it. This is a one-of-a-kind innovative curriculum in the U.S. - 2.) Your professional licenses. --- If you have licenses in many states this can be lengthy and costly. You will likely have to pay a fee to each state in which you hold a nursing license so that you can prove to CRNBC that you don't have negative actions against your license in any state. This includes inactive licenses you may have held in the past (you must still prove you held an RN license there). This could be even lengthier and costlier if you have already practiced in more than one country. For example, imagine you are an RN in the US who has worked in NY, CA, and Sydney Australia. You will have to have international correspondence to prove your license history and satisfactory license history for Australia as well. The competency assessment is silly. My assessor was an American based in Philadelphia, who ended up contacting me by email and stated my school didn't send out all of my course syllabi to him. The reality of the situation is that they did. But apparently they didn't send out some graduate-level coursework that I had completed (Advanced Patho, Family Development). I still had to send those out anyway as it couldn't hurt my assessment. [probably wasn't necessary though] Like many other U.S. nurses have reported, my 4 year BSN brick-and-mortar university (Saint Louis University) which is a pretty established and reputable school in the Midwest. The assessors are not nurses, nor are they members of licensing bodies. They are basically employees paid to go through your undergraduate degree program's information (e.g. syllabi, competencies, clinical hours) and see if they match nearly verbatum to a Canadian syllabus. For an American nurse, the competency assessment is pointless. I was given "not comparable" with less than 50% comparability. Out of all potential U.S.-licensed nurses, I should be the "poster child" of a U.S.-educated nurse deemed equivalently educated. If you went to university in the U.S. assume you will be deemed "not comparable" and move on. You still have a high chance of being accepted. Now for the hope.......... Even though NNAS thought my school didn't prepare me for the rigors of Canadian nursing, CRNBC did not agree with NNAS. :-) STEP 2 - CRNBC Regardless of your "not comparable" foreign education, you are then free to apply to the provincial Colleges of Nursing (in my case CRNBC). The provinces have full autonomy and authority for making such determinations The folks at CRNBC were very professional, very fast to respond, and I cannot emphasize enough how wonderful my process was once I got past NNAS. Any time I had a question or concern it was easy to get transferred to the appropriate person, and the one instance where a representative did not answer, I left him a message and he returned my call just 10 minutes later, suggesting they are indeed on top of things and follow up as soon as they can. Paperwork was usually processed on the same day it was received and emails were replied to either the same day or within 1 business day. If you are not having a good experience with NNAS, please remember CRNBC has nothing to do with the NNAS process. Also, I emphasize that you must respect CRNBC's mandate to protect the public. I was more than willing to travel and do an in-person assessment and/or exam if necessary (though I did dread having to buy the airfare and pay the fees). I felt the exam would have been superfluous but I am studying nursing education at the graduate level, so it honestly would have been a fun field trip for me (other than the cost!!!). My education included semesters abroad in Spain through part of an international nursing program. I studied abroad in Madrid, learned a decent amount of Spanish (and also French!) as I lived with a bilingual French-speaking host family. I spoke with an assessor by phone with some inquiries and fears about having to fly out to Vancouver and pay $$$ for an OSCE/SEC. The assessor could not answer personal questions as per policy, but assured me that CRNBC looks at the entire profile of the candidate. They will consider: - Practice setting (varied use of skills?, recent skills?, does the country in which you practice focus on strong communication, assessment and critical thinking rather than simply 'tasks'?) - Amount of experience in terms of hours within the past 5 years - Did you write the NCLEX (IEN will have to write the NCLEX unless coming from a country that already used the NCLEX-RN e.g. USA) - Concerns about English and/or French proficiency and whether or not you are deemed competent to understand the laws and regulations governing nursing practice in BC - You might have to take the IELTS exam to prove English fluency or the TEF for French - Remember that even though BC is an English-speaking area in Canada, many governmental positions including in nursing will highly desire a French speaker as French is an official language of all of Canada; thus French can supplement English for official purposes even though it is highly advisable a nurse can speak English at B2/C1 level or higher - The assessor hinted that for-profit and online BSN programs are likely not held in high esteem (I cannot prove this assertion, but I kind of got a nod) - If you hold an ADN or diploma degree and later completed an online ADN-to-BSN or Diploma-to-BSN program, your mileage will likely vary (you will probably have to do an in-person assessment of skills [OSCE/SEC] *I do not want to instill doubts in people's minds. If you are a recently licensed RN in Canada who went the ADN-to-BSN or Diploma-to-BSN route, including online or for-profit please share your experience and help others. I personally believe that there is nothing inherently wrong with for-profit schools as long as the students meet the necessary competencies and try to gain as much as they can from their experiences. Every employer for whom you have worked in the past five years must complete a form indicating that you were indeed employed as a Registered Nurse and how many hours per year you worked. Make sure that you communicate this to your employers / HR departments clearly. For example, I was employed as a graduate nurse in June 2013; these hours did not help in my assessment. Once I got my license in July 2013, the hours did count toward my assessment. Luckily I have been a nurse for more than 3 years, so this lack of one month was not too consequential for me. I am fully convinced that if I were not working in the ER I may have been required to come and do a OSCE/SEC. There is no way to verify for that for certain, but that is the general impression I had. If you are a nurse who works in a highly specialized area of nursing, I suggest that you review physical health assessment and areas of weakness. For example, if you are an experienced geriatric nurse, you might need a refresher on OB assessment and intrapartum. If you are a pediatric nurse, you might need a refresher on assessment and expected laboratory findings in an acute-care geriatric patient presenting with respiratory distress (e.g. A-fib vs CHF vs Pneumonia vs PE signs and symptoms). I am curious as to how nurses who have practiced exclusively in psychiatric nursing are assessed, as BC has a separate RPN certification. The Canadian RPN does indeed include medical aspects of basic nursing care. If you have questions or concerns, I might be able to help clarify some concerns or alleviate some anxieties -- but remember.... I only have experience with NNAS and CRNBC from a U.S.-educated nurse's point of view.

Hello, I was just readmitted to the Psych NP program in fall 2016. I started in Fall of 2013 and took just Adv. Patho and Family development. I was admitted directly after graduating a BSN program. I wanted more varied nursing experience and had some personal family issues with disabled spouse and withdrew in good standing, so they let me back in. I also have several colleagues who either graduated or are currently studying at either SLU or Maryville, so I can help you out. I don't post on these forums much, let me know if you can PM / share your contact info.

Hello all, Similarly to many stories shared here, I was offered a position at St. Alexius in Bismarck (they are finishing up the background check -- I don't anticipate any issues). I'll introduce myself a bit in hopes I find other transplants and friendly locals at St. A's. The initial isolation of being transplanted means I will need to make effort to find friends, as I am generally introverted, though nice and friendly. I am open to friends of all age groups, races, ethnicity, etc. I would love to practice and improve my Spanish, as I studied abroad in Spain. I speak it well enough but I'm not fluent yet. When I was in undergrad, I was interested in elder care and psych. My first job was at a SNF/LTC but my floor was comprised of people who were just discharged from the hospital (post-acute care). This would be similar to the TCU at St. A's. I had a mix of ortho, post CHF exacerbation, COPD, and complex situations like post op bowel resection for cancer, Alzheimers, and various other comorbidities. I also occasionally had hospice patients. I was lucky to accept a position in a state psych facility about a year and a half afterwards, but I found out psych really wasn't for me and I felt like I would lose my skills. Like many new(er) grads, my area is saturated with nurses and despite my best efforts I usually got automatic rejections for hospital positions. Sometimes I would get to the second, third, or "shadow" interview, but rarely. I realize from talking to others that this is simply the way things are here as they get 10's or even 100's of applications to nursing positions. Even the positions that are new-grad friendly often get applications from experienced med-surg nurses. For now, I am working in private duty nursing (a wonderful break from forensic psych). But again I am feeling the urge to get that acute care experience. I am very grateful that St. A is giving me a chance and I empathize with their geographic/logistical issue. Thus I promise to stay with them a bit over a year because I want to make sure they get a return on their investment since they are giving me a chance without meeting me in person. Based on my interactions so far, I have no reason to doubt the validity of the information others have shared with me (Pay, benefits, adequate training, professionalism of staff, etc.). I am very concerned with finding adequate housing, preferably within the Bismarck city limits and close to the hospital. I do have a car however and I am okay with a commute as long as it is less than or equal to about 30 minutes. Unfortunately due to my situation with my spouse, I am probably not a good candidate for a roommate. We are both night-owls (wake up evening and stay awake all night... even on nights off), and light sleepers which means that any roommate who functions even a little bit on days would not be suitable. Unfortunately from almost everything I see---- rents for a not-so-special 1 BR are about $800-900 per month. Also due to the unpredictability of things, I would prefer a monthly contract or no longer than a 6 month lease. While I like to give full faith to St. A's and myself, I do realize there is a 3 month probationary period (standard at most jobs) and the possibility of being let go due to unforeseen circumstances. Does any local or similar transplant to Bismarck know of any word-of-mouth rentals closer to the $600-700 range? The cheaper the better. I am okay with a sketchy part of town because the city I live in has a high crime rate, so anything considered "ghetto" by ND standards would probably make me laugh. I don't require anything fancy, so a trashy efficiency apartment is fine by me as long as the heat works and I am not breathing in asbestos. While I will not share the wage because I have 2 years of experience, I will state that the wages and differentials quoted here are in-line and consistent with what everyone else had said. While this wage is certainly fair, the issue in North Dakota is that rental prices are about $200-400 more expensive per month than the large Midwestern city that I currently live in! Craziness. I have lived in Europe and in Boston in the past, so, luckily the cost of living expense is not as damaging to my psyche. In Boston $1200-1500 would get you a small studio in some parts... but the wages were also higher (perhaps not enough to make up for it though). While speaking with the hiring manager of my floor the topic of the oil boom came up and, generally, due to recent gas prices, it seems things are beginning to stabilize in North Dakota (at least for now). I am sure that if oil prices go back to the $3-5 per gallon mark, that the ND boom will come back in full force. It seems the trend in the state is that rent is not as ridiculous as it was in 2012-2013 ish; I'm sure a local/transplant can enlighten me.