sunshine539

hi all, I am planning on moving to PA from NJ. I thought liscence by endorsement would be an easy thing-but it is so much harder than i thought. I have everything submitted and approved EXCEPT for my NJ College Transcripts. When i first submitted on 1/14 ...i got a letter 1/30/19 that my transcripts somehow did not get sent. i contacted the college and they contacted me back saying the transcripts were mailed 2/1/19. okay great....2 weeks later i call the PA BON to ask if they have recieved them and all i got was a rude lady saying she wasnt able to tell me that and when they recieved them they would be "uploaded on PALS" I explained nicely that I understand that but i have paid the money and the only thing stopping me from my lisence of endorsement is my transcripts and i want to make sure so i do not need to contact the school again...and she just said itll be uploaded and it can take many weeks.....now come today and i get another letter from PA BON saying the same thing that they didnt get the transcripts yet but it does take "weeks" for them to sort the documents and upload it...... did anyone else have this isssue?? and what should i do? im scared to wait and what if they lost the transcripts in the mail or something?? should i have the school resend it. Frustrating because i have done everything i have needed to and right now i am waiting on my college sending the transcprits and PA BON recieving it...

hi all, I recently saw a job i may be interested in " LTSS Service Coordinator (field RN)" with Anthem subdivision of Amerigroup. wondering if anyone has worked with these companies and what this job entails or other information on the position you may have (salary, hours, etc)? Any information you have would be great. I am really interested into getting into case management and wondering if this would be a good way to do something similar? Thank you!

hi all, I have been doing a lot of "soul searching" and i feel case management would be a great fit for me. How do i go about landing a case management job?? They don't seem to exist when I look online. Any tips on how to find a case management job (looking in NJ if possible but not opposed to relocating).

what is it exactly you do? and yes. i think i need to get a handle on the anxiety. trying to figure out a way to get over it. but i think its I think i mean more to say im overwhelmed and stressed at this particular facility. but scared to leave because it is day shift. yes there are days that i feel like a do a good job but i just always feel like a chicken with my head cut off due to staffing ratios and patient acuity and management issues. And i realize all of a sudden maybe this isn't what i want to do. yeah i always thought it was but i am young. and its not too late for a second career. lke thinking of a second career makes my anxiety go away. Like i dont have to be this stressed out all the time because i feel overwhelmed that i cannot do the best job i want to do because i have too many critical patients, families that are over the top, and too many tasks on my plate. idk. maybe im making excuses. i havent decided what to quite do. Maybe ill investigate where i can work with nurses but not bedside? ANY OTHER SUGGESTIONS ON OTHER CAREER PATHS OR CAREER PATHS IN NURSING?

My whole life i wanted to become a nurse. I love caring for people and i loved being a nurses aide. But now...being in the RN profession for about 4-5 years now..I am starting to have second thoughts about this career choice. I just wanted to reach out and see if any of you lovely nurses have suggestions on a second career ot perhaps other specialties? Or should give nursing another chance? Ok now here is long story about me: young nurse. wentstraight into college got bsn and into the profession. I was an aidefor 3 years prior and loved it. I loved the time i got to spend withmy patients. And during all of this I thought id want to be an ICUnurse, I was always a straight A student and smart. (which ivelearned now means nothing). Liked the idea of only having 2-3patients.buttt I never quite go there. ---So i worked a year and a half on the same floor that I was an aide- RN night shift, tele floor. oh goodness. I was a good nurse but this was terrible. i am NOT a night person. and then i was bullied by a day nurse and i just sort of hit my wall. I was overwhelmed and stressed.. crying everyday on the way home. scared to come back to work for fear of being bullied by the nurse. And scared of shift report. ---So then,i found my out. found an office position and they told me after a few months id become an outpatient procedure nurse in that office.So so fast forward-finally after waiting and working in office for 1.5 years (NOT a few months) finally started the training for procedure nurse..Because i was in the office for almost a year my clinical skills were sort of rusty and i had a really hard time learning. I made a stupid mistakes and just the flow there was different and they were not that good at training. We had a new office manager and she just did not like me everything I did was wrong in her eyes and I questioned too much...so then then they told me that the position would be a "float" position (meaning id be in the office again) and eventually left because i was losing all of my clinical skills ----Next, Found myself at an long term acute care hospital (patients are very similar in acuity to a step down unit- many vented and PEGs) but i was able to go straight into days!! ok so now ive been here a little less than 2 years. Being on day shift is lovely. The doctors are there. More staff is there. The nurses are fabulous and nice. But the first few months were hard. i was overwhelmed all the time felt like a new grad all over(this place is crazy and we don't have the support staff you have in a regular hospital) and I cried a lot (my emotions always get the best of me) slowly now i don't get as overwhelmed and I was doing OK but lately my anxiety has been so bad. i.e. waking up in thr middle of the night "did i do that??" or did i give that medication right?? or should i have handled that differently? (we still do paper charting and paper MARs FYI) Im constantly running and feeling like I cant even think while im working. I always feel like im running around like a chicken with its head cut off and im just an emotional person my emotions get the best of me... and idk more and more im just wondering...maybe this isnt for me? maybe this whole dream i had isnt for me? so what else can i do with my BSN?! or do i give hospital nursing one more shot? i always wanted to do ICU feeling organized chaos is more my style. but idk i feel so dumb and overwhlemed on a LTACH unit...but thats a higher patient ratio? And I know ill have to go back to nights. I should just say the hell to the profession or what. Help!!

oh okay. that makes more sense . So what happens if im already in that tax bracket? do i still fill this out? its not like the second job is bumping me into the next tax bracket? and do i have to change my w-2 with my current employer for my full time job?

I don't think we have a payroll person for my facility. Anyone else?! Any idea how to fill this out??

Hi all, I just accepted a per diem job with a local hospital on top of my full time job (full time job 36 hours a week, per diem job will be about 4 shifts a month). Everythings great and dandy until i get to the dreaded W-4 on my per diem job employment documenation. Please help!!! so.. for line A ill write 1 because i am single with no dependents....but then i get to Line B it says write 1 if you are single with 1 job....do i write 1? is per diem considered another job? do i write 2? (if i write two-do i need to fix the w-4 at my current employer) and then i get to the bottom and it says complete all the work sheets that apply If you plan to itemize or claim adjustments to income and want to reduce your withholding, see the Deductions and Adjustments Worksheet. If you are single and have more than one job or are married and you and your spouse both work and the combined earnings from all jobs exceed$50,000 ($20,000 if married) see the Two-Earners/Multiple-Jobs Worksheet to avoid having too little tax withheld. If neither of the above situations applies, stop here and enter the number from line H on line 5 of Form W-4 below. ok so...id be single with more than one job..if for line B i write two....and my combined earnings will be >50,000 since my current job i make more than that already. so do i fill out this form? (and again...do i now need to go to my full time employer and fill out this form too?) but then the form asks how much my lowest paying job is....techncally i get paid less an hour at my full time job....or do i just estimate how much id get paid a year if i work 4 shifts a month at the per diem job? Oh someone please help. these dreaded w-4s confuse me so much and i dont want to do this wrong!!

oh no i was never going to leave it out of my resume. was going to perhaps not include the months of employment just the years. But i decided to include the months. I don't want to make it look like i am hiding something. better just to be honest. I did do some documentation CEUs and i have really been working on my charting in this current job. we are still paper charting so that helps too as my mistake was on a computer. But that is a good idea. Explain that it happened but i learned from it and am moving forward. any other tips guys?

hi all, I am looking to apply for per diem jobs on top of my current position, just looking to see a bit more on my days off. I currently work for an LTACH or long term acute care hospital/transitional care. I have been in this position for 2 years. However, my previous job i was at for about 1.5 years and i was ultimately terminated for a documentation error; however the management had changed and they were out to find anything to get me out since the office manager did not like me for some reason. i was not happy because the job was advertised different and had been looking for a new job but they beat me to the punch line. I am not sure how to now put this on my resume. Is it ok not to include the months on my resume (i.e. 2014-2015 2015-current) (i have a 2 month gap in employment) and how to i explain it if it comes up during an interview? I mean i am obviously not going to lie about it if they ask but i'm just trying to figure out how to move forward from this and continue on my nursing career. Thank you.

hi all, My hospital (LTACH) has a "clinical ladder" program. I have to complete everything by October. I have all of my other "tasks" done.. but I need to get a "National Specialty Certification". "National Subspeciality Certification", PICC certified, or some other certification to finish the program. I am not sure what to do as the IV class I was planning on taking to get me "IV Certified" in my area is on a date I cannot attend. Does anyone have any suggestions on what to do (something that may be an easier/quicker option)? I think I technically have enough experience to take the PCCN. But I really would like to study more for that and I fear I wont have enough time to study and take it and pass by October. (my experience- 1 year tele/step down, 1 year GI office (2 months endo), and 1.5 years in LTACH) Any suggestions would be great! thank you!

As I was reading your post..I kept saying to myself this is totally me 3 years ago! My first job was on a IMCU/stepdown/tele unit. And I was feeling the same way you were--I wanted OUT of bedside... I was working night shifts feeling OK during the night but then the day shift nurses would walk in and give me such hell in the morning that I always felt like I was doing a terrible job/stupid. I left many mornings crying while driving home I was so upset all the time. I would also be so hard on myself when I made mistakes. I never slept because I couldn't stop beating myself up. I was miserable (or so I thought). So, I left bedside altogether after 1 year.. I ran to a nursing office that was going to offer me to stay in the office for a few months and then would train me in endoscopy... Long story short, they never held to the promise -keeping me in the office for an entire year and (lost all of my clinical skills) and office nursing was not any better to me (and you get paid way less). It was less stressful yes, but I felt like I was no longer a "nurse" anymore. I had no more fun stories to tell my friends and my life felt boring. Fast forward--I ended up leaving to go back to bedside at an LTACH (day shift!). I have been here for a year and I wish I never left bedside. I lucked out here because the nurses here are always helping out if I'm behind and there's a "help everyone" attitude as opposed to a "nurses eat their young" atmosphere as I had been in.. I wish I had stuck it out and maybe asked HR to try a new unit or stuck it out to get on day shift..I didn't realize how much bedside nursing taught me and how I wish I had found out that the grass was not greener on the other side. I often find myself saying..why did I ever leave? I wish I stuck it out longer because it actually wasn't that bad. Its crazy and hectic every day of where currently work-- But with time I have learned to appreciate everything I learned in that stepdown unit. In conclusion, OP--I stress the grass is not only greener. I suggest if you have a good team stick it out for a little longer. Remember it takes a new nurse a little longer to really feel comfortable. but also it may be helpful to change your thinking a bit. When crazy things are happening. accept it, and realize EVERYTHING is a learning experience. If your day feels crazier than other nurses- say thank you because you will be a way stronger nurse after all of it. And when another patient has the same thing happen you will be a pro and know what to do. Another tip--take care of yourself OP! Be sure to eat well and get your rest! Also, you may be like me where night shift is not for you.. (you have more chances of getting to day shift if you stay). If you are absolutely miserable- then start interviewing elsewhere!! There's nothing wrong with interviews and you don't have to take a job if you get it. And do not feel bad for the manager--this is your life and your nursing experience and he/she will understand. Everyplace is different. And perhaps this isn't your "niche". Theres so many places for you to go, OP. and you are luckier than most having 9 months in a step down as a base! Don't give up!!

hi all, I am realizing that my date to renew my license is fastly approaching. May 2017... I have time but i'm starting to get everything together so i'm not running around like a lunatic in April :laugh:and have it in a folder in my computer in case i get audited. However when i look at some CEU certificates i took from Medline university it says i am awarded one CEU for the state of NJ with my nursing licence # next to it.. Which all looks fine and dandy until i looked at the little words underneath it says "Provider Approved for state of CA and FL" and says " Do not send this certificate to State Board of Nursing. Keep it for your records for 4 years" .....Does this mean it did not count toward my 30 CEUs required by state of NJ? or are they just reminding you to keep a copy for yourself in your own records? I just need to know if I should be getting these CEUs elsewhere... if anyone can ease my worries that would be fab. Thanks all!

Thank you!! The AACN seems to have better "benefits" than the ANA. I am currently at a LTACH (Long Term Acute Care Hospital) for one year so far, which i am using as a "stepping stone" to get my clinical skills up to par to eventually critical care which i would ultimately love to get into. and there are no organizations that are for LTACH ( i have one year step down tele and then 1 year outpatient office/ triage work--which set me behind and i lost a lot of clinical skills doing that)

Hello all, For my current job i signed up for the clinical ladder and one of the "check points" is to join a professional organization. Is it possible to join the AACN but not be a critical care RN? I eventually want to be a critical care RN. And if not, any suggestions of any other professional organizations to join? ( I joined the ANA but then learned that they no longer provide free CEUs and the other benefits are not so great for the price you pay and I ended up cancelling my membership.)