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The area was never an issue. Campus is safe and I never felt "unsafe" (although I did commute and didn't live on site). Theory is a huge part of the BScN. We had clinical like every other school, every semester. What you get out of it is 50/50. 50% what's available skill wise on site at your placement and 50% what you make yourself available for. If you're a wallflower then you're not likely to get the same opportunities as a student who makes themselves available and known to staff for whatever available opportunity. I questioned our skills/lab/clinical time once and had an instructor tell me "you can teach a monkey a skill". In essence, you need to be able to have the knowledge, skill and judgement to make sound nursing decisions. If you can't critically think and you don't know the disease process or the rationale behind something then inserting a catheter isn't going to make a damn difference. Did I like York? Not particularly. Do I have another nursing program to compare it to? Not at all. Your education is what you make of it. I survived York and am doing just fine in the real world.

I work in Ontario on a mental Health inpatient unit. I was hired without additional credentials but with the expectation that I obtain a certificate in psychiatric nursing during my employment. Experience speaks more than credentials in my neck of the woods.

We have spit hoods. We use them during situations requiring restraints (for spitters) but once the patient has been medicated and restrained they're removed for patient safety. They are never left on under any circumstance and only used when in close proximity during acute situations.

communication is a core skill!!! Know your mental status exams, don't ignore physical complaints but learn to talk to your patients, observe your patients both when they're alone and when they're interacting with others. Not just listening to what they say, verbal communication is only one piece of it! if you're working in an acute psych setting then be able to redirect, set firm limits and de-escalate situations. Work with your interdisciplinary team.... they're invaluable. Never ever ignore gut feelings.

You can pinpoint all the potential PDs in your circle of friends/acquaintances

If psych nursing is easy then I'm in the wrong facility!!! I love my job and my patients (most of the time) and while it may not be as "busy" as a medical or surgical unit, it's it own type of specialty. anyone who thinks psych isn't tough has never been a psych nurse. Just my opinion though.

I did do a mental health placement during third year and then put in for a mental health placement for my IP. I'm also in Ontario. Feel free to send me a pm if you have any questions.

It depends on where you want to be when you graduate or whether you're just looking for well rounded skills experience. I chose to do my ip in mental Heath because I knew I wanted to get a job there after graduation. If you want to build a more solid skill base then med/surg is a great option. My IP gave me some great experience in working with an interdisciplinary team, learning to advocate for my patients and communicate with docs. I spent a lot of time learning the mental Heath act, forms, consent and capacity boards, patients rights advocates and ethics. Psych meds, ECT and CBT. The experience I gained there helped me to secure a job on a mental Heath inpatient unit at a large hospital and I really enjoy my job and this field of nursing.

Who the heck would go drinking and dancing in scrubs?!?! í ½í¸‚í ½í¸‚í ½í¸‚ oh my lord!!!!!

4 on, 4 off, 4 on, 5 off.... Repeat and my shifts are LD, LD, LN, LN. It's a new schedule for me so I'm not sure if I like it or not yet :)

I work in a SNF and have a patient who is on long acting pain meds as well as prn narcs which she asks for at routine times. I have asked her doc several times to make these prns routine since her breakthrough prns are "routinely" given (since she reuests them) at regular intervals for break through. This has been happening for 6+ months but her doc refuses to make them routine and claims she's drug seeking. I use pain scales to asses and follow protocol for my facility. I'm not sure what else I can do. I have listened to the patient and spoken to the doc on multiple occasions. He continues to refill a prn script regardless of the consistency of the use. Times down to the minute. I have questioned my staff about wether or not the patient is actually asking for the prn or if it is given out of habit. I suppose my question is what can I do about the situation. I'm a new RN and I feel as though more should be done but I'm hitting a brick wall here. am I going about this wrong? Am I naive? What can I do?

Deleted because I didn't see which forum this was in

I worked in a role as a UCP during nursing school and did the companies medication training program. Some of the girls I worked with were well equipped to be doing this and others, well.... how they managed to pass medication training is beyond me. I would think that if I was the nurse in this position I would like to be personally responsible for the screening, hiring and training of each individual working under my registration. If I was able to do that then I think I would be more comfortable with the idea of being responsible for other people's medication pass. Unfortunately, this was not the case at my facility and management just needed bodies because of high turn over rates. "My" nurse, turned and ran.... as would I!

I was told to write a student nurse CV to create a document of clinical experience which could be shared on top of my resume (employment experience) upon graduation. My student nurse cv lists all clinical placements and experience that may not be apparent on my resume. I'm not sure if this is common practice or not but I would be willing to forward you an example/copy to your pm if you are looking for this type of thing. Keep in mind that I am also a new grad and it may not be that helpful. I bring mine to interviews as an "extra" to highlight clinical experience.

Even after I graduated and passed my NCLEX, the letter I got in the mail specifically said you can not use the title RN until you are registered through your regulatory body. I waited until the CNO sent me a letter stating "you are now a registered nurse" before I used the title. If well meaning friends and family called me a nurse or introduced me as such I was quick to correct them that I was working towards my registration. I would never ever assume to use a protected title until I had fully earned it. I have way to much respect for the profession and all the nurses to do that.

I'm in Ontario Canada. I have applied to hospitals, home care, LTC.... If there is a job posting then I'm applying. I've tried applying to new grad positions and to regular job postings. I'm not limiting myself to a certain specialty or being picky. I'm fairly new in my registration so I'm not totally discouraged yet. I was just hoping that I would be able to find a nursing position relatively quickly due to professional/registration conflicts at my current place of employment.

While I had heard rumours of the difficulties in securing a job after graduation, I suppose this was not made as clear as I had hoped it would be. There have been a ton of RN layoffs in my area right around the time I graduated. Which means I'm competing with a lot of amazing and experienced nurses for the few positions around. I suppose my question is, what can I do? How can I find a job in a market that seems to be over saturated? I already live in a "northern" area and I can't relocate due to my husbands job and small children... Any advice?

So based on this quote and the fact that you are an instructor.... I'm sorry, help me out here.... Although, you may have to climb down off your high horse to give me the rationale on it since you aren't aware of your hospital policy.

I was worried about this too! As a server for many years I decided to take a pay cut and worked at a retirement home for my last year of nursing school so that I had some applicable experience to show on my resume. I also "revamped" my previous work experience so that it shed light on qualities that i felt would assist me in my nursing job search. Things like time management, customer service and the ability to multi task and think on my feet.

I recently applied to a community nursing position within my home town. After putting in my application I waited a week and a half and then followed up with HR to ensure they recieved it (it was an online application and I didn't receive a confirmation email or anything upon submission). When I called to follow up HR did the first stage "screening" interview on the phone and then said they would send that to the next appropriate person and applicants would only be contacted if they had successfully moved onto the next stage of the interviewing process. I've heard from people who work for this company that the second stage could take weeks. Is it inappropriate for me to email them reiterating my interest in the position after a certain amount of time since they said they would only contact successful applicants?

Some professional organizations will offer free or discounted memberships to new grads. I've also seen job postings that state they include discounted memberships to certain organizations. Perhaps check with your place of employment on whether they offer this.

[COLOR=#000000]"I was precepting a new nurse in an ICU. She was going to insert a foley into an elderly patient, and she comes running out of the room with her hands flailing in the air, screeming, I asked her what was the matter and she told me he didn't have a member. I kind of giggled under my breath and went in the room and pushed on his pubis and his member popped out she gasped, and screemed again and ran out of the room, we had a good teaching moment, but this is my favorite and it happened way back in the early 80's. I will never forget. But now that I am a teacher, I remember this and I teach my students that this happens and what to do."[/COLOR] [COLOR=#000000]I am a new grad and I am dyyyyying laughing a this, only because it happened to me in clinical once.... I seriously, can not stop laughing remembering my own reaction! I will never, ever, ever, forget this moment in my teaching![/COLOR]

Thanks everyone.... I was called today and given grief about not agreeing to give enoxaparin injections to a resident because I said it was not within my scope as per my employment at that facility. After a lot of guilt tripping since I'm "technically an RN" I went and handed in my resignation. I just hope a job offer comes in quickly as I can't afford to be without employment

Long story short.... I applied to a position at a hospital and lost out due to experience. The nurse manager of the unit called me and told me that I had done very well in the interview. My answer were great, the management team thought I was wonderful and they hoped I wouldn't be discouraged and apply again if another position came up. The woman that received the job offer had much more experience. I had no negative feedback and he offered nothing for me to improve upon even when asked (which I find hard to believe since I was nervous as hell). Now don't get me wrong, I am not upset and I fully understand and respect their decision. The position was to cover a maternity leave and I know it is easier to take on a nurse with experience for a short term contract than to train a new grad. If it's the woman I met and spoke with prior to the interview then she was definitely the right candidate for the position and actually went as far as to give me tips and tricks, and advice while embarking on my career. The hiring manager went on to say how he felt awful because he hired someone with experience and he knows as a new grad you can't get experience unless you're given a position to gain experience. I assured him that I understood the decision and thanked them for the interview experience and considering me as a candidate. I assured him that he would see my name and resume on the application board as soon as something else opened up. So my question is.... how do you gain experience? Do I just take whatever job I am offered? Do I take additional courses and certifications? I'm not overly worried as I have other interviews in the upcoming week, I just want to be able to secure a position and begin my career. Any new grad in the job market advice would be appreciated!

Thanks for the responses! I was pretty sure that's the way it was but my manager keeps insisting that nothing can or will happen because I am working under her delegation (she's an RPN) as a ucp so it would be her registration in jeopardy, not mine. I have been applying for other positions and have done one interview so far. I looked up the cno document and think I may print a copy and take it in with my letter of resignation.