leighaRNBSN

Law and order SVU: a code is called and CPR is started... the patient remains in semi fowlers for the duration

As a new nurse, the day you're describing is something I fear. I fear messing up. You're ability to acknowledge it, to understand that your patient's needs could have been met better shows your potential to be a great nurse. I'd be more afraid if this didn't bother you. Best of luck from one new grad to another. Don't dread tomorrow, look it as your opportunity to be better.

I also thought i would have to start from scratch, such a horrible feeling. I ended up feeling out a few schools and finding where my previous coursework would go the furthest. Prereqs will differ (slightly) from school to school. I live in NJ and ended up going to a NY school as it was the cheapest. Don't be discouraged by prices. The first NJ school i looked at was 76,000 for the one year program!! NO THANKS! I ended up paying 36,000 for a private school in NY. (3 semesters total) Also program length varies greaty. One i looked at was 24 months. The one i ended up in was 12 months if you're a full time student. As far as working during school goes, during the first 3 months I only worked about 12 hours a week, however, as the program continued and i realized i could work more I went up to around 24 hours a week. My advice would be to keep your work schedule as light as can be in the beginning until you have a handle on what is expected out of you. If you find yourself absolutely needing to work during school look into weekend ABSN options. My school offered one but it was 24 months as opposed to 12 months that full time students were offered. And for the PA vs Nurse debate, my instructors always emphasized that nurse practitioners often have more autonomy than PA's, making nursing a better career choice Best of luck!!

I was dead set on psych as I went into clinicals. My previous degree was in psychology and while I loved every minute of my psych education, i didn't want to be limited to only caring for a patient's mental well-being and neglect physical well-being (which is how I found myself in nursing school. After my clinicals i fell in love with all aspects of nursing especially critical care and emergency. My point is to not believe you'll only love a specific speciality. You might surprise yourself Best of luck!!

Already having a bachelor's degree puts you in a great position. I had my bachelors in psych and then did whats known as an accelerated bachelor in nursing program. Basically they take your entire first degree as transfer credits and then you take the nursing classes in a back to back format. I had two semesters worth of prereqs to do before i could start the program. So I started school again in sep '14 and earned a second bachelor by may '16. I would highly recommend it.

I'm a newly licensed nurse (still jobless ) but when I do get that first paycheck, its be going to be spent on a gift for my mom. She was so supportive of me all through my nursing school journey. I wouldn't be a nurse if it wasn't for her. There's no better way to spend that paycheck than something for her. and then its going to student loans, car payments, and all other not-fun stuff. :nurse: