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OP, I’d like to hear how you are doing so far. If this thread is going to remain active ~ perhaps I will take some time to help dispel the notion that LTC “ain’t nothing but a bunch of babysitting”. This misconception is an added layer of BS that LTC nurses have to deal with. And we have plenty as it is. “Nursing home” sounds a lot less impressive than “ER” or “ICU” ... and if you say “skilled nursing / rehab facility” most people (apparently even some nurses) have no idea what that actually entails.

Thanks for your response ... but I started this thread over a year ago. I’ve been working in LTC for 8 months so far ~ and it’s where I’m staying for now. I did decide to start my BSN online, and I only have 5 classes left. But it’s definitely not necessary in my area. My ADON at the last facility was an LPN. When our DON disappeared, they had to promote a floor nurse who was an RN up above her to the DON position.

I don't know what the other nurses are doing or not doing. I do know that my 12-hour shifts at previous facility regularly turned into 15 or 16 ... and 8-hour shifts at current facility are regularly turning into 10 or 11. And at both places ~ that is me running all day ... sometimes leaving without doing any Medicare charting at all. It is exhausting work, physically and mentally, and almost every day I hit a point of "what the hell am I doing?" BUT. I get so much positive feedback from my residents ... they appreciate what are to me the most *basic* things. Answering their questions instead of blowing them off. Helping them figure out how to work their TV remote. Lol. A lot of it is not hard ... it just takes time and energy. It takes a certain level of giving a *** that sadly, I think many in LTC just don't have. They're burnt out. No doubt about it. I have to be very careful how many days I work in a row. Honestly ~ two is my personal max right now, with everything else I have going on in my personal life.

Just finished Biochemistry last night! I've got 8 weeks left in this term ... I've already completed 23 CU's, just have 16 left. I think what I read is that if you have four or less classes left for a term, they don't charge you the whole 6-month fee. They break it down and charge per class. That's my goal, for sure.

I wanted to have that BSN done first, then see how I feel / what I want to do ... and go from there. If you already know for sure -- then go for it. I do love WGU. I'm on Biochemistry right now, and it will probably be my most challenging of this degree. But I'm getting through the material, and confident that I'll be able to pass it soon and put it behind me. I do think I'll go on and get my Masters with them at some point. But I look forward to being able to take off at least a couple/few months (or more) between those degrees.

I didn't even know there were multiple Ivy Tech buildings until I saw the new one up by PFW the other day. Are there just those two? Or other ones?

We were all really impressed. It made ME want to live in the student housing and go to school there! I felt like Melissa McCarthy in "Life of the Party". If you haven't seen it ~ now you have to. ? He wants to stay close to home, and he's pretty set on engineering. With his killer GPA (currently 4.06, to be exact) and his 1300 SAT score he got *without studying AT ALL* ... they've already guaranteed him $4000/year off tuition. That's not counting any other scholarships etc he applies for. I'm not bragging ... this is ALL him. We have told him over the years how much those grades were going to pay off, but he has put in the hard work and dedication without us pushing. Honestly, the kid amazes me. So he's not fully decided -- it's the only place we've been so far -- but I'd say it's a strong possibility that's where he will end up. My mom went back to school at IPFW when I was a teen and got her accounting degree (CPA). It has expanded and changed so much since then! So I think it's also an attractive choice because "this is where grandma went to school" and because his parents met and used to live in FW. It was cool/surreal to drive around and say, "that used to be a Babies R Us, we spent a lot of time there when we were pregnant with you" etc etc. Also, "that's the Ivy Tech where I got my business degree". So of course I thought of you! ?

@Kotylynne ~ I was thinking of you the other day. Took our HS senior to tour Purdue FW. You get accepted, I'll take you out to lunch sometime. You don't get accepted ... I'll still take you to lunch. ? It's all gonna be ok ~ either way. You're determined.

Still curious to hear what their explanations are for why these things aren't being done.

I have been thinking about this thread since I read it yesterday. A couple of thoughts come to mind, which may or may not apply to your situation. But I'll throw them out there. One is that I believe there is a disconnect between the way management perceives a job as a floor nurse to be, and the way it actually is for that floor nurse. What do your nurses tell you when you ask why these things aren't being done? I know the correct way to do most things at both of the facilities I've worked at. I'm not stupid. But when I've got (what feels like) at least 10 different things simultaneously coming at me all day long, I can't always do things the correct way. Sometimes I forget. Sometimes I have to say screw it, because I am one person, and in my mind at that moment -- A, B, and C are more important than D. It sucks. And it doesn't fit well with my perfectionist personality. But it's the reality of me working in LTC. I know, your mind may be wanting to go to "but my facility is different". No, it probably isn't. I'm working at a very nice place, relatively low acuity, only private pay and Medicare, staffing ratio about the same as yours most days. We do get more admissions and discharges, but the DON and ADON help out with those quite a bit when they are there. My days still feel just as busy, and my mind just as full, as when I was working at the Medicaid facility and responsible for 28-35 residents each day. It's just a different busy. I encounter more family members on a daily basis, who are more educated and more involved in the resident's care. They ask a lot of questions. They have higher expectations. We also take WAY more vitals and daily weights, O2 sats etc that have to be put into the computer on a daily basis. Also, when your residents are functioning at a higher level, they tend to want to converse and ask a lot of questions of their own. They show up at your cart and want their meds right now. Etc. 20:1 doesn't sound like a lot to some people who have worked in much worse conditions. But I'm here to tell you that the days can be just as full. I worked 11.5 hours on what is supposed to be an 8.5 hour job yesterday. No lunch break. Didn't eat all day, in fact. And I left without doing my Medicare charting AT ALL.

I am one of the few, I think ... a new-grad RN who chose LTC, not out of necessity but because it is where I want to be. I considered outpatient dialysis, and I too read up on what it is really like to work there, and decided it was not for me. There is definitely a difference between AL and working in a SNF/rehab. What are you looking for, specifically, in your work environment? What is most important to you? That may help guide responses.

Yeah, sorry. I wasn't trying to be a Debbie Downer. LOL. I've enjoyed every stage of them growing up ~ that's just where I'm at right now with my oldest. The years just fly by. Especially these last few!

Watch out. Before you know it, he'll be 18 and you'll be going ... wth just happened ... ?

Hope everyone is doing well. I am just working the one PRN job now, driving to Indy. The work environment is much better & shorter hours also. It's worth the drive. I'm about 1/2 finished with my BSN in just 3 months' time. Love this WGU program. I see how people can get it done in under 6 months -- I'm planning on taking 2 terms to complete it, though. I decided to take a short break for now & enjoy these last few days with my kids before their school starts up again. My house is also badly in need of cleaning & organization. I mean, badly. Lol.

@Kotylynne where are you at in this process? When is everybody supposed to know by?