"You're a nurse? That's cool. How much do you make?"

(An email sent to me)

Somebody asked:

"You're a nurse? That's cool, I wanted to do that when I was a kid. How much do you make?"

The nurse replied: "HOW MUCH DO I MAKE?" ...

I can make holding your hand seem like the most important thing in the world when you're scared. ...
I can make your child breathe when they stop. ...
I can help your father survive a heart attack. ...
I can make myself get up at 5 a.m. to make sure your mother has the medicine she needs to live. ...
I work all day to save the lives of strangers. ...
I make my family wait for dinner until I know your family member is taken care of. ...
I make myself skip lunch so that I can make sure that everything I did for your wife today is charted. ...
I make myself work weekends and holidays because people don't just get sick Monday thru Friday. ...
Today, I might save your life. ...

How much do I make? All I know is, I make a difference.

Taking Two-Step Blood Pressure

One of the first skills I was expected to master in my Fundamentals course was to take two step blood pressure. Whether it's baking a cake, riding a bike or taking a blood pressure, it's not an easy task and requires practice and patience. However, once you learn it's a skill that you'll never forget.
I recommend practicing as much as possible.

I am a visual and auditory learner so I try to find as many online videos as possible that agree with the content from my professors.

This website helps with giving a visual for the general procedure with what to do and what to avoid.
http://www.viddler.com/v/65ffcb8d

Once you get comfortable with the general steps for the procedure I also recommend this video that helps the learner differentiate between the Korotokoff sounds.
http://vimeo.com/8068713

Drug Calculations

For my program, every semester after Fundamentals, students are required to take a Drug Dosage and Calculation test before the first day of classes. We have 3 attempts to score 100%. After the third unsuccessful attempt the student is dropped from all classes and required to remediate until the following semester and in some cases students are required to reapply to the program. If you have a similar situation I've compiled a few websites I use as a refresher in addition to using the drug dosage textbook I purchased for my Fundamentals course.

Drug Calculations Quiz Page

Drug Calculation Tutorial from Southern Illinois Uni.

Drug Calculation Practices

Practice from University of North Carolina

This Should Have been my first Post

Hey Everyone,

You may notice that my posts jump around. I graduated with my first Bachelor's Degree in Public Health. Soon after I decided to return to school for a Bachelor's in Nursing. Just two days ago I just finished my first semester as a nursing student. All I can say it has been a roller coaster ride already. Instead of writing one big post of what I have learned so far I've decided to break the posts into individual posts for a few reasons. First, I feel it may easier in keeping topics organized and  in finding specific topics. Second, I am not sure if I can sit up all day and night writing everything down. I am hesitant to think that millions of people will view my blog but it's worth a shot and if anything the blog allows a place for debriefing and reviewing later in life.

Textbooks are expensive

Once you're in the program you will soon learn textbooks for each course is about $100.

My advice would be to purchase your books in advance and online. Depending on  the size of your school the bookstore usually has a website that shows what books you will need for each course. You can get the information and search the web to find the cheapest through search engines. I have a preference for purchasing books and selling them at the end of the semester if I feel like I will not need/want the book again.

I don't have experience in renting books so you may need to research on your own.

A few that I use to purchase and sell textbooks:

• Half.com : Is a subsidiary of ebay where sellers offer books and other items for a fixed price.
• Bigwords.com: Is a search engine for finding the cheapest book or book combination packages.
• Amazon.com and other bookstores like Barnes and Noble sell books in my experience much cheaper than the campus bookstore. The website also offers to allow individuals and third parties to sell used books.

Program Accreditation

Before mailing out dozens of school applications, I recommend you research the schools you apply to and rank top 3 to 5.

One very important consideration to take is to ensure your school's program is nationally accredited. You wouldn't want to do all that work and find out no agency wants to hire you because you did not attend an accredited institution would you?

What is accreditation in a nutshell:  Accreditation is a formal recognition that a program/college/institution meets standards in providing quality education.

What does it mean when accreditation is denied or revoked:  program has been deemed inconsistent with the guidelines and principles for accreditation

There are two national organizations that accredit nursing programs, the National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission (NLNAC) and the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE)

Choosing the path as a Nurse

If you haven't realized, the Nursing profession requires much dedication and preservation. You may see nurses discredited, underestimated and overworked. However, they are the eyes for the physician and the voice for the patient. I would recommend anyone thinking about choosing or changing to the Nursing career path to research the profession, may it be through volunteering, shadowing or googling blogs from nurses. Please don't go into the program thinking you'll "make a lot of money".

One resource that I found helpful was Johnson & Johnson Campaign for Nursing Future:
http://www.discovernursing.com/