Nursing | RNBuilder Nursing Blog

on April 6, 2011

Different Nursing Degree Options

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i_nurse_female_11 A certified nursing assistant program (CNA program) prepares graduates to work as a nursing assistant in a hospital, nursing home, long-term care facility, or other health care center. When you choose a program from an accredited school, you can sit for the national CNA exam to get licensed in the field, enjoying great job stability and pay of up to $20/hour.

Types of CNA Programs

Most certified nursing assistant programs take place in an education institution or a nursing school. Although there are online CNA programs, there is a hands-on component that may require you to do a local internship in order to graduate and be eligible to sit for the exam. Additionally, some nursing homes or other large organizations might pay you or reimburse you for going through CNA training, provided you sign a contract to remain with their company for a few years following graduation.

The length of the program varies depending on where you go to school, but you can expect anywhere from six to twelve weeks (100 to 120 hours) of training in all. Your coursework will most likely include a mixture of lecture-based and lab skills development in:

Anatomy and physiology
Patient hygiene
Nutrition
Disease control
Rehabilitative therapy
Mental health nursing
Psychosocial care skills
Medical ethics
Taking vital signs
General patient care
Stress management
Communication

With these skills firmly in place, you will be qualified to assist nurses and doctors in a team-like capacity to provide everyday, routine care to those in the health care setting. In many cases, this training can be complimented by a phlebotomy course, which will qualify you to draw and process blood from your patients. You may also continue on in your education to eventually receive your LPN (licensed practical nurse) or even your RN (registered nurse) degrees.

Getting Certified as a CNA

Licensure as a CNA isn’t required for all jobs in the field, but it provides a great way to increase your pay and advancement opportunities. The National Nurse Aide Assessment Program is the most common certifying body, but you’ll need to check with your state and potential employers to determine for certain what qualifications you need to practice as a certified nursing assistant in your city.

How to Set Up a Nursing School Visit

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on April 4, 2011

Choosing the Right Nursing School

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i_student_1 One of the best pieces of advice for potential nursing students is to visit the schools you’re interested in to determine if they’re the right choice for you. Once you have narrowed down your nursing school options to two or three of your favorites, it’s time to set up the campus visits.

Depending on where you live, this could be an easy task or a fairly large undertaking. After all, if you’re looking at a school halfway across the country, there will be a big time and money investment in looking at the nursing school first-hand. However, since you might be moving your entire life that direction, it’s a good idea to make sure you’re 100 percent on board with the plan.

Visiting local schools is just as important. The only way to know for sure if the nursing school is right for you is to take a look—both formally and informally—at the program.

Formal Tours

Almost all schools, whether they are four-year universities or private nursing schools with an annual enrollment of just a few hundred students, provide a formal look at the program you are considering. These guided tours take a group of potential students through the campus and into the facilities to learn all about the school and what it has to offer. From taking a peek at the lab equipment to checking out the dorm rooms and dining facilities, these tours are intended to show you what life at that school is all about.

During these formal tours, you typically have a chance to ask all the questions you have about the general school setting. Things like student life, study halls, local amenities, and even the city as a whole are openly discussed, and you may have the chance to talk with other students, faculty members, and administrative staff. You might also be able to set up a classroom visit at this time, in which you sit in on a class to see if the lecture or hands-on format is right for you.

These tours are almost always set up through the admissions office, and you may need to book as early as a month in advance. If timed correctly, you could join a group of other potential students and parents as they all ask the same questions and make this important decision.

Informal Tours

You don’t always have to make a formal appointment to see the nursing school you’ve been considering. Many schools offer an “open campus” type of policy, and you are free to visit the facilities whenever you want. While you probably won’t be able to sit in on a class or have one-on-one talks with professors during this time, you can get a feel for the overall atmosphere of the place.

This can be a great compliment to a formal visit. Because guided tours are created with the intention of boosting enrollment, stepping away to draw your own conclusions can be a great way to build a more accurate picture.

Choosing the Right Nursing School

There are hundreds of nursing schools in the United States, and all of them have both pros and cons. By taking the time to make the right decision and looking carefully at all aspects of the program, you will be better equipped to make changes in your life and see your education through to the end—and be that much closer to a great new nursing career!

Related Topics:

Top Ranked Nursing Schools in the United States

Find a Nursing School to Tour in Your City

Nursing in the Chiropractic Field

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Complementary but Alternative Medicine

on March 29, 2011

in Nurse Patient Care and Nursing Career

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chiropractic nurse There are many different avenues open to nursing graduates: you can work in a hospital, work in a doctor’s office, continue your education, or find employment in any number of government and health care facilities. One less common path is to turn to holistic medicine or alternative care therapies. Although many types of holistic medicine are looked down upon by the medical profession as a whole, many people swear by therapies like massage, acupuncture, herbalism, and even chiropractic medicine.

What is Chiropractic Health Care?

Chiropractic medicine is a type of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) that emphasizes the importance of the spine and the musculoskeletal system in overall bodily health. By manipulating the spine, joints, and tissues, a chiropractor hopes to heal different disorders and promote a healthier, more active lifestyle.

To the medical community, chiropractic medicine presents a bit of a conundrum. On the one hand, the idea that working with the spine can “cure” ailments not directly related to the nervous system hasn’t yet caught on with standard Western medicine teachings. On the other hand, many people swear by the practice and really do reap valuable benefits from it. For nurses, this presents an even bigger problem: by becoming a chiropractic nurse, you straddle the line between the medical community and holistic medicine.

Should I Become a Chiropractic Nurse?

Straddling the medical boundary can be a difficult place to be, especially if you have gone through all of nursing school and are now a registered nurse with an advanced college degree and a license. Do you stay true to your education and work in a legitimized health care field, or do you work in a field that you believe in, even if it means stepping away from the health community?

No one can answer that question for you. As a chiropractic nurse, you will most likely be doing much of the same work you would be doing in any other setting, preparing patients for their sessions with the doctor, answering questions, and patient charting. However, because chiropractors are not doctors, they don’t prescribe medication or keep patients overnight, which will considerably reduce your job responsibilities and experience.

And because there are no formal courses that will allow you to specialize in chiropractic nursing, you will be on your own when it comes to continuing education within your field. In fact, because the level of education is fairly similar in length, you might be better off not going to nursing school and simply becoming a chiropractor instead.

Additional Nursing Options

Fortunately, there are alternate options if this is a field you’re interested in. You may work with osteopaths, orthopedic doctors, physical therapists, sports medicine providers, or other professionals who deal in the skeleton and muscle tissue, but within a more traditional medical setting. However, if you do have an interest in holistic modalities and how you might be able to combine your formal medical education with alternative options, chiropractic nursing might be perfect for you.

Nursing School Courses: What is Bioethics?

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on March 23, 2011

Modern Day Ethics Issues in Nursing

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i_nurses_3 As you go through your two (or four) years of nursing school, you’ll most likely find a bioethics or medical ethics class on your course list. Rapidly becoming a requirement for both nursing schools and students alike, this is the time in which you’ll learn about the rights and responsibilities of being a nurse as it relates to general human morality.

What is the Difference Between Bioethics and Medical Ethics?

In the medical community, bioethics is the study of how biological research (and the applications of that research) has an impact on human beings. This field asks questions like:

When is it acceptable to use human test subjects in a medical study?
How much culpability do medical professionals have on the outcome of a patient’s treatment?
Are procedures like in-vitro fertilization and gene studies hurting or helping our society?

The list can go on, but the overall takeaway is this: where does the line between research and human rights lie?

Medical ethics, on the other hand, has more to do with how medical professionals treat each patient who crosses their path. Moral issues like racial and sexual equality in care giving, human rights in end-of-life care, and personal freedoms in a nursing home setting all play a role.

Which Course Will I Take in Nursing School?

Depending on your nursing school and the program you’re in, you may take one or both of these courses (and some schools will combine them into one). And the reasons why these courses are required make sense: nursing is an inherently compassionate field.

Although there is a strong scientific component to everything you do, the nurse is essentially the bridge between the doctors and the families. This means that in addition to providing care and dispensing medicine, you are an advocate for fair treatment and, oftentimes, the person closest to the patient and his or her family in the medical community.

This training is also required in order for you to be licensed and insured as a nursing professional. Almost all nurses have some sort of malpractice insurance (either independently or through your employer) to protect against lawsuits. Having an ethics course means that you understand your rights and responsibilities as a member of the health care team, and you will be better equipped to deal with situations in which morality comes into play.

Related Topics:

Working With Patient Families

The Doctor-Nurse Relationship

Is Nursing School Debt Worth It?

Published

on March 16, 2011

How to Afford Nursing School

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i_student_2 One of the more common ways in which to finance a nursing education is to tap into the nursing student loans available from both the federal government and private providers. Depending on where you go to school and what degree you’re after, nursing school can cost between $10,000 and $100,000 in all – especially when you factor in things like books, supplies, uniforms, room, and board. While this cost is no more or no less than you would expect from similar degrees in other fields, it can become quite a burden once you first enter the working world.

Types of Student Loan Debt

Federal student loan debt is unique in that it almost never goes away until it is paid off. Unlike other loans, which are wiped away if you declare bankruptcy or pass away, student loans have a tendency to linger…and the government retains the right to deduct your wages if you aren’t staying current on your payments.

On the plus side, federal student loans don’t take your credit score into account, they tend to have a fairly low interest rate, and in some instances, you can take up to twenty years to pay them back. You can also defer your loans for a few months right after you graduate, so you have time to get a job and establish yourself before you actually start making payments.

Private loans don’t work quite the same way; depending on the terms of the loan, you might have a few years to pay them back, or they might be tied into your home loan or other personal property. Interest rates will vary, and the loan will be tied up in your personal credit score.

Graduating with Debt

The real challenge regarding nursing school debt comes into play a few years down the road. If, for some reason, you find that the job isn’t right for you, or if you burn out of the career due to emotional or physical pain, you will still be responsible for paying back the money you borrowed. Some of the best ways to avoid this include:

Job shadowing to be sure the career is right for you
Exploring other nursing options like nurse-instruction or insurance work
Going to school part time and working part time to defray costs
Applying for scholarships and grants in addition to loans
Working as a CNA or LPN before going all the way in your schooling
Considering a reimbursement program that places nurses in high-need areas

Graduating from nursing school with student loan debt can be difficult – but it’s not all bad news. The health care field is one of the only ones right now experiencing growth and salary increases, and job security is only expected to increase even more over the next ten to twenty years. And because you can start earning between $30,000 and $40,000 your first year as a nurse, you should be able to cover those initial student loan payments without too much of a problem.

Related Topics:

The Cost of Nursing School

The Doctor-Nurse Relationship

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Nurses in Popular Culture

on March 10, 2011

in Nursing Career

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i_nursing_student_2 If you’ve watched any of the popular television shows of the last two decades, you’ve most likely come across one that deals with the topic of the relationship between doctors and nurses. Dramatized, turned into a comedy, and filled with inaccuracies, these depictions can make it difficult for nursing students to know exactly where they stand. Although the best training is a few years on the job, many nursing schools make it a point to teach the best ways to navigate the hospital and health care system—including how you should treat the doctors you work with every day.

Physicians as Employers: If you get a nursing job working in a doctor’s office or other small health care setting, there’s a good chance that the practice will belong to the physician or a co-op of physicians. This generally means that the physician is your boss, and you will report directly to him or her. Although your state’s nursing requirements and general medical ethics will dictate part of how you do your job, the doctor’s requests are just as important. This might mean that you have more responsibilities than you expected (perhaps overseeing a team of other health care workers) or less (maybe doubling as nurse and nursing assistant). If you aren’t happy with the relationship that exists in this setting, the only real solution is to find new employment.

Physicians in a Hospital Setting: If you are employed as a nurse in a hospital, the hospital is your employer—not a doctor. While doctors will almost always outrank you, the truth is that they can rarely order you around or ask you to do things that aren’t in your job description. This is where a lot of the doctor-nurse tension comes into play. For example, an orthopedic nurse with 20 years of experience might feel upset at being told to do something by a doctor who’s been on the job for 2 months. This becomes especially difficult when the doctor might spread his or her care over several hospitals as well as a personal practice. The nurse, who cares for the patient 8 hours of every day, might feel antagonistic toward a doctor who sees the patient for 8 minutes each week.

Unfortunately, there is no easy solution for this type of situation. A doctor’s orders will always trump a nurse’s, but doctors can’t do their jobs well if they don’t have a good working relationship with the nursing staff. And like any profession, both nurses and doctors will have their “favorites” when it comes to working with one another.

The best nursing schools teach students how to put the focus back on the patient, and not on any personal feelings between professionals. Many times, this will be covered in a medical ethics class, or during clinicals or an internship situation. Of course, experience is usually the best teacher, and you will continue to navigate these relationships as you move through your profession.

It may not be easy—and it may not be like it is on TV—but working together to save lives is the most important thing you can do.

Related Topics:

Modern Day Ethics Issues in Nursing

Top-Ranked Nursing Schools in the United States

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on March 8, 2011

Nursing School Competition

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i_nurse_female_2 If you want a top-notch nursing education from a highly ranked school, you can expect a pretty stringent admissions process. Although the nursing shortage continues to increase, the best schools have no shortage of applicants—and for good reason. Nationally recognized as the best of the best, these are the nursing schools that will provide an excellent education and place you at the top of the field for practicing, research, and administrative nurses.

Note: These schools are ranked for their nursing programs at the Bachelor’s, Master’s and Doctorate level.

University of Pennsylvania: This Ivy League school is considered one of the best colleges in the United States, period. Their nursing school is no different, with undergraduate programs, fast-track programs, a Ph.D program, and over 20 specialty certificates.

University of California, Los Angeles: Considered one of the best colleges on the West Coast, UCLA is known for its great science programs—including nursing. Students can work on pre-graduate work and post-graduate work here.

University of Texas: Located in Austin, this school offers nursing programs at all levels. Many students return to advance their education to the Master’s or Doctorate level.

University of Washington: This Seattle-based university has a long waiting list for nurses and a very competitive program. Many nurses who graduate here go on to work at research hospitals around the country.

Johns Hopkins University: Known the world over as one of the best medical training centers and care facilities, John Hopkins sees a large number of doctors and nurses pass through its doors. Many graduates of the Johns Hopkins nursing program go on to do research in the field or become nursing instructors.

Other contenders for the top nursing school title include:

Boston College
Columbia University
Yale University
University of Maryland
University of Colorado
Purdue University
University of Michigan

If you aren’t fortunate enough to get in to one of these nursing programs, or if your location makes it difficult to attend, there is no need to worry. University, community college, and private nursing programs continue to provide excellent training opportunities for the next wave of professional nurses. As long as you do your research and ensure that the school you’re attending is right for you, you should be able to succeed as a nurse for decades to come.

Related Topics:

Choosing the Right Nursing School

Men and Nursing School

Published

on March 4, 2011

Choosing the Right Nursing School

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i_student_3 According to 2009 statistics, male registered nurses only make up about 6 percent of the current workforce. Although the percentage of male nursing students continues to grow, nursing is a field very skewed toward female professionals. When added to personal biases and the stigma attached to men in the nursing profession, things might look a little grim if you’re a man and you want to become a nurse.

Why Are There So Few Men in Nursing?

The primary reason for there being so few male nurses is the history of nursing. In its earliest form, nursing was developed specifically for women; it was a job they could do without being degraded by society, and it tapped into the belief that women are naturally suited for a caregiving role. With a lack of other options and facing a large number of male doctors (who were seen as necessarily superior to their female nursing counterparts), nursing and women became inexorably combined.

In more modern times, men have shied away from nursing for a few reasons, the first being that it was so long associated with feminine roles. However, another consideration is the perceived lack of advancement opportunities; men almost always enter into careers they can build for years or even decades, earning more respect and money as they go. Nursing has often been seen as a “flat” career, in which you enter as you leave, trained for just one duty.

Modern Nursing

Today’s nurses aren’t restricted by any of these beliefs. In addition to a growing need for young, able-bodied professionals to fill the many holes in the healthcare system, nursing is now a field that can keep you on your toes for years. The fast pace of the hospital setting, the ability to move up into a managerial role, and the need for nurses with advanced education all contribute to a lifetime of learning—for both men and women. These days, nurses can also work in an administrative capacity or as researchers, which further widens the field of opportunity.

Nurses are also gaining ground as peers in the medical community. Instead of a distinct doctor-nurse hierarchy, there are therapists, doctors of nursing, and nurse managers who skew the old way we looked at the field.

Of course, there’s always job security to consider, too. There are few other fields quite as secure as nursing, with the tens of thousands of open jobs expected to increase over the next twenty years. Qualified nurses—no matter what their gender—are needed to fill these openings and with an eye to a long-term career. For many men, this makes for an ideal situation.

Getting Started in Nursing School

If you’re male and considering nursing school, you can still expect the ratios to be unbalanced. Female students will most likely outnumber you 2 to 1, with even higher percentages in some areas. However, as long as you view each other as peers with a common professional goal, there should be no difficulty for anyone willing to work hard to succeed.

Related Topics:

Male Nurses

Returning to Nursing School After a Long Hiatus

Published

on February 22, 2011

How to Prepare for Nursing School

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i_nurses_5 Going back to nursing school if it’s been a few years since you were in the educational arena can be a bit intimidating. Advances in technology and online learning contribute to the changing face of education—and the things you learned just a few years ago may now be obsolete. This can present a bit of a challenge for the older professional considering a career change. After all, how can you compete with a fresh wave of young faces right out of high school?

Fortunately, nursing is a diverse field, and although a high level of energy and enthusiasm is great, a large percentage of nursing students are older individuals. Whether you were a nurse twenty years ago and want to re-enter the field, or if you’re coming to nursing from a career in sales or industry, you can succeed in this new setting. Here’s how:

There is no one type of nursing. Some nurses work on their feet for ten hours a day at a hospital. Others travel around the country, working with under-served populations. There are also careers available in nursing instruction, research, schools, and even insurance offices. You can define your nursing career in any way that fits with your vision of the future. Just be sure to select a program and nursing school that can cater to these visions.

There is no one type of learning environment. Online nursing courses are a great way to refresh an earlier career or to get your core classes out of the way while you get back into the pattern of school. Night classes make it easier to go to school around a busy work schedule, or you could dive right in to a full-time university program that puts you in a lecture environment. With so many different nursing schools to choose from, you can build an educational path that suits you.

Your experience might work for you. Many schools offer credits for work and life experiences, which means you might be able to skip a few of the prerequisites and core classes. Ask at the admissions office to learn if this is a possibility for you.

Prepare to use technology. Even in a standard educational setting, technology is going to play a role in your coursework. From online communication boards and assignments to team PowerPoint presentations, you can expect the computer to be part of your learning experience. If you don’t feel quite up to date, take a few word processing or computer classes before you start.

Above all else, be firm in your belief that you are taking the right step. The nursing field needs new professionals, and your decision to go to nursing school is a good one. Prepare to work hard, but remember to enjoy each step you make on your journey to becoming a nurse.

Related Topics:

How to Afford Nursing School

Uncommon Health Care Opportunities: Correctional Facility Nursing

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