- Jun 4, 2012
- 105
- 33
- 101
So, I have started school again, finally, but let me give you a little backstory. When I graduated LPN school in California, I went straight on to an IV team. It was an easy job really. I worked at the major trauma center in San Diego and all I had to do was show up and save the day by getting IV access on regular patients and patients that had coded. I did that for a few years and decided to move to Arizona because my parents wanted to retire there and they are falling apart, so I wanted to be close by. I got my first actual floor nursing assignment there. The things I had to learn and relearn were almost overwhelming but I studied night and day for fear that I would make a mistake and not catch something important. I have done well by everyone's standards and the RN's come to me a lot for advice regarding care and how to manage or perform certain procedures. Thus, they are always telling me things like, "they should just give you the credentials, youre so good". My answer is always, no they shouldnt give me anything. There is a good amount of schooling involved in being an RN and just because I study so I can put the whole picture together doesnt equal actual schooling. Anyway, I want to tell you about my first day at school in the bridge program to become an RN.
There were only 10 openings in this class and I managed to get in. We all got the same letter stating the first day of class and how it was mandatory and to be on time. I showed up 15 minutes early, appropriately dressed, with the aforementioned supplies. Only seven people showed up. Three of them were late. One was 45 minutes late. They all showed up wearing short shorts, tee shirts, flip flops, nose rings, bellies hanging out, and tattoos in plain sight. There is a strict dress code. So strict in fact, that I have to abandon my wedding ring for the next nine months because it has a stone in it. While we were waiting for the instructor, they chatted about how stupid the RN's they worked with are, Their extensive experience with things that are clearly out of their scope of practice and really cant do, and all of this conversation was peppered with expletives. When class finally started, we all had to introduce ourselves and give a brief history of our work experience. It turned out that I was the only one with actual hospital experience in taking care of medical, surgical, and neurological patients. I didnt expound on my experience or answer any of the teachers questions because I dont want to seem like a know-it-all. I surely am not, but it seems I know a lot more than they do. But what really got me was that I had the respect to show up on time and dress appropriately and conduct myself accordingly. I would never treat anyone as stupid. There is no stupid. There is only what you havent learned yet. So, my questions to this forum are: Are you really interested in following my daily or weekly rants through the next nine months? And: How can I answer questions that I know without sounding like a know it all or becoming a teachers pet? On a side note, Ive unfortunately been the teachers pet and I know from experience that as soon as they find out they know what you are doing and can trust you, they stop teaching you and monitoring you. Advice from anyone is appreciated, especially RN's. And lastly, once again, do any of you really want to follow this rant for the next nine months?
There were only 10 openings in this class and I managed to get in. We all got the same letter stating the first day of class and how it was mandatory and to be on time. I showed up 15 minutes early, appropriately dressed, with the aforementioned supplies. Only seven people showed up. Three of them were late. One was 45 minutes late. They all showed up wearing short shorts, tee shirts, flip flops, nose rings, bellies hanging out, and tattoos in plain sight. There is a strict dress code. So strict in fact, that I have to abandon my wedding ring for the next nine months because it has a stone in it. While we were waiting for the instructor, they chatted about how stupid the RN's they worked with are, Their extensive experience with things that are clearly out of their scope of practice and really cant do, and all of this conversation was peppered with expletives. When class finally started, we all had to introduce ourselves and give a brief history of our work experience. It turned out that I was the only one with actual hospital experience in taking care of medical, surgical, and neurological patients. I didnt expound on my experience or answer any of the teachers questions because I dont want to seem like a know-it-all. I surely am not, but it seems I know a lot more than they do. But what really got me was that I had the respect to show up on time and dress appropriately and conduct myself accordingly. I would never treat anyone as stupid. There is no stupid. There is only what you havent learned yet. So, my questions to this forum are: Are you really interested in following my daily or weekly rants through the next nine months? And: How can I answer questions that I know without sounding like a know it all or becoming a teachers pet? On a side note, Ive unfortunately been the teachers pet and I know from experience that as soon as they find out they know what you are doing and can trust you, they stop teaching you and monitoring you. Advice from anyone is appreciated, especially RN's. And lastly, once again, do any of you really want to follow this rant for the next nine months?
