I am not a nurse, but my mother-in-law is, actually has her doctorate. She taught nursing at SDSU for 10 years as well as being a Peds nurse at Sioux Valley for 10 or so years. She is now a Parish Nurse and teaches part time here and there. I know she has a lot of issues with bureaucracy which I can't fully explain. I can also attest the she would tell you that a 2 year nursing program (like, I think, at USD) is not enough and you should go to a school with a 4 year program. I cannot fully explain because I am not her, but these are little tidbits I've picked up from her over the years. I know she would be thrilled to talk to your daughter about any advice she might need. If you want her contact info PM me.
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I have a daughter in her 2nd year of nursing school. I agree that a 4 year degree is definitely the way to go. Here is what we looked at when our daughter showed interest in being a nurse. There are so many options in nursing, just in the hospital setting alone ER, Acute, Hospice etc., then there are clinics, doctor offices. Anyway you get the idea. The other plus is that if after a few years she would decide to do something different there are alot of options open then too because of the 4 year degree and what an awesome backround. As, 3gsmom said the bureaucracy is crazy because of it being healthcare, but if your daughter has a heart for it I think it would be an awesome career and very rewarding. It is great that she can job shadow. Our daughter worked at a nursing home during high school. I truly believe if you can be a nurses aide and enjoy it, and care for the people that is also a good testing ground. Hope this helped.
Who is your mother-in-law? I was a nurse at Sioux Valley for 9 years on Peds. I went back to school at SDSU (also obtained my BSN there as well) to get my Masters and currently work at Sanford Children's Specialty Clinic as a Nurse Practitioner. I also taught for SDSU for 2 years. I might know her!
As for a career in Nursing. I would just go with what your daughter wants to do. I personally am very satisfied with my choice. There are SO many things you can do with nursing. You can work at a hospital and do staff nursing, or you can teach, you can work outpatient, home visiting nurse, educator, and the list just goes on. There are opportunities to further your career by going back to school and getting your masters like I did. I now see my own patients and love it. I do plan on going back some day and getting my doctorate.
The only thing that bothered me with this career is when you first start and if you work in a hospital as a staff RN, you have to work some crazy hours. You know, hospitals don't close, ever, so you have to provide care around the clock. I worked a lot of nights at first, then eventually got more days. Holidays were always a bummer too, but you have a choice in what field you want to work in as a nurse. HOpe this helps!
I am not a nurse, I am an EMT and was in nursing school until my medical issues got in the way but my aunt is VP of nursing services at Sanford, my mom was a floor nurse for 30 years and now is in administration and then I have 5 other aunts that are nurses, two more at Sanford! Our family get togethers are all about their stories. They each work at different levels and with many different types of patients and settings and I think the one thing they all have in common and I would say is necessary to be a nurse is to be a patient advocate and compassion of course. To be a nurse is such a dedicated profession, a lot of new nurses are getting into it because they only have to work 3 days a week, the pay is pretty good and so on. These are not reasons to get into the field in my opinion (I also worked as a CNA at Sanford while I was in nursing school). I think if she is willing to stand up for her patients and put their needs before all others, even doctors in some cases, then she would love the job. I think all of my aunts and mom love the how they feel when they know what difference they have made in their patients life. These patients are at their most vunerable and what type of nurse they have will make all the difference. Your daughter should shadow a nurse, my cousin shadowed my mom and that helped her make her decision.
Listen to your heart, it whispers softly so listen closely.
I'm coming up on 11 yrs as a nurse, and I LOVE it!! Are there days where I'm discouraged and frustrated? Yes, but you find that in any job. I agree with a lot of the other posts, there are so many places you can go with a nursing degree, and I would recommend a 4yr BSN or BAN, simply for the fact that if she wants to go back to school for an advanced degree later on, then she doesn't need to get the Bachelor's first. If she's looking for experience to "try it out", then a job shadow would be great, and I would also recommend she become a CNA or patient care tech and get a job in a nursing home or hospital. It is really hard work, and you don't get thanked or recognized a lot for it. If she can do CNA/PCT and still likes it and wants to be a nurse, then go for it! We need more nurses!! Also, becoming a CNA/PCT will help her learn a lot of the core basic skills that are taught in Nursing 101/102 classes (taking vitals, calculating intake and output, etc.).
Thank you all so much for all the input...it will really help in her decision I'm sure. I may even be getting back to some of you after I have her read all of your responses...again thanks!
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I don't mean to hijack the thread, but since the nurses are reading, I thought I would ask.8-) I have a bachelor's degree in counseling psychology. For the past 7 years, I have been a social worker. Since moving to South Dakota this past November, I have been a SAHM, but know that someday I will be going back to work. Probably once the boys are in school, which is only a few years away. In the meantime, I have been seriously evaluating my career path, as I know I want to go back to school to further my education. The time for me to do this is now, while I am at home and before the boys are in school. I don't think that I want to stay in social work, as my choices are pretty limited. However, I LOVE working with people and nursing has been on my mind for a couple of years now. I have wanted to be a doctor since I was 5, so the medical field has a strong pull for me. So, my question is . . . can I go back to school to get a nursing degree without having to get a whole other Bachelor's Degree? Is it even possible to get a Master's Degree in nursing without having a bachelors in nursing (I know this is pretty far fetched, but hey, thought I would ask! lol). My other thought was to go back for a Physician's Assistant degree, but I have no clue about the job. Do any of you, as nurses, have experience working with PAs and know a bit about the job? How would I go about contacting someone to "shadow" them in either field? Thanks!
Kama
The University center here in Sioux Falls has a fast track program for those who already have a bachelor degree. My cousin did this, I think it is a full year program and it is VERY intense. She was the Valedictorian of her class and got the highest score on her ACT and SATs in her class and she was not able to have a job outside of this program because there was so much work involved. I don't know if they have a part-time process or not. I would call them to get more info or you can go to www.sduniversitycenter.com.
Listen to your heart, it whispers softly so listen closely.
HI! I am not a nurse YET, but am currently going to Southeast tech for the LPN program. Its a year program, and then I can get my 2 year nursing degree in about 8 months in the LPN to RN program on the same campus. So, IMO if someone isnt totally sure, doing the LPN program which is a year is a good way to go. I did check in to the Ultrasound program though at Southeast and there's a waiting list and I was told its basically impossible to find a job around here for that, also when they do clinicals they go ALL over. I know that there are a lot of jobs out there for LPNs as well and if we are allowed to do our FULL scope of practice we can do very close to all the things a nurse can do. We can start IV's, give injections, take blood, catheters, NG tubes, all sorts of stuff!!
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HI,
I read the post from the gal with the psych degree thinking about nursing and sounds like we have a lot in common. I was a social worker (bachelors in social work) for about six years and loved helping people but unfortunately found few career options that allowed me to make it financially. Social work is definately a degree you do out of love and not much financial gain. I chose nursing because you are still helping people but there are so many more jobs that pay about twice what social work did. I went back to USD and am on the second year of my RN degree. I checked into the advanced standing option but found it to demanding as I was not able to work and the time requirements were huge. I got into USDSU and did my first year online with clinicals as the hospital. Now I decided to transfer to the classroom setting instead but if all goes well should be done in May. I was told that my previous bachelors degree even in another subject would benefit me and I could probably do case management at the hospitals. What ever you decide good luck!
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My daughter did job shadowing yesterday with an ultrasound technician and I asked her if she liked it and responded with that she did but thinks that she would like to get into nursing. I have heard of people who get into nursing and now just have totally different careers now (as with other professionals) but I am wondering if any of you who are nurses ever regret going into nursing, if it was the best thing you could have done? Is there something that she or we should think about before going down that road? She can be pretty shy so I am wondering if with any of you have experienced a lot of powering in your field? I know that she wants to do it because she is so caring but I just want to make sure that her personality will fit the profession. Thanks for any input.