Registered Nurse 

(Female, Age 34) from Phila, PA

This is a REAL-LIFE job profile written by a Female aged 34 who works as a Registered Nurse in Phila, PA. We have removed all names and personal information in order to protect privacy. This professional kindly spent a bit of their time to complete one of our job profile surveys so that prospective job seekers like you could read their insights. Please excuse any punctuation or grammatical errors in this profile.

At a Glance

Current Job

Basic data on your current job

Job Title Registered Nurse
Salary $26,000
Other Compensation None Set
Hours/Week 30
Company Size (not answered)
Location Phila, PA
Years Experience 3 years

Career Ratings

Opinions on your CAREER overall (i.e. not just your current job)

Years in Career 0
Education (not answered)
Income Rating 0 / 10
Interest Rating 0 / 10
Work-Life Rating 0 / 10
Fulfilment Rating 0 / 10

Current job Q&A

Describe the type of organization you work for.
I work for a home care agency. This organization has several different locations throughout PA. They provide home care to clients in their homes and at schools. Registered Nurses and Certified Home Health Aides are employed through this agency.

Describe your job role and responsibilities.
I currently accompany an 18 year old student to school in a local public high school. I work in a class with 20 students with special needs. I am responsible for giving out medications, monitoring blood pressures and blood sugars throughout the day.

Please list an additional benefits (beyond compensation) that you receive.
no benefits, sick leave or health insurance

Do you feel you are under/over or well/fairly compensated at your current position?
under compensated

Does your job entail you working with others on a daily basis? Is this something you like/dislike about your job? Please explain.
Yes, I interact with the school nurse, teachers in the classroom and the other students in the class. I love this aspect of my job because I love to socialize . I also enjoy helping the other students in the class with their class work.

Do you work collaboratively with supervisors/managers?
No

Do you work collaboratively with your co-workers?
Yes

Describe your work location (e.g., office, home, theatre, in the field) and what you like/dislike about working in it.
I work with the teachers in the classroom to coordinate my medical care throughout the day.

Please rate each of the following aspects of your current job on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the highest/best):
Income: 3
Benefits: 8
Hours: 5
Co-Workers: 1
Supervisors: 6
Job Title: 7
Level of Responsibility: 4
The Actual Work: 2

A day in the life of…

Please describe a typical workday for you in your current job:

5am to 6am
6am to 7am
7am to 8am
8am to 9am Arrive at work. Receive a written report from the patients mother stating how the previous night went. This includes any medical issues that might have come up during the night or the morning before school.
9am to 10am Perform a head to toe physical assessment of the patient, including vital signs (heart rate, temperature, blood pressure, repirations). Address any concerns the mother of the patient reported to me. Monitor patient during class looking for signs of low blood sugar, muscle weakness or high blood pressure.
10am to 11am Check patients blood sugar. Administer pre snack medications and give patient a snack to eat in the classroom. Check blood pressure. Write out a nursing narrative which includes the head to toe assessment, vital signs and any other pertinent information.
11am to 12pm Continue to monitor patient status. Help the teacher in the classroom and/or the other students as needed.
12pm to 1pm Perform another blood sugar and blood pressure check before lunch. Administer oral medications before patient eats.
1pm to 2pm Complete my nursing notes and assesments. Write out a report to the patients mother describing the day and reporting vital signs, medication given, etc.
2pm to 3pm Accompany patient to school bus and make sure she gets on safely. My day ends at 2:15pm.
3pm to 4pm
4pm to 5pm
5pm to 6pm
6pm to 7pm
7pm to 8pm
8pm to 9pm
9pm to 10pm
10pm to 11pm
11pm to 12am

Table of Contents

How you got your job

How did you get your current job?
referral through a friend

What was the application process?
paper application

Did you have to interview for your current job? If yes, what did the interview process entail?
Individual interview with office manager; Several written tests about general nursing knowledge; a written math tests; a written test about OSHA and HIPPA standards.

If you can remember, what questions were you asked during the interview?
I do not recall.

Do you feel your employer properly prepared you for your job? Explain.
There was no on the job training. Home care nurses usually have prior nursing experience before entering the field.

Was there training for your current position? If yes, what did it entail?
I received a Bachelors Degree from an accredited university. It is a four year degree, which included pratical experience in several different health care settings.

Do you feel your educational background prepared you for your job? Explain.
Absolutely. I had a good nursing education which included a lot of practical experience in the hospital settings. However, you do do a lot of on the job learning. Every day is a new learning experience.

If applicable, do you feel your internship experience helped you prepare for your job?
Working in hospitals, doctors offices, nursing homes, etc. gave me a variety of different experiences as a student. We had a lot of hands on training which gave me a good foundation.

If someone wanted to go about getting a job similar to yours, what would you recommend for him or her to do?
Search the interned and newspaper classifieds for home care positions in nursing. Several ads will state “go to school with a child.”

What skills do you think a person should have if they want to pursue a position like yours?
Excellent assessment skills and autonomy are crucial in this position. You are in a school setting without any doctors around in case of a medical emergency. You must be well organized and prepared. You also must have good communication skill. This is essential in both your written nursing notes, but also in communicating with the others in the classroom and the patients family.

Do you feel that you need a certain level of education or training to be successful in your job?
Yes

What advice would you give to someone who was about to start work in your position/ line of work?
You must be dedicated to what you do. Nursing is a demanding job that requires a lot of hard work. You must always keep up to date with the current research in your field.

Long-term career plans

Is your current employment part of your overall career plan? Why or why not?
I would say yes because part of my career plan was to be the most diverse nurse that I could be. I have worked with both adults and children in a home care setting. I have worked in a hospital in the emergency room and on a medical floor. I have also worked in the pharmaceutical industry.

What are your current career goals?
To learn as much as I can in home care nursing, then possible move on to case management.

Is there anything else you would like to share about your career?
It is a very rewarding experience to be able to work so closely with my patients and to be able to have the time to spend addressing not only their physical needs, but also their social/ emotional needs.

Prior work history

Please list your most recent jobs prior to this current job:

Title Length Salary Description
Prior Job 1 Clinical Data Manager 5 years 60000 Collect, organize and prepare data collected from Phase 3 clinical trials for submission to the FDA.
Prior Job 2 RN 2 years 52, Provide nursing care for children and adolescents on a general medical floor.

Educational background

Please list your educational background:

High School GPA:A-

GPA School Degree
College (Undergraduate)
or Technical/Vocational
3.67 Penn State BS Nursing
Graduate or Professional
(Masters or Doctorate)

Ask a Question of this Mentor

This mentor has opted to receive questions from people interested in this career or job position. Please be respectful of their time and willingness to help. Include some basic relevant background so they can intelligently answer your question.