Registered Nurse
(Female, Age 44) from Covington, LA
This is a REAL-LIFE job profile written by a Female aged 44 who works as a Registered Nurse in Covington, LA. 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 | $65,000 |
| Other Compensation | None Set |
| Hours/Week | 32 |
| Company Size | (not answered) |
| Location | Covington, LA |
| Years Experience | 8 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 in a Hospital in an Urban area that is affiliated with a University, therefore we are a “teaching” facility and have many levels of students and Residents around at all times. The company that owns the Hospital also owns many facilities around the country.
Describe your job role and responsibilities.
I work in OutPatient Surgery. Basically we prepare every patient that has surgery, whether it be a small same day surgery or a major transplant surgery. We see them all. We prepare them for surgery by starting IVS performing assessments, drawing labs etc. We also take care of patients Post Operatively if they are going home the same day.
Please list an additional benefits (beyond compensation) that you receive.
26 days vacation annually, 401k, short and Long term disability, dental, vision and Health Insurance options
Do you feel you are under/over or well/fairly compensated at your current position?
well compensated!
Does your job entail you working with others on a daily basis? Is this something you like/dislike about your job? Please explain.
I absolutely love my position for several reasons. We have a large crew but we work together. Also it is a VERY fast pased unit. You are able to retain all your skills and have to be able to accurately asses patients especially Post Op.
Do you work collaboratively with supervisors/managers?
Yes
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 on a specialized unit in a large Hospital.
Please rate each of the following aspects of your current job on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the highest/best):
Income: 2
Benefits: 8
Hours: 6
Co-Workers: 1
Supervisors: 7
Job Title: 4
Level of Responsibility: 5
The Actual Work: 3
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 | I start my day at 5:15 AM-the next 3 hours are a blur. 2 patients assigned. Start IV’s-perform assessment-make sure they did or did not take meds, haven’t eaten, performed prep etc-draw labs, check results, contact MD for missing orders, out of value lab results-pts blood pressure etc being out of normal parameters. |
| 8am to 9am | 6:15-first case surgeries begin to leave, answer MD call asking why patient ate, got yelled at, although I calmly explained he was told not to eat after Midnight. Then explained to pt his surgery was cancelled-pt yelled at me-went and got charge nurse to deal with as I now have another pt to Pre op |
| 9am to 10am | 7-8-continue assessing pts-get 1 more ready and now spend time explaining to one of the first cases why he has not gone to the operating room yet-Patience is a virtue-calmly agree that yes he could have slept later however he might miss surgery although I have no idea when he is going!! Help another nurse to start an IV and draw labs. |
| 10am to 11am | 8-9-took a 15 minute break-then ran over to Pre admit assessment to help do pre op labs and assessments of patients scheduled on other days. |
| 11am to 12pm | 9-11-spent 2 hours with 2 patients in pre-op trying to hunt down labs-calling nurses in clinic and Doctors to get orders-pt very agitated-got pt food from kitchen |
| 12pm to 1pm | 11-11:30-Lunch11:30
returned and began releiving other nurses for lunch which means taking report on the patients they have, and checking in on them. |
| 1pm to 2pm | 12-began taking pts from RECOVERY-if the patient is going home they leave surgery-go to RECOVERY room for awaking from surgery then back to us. Have to assess pt-administer meds as orders-let the pt sleep if they are too sleepy to go home. If they are nauseated or vomiting call md and get orders for meds |
| 2pm to 3pm | 1-2-type up post operative instructions for patient-call physical therapy if they need a consult. Had a patient who’s Blood pressure bottomed out-raced him back over to recovery and began to perform CPR-Started another IV and put a catheter in to help out staff in RECOVERY-Pt stabilized-ran back over to my unit and report given to oncoming staff about the patients I have |
| 3pm to 4pm | 2-2:45-finished documenting on patients in computer-filled out incident report regarding the earlier patients fall-and counted medicine drawer with charge nurse again as count of narcotics was off-finally RAN out of the door! |
| 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?
In House Listing
What was the application process?
Electronic Application OnLine
Did you have to interview for your current job? If yes, what did the interview process entail?
For my original position at this position, I actually applied online for one position and the HR department called me about another position. After working in that position I began to pick up extra shifts in other departments and found this awesome job that I have.
If you can remember, what questions were you asked during the interview?
You know as a nurse for MOST facilities you will have to take some sort of competency exam. It usually involves medications and dosages. For the interview lots of questions about orginazational skills, assessment skills, and teamwork ability.
Do you feel your employer properly prepared you for your job? Explain.
Yes-I worked PRN(as needed) in the position prior to starting full time
Was there training for your current position? If yes, what did it entail?
Of course an Associates Degree or higher. Also CPR, ACLS(Acute Cardiac Life Support)
Do you feel your educational background prepared you for your job? Explain.
Yes-Learning all of the anatomy and asessment of body systems and disease processes does help.
If applicable, do you feel your internship experience helped you prepare for your job?
Doing clinicals in different hospitals was the greatest experience
If someone wanted to go about getting a job similar to yours, what would you recommend for him or her to do?
Working in a unit like mine takes a bit of experience. However I always tell the students that come through to accept any position you can get, or are offered in a facility, UNLESS you just absolutely can’t stomach it(i.e cancer unit, burn unit etc) You can always transfer positions once you get your foot in the door!
What skills do you think a person should have if they want to pursue a position like yours?
First of all you must have a nursing license! In the case of Peri-Operative services you must be a Registered Nurse. It is imperative that you feel comfortable with your assessment skills-And always remember-NO QUESTION IS STUPID!!! It is really dumb NOT to ask if you don’t know something or how to do it. 20 years in this profession and I still ask questions all the time!
Do you feel that you need a certain level of education or training to be successful in your job?
Associate’s degree or higher
What advice would you give to someone who was about to start work in your position/ line of work?
It is hard work but also extremely rewarding. If you are in it just for the money, let me tell you, IT WILL SHOW, and it will catch up with you. School is tough but don’t let the classes overwhelm you-you learn most everything in the field after you graduate!
Long-term career plans
Is your current employment part of your overall career plan? Why or why not?
I actually have a plan that does not include working at my current employer.
What are your current career goals?
I plan on applying for the new Veterans Hospital when it opens in NEW ORLEANS. The reason is that I am ready to work on my retirement. That is the smart move. At my age I should have a nice retirement but I spent my youth chasing the money and living. Now its time to be responsible and give the government some time so that my family can have some time!
Is there anything else you would like to share about your career?
It is an extremely rewarding career choice. It is tough, and there are days when you wonder why, why-and the next day it all makes sense.
Prior work history
Please list your most recent jobs prior to this current job:
| Title | Length | Salary | Description | |
| Prior Job 1 | RN | 7.5 years | 65000 | Registered Nurse-Outpatient surgery-assessment, pre-op, post-op care, education to pts |
| Prior Job 2 | Director Of Nurses | 3 years | 65000 | ran a Home Health Agency-oversaw compliance with Medicare Guidelines, supervised nursing staff, Home Health Aides etc |
Educational background
Please list your educational background:
High School GPA:3
| GPA | School | Degree | |
| College (Undergraduate) or Technical/Vocational |
3.2 | Southwest Mississippi Community College | Associate Degree Science(Nursing) |
| Graduate or Professional (Masters or Doctorate) |
n/a |
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.