Restive State

The Test
Two weeks after we got to Oregon, I sat for the hardest test in my life. Having graduated back in May, and having been broke until recently to pay for the test, I had not taken my NCLEX exam to earn my nursing license. After the events of August, I was really in no shape emotionally, intellectually or psychologically to take this test, but I knew I needed to do so. On a Tuesday morning I drove to the testing center, nervous, shaking and fearing the worst. Even the help of NOFX and my theme song from school didn't put the shakes away. Seventy-five questions late I walked out saying, "Do you want fries with that?" to start practising for the career path that I felt I had earned with my dismal performance. You see the minimum number of questions on the NCLEX-RN test is 75. They figure that by that point in the test, you're either minimally competent (in other words, you'r enot going to outright kill someone due to stupidity), or you're hopeless and need to start thinking about possibly a career change. Sure, I had been in this spot before. Many times in school I walked out of the test feeling this exact same way and did just fine, even great. But it was different this time. So many times I felt that I was lost adn guessing. It was guessing guided by what I knew, following the ABCs and Maslow, but guessing. The rest of the day was spent trying not to think about the test and trying not to drive the wife crazy. The following morning I pulled up the State Board site, to see maybe if they had posted the results early. And they had. There was my name, with RN attached to it. I had done it! All of the time, the stress and worry had finally paid off.

New Grad Blues
Now that I had those precious initials, RN, after my name, I believed that a job would be a sight easier to obtain. Boy was I wrong. The thing that many people do not realize about the nursing shortage in this country is that it is a shortage of experienced nurses. Not being an experienced nurse made my job prospects scarce to minimal. Most facilities only have certain times where they take new grads as they have to make arrangements for preceptors and orientation (so as not to throw us fresh meat to the lions). Unfortunately, I had missed all of these times so opportunites are scarce. Yes, there are openings in long-term care and skilled nursing. Both honorable specialties in the nursing field, but not my area of interest. Yes, I could work at a LTC/SN facility, but I would be unhappy and always looking for the chance to bolt. WIth my upbringing that would not be an option. I don't leave people in a bind.

So here I am, singing the new grad blues. Everyday I log onto to the various hospital websites looking for new openings that I may qualify for. At least minimally enough to get an interview. I peruse the newspaper on-line. Not being from here though, I don't know the economic landscape, and how the various organizations hire. Some have said to just walk onto the floors, look for the manager and hand out my resume. Easy to say if you've done clinicals there. Me, I have to use gMaps just to find the places. But, I have faith. I have persistence. I have to ability to do menial labor until the job I want pops up. I may not want to, but I will.

Til later...