CNA Training May Not Be Necessary?

I recently reviewed information on the New York State Department of Health and Prometric regarding CNA/Nurse Aide training and found that I may be able to take the NYS Nurse Aide licensing exam without re-training! This is of course due to that the fact that I was already a CNA but never worked in a paid position. The reason I assumed I had to retrain was that my license lapsed a long time ago (in 1999) but when reading the New York Nurse Aide application form, it appeared that I may be able to apply under the following route:

Route 6
"Select this certification route if your certification is currently lapsed and you successfully completed a NYS-approved nursing home nurse aide training program on or after July 1, 1989. Your certification is considered lapsed if you have not worked for pay as a NYS nurse aide in the last 24 months at a NYS nursing home or other approved facility."


Other routes that may be applicable once I graduate from nursing school (God-willing) would be the following:

Route 3 

"Select this certification route if you are a U.S.-trained graduate nurse. You will not be required to complete further training but you must take the exam."

Route 4
"Select this certification route if you are a currently active RN or LPN licensed in the United States. You will not be required to complete further training or take the exam."

Route 3 and 4 would probably be a waste of time (and money) since I would either be licensed as an RN or be preparing to take the RN NCLEX exam to become a RN. My best bet would be to take the exam after my first clinical course or at some point while in school so that my skills are "refreshed." I would rather spend my money on Phlebotomy training anyway. 

Source: New York Department of Health Nursing Home Nurse Aide Certification Handbook 

SUNY Downstate Information Session

Earlier this week I attended an information session of the accelerated bachelors of nursing program at SUNY Downstate and despite a lot of the information I have obtained prior to the session via the school's website and email correspondence with Admissions, I found it very informative. I realize through the information session though that I really have to put my game face on. First of all, Downstate only admits 60 students to the program every year but receive as many as 500 applications yearly to the accelerated BSN program alone. Also cumulative GPA from student's first degree may carry more weight than I had hoped (although the science GPA carries a significant amount of weight as well) so I am a little nervous of how competitive my GPA from my first degree of 3.2 would be. I just started taking my science prerequisites this semester and I must say that Anatomy and Physiology 1 is kicking my butt! It doesn't help that I am taking the course online either. I am doing OK up to this point though (my overall grade to date is in the B+ to A- range) but for the first time since taking prerequisites I do not know if I will be getting an A for this course and I still have 3 more sciences to go (Anatomy and Physiology 2, Microbiology, and General Chemistry). In the past a B+ would have been fine but now, especially since my previous GPA may not be that competitive, I need all A's. It was also recommended that those without healthcare experience do some volunteer work. Now honestly I had no intentions of volunteering because I felt that with all of my other responsibilities (full time job, 3 kids, school, etc.), I didn't want to be bothered but if I want to show how serious I am about a potential nursing career I may have to reconsider, even if its just a couple of hours a week for a few months. I am already planning on doing a CNA (certified nurse assistant) course so it may not be as hard as I think but I will have to do the volunteer thing prior to initiating CNA training. I also found out that getting letters of recommendation from my employers would be acceptable which is great since I do not know how letters of recommendations would work for online courses (my previous degree was completed well over a decade ago so that is not an option for me). My only concern with requesting letters of recommendations from my managers is that I would have to reveal, at least partially, my intentions of resigning my job if accepted which may be awkward but I do have a good reputation at work and I am generally well liked by managers so it may not be as bad as I anticipate.

Associates in Nursing Degree?

I wouldn't be me if I didn't double guess myself at least once every few weeks. My plans, thus far, is to take online prerequisites (as many as I can) and once accepted and enrolled in an accelerated Bachelor's of Nursing program, quit my job and pursue a nursing career. While this is the fastest way to a BSN (Bachelors of Nursing) degree for me, its not without it flaws. Here are the negatives:

I would have to quit my job. I have never quit a job in my life and although I have a very supportive husband, the job market is shaky and I have a nice "stable" job with good benefits.
If I don't like nursing, I would be stuck because I would have left my job. There would be nothing to fall back on.
The intense nature of an accelerated program would limit me to per-diem or part-time jobs with a great deal of flexibility.
I may not be eligible for most summer nursing internships since the majority of them require full-time commitment.
Last but not least, I would have to quit my job (I know I stated this already but quitting a job is unheard of in my family).

All that being stated, I have also considered ASN (Associate of Nursing) programs and more specifically, evening and/or weekend programs. Initially I was against this route because of the length of time it would take to get a BSN (3-4 years taking this route because I would have to transfer into an RN-BSN program) and I was uncertain of the marketability of having an ASN in nursing with respect to jobs (most jobs in New York City prefer BSN for new grads). Also since I work full-time going to nursing school 3-4 nights per week at  roughly 5 hours at a time would be torture and I probably would never see my family during the semester. Conflict with scheduling would also be inevitable since my husband works the occasional night shift. Despite the negatives, there are some positives to going the slower route:

I could probably remain working at my job through the duration of nursing school for both the ASN and the RN-BSN degrees.
I would take out less school loans (or possibly no loans) because I would be employed and could just pay for some of my school tuition out of pocket.
If I do not like nursing or no longer want to continue with nursing school I could just stop attending and remain at my current job or do something else.
Although job market is very tough for non-BSN grads, I could still become a license registered nurse with an ASN degree and I could look for work while I am working (its always easy to find a job when you already have one in my opinion). There are a limited number of weekend/evenings programs though so I would have to consider commuting (work to school), childcare (specifically if my husband is working on any given night) and my stamina (I am fairly energetic but that type of scheduling for such a long length of time would be a lot for me). I don't know but I think nursing school would be better if I worked less and schooled more.

Anatomy and Physiology I (now the real fun begins!)

Recently I completed developmental psychology (my second completed prerequisite course) and I am happy to report that I got an 'A'! I certainly am on the right track but developmental psychology is still, for lack of a better phrase, not a "hard" science like Anatomy and Physiology, Microbiology, or Chemistry, which are the bulk of my prerequisite courses. I of course took life sciences in the past; I am even a little familiar with anatomy and physiology from my CNA training back in high school and I recall enjoying the subject material but that was well over 15 years ago and I did not get an 'A' in that course (I believe it was B+) or in any other life science course for that matter. To even be considered for admission to any nursing program I should be getting 'A's in the majority (if not all) of my courses. I was also a science major with my first undergraduate degree (computer science) but rarely got an 'A' in my courses (in my defense my major courses were primarily boring). I am certainly one for a challenge (I even secretly like them at times) but I am nervous about my potential performance in Anatomy and Physiology I especially since its all online. I do not have the luxury, time, or money to repeat any of my courses and many nursing programs, include those I am interested in, will not accept repeated science courses.  As the precursor to all of the other sciences I have remaining, this course could essentially make or break me! I am a better student now in my 30s than I was in my late teens or early 20s but I have a pretty busy life and the occasional attention span of a peanut. And although I generally work well under pressure I am a ticking time bomb on the rare occasion I become overwhelmed. Am I being a little dramatic? Probably. But the competition is fierce and in the Spring 2014 semester I will truly have to bring my 'A' game.

Accelerated Bachelors of Science in Nursing (ABSN)

If you have been reading this blog, you will know that at some point in the near future my hope is, God willing, to be accepted into an accelerated Bachelors of Science in Nursing (ABSN) program so that I can become a second career registered nurse. What you may not know however is why I chose this option or what an accelerated Bachelors of Science in Nursing (ABSN) is (unless you have done your own research). I have already done a lot of the research so I figure I'd just pass a bit of the knowledge on? Here I go...

Difference between traditional Bachelors of Science in Nursing (BSN) versus accelerated Bachelors of Science in Nursing (ABSN)

Both the BSN and ABSN are bachelors degree programs in nursing that allows graduates to meet the same state licensing requirements for one to become registered nurses. In fact the course work, at least from what I have seen, is virtually the same. The difference in the two programs is the manner in which the programs are delivered, where the accelerated programs are completed at a faster (accelerated) rate than the traditional programs. The nursing portion (usually junior and senior year) of most traditional BSN programs is completed in two (or more) years whereas most ABSN programs are completed anywhere from 12 to 18 months on average. Students in accelerated programs are also required to have bachelors degrees in a non-nursing major prior to admission. Lastly, most traditional BSN programs have break or recess during the summer and winter months but ABSN programs usually offer courses year round, including the summer and winter. This means that a student in an accelerated program will basically have no life and working full-time would be extremely difficult if not nearly impossible but students finish a lot sooner and hence get into the workforce faster.

The reason I chose to pursue a second career in nursing via an ABSN program is that I want to finish my second degree as quickly as possible since I am considered an "adult" student and being unemployed or underemployed for several years to pursue another degree is simply not a practical option for me right now. Also if I decide to go further with my nursing education (i.e. masters degree) completing my nursing education through another option (traditional BSN, RN to BSN after competing associates program, etc.) would mean an average matriculation time of 4-6 years and I am not getting any younger. Besides I don't think I have the patience to sit in class all day for two or more years taking general education classes I don't need with a bunch of "kids." No disrespect to my younger college students as I was once there myself but I am in a difference place in my life now and would prefer to matriculate with other students (aka "grown" folks) that I could identify with and vice versa.

Accelerated Bachelors of Nursing Programs in New York City (NYC) and Long Island

NYC and Long Island have an abundance of nursing programs but only a handful of ABSN programs to date. Here is a list of the accelerated BSN programs in NYC and Long Island (not sure if this list is all inclusive but I will do my best to ensure all programs in the regions are listed):

Adelphi University (may be the best commute for me but not the best tuition)
CUNY Hunter College (was one of my choices as well until I saw requirements. Still a top program though)
CUNY Lehman College (currently my first choice program)
Long Island University-LIU
Molloy College (this is a "slightly" accelerated dual degree program that includes a Masters component)
Monroe College
New York University-NYU
Pace University
SUNY Downstate Medical Center (currently my second choice program)
SUNY Stony Brook University Hospital (was my third choice but commute would be a killer)

There are also several ABSN programs in nearby New York counties not included in the list above but I didn't really investigate those programs since I was not interested in them personally but I still may include them in the future so that I can have a more well-rounded list.