New NP

Performance (Review) Anxiety

2009-11-09T21:36:00Z

I have been working as an NP for a year now, and it is time for my annual performance appraisal and reviewing my employment contract. I am oddly nervous about the performance appraisal, much like I felt when at my first performance review as a Registered Nurse. I am also really uncomfortable about renegotiating the employment contract - I think it is because I am 1) from the South, 2) female and 3) vintage (that's a nice way of saying "old"). I was raised to please other people, taught to never talk...(read more)

Is No News Good News?

2009-11-02T12:51:00Z

When someone tells you, "no news is good news" has not been waiting for a call, or should I say "the call," from one of many interviews over the last two months. At last report I was believing that I would be making a decision between the MICU position over the nephrology position. Well, that has not come to fruition. I did, however, make a follow-up call to all whom I have interviewed, only to be told that "we are still in the interviewing process." I guess that is where the no news is good news...(read more)

Four Months In

2009-10-21T12:40:00Z

So, I have been officially been practicing as an NP for 4 months. I guess all of the sudden it dawned on me that I am one-third of the way through my first year. It seems pretty paltry in the grand scheme of things, but I do feel like I have collected some valuable experience already. Here are some reflections. 1) Ask, ask, ask. When job hunting, ask as many questions as possible about a potential offer. For example, in my contract it said "health benefits after 3 months." I did not ask exactly what...(read more)

Get Involved to Spark Your NP Career

2009-10-19T14:24:00Z

When I made the decision to go back to graduate school, it was not without reservation. I had graduated from an ADN program in 1978 and then worked nights while going through the BSN program. By the time I graduated in 1983, I was ready to just work and see what all life had to offer for a few years. I thought that I would wait about 2 years, then go back to graduate school. I was a nurse that really enjoyed working, loved challenges, and was proud of what I did. Suddenly, though, it was 25 years...(read more)

NP Job Search Blues

2009-10-06T14:55:00Z

By last report I was celebrating my new found certification and awaiting my COA. I was hoping to be able to report and share my new career and challenges, but sadly I have not found my career nor have I had any job offers over the past month. I can remember a year ago while still in school all the job opportunities my professor would share with us for illustration, and I can remember thinking how needed and sought after NPs were. Now I know that to be true, but due to the economy, employers are slower...(read more)

Holding on by a Thread

2009-09-29T13:26:00Z

When my alarm clock starts blasting this ridiculous melody, it takes everything in me to drag myself out of bed. The misery starts the day before when I get a bad attitude late in the evening before my scheduled work day. Once I am in the clinic, something takes over my body and I get this burst of energy when I encounter my first patient. Everything is right with the world again. The euphoria, however, is always short lived. Sharks can smell fresh blood in the water. Most times I feel like fresh...(read more)

I Am the Healthcare Crisis

2009-09-21T14:26:00Z

I am sure that nothing drives home the need for healthcare reform more than being an actual healthcare provider. Of course, I was already aware of the issues being a RN. But a whole new dimension is added as an NP that orders labs, tests and medications. It's constantly on my mind: Does this patient really NEED this lab or x-ray? Did I prescribe the most cost-effective medication? As NPs we need to keep this in mind not only to keep healthcare costs down overall, but also because many a self-pay...(read more)

Back to School

2009-09-10T13:01:00Z

Every September, I love the way the air is cooler, the sky is bluer and yellow school buses are on the roads. No, it's not because I have kids in school; I think it just evokes memories of childhood. In my practice, I see kids with ADHD, migraines, seizures, motor tic disorders and developmental or learning differences. These kids typically do not have happy school experiences because of the medical conditions with which they struggle. I write letters to teachers describing the conditions, write...(read more)

Still Job Hunting

2009-09-02T12:16:00Z

I passed certification! Now comes the difficult task of finding my career. There are and have been sooo many opportunities, so much so that I turned down two job offers and an interview for a position that I believed was right that now I am still looking for my dream position. I was told this week that the position I believed to have landed in my lap was put on the back burner due to high turnover and financial difficulties. I wanted to tell the physician so badly, "Do you realize what I gave up...(read more)

Call Schedule Fiasco

2009-08-24T19:06:00Z

So, up until a few weeks ago, my new NP struggles were centered on time management, and the stress that unfortunately comes with being a NP that I am not yet accustomed to. Par for the course, I suppose. Then, a curve ball. The practice manager handed out the new call schedule. Between me and my fellow colleagues, we each took a week of call on a rotating basis. Since there are four of us, this amounts to every 4 th week, or about one week a month. This was a term laid out in my contract, which I...(read more)

Patients Need to Take More Responsibility

2009-08-20T15:42:00Z

I don't know if it is the population of patients that I see, but I have a problem with patients that do not take responsibility for their own health or knowledge of their health insurance. I couldn't begin the number of times that I am asked if their insurance would cover certain medications or tests. When I instruct the patient to contact their insurance with their questions, they are upset and do not understand why I do not have the information. My psychic abilities are just not what they used...(read more)

New NP Time Management Solutions

2009-08-12T14:26:00Z

Now, where were we? Last month, I ended my post with the intention to discuss my time management concerns with practice shareholders. (Read Time Management for New NPs .) A meeting has been requested, but shareholders have not met since my last post. However, I have been able to voice my concerns to one of the group's physicians. The physician I spoke with agreed that these were legitimate concerns and encouraged me to pursue a placement on the agenda for the next shareholder's meeting. In the meantime,...(read more)

Learning Patience in the NP Job Hunt

2009-08-03T12:52:00Z

I have just been informed by the ANCC that my paperwork is under review so I still continue to study and wait for the letter permitting me to sit for my exam. As you can see I am very anxious to get my career underway, but I know "patience is a virtue." Did anyone else feel this way? Over the last few weeks I have had interview after interview and was close to accepting my first position in the ED in a rural hospital setting. Even though I was not totally excited about the position, it would be a...(read more)

New NP Fatigue Syndrome

2009-07-23T13:41:00Z

There is a new diagnosis in my life. It is called New NP Fatigue Syndrome. Signs include working 12 hour days, your practice manager trying to kill you with 23 patients on your daily schedule, and excessive caffeine intake. Symptoms include, but are not limited to, neck and shoulder tension, writer's cramp, diaphoresis, temporary lapses in multitasking skills, and the desire to take naps on the table of the break room at lunch time. Oh, and wearing two different shoes to work (I did that last week)....(read more)

My Time or Work Time?

2009-07-20T12:26:00Z

It's the middle of July, and I feel like the year is rushing past me. Perhaps it is because I am juggling so many things at once, perhaps it is because I am now over 50, or maybe I am in a Twilight Zone episode and just don't know it. I recently attended the AANP annual meeting in Nashville, and other than the excellent speakers, one of the most beneficial things to me was networking with other NPs. I learned so much about how other NPs manage their caseload and their life. Everything from using...(read more)