LSU Nurses Notes. Demetrius Porche, DNS Professor and Dean. 3/30/14 LSU Health School of Nursing. Dean s Notes continue on page 2

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1 LSU Nurses Notes 3/30/14 LSU Health School of Nursing Transitioning to Practice Demetrius J. Porche, DNS, PhD, FAANP, FAAN As an undergraduate or graduate nursing student, you will be soon or in a few semesters entering the health care workforce environment at a time of health care reform. As you engage in your new professional nursing role as either a Registered Nurse (RN), Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN), nurse educator, nurse executive or nurse scientist, you will be challenged with providing quality health care while maintaining economic efficiencies in a dynamic and changing environment. Once you have your license, there is an almost immediate expectation that you are to function in your new role in a competent manner. These expectations along with the dynamic and changing health care environment sometimes creates distress, emotional exhaustion, and decreased professional self-confidence. There are established reports citing that as many as 1/3 to 2/3 of new graduates change their place of employment within the first two years. In addition, other reports cite that as many as 1/3 of new graduates leave or consider leaving the nursing profession within three years of graduation. You have dedicated your time, energy, and financial resources to achieve the goal of graduating as a RN, APRN, nurse educator, nurse executive, or nurse scientist; therefore, you must not give up on this goal, it will be a wonderful career. However, you must prepare for this transition into practice. The Stages of Transition Model provides some guidance on what to expect in your transition. The model proposes the following stages: Initial - first 3 to 4 months is a period of time you should dedicate to adjusting, adapting to and accommodating the new realities of your work and personal life balance. During this phase you may experience some culture "shock" regarding the realities of the health care environment. Being emotionally aware of your feelings and debriefing with someone is critical during this phase. During this time, prepare to continue to be in a learning mode - continuing to learn nursing knowledge and skills, job expectations, levels of authority and responsibility etc; Stage 2 - occurs over the next 4-5 months, generally after the orientation period is over and you are alone without a preceptor. This period is characterized by the need to think rapidly and advance your knowledge and skill competency level. You become more aware of inconsistencies and inadequacies in the health care environment. During this stage, you must continue to be aware of your professional "self" or role and find balance between that professional role and your personal life. Generally, you are expected to function as an independent RN or APRN. During this time, it is good to consult and collaborate with experienced nurses. This consultation and collaboration builds your professional relationship and confidence. However, this consultation and collaboration should demonstrate that you are requesting advisement from a position of knowledge - don't continue to ask "dependent focused questions" during this time, ask a question but demonstrate that it is an informed question; and Dean s Notes continue on page 2 Demetrius Porche, DNS Professor and Dean

2 Lastly, the final stage occurs during the remaining period of your first year in practice. This period focuses on engaging in the larger nursing community, building relationships with coworkers, and reflecting on your "place" within the nursing profession. You will still be learning a tremendous amount, this is the period where you increase the depth of your knowledge not just the breadth of your knowledge. It is not uncommon at this time, even though you thought you would never go back to school, to begin considering other avenues or careers in nursing. This model only provides a framework for you to understand what you are experiencing. What you really want to avoid is the professional exhaustion and burnout along with transition shock. Some other helpful strategies during this time to assist with your transition are: Find a mentor and develop a mentoring relationship; Engage in reflective journaling; Develop your emotional intelligence skills; Exercise, it focuses your thinking, wards off negative thoughts and emotions; and Remember, we will always be here to support you, encourage you, and provide advisement to you as an alumni! 2

3 LSU Nurses Notes LSUHSC School of Nursing LOGO The logo will be changing. Change can be a good thing and we ask that you work with us as we work through the process. Any items you have in stock for sale or items you pre-ordered before March 24, 2014 for sale can be sold. As soon as we have the new logo and policy you will be notified. I am available to answer any questions you may have. Change in Course Registration The School of Nursing will be going to on-line registration beginning summer Students can begin registration for summer 2014 classes only at this time. It is important that you review your profile in PeopleSoft and verify the information is correct. An was sent to all students with step by step directions how to register. All students will be notified when the fall 2014 registration access is open. If you have an account block, you will not be able to register. Click on the block and you will sees what the block is and who placed it. Contact the person who placed the block for additional information. Anyone with a block for outstanding course evaluations, please contact Mr. Richard Smith in IT for assistance. Once your outstanding course evaluations have been cleared, Mr. Smith will notify me and block will be removed. Mr. Smith can be reached at rsmi14@lsuhsc.edu. Catherine Lopez, RN, DHEd Assistant Dean for Student Students are responsible for registering for the correct courses. Your faculty advisor will notify you via if a correction needs to be made. It is your responsibility to ensure the correction is made in a timely manner. While we are moving into online registration it does not replace or diminish the role of your faculty advisor. Each student is assigned a faculty advisor to provide academic advising. They are genuinely engaged and committed to your success in the School of Nursing and supporting the Core Values of LSUHSC SON. Note continues on next page 3

4 Historically, student-faculty relationships have been viewed as an integral part of the higher education learning process. Your faculty advisor is an expert in nursing and knowledgeable about course in your specific program, as well as educational and career opportunities in their area of expertise. Your faculty advisor: Assists with course selection, scheduling and program planning; Provides guidance to develop, clarify and evaluate educational plans and goals; Assists students identify and explore alternatives; and Helps you assess consequences of decisions. 4

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6 LSU Nurses Notes LSU Health School of Nursing SNA Updates SNA Meeting Dates: SNA will be selling fleece, badge reels, and clipboards that are very helpful while in clinicals. April 14 th at 7 a.m. March Donations: UPCOMING SNA EVENTS: 1. From March 10th through April 13th we will be collecting Mardi Gras beads for St. Michael s Special School. St. Michael Special School is designed to help students with major learning difficulties that hinder their ability to achieve success in a regular class setting. The students make crafts with beads and sell them as a fundraiser. These sales are very popular and they often run out of beads, our goal is to help them not run out. Save up all those beads you catch during your 1-day Mardi Gras Holiday and donate them to St. Michael s Special School! April Events: 1. Sunday, April 6 th LaSPCA Bark at the Park 11am-3:30pm 2. Tuesday, April 8 th Blood Drive 8am-4pm 3. April 8 th 13 th NSNA Convention 4. Saturday, April 26 th -Stuffing Envelopes 6

7 LSU Nurses Notes SGA Updates LSU Health School of Nursing We will be selling the remainder of our SGA polo shirts and scrub jackets. Scrub Jackets are $30 and the Polo s are $25. Upcoming Sale Days: * April 7th 9 p.m p.m. (This is the LAST sell day this semester.) Upcoming SGA Events Meetings: April 7 th at 12 p.m. in MEB 15 (Officer nominations will be held) Crawfish Boil: April 5 th from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. 7

8 Solid Color hair ties are $1 and $2 dollars for ties with pattern or glitter. We are selling our short sleeve t- shirts "Top 10 Reasons Why I decided to go to Nursing School" for $18. Please contact either Caitlyn Blanchard (cblanc@lsuhsc.edu) or Catie Brown (cbro12@lsuhsc.edu). FRONT BACK Senior I Class Senior I s are selling there Mardi Gras t-shirts for $18. They also have a navy blue LSU t-shirt for $16 and a purple t-shirt for $20. Please Kaitlyn Moser if you are interested in buying any fundraiser items at kmoser@lsuhsc.edu. Front Back

9 Just a couple of reminders, dues are $60 till the end of March. Hope everyone plans to go to the Crawfish Boil, it shall be a blast! We are still selling the white sweatshirts for $30, tumblers for $10 and coozes for $2. An will be coming out soon about our new fundraiser, let s just say it's perfect for this time of the year!! Junior I Class BACK OF SHIRT- Above Be on the lookout for more info about the Junior I class party! It's the last day of finals, so it should be a blast! Don't forget, dues (40.00$) need to be turned in by the day before Spring Break. They're 45.00$ if late! Please give all dues to the class treasurer, Lisa Rebenne. LOGOS ON FRONT OF SHIRT- LEFT

10 SOPH II's are selling these unisex baseball style t- shirts for $20. if you are interested in pre-ordering! Sizes XS-L available! Sophomore I Class STARTING SUMMER 2014! The School of Nursing will be implementing the Brand New Uniform Policy! Please make sure to get your POLOS by the Summer Semester! SGA has one SALE day left, April 7th. POLO's are $25. They are available in white, gray, and purple. They also sell them in the bookstore. Class dues are $45 and are due April 30, You can pay by cash, check, money order, or cashier s check. Make all checks payable to Class of December If you are a repeating SOPH I student and paid your dues last semester, you DO NOT need to pay class dues this semester. If you have any questions, or need to schedule a time to pay dues, contact Kevin France (kfra12@lsuhsc.edu).

11 Almost there! Perspectives Exam on Friday, April 4. CARE XIII.

12 Is anyone interested in being tutored or tutoring someone else? If so, please send your request to and it will appear on this page in the next Nurses Note. If you would like to post something, please so that it will be on the next Nurses Notes.