So far, I'm enjoying my EMT class. It's fun learning something I already know-- I get to feel especially smart (hooray for feeling smart on occasion!). The lack of sleep is a little bit frustrating... On class days I get home between 3:45 and 4:15, but I rarely get to bed before 6:00 pm, then it's up no later than 10:30 to get ready for work. It's tough, but luckily I have easy access to coffee.
The class is very opportune. Last week a team of utilization professionals from the national headquarters for the medical center I work for were in-house to analyze the monitoring system and need for monitor technicians. They're tasked with coming up with a standard for the entire organization- an excellent goal, but who knows what it means for me. If cost cutting measures prevail, it's possible that the organization might do away with humans and just rely on a paging system or phones with a screen that show nurses the abnormal heart rhythms their patients are running. I don't think such a system is ideal (for a variety of reasons), and I voiced my concerns to the professionals when they interviewed my coworker and I. A change will probably not happen right away, but changes are inevitable.
In other news, the nursing manager of the unit where I work is leaving. She has been promoted to Director of Nursing at another facility-- a great move for her, but not one that she chose for herself. A shake-down of sorts is occuring, but what does it all mean? What kind of leadership will fill the void? Specifically, what does it mean for my job? I have no idea. I have to wait and see, which is no easy feat.
My husband has already asked a friend who manages the Emergency Department about the need for EMT's, and (as I figured) the need is great. He relayed to me that even if there are no positions posted, at any given time there is a need for per diem workers and I could probably work 3 twelve hour shifts per week. That's comforting. Before the news about the nursing manager leaving broke, I was hoping to take the evening monitor tech shift. That individual will be starting a different position on June 1st. I expressed my interest to the manager. As someone with high seniority in the department, I should have no trouble transferring... But now that she's leaving, it will probably be complete chaos. I look forward to finishing up my class and having other options!
My class ends mid-June... Around that time, I will hopefully hear from the local community college about whether I've been accepted to the nursing program for the Fall. It's a lottery system, and I've been unlucky the past two tries.... but who knows, perhaps the third time will be the charm. For the rest of the month of June and into July, my plan is to do some serious review of Anatomy, Physiology, and Micro (I've been reviewing, but at a casual pace), because a month or so later (late July or early August, if I'm remembering correctly) I'll be testing on the material. I'm enrolled to take exams through Excelsior College-- testing out will enable me to apply to certain nursing programs (such as Mount St. Mary's in LA) despite the fact that I originally took those prerequisite classes more than a decade ago.
So I should be feeling pretty good about myself and my future by the time summer starts. R and I would like to take our honeymoon in a few months, and I'd like to do that without anything hanging over my head. He wants to go to a tropical locale, like Maui... Sounds fun, but I am so not bikini ready! As mentioned in a prior post, I'm no longer doing Optifast. I'd like to lose more weight, but I don't want to diet. I'd rather boost my metabolism by increasing my muscle mass. Maybe I can start going to the gym? Great plan, but it's going to have to wait. Maybe we should delay the honeymoon until Fall or Winter!
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