Did I mention I hate Nursing Informatics?

I find it odd that I hate informatics, given that I have over three decades of experience with computers and not just in using them to type papers and play games.  You'd think it'd be a great fit for me:  nursing and computers.  But I thoroughly dislike this class. 

I guess that's why I've been dragging my feet on it.  I finally submitted the first of two performance assessments...submitted it 20 minutes ago.  The second performance assessment is more presentation than paper, which will be a refreshing change.  It's still informatics though.

I look at the online WGU support groups and see people stating they blew through this class in a week or two, and I can't wrap my head around that.

Oh well.  I have to remember that I'm not competing against anyone but myself.

If I keep to my schedule, I have until the middle of this month to finish the second performance assessment and call it a day on the class.  That will then leave me with one class (Leadership) which I plan to finish by December.  Then my course load for the term will be completed and I'll have December off.  My program mentor asked if I'd consider moving a class up from next term, but I've got too much going on in December and I'd rather spend the time not having to juggle schoolwork around everything else.

Stuff

I finished Research.  It turned out that I aced this one...it came back with a nearly perfect score.  It'd be nice if WGU thought it merited an excellence award, but I guess it'd have to have a perfect score to get that.

I got a few recruiting pitches.  The most notable one was from ICE...yes, that ICE.  Apparently psychiatric nurses can have flourishing careers in Immigration and Customs Enforcement.   And apparently they saw me on LinkedIn and thought I was a good candidate.  I'm going to guess that they saw the last name and figured I was likely fluent in Spanish.  I'm working on it.  And Russian.

Yes, Russian.

I had always wanted to learn it as a kid and even got some sort of course to start with.   But it was no Rosetta Stone and didn't really make it stick.  I decided to take advantage of a summer sale to add on Rosetta Stone Russian online.  I work on Spanish classes during my lunch breaks.  I started working on  Russian classes when I'm on the treadmill.  As far as practice goes, surprisingly there is a sizable Russian/Ukrainian community in my town. 

Anyhow, back to the recruiting pitch...I admit, I was intrigued.  ICE?  Me?   Meriwhen in a green and white car?  It would coordinate with my blog's theme. 

Ah, no, not now. I'm not planning to leave my current gig any time soon, as it took me so long to land it in the first place.

I went on a short holiday.  I brought my laptop with every intention of opening it up to do schoolwork, but I opened it up to look up local attractions and indulge in some late-night Minecraft.  So I technically didn't begin my next course--Informatics--until this past Monday. 

I'm now about a week and a half behind my arbitrary deadlines, but that's OK.  My first program mentor had set the dates up so I'd finish in mid-November, leaving me with 6 free weeks.  I opened up my iCal and plugged in the actual dates, and made a few adjustments.  My adjustments have me finishing in mid-December...on my birthday, actually.

So, for Informatics...

For this class, they recommend taking part in as many of the live cohorts as possible.  I threw myself right into the first live cohort, and the second will be today.  My schedule won't let me hit every cohort, but I can hit two a week.

I went to the first one, which was taught by my assigned course instructor.  So she's going on about the course and mentions an informatics scenario that sounds suspiciously like it occurred in a psych setting.  I could relate.  So she continues on and it turns out she IS a psych nurse.  Well, she's in Informatics now, but she's a psych nurse at heart and loves it.

It was all I could do to keep from squealing.  A fellow comrade from the dark side!

The course being Informatics, she couldn't talk psych nursing for long.  But I must speak with this instructor more.  Since I'm planning to approach the performance assessments from a psych perspective, she will be a valuable asset.  Speaking of which, this course has two performance assessments independent of each other, and I get to use PowerPoint for one of them.  Should be fun.

I'm sick of Translational Research

Don't get me wrong:  I loved the content of the course.  I'm just sick of working on this performance assessment for the last two weeks.  I'm already 4 days behind my arbitrary deadline.  Tomorrow will be day 5, but it WILL be the final day of this course as I plan to submit my performance assessment before lunch.  I already did the Turnitin check (6%, well below the guidelines).  I have a last review of it with the Writing Center, then I'll give it a final once-over, and then this toast is toasted.

Today was the weekly check-in with Belle.  I'm strongly suspecting that she's got a strong psych background, if she's not actually a psych nurse.  We spent 5 minutes discussing my weekly progress and 10 minutes discussing adventures in psych nursing.   And she was excited to discus psych as well.

Someone who understands my life!  This pleases me.

I also came to the realization that I REALLY do need those arbitrary deadlines. Don't get me wrong, the self-pacing of the WGU program is great.  But I realized today when I was on the 7th draft on my project that, as I told Belle, I could continue to revise this thing until the cows come home.  Instead, I need to work up to the deadline, submit it, and move on to the next course.  If my performance assessment truly blows, they'll send it back for revision.

I realize that may sound confusing to fellow students, and it confuses the hell out of me to.  To revisions/revising in WGU lingo typically means that your performance assessment was kicked back because part/all of it didn't meet the rubric standards.  Whereas in my lingo, revisions/revising means to edit yet another draft.  The previous paragraph makes it seem like my performance assessment failed 6 times already.

Moving to non-graduate school topics...

I went to the Cheesecake Factory today.  The menu is rather scary...well, not so much the food as the calorie counts listed next to the food.  There was very little in that main menu book that wasn't in the quadruple digits, and a few of those digits even started with 2.   But since I was there last time (which was probably 2012 or 2013), they have introduced an additional menu of lighter-calorie fare.  In this new menu, I'm pretty sure that no one item exceeded 1,000 calories.

I recommend the White Chicken Chili, by the way.  Excellent flavor with a nice spicy kick.  The Chicken Samosas are good too.  I had both and still kept the total calories in the triple digits.

I do regret having the Cinnabon Cheesecake though.  Which, by the way, is not on their new menu as it's about 1300 calories.  But when one is at the Cheesecake Factory, one has to have the cheesecake.  Otherwise, why go to a place named the Cheesecake Factory?  Anyhow, I thought that since I've been able to eat cheese with no issue as of late, that perhaps I was able to tolerate dairy again.  Alas, that was not the case...though it was a very tasty way to put myself in agony.  But next time I go back there, I think I'll have to settle for the bowl of strawberries instead.

A new chapter

So I "met" my new program mentor yesterday.  I introduced myself as "the psychiatric nurse that you're inheriting from Baby Nurse."  She laughed and said "you and I are going to get along just fine!"

She has a Southern accent that could cut glass.  I lived in the South for more than a decade, so I understand almost all dialects of Southern...except mountain North Carolinian.  I understand Welsh better than the mountain North Carolinian accent.   So I shall refer to her as Belle.

I introduced myself, we chatted...she was excited that I enjoyed psych.  She asked me about why I chose education over NP.  I told her it's because I wanted to do more than just prescribe medications.  She stated that she didn't pursue Psych NP for the same reason.  I told her that I wanted to have a more interactive role with others, and that I've always enjoyed mentoring and nurturing others.  She felt the same way.

I never asked what area(s) she specialized in...but could it be my mentor IS a psych nurse? 

If so, that would be awesome!  I often don't meet others of my kind in school except for those who are teaching a psychiatric nursing course.

So things got off to a good start between us.  I have a feeling we're going to have a great relationship.

I talked to Belle and told her that I needed to push my arbitrary course deadline back to August 31 (it was originally August 25) due to being sidelined with a double ear infection and then an allergic reaction to antibiotics.  She said "oh, bless your heart" and understood why.  So my new deadline is now August 31.  That gave me some of my motivation back, so instead of feeling like I was up against the gun, I had a decent amount of time to produce a decent performance assessment.

Southern lingo note:  the meaning of "bless your heart" is very dependent on the context it's used in.  In this case, it was sympathy. 

Speaking of allergic reactions...I hauled myself to the doctor to get it checked out.  Surprisingly, I was able to get a same day appointment with my regular PCP.  She looked at it, said it was possibly an allergy though questionable if its a true allergy (a localized rash, instead of generalized hives that I experience with the other antibiotics I'm allergic to).  So she marked it as an allergy with a note about whether it's a true one.  She also counseled me that if it came down to me taking the antibiotic, to go ahead and take it.  I agreed.

She said I was treating the rash correctly and that it should go away in a couple of days.  Sure enough, today it is gone except for some remnants of redness.

In which Meriwhen has little motivation and an allergic reaction to antibiotics

For the last week, my motivation for doing schoolwork has been...well, not at zero.   If my motivation were measured with a speedometer and 60mph was going full throttle, I'm about at 15mph.  Small progress but not enough.  Baby Nurse--who as of this week is no longer my mentor--told me that baby steps were still steps.  And she is right, though I don't think I will be able to finish this course by the arbitrary deadline of 8/25.  Closer to 8/31.

For various reasons, I just can't pick myself up to get fully going.  Work has been busy, I've been sick and sleeping a lot, the weather is too damn hot...anyhow, I knew this was a risk with WGU.  And I need to nip it in the bud.  I can't let myself run this course into September.  I REFUSE TO.

So I set up some Writing Center appointments for drafts and the final.  That way, I have commitments I can't break.

Baby Nurse has decided to take a position teaching in a brick-and-mortar school.  She was an awesome program mentor and I wish her well in her new position.  She has handed me over to her successor who she said she likes a lot and feels will take good care of me.  I have not yet met her, my first appointment with her is next week.  I wonder if she's a psych nurse...probably not.  There seems to be so few of us running around these programs.

The sick and the sleeping...double ear infection.  Whee.  I waited three days to see if it would pass, then hauled myself to the doctor.  He looked at my history, reviewed my allergies, and started me on azithromycin and decongestants.  The medications worked, and I was feeling fine within a few days.

Then a couple of days after the last dose of antibiotic, a rash appeared on my neck.  I wasn't alarmed at first:  for some reason, the skin on my neck is very sensitive compared to the rest of me, and it's not uncommon for me to have areas of redness there.  But then the rash got bumpy.  And then spread up the sides of my face.  Almost like a bad hormonal acne breakout.  The current state of it is that my neck is less bumpy but still red, while most of the bumps have taken up shop on my cheekbones.

Now, I should have caught this:  the -mycin.  I'm allergic to clindamycin.  Not life-threatening allergic, more like here's-a-lovely-rash-that-won't-die-for-two-weeks allergic.  The doctor was aware of it too.  I guess he figured that azithromycin wasn't likely to cause a reaction.  I thought as much too, and I really needed the ear infections out of there.  Well, we were both wrong.  The last time I saw a rash like this was when I was on clindamycin.  Same exact thing.

The good news is that it does go away.  The bad news is that it takes two weeks.  The worse news is that I have a social event to go to tonight and I refuse to miss it.

My going to Urgent Care is not an option as 1.  the rash is more cosmetically unpleasing than life-threatening and 2.  I'll end up spending hours there, hours that could have been spent doing schoolwork and relaxing before this event.  So I'm doing a little home treatment.  oral antihistamines (Vistaril), and topical hydrocortisone and salicylic acid creams.  I'm otherwise leaving it alone.  Time really is the only cure for it.

Getting excessively harsh with my skin will not clear it up any faster--if anything, it will exacerbate the problem and make it impossible to conceal with makeup.  I do have an arsenal of foundations, so I know I can conceal it for the most part.  I have the perfect one to use:  Tarte Amazonian Clay 12-Hour Foundation.  I strongly recommend this foundation if you have things to hide and want to keep them hidden most of the night.

I can't hide it 100%, but with good foundation, a red dress and a strong lip color, I could perhaps distract from it.

One class down. Many more to go.

I passed my first WGU class.  It took three days for the performance assessment to be reviewed and graded.  I was able to watch it progress through the queue though, so I knew the delay was not because they didn't get it, but because there were 300+ submissions in front of me.  

During those three days, I had quite the weekend at work.  I'm thoroughly convinced the recent full/blood moon had a lot to do with it.

I got the notice that the assessment passed on Monday.   Some areas of my performance assessment met expectations (score 3 out of 4) while others exceeded expectations (score 4 out of 4).  I admit, I was hoping for more 4s. 

Overall, the assessment's score was met expectations, or a 3.  Which I suppose is on par with a B.  I also admit I was hoping it overall exceeded expectations, or a 4.  Or an A.  But even it were a 4, the course would still appear as "Pass" on my transcript and my GPA would still be a 3.0.  

This "no-GPA" is still taking some getting used to.

Overall, I'm glad to put this first class behind me.  The assessment was very introspective which, while it did come up with valuable insights, always feels weird for me to do because I feel like they're looking for a certain answer in these courses.  No matter what program I took this type of course in, it always feels like The Powers That Be are looking for a certain answer.  Like my goals in the next 10 years always have to be something lofty like becoming a NP or nurse executive. 

To be honest, I don't know what I'll be doing in 10 years.  I'm still not 100% sure I want to do Education.  I'm 95% sure.  The other 5% of the time, I wonder if it would serve me better to do Leadership or Informatics...I mean, I could still teach with either one of those concentrations.  But I have time to change my mind if I want.   The courses for all the MSN programs are the same for at least the first two terms. 

I had to take a few days off before I started the next class, partly due to the high patient acuity at work and partially because I needed a mini-break from school.  I admit, I like this about WGU--I can pace myself.  The arbitrary start date for this next class was 7/29.  But as long as I finish these four classes by 12/31, it doesn't matter if I start the second class on the 29th or the 1st or the 15th.

Now, it's Translational Research, which I started yesterday.  I like research classes.  I even like doing the research for the research studies.   This course, I decided to use their 21-and-Done schedule.  So far, I'm keeping pace.  I had a productive appointment with my course instructor and narrowed down the topic for my performance assessment to a couple of contenders.  I'm going to see which topic pulls up more research studies and would be more doable. 

Oh yes, I also learned I did win one of the WGU scholarships...the one for nurses, actually.  Fitting.

As I wrap up my first MSN class at WGU, here are some things that I have learned

Attend the class cohort.  They have the slides saved and available in case you can't, but going to a live one is far better as they mention things that are not on the slides.

Attend the MSN welcome cohort.  Again, slides saved if you need it...and again, attending live is far better.

Attend other cohorts as needed, as they have valuable information. I have a date with the Writing Center one this weekend.

Make an appointment with your Course Instructor early on in the course to say How-Do and ask any questions you have.  The first performance assessment seemed very intimidating, but after I spoke to the CI, I was able to clear things up and feel somewhat less intimidated.

They're very strict about APA.  You will feel like an inept fool who has never used APA before. You will be paranoid about incorrect APA. You will be paranoid about paraphrasing.  You will have nightmares about in-text citations and only putting one space after a period instead of the usual two.  Even if you were an APA master in another program, you will still feel most if not all of this.  I feel much better after that Writing Center appointment though. 

Speaking of which, make appointments with the Writing Center early, at least a week before you plan to submit an assessment.  I fortunately did make my appointment early.  I'm glad I did because when I went to reschedule it for a day later (I still hadn't finished my draft), they were booked solid through August 1.  I tell you, as soon as I start the next cohort, I'm figuring out when my assessment is due and immediately scheduling that Writing Center appointment.

Word's "Find and Replace" is a fast way to correct that "only one space after a period and not two" problem.

Email instructors and the Writing Center as needed.  They will get back to you fast.  Really fast.  Take advantage of this.

WGU loves the Oxford comma.  I love the Oxford comma.  Finally, a kindred spirit!

And finally, don't forget to use Turnitin to check your work before submitting any assessments, as they are very strict about plagiarism as well as what percentage of work can be directly taken from other sources even if cited correctly.  The goal is 30%.  Under 15% and you're doing great.  Under 5%, you either didn't use any other sources or you are at paraphrasing skill level:  ninja.

Anyhow...I'm finishing up this first assessment to get it submitted by the weekend.  Then it's right onto the next class, which I can't recall off the top of my head, but I think it has to do with research.  No rest for me, alas.