SNA Spring Cleaning Collection!

As the weather gets warmer, it's a great time to prepare for summer with a good Spring Cleaning! Even better? Give those gently used items a chance to make a difference in someone's life. Thank you for your generosity!

Download/View Full sized fliers HERE.

March 15th Meeting Minutes Posted

March 15th Student Nurses Association Meeting Minutes up on the SNA blog website http://sjdcsna.blogspot.com/ . Please check them out.

RN Lobby Days in Sacramento April 19th - 20th..

RN Lobby Days by Danielle Lawson and CNSA

Would you like to learn about how nurses and student nurses can impact the legislative process in California?

Attend the 2010
ANA/California RN Lobby
Days on April 19th and 2oth in
Sacramento!

What happens at ANA/California RN Lobby Days? RN Lobby Days is an annual conference offered by ANA/California that offers presentations and workshops on how the California legislative process works, on the intricacies of state politics, on
how we can support the nursing agenda, and much more! The 2010 RN Lobby Days will include discussions of the following topics important to ANA/California (and to all nursing students!): Increased salary for faculty, Faculty shortages issues, Loan repayment for students at state hospitals, Issues directly dealing with nursing specialties (critical care, med/surg, OB, etc.) Student nurses may register at http://www.cnsa.org/events.html (information provided by http://www.cnsa.org/documents/RN_Lobby_Days_blurb[1].doc). You can register at http://www.anacalifornia.org/.

"100 Reasons to Become a Nurse"

Becoming a nurse is a great decision for anyone interested in the field of medicine as it can be a rewarding career, both personally and financially. If you're thinking about enrolling in nursing school, check out our list of 100 great reasons to become a nurse.

Altruism Becoming a nurse means that you can feel good about what you do.

1.You want to make a positive contribution: You care about your fellow man, and want to make a positive impact on peoples' lives.
2.Do something that matters: As a nurse, your work matters to your patients and their families.
3.You can save someone's life: As a nurse, you may have the opportunity to save someone's life.
4.You want to take away pain and suffering: Become a nurse to help stop the pain and suffering of others.
5.You'll bring hope: You can be a giver of hope to your patients.
6.See miracles: You can see miracles happen every day in nursing.
7.You can uplift morale: As a nurse, you'll be able to improve the morale of patients and their families.
Education Here we'll take a look at the educational perks of nursing.

8.It's easy to get started: Registered nurses can get started with a 2 year associate's degree and licensing exams.
9.You'll be able to spot problems: Even in your daily life outside of work, you can see problems in bacteria, infections, and more.
10.Completing a bachelor’s degree offers even more: For better pay and hiring opportunities, it's easy to complete additional education for a BSN.
11.You can help family and friends: As a nurse, you'll be able to help support the people you care about in their health.
12.Now is a good time to go to school: It's a great time to further your education with a nursing degree.
13.You'll be more aware of your own health: Studying and working in healthcare can help you better focus on your own health.
Rewards These are some of the rewards that come along with nursing.

14.Seeing patients cured: The reward of seeing someone return to good health is a great reason to become a nurse.
15.You can be proud of your work: Nursing is a career that you can take pride in.
16.You'll do good deeds for a living: When your job is helping people, you will do good for a living.
17.You will value life more than ever: Becoming a nurse will help you better understand the value of life.
18.Hugs: One of the perks of working as a nurse? Free hugs from patients and their families.
19.Changing people's lives: Become a nurse for the satisfaction of changing people's lives.
20.Personal growth: Nurses often experience strong personal growth and satisfaction.
21.Respect: Nurses are well-respected in society.
22.Medical TV is more exciting: When you live what other people only watch, medical TV shows are more interesting.
23.Free consultations: When you work with doctors, much of your medical advice is free.
24.You may learn how to decipher doctor handwriting: As a nurse, you just might earn a skill that others don't have-the ability to read what doctors write.
25.Free lunch: Often, pharmaceutical reps bring in free lunches for doctors and nurses.
26.Self esteem: Working as a nurse, you can feel good about yourself knowing that you're helping people.
27.You'll get satisfaction from stopping suffering: When your patients recover, you'll enjoy seeing their suffering reduced.
28.You can quickly earn vacation time: When working long hours at a time, you'll be able to earn vacation days quickly.
29.You will be appreciated: Although not all patients will recognize your importance, many will be very appreciative of your hard work.
Practical These are some of the very practical rewards you'll get from nursing.

30.Benefits: Many nursing jobs come with great medical and dental benefits.
31.Free housing: Many travel nurses are given free housing.
32.Retirement: You'll generally find nursing positions with retirement savings plans.
33.Bonuses: Many nursing positions come with sign on bonuses and special pay for taking on certain positions.
34.Overtime: You can be paid well for time worked over your regular hours.
35.Incentives: Many employers offer sign on bonuses, tuition reimbursement, and more.
36.You can take days off: When you work long hours, it's easy to create a schedule where you have a number of off days grouped together.
37.Life insurance: You'll generally find life insurance as a part of a nursing benefits package.
38.You can have weekdays off: With a nurse's schedule, you may often end up with weekdays off to run your errands.
Career Here you can examine some of the great things about a career in nursing.

39.You'll always have a job: There's always a place for nurses to work, so nursing will give you a guaranteed job.
40.You can work anywhere: Medical professionals are needed everywhere, so you can work wherever you'd like.
41.Job satisfaction: Job satisfaction among nurses is very high.
42.Nursing is recession proof: Although markets can fluctuate, people will always get sick.
43.There's good pay: Even new nurses will earn a generous paycheck, and those who fill shortages can earn even more.
44.You'll have a flexible schedule: You can create a flexible schedule with a variety of different shifts.
45.You'll be connected to technology and humanity: Nursing offers a science to technically caring for people.
46.You can work on the road: Many nurses find success in travel nursing.
47.You can change your specialty: You can take on opportunities in new specialties if you'd like.
48.There's lots of variety: The possibilities are endless when it comes to nursing-you can work in a hospital or clinic, work in pediatrics, insurance, or schools.
49.You can take on expanding opportunities: As physicians spend less time with patients, nurses can take on opportunities that offer more hands-on interaction.




50.Nursing offers transferable skills: As a nurse, you'll learn skills that are great for any career in health care.
51.There's plenty of room for growth: Your nursing career can grow into much more with further education.
Traits Do you have what it takes to be a nurse? Check out these traits.

52.You'll get over bodily functions: You will no longer have any problems with other peoples' toilet use and bodily functions.
53.You're detail-oriented: You must be able to remember, write a lot, and be organized as a nurse.
54.You are empathetic: Sharing empathy with others is essential for becoming a nurse.
55.You have the skills: If you have the ability to communicate and instill trust in people, you have the basic skills for becoming a nurse.
56.You're emotionally stable: As a nurse, you have to be able to deal with a roller coaster ride of emotions.
57.You can deal with blood: If you're faint of stomach, you'll have trouble with nursing.
58.You're able to adapt: Every day will be different, so being able to adapt is essential for nursing.
59.You can prioritize: Nursing is fast paced and needs constant prioritization.
60.You have physical endurance: Nurses often work on their feet all day with minimal breaks.
61.You're dedicated: Nursing is not just a job-it's a lifestyle.
62.You can think quickly: If you're able to think on your feet, chances are you can keep up with nursing.
63.You have a commitment to learning: Nurses are constantly learning, so if you love to learn, nursing is a great profession.
64.You have good judgment: You should be able to judge quickly and accurately.
65.You're caring: As a nurse, you'll care for people every day, so caring for others is a must.
66.You're hardworking: Nursing is never ending, and needs hard workers.
67.You're willing to work hard: Nursing is hard work-if you can handle long hours in exchange for rewarding work, nursing may be good for you.
68.You're tactful: Nurses need to be able to deal with doctors, patients, and coworkers in a tactful way.
69.You're good at multitasking: Multitasking is an essential skill for nurses.
70.You have a sense of humor: As a nurse, you have to be able to let things slide off your back.
71.You like a challenge: Nursing will stretch your limits, in a good way.
72.You're dedicated: Nurses take on their vocation to dedicate their lives to helping others.
73.You're courageous: Nursing can sometimes be a scary job, so if you've got courage, you may have what it takes to be a nurse.
People See how people can make your work as a nurse worth it.

74.Interaction: You'll be able to interact with different people every day.
75.You'll work with patients and their families: You will spend time working with not only patients, but their families as well.
76.You'll be a mentor: Nursing allows you to mentor patients, families, and other nurses.
77.You'll work as part of a team: You will interact with lots of other health professionals as a nurse.
78.You'll enjoy camaraderie: As part of a health care team, you will enjoy camaraderie with your fellow workers and patients.
79.You'll educate people: Much of your job as a nurse will be educating patients, their families, and the general public.
80.You can become more than a caregiver: Long term care can take a personal turn with patients you really care about.
Advantages Over Becoming a Doctor These are a few reasons why nursing may be better than becoming a doctor.

81.Fewer educational requirements: You'll study for 2-4 years instead of 12-14.
82.You have less liability: Doctors are responsible for malpractice insurance, while nurses are not.
83.You can spend more time with patients: Doctors do not generally get to spend a lot of time with patients-but nurses do.
84.You'll take care of patients, not the disease: As a nurse, you can treat the whole patient.
85.There's more flexibility: Once doctors pick their specialty, they generally have to stay in it, but nurses can move from one area of medicine to another.
86.You can have a life outside of work: Although you will work strange hours, your life will not be completely devoted to work.
87.There's less of a commitment: You do not have to own a practice, employ staff, and stay in one place as a nurse.
88.You won't start your career in a massive amount of debt: Most doctors start their careers deep in debt from years of education, while nurses tend to have limited debt or none at all.
89.It's difficult to get into medical school: Being accepted in medical school is not easy, but nursing school is easy in comparison.
90.You won't have to be on call constantly: Doctors normally have to spend certain hours on call, while nurses don't.
Environment Here you will learn why a nurse's working environment is great.

91.Nursing is exciting: Every day at work is different for nurses.
92.You can embrace change: Even if you work in the same hospital for 25 years, you can change specialties, hours, and more to switch things up.
93.You'll avoid the typical 9-5: You can avoid working typical business hours as a nurse.
94.Flexibility: Nursing offers lots of flexibility.
95.There's lots of variety: You'll be able to work in lots of different settings and positions.
96.Nurse staffing agencies are useful: If you'd like to earn high hourly wages with lots of flexibility, you may want to look into working for nursing staffing agencies.
97.You can use all of yourself: A career in nursing uses your mind, body, and soul.
98.It's easy to move: Nurses can work anywhere, so moving to a new city is not a problem.
99.Nursing is intellectually stimulating: As a nurse, or nurse educator, you will work in an intellectually stimulating environment.
100.Nurses can work in a variety of settings: Nurses can work in hospitals, clinics, offices, schools, homes, and more.