This past Saturday we had to move from Daytona to Orlando. I had a conference to attend beginning at 7 am on Saturday. Poor Mary and Allyson had to leave at 5 am with me! The conference was a review course for my Acute Care Pediatric Nurse Practitioner Boards. I am currently certified in Primary Care but need to be certified in Acute Care as well. If I complete the exam successfully before the end of this year, I am not required to complete any additional coursework. I had registered for this conference before receiving my diagnosis and delayed the onset of chemo so I could get this out of the way before I had any brain effects from my chemo.
The format is this: sit in a room listening to lectures while following along in your 560 page review book for 12 hours on Saturday and 10 hours on Sunday. On Monday morning you show up and take the test. Kind of 'dump it in and pour it back out' format. The two days were grueling only made better by hooking up with Kristin, one of the NPs I work with. Together we got through the sessions with muttered comments, wheat thins and really good cookies from the Disney Resort it was held at. Last night we returned to our condo and studied until midnight complete with oreos and milk. This morning we returned to the conference site to take the exam. Neither of us felt completely ready to do so, but showed up nonetheless. Unfortunately for me, my name wasn't on THE LIST of those approved to take the exam. By that they mean those that had all of their paperwork in and had paid their $385 test fee. If your name is not on THE LIST, they don't permit you to take the exam.
The women administering the test here in Orlando were friendly enough and did try to help me. They contacted the national office and found that I was missing one piece of paper...something that I had passed off to be completed and faxed to them on my behalf but in the midst of the past month, forgot to check on. I (stupidly) assumed it had been done as requested but it was not. I pleaded with the women on site to allow me take my exam. I had just completed the review course and my studying. As the standoff went on, I got more and more upset (tired and stressed to begin with!) and began to cry. I explained to them my need to get the test done before starting my chemo. I even told them they didn't have to grade my test until they had the right paper in the office, just allow me to take it today. I think they would have but they had to check with the CEO...her name is Dr. Janet Wyatt. I mention her name because she could not have been more rude and condescending to me. She is a nurse practitioner and I am glad she is working as a CEO because I cannot imagine her providing care to children and their families.
I am not the kind of person who asks for special favors or other shortcuts. I play by the rules. I ended up talking with Dr. Wyatt on the phone myself. I explained my situation to her to which she could not have cared less about. With a "how dare you" kind of attitude, she informed me that I had failed to provided the appropriate documentation to them in advance and therefore, should not have even tried to compromise their standards by asking for such an accommodation. She scolded me on the phone like I was some kind of naughty child. I did not take my exam this morning. After sitting on a bench sobbing (crying people make Disney employees very nervous! Apparently no one should be sad in the most magical place on earth.) Mary picked me up and we headed to Kinko's where I could print a new form, fax it to the appropriate person for completion who assured me she would fax it on the the Pediatric Nursing Certification Board immediately. IF...and that is a big word right now...everything is approved in time, I may be able to take the exam here in Orlando on Friday. That is if God, I mean Dr. Wyatt deems I am worthy and meet their standard for the exam.
Dr. Wyatt was right about one thing. I should have taken the time to assure that all of the necessary documentation was in place. I did not need to be humiliated and scolded about it. And there would have been absolutely no harm to anyone if I had taken the exam this morning. Perhaps I would have had to wait longer for my results or maybe even they would have thrown it out if they didn't feel I met their standard for testing. I could have lived with that. There is a big lesson here for me. As one who does not ask for special accommodations, I have had difficulty providing them for people. Here is the lesson learned. People have special needs and from time to time, things happen. There doesn't seem to be a good reason to deny people their requests just because their is some kind of rule in place. If there is not a good reason to deny a request, what is the point? Perhaps this frustrating and irritating experience can help me to become a more compassionate human, nurse and and educator. And yes, special care is just what some people deserve sometimes.
The format is this: sit in a room listening to lectures while following along in your 560 page review book for 12 hours on Saturday and 10 hours on Sunday. On Monday morning you show up and take the test. Kind of 'dump it in and pour it back out' format. The two days were grueling only made better by hooking up with Kristin, one of the NPs I work with. Together we got through the sessions with muttered comments, wheat thins and really good cookies from the Disney Resort it was held at. Last night we returned to our condo and studied until midnight complete with oreos and milk. This morning we returned to the conference site to take the exam. Neither of us felt completely ready to do so, but showed up nonetheless. Unfortunately for me, my name wasn't on THE LIST of those approved to take the exam. By that they mean those that had all of their paperwork in and had paid their $385 test fee. If your name is not on THE LIST, they don't permit you to take the exam.
The women administering the test here in Orlando were friendly enough and did try to help me. They contacted the national office and found that I was missing one piece of paper...something that I had passed off to be completed and faxed to them on my behalf but in the midst of the past month, forgot to check on. I (stupidly) assumed it had been done as requested but it was not. I pleaded with the women on site to allow me take my exam. I had just completed the review course and my studying. As the standoff went on, I got more and more upset (tired and stressed to begin with!) and began to cry. I explained to them my need to get the test done before starting my chemo. I even told them they didn't have to grade my test until they had the right paper in the office, just allow me to take it today. I think they would have but they had to check with the CEO...her name is Dr. Janet Wyatt. I mention her name because she could not have been more rude and condescending to me. She is a nurse practitioner and I am glad she is working as a CEO because I cannot imagine her providing care to children and their families.
I am not the kind of person who asks for special favors or other shortcuts. I play by the rules. I ended up talking with Dr. Wyatt on the phone myself. I explained my situation to her to which she could not have cared less about. With a "how dare you" kind of attitude, she informed me that I had failed to provided the appropriate documentation to them in advance and therefore, should not have even tried to compromise their standards by asking for such an accommodation. She scolded me on the phone like I was some kind of naughty child. I did not take my exam this morning. After sitting on a bench sobbing (crying people make Disney employees very nervous! Apparently no one should be sad in the most magical place on earth.) Mary picked me up and we headed to Kinko's where I could print a new form, fax it to the appropriate person for completion who assured me she would fax it on the the Pediatric Nursing Certification Board immediately. IF...and that is a big word right now...everything is approved in time, I may be able to take the exam here in Orlando on Friday. That is if God, I mean Dr. Wyatt deems I am worthy and meet their standard for the exam.
Dr. Wyatt was right about one thing. I should have taken the time to assure that all of the necessary documentation was in place. I did not need to be humiliated and scolded about it. And there would have been absolutely no harm to anyone if I had taken the exam this morning. Perhaps I would have had to wait longer for my results or maybe even they would have thrown it out if they didn't feel I met their standard for testing. I could have lived with that. There is a big lesson here for me. As one who does not ask for special accommodations, I have had difficulty providing them for people. Here is the lesson learned. People have special needs and from time to time, things happen. There doesn't seem to be a good reason to deny people their requests just because their is some kind of rule in place. If there is not a good reason to deny a request, what is the point? Perhaps this frustrating and irritating experience can help me to become a more compassionate human, nurse and and educator. And yes, special care is just what some people deserve sometimes.
Kristin has returned to Minnesota, certain that she failed the exam. We will stay in Orlando through the week so I can take my exam on Friday...I hope. I will have a few extra days to study. Perhaps I will be better prepared for the exam this way. Perhaps Dr. Wyatt really gave me a gift in her stubborn self-righteousness. By delaying my exam, I may actually be better prepared for it. During the next few days, you will be able to find my poolside with my 560 page study guide.
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1 comments:
Let us know the result!!
Any word would be appreciated!!
C
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