Those with a nursing license who wish to move to another state have options available to them. While states differ on what is required of nurses, those who have graduated from an accredited nursing program can find that transferring a license is not as difficult as getting one. For those interested in pursuing a nursing degree or furthering your nursing career, there are many schools across the country that provide accredited education for nurses, such as the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education. They approve baccalaureate, graduate, and residency programs in nursing. Another national nursing education accrediting agency is the National League for Nursing Accreditation Commission. You can use their search engine to search by area, institution name, and even program type. One reason national accreditation, rather than regional or state accreditation, is so important is that issues when transferring your nursing license can arise. For example, if the school you graduated from is recognized and accredited in your old state but not the new, chances are your nursing license may not transfer. This can be avoided by getting a nursing degree from a nationally accredited program.
Another important part of becoming a nurse is the National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses, or NCLEX. It is often used 
as the standard for many states and demonstrates your competence to future employers. For 2011, candidates for the NCLEX test must pay $200 to take the exam in addition to any other licensure fees required by their state. International candidates need to obtain a certification from the Graduates of Foreign Nursing Schools and demonstrate a proficiency in English.
Once an education and examination has been passed, it is important to know what the requirements are of the state you wish to transfer your license to. The National Council of State Boards of Nursing is the most comprehensive site with the most up to date information on state requirements for new and transferring nurses. You can get information on your current and future state board, help with the NCLEX, and contact information. Many states have an initial state licensing fee which can range from about $80.00 to $300.00. There can also be license renewal requirements every year or two which can cost around $100. Some states even have continuing education requirements that have nurses completing an approved curriculum on a regular basis. These fees and rules also apply to transferring nurses, as well as recent graduates.
If you have already graduated from an approved nursing program and have passed the NCLEX, check out the site of the state you wish to transfer your license to. They can contain further details for transfer candidates, as well as more advanced guides for their specific requirements. The process usually involves applying for a state license, paying fees, transferring relevant records, identification, and in some cases, even a background check. For example, those wishing to transfer to California as an RN must get what is called “licensure by endorsement.” To qualify, candidates must hold a current and active license in another state or Canada, have completed an educational program meeting all California requirements, and have passed National Council Licensure Examination or the State Board Test Pool Examination.
It is essential to know all the requirements for the state you wish to transfer your license to in order to keep costs down, 
shorten wait time, and ensure that you get approved for your move. To get a list of contact information, including phone number and name of contact, for the nursing boards in all 50 states and even a few U.S. territories, click here. For convenience, many state boards allow you to do items online, such as fill out applications and send in payments, making the process of applying for an transferring a nurse’s license even easier. Another feature of applying online is the ability to better track your application process so that any snags or problems can be addressed quickly and without incurring penalties.
When you decide to be a nurse, chances are that you made the decision in order to help people. You can be a great help to people when you better understand how to treat them. The good news is that there are a number of tutorial sites available so that you can learn about being a better health care professional.
Health care professionals can use the Internet as a resource. From information about different diseases and conditions, to case studies, to creating treatment plans, to understanding health care law and ethics. You can learn a lot about health care and improved outcomes by looking online. If you are interested in becoming a better nurse, you can use these 40 tutorial sites for information and help:
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Any nurse knows that it is important to have access to good information. Being able to have a good reference is important if you want to take the best care of your patients. Thanks to technology, it is possible to have all the information you need at your fingertips. Indeed, smart phones are quickly become miniature medical reference libraries.
If you have a BlackBerry, it is possible for your to carry all the medical reference that you need in the palm of your hand. There are a number BlackBerry apps designed to be of help to health care professionals. Here are 26 of the best BlackBerry apps to learn about any symptom and disease [click to continue…]
“Lose together or gain alone” is the motto of one of the social networking sites listed below for weight loss and and/or fitness to gain and maintain that new slim and healthy physique. Many nurses who proceed from the BSN to MSN degree, including those receiving grants and scholarships, will doubtless benefit from knowing about these sites — if not for their own use, then for patients and clients. [click to continue…]
If you live in a “healthy” state, meaning one of the fifty states contained within this nation, does that mean that you are living healthily or with a healthy state of mind? The answer might depend upon how the statistics for your state are gathered, the type of health statistics that provide the focus and how your state compares nationwide. Since the gathering of data within the U.S. is a fairly recent phenomenon, analyzing that data also is recent.
For instance, you may live in a state that contains more obese people than most. You might feel those statistics when it comes to health care costs on a local and regional basis. Or, you may live in a state that contains more cancer cases than most. This information might alert you to the possibility that your state contains more cancer-causing agents. Finally, statistics are available by ethnic data, which can clue you in on whether or not your ethnicity might provide an impact on your health.
The following ten infographic links lead to a variety of information about nationwide health including obesity, mental health and health expenditures. The information provided here represent just ten pieces contained within a mountain of information available on the Web. Each link provides more information on that particular site that may be of interest to you in your quest to become healthier.
State Data Center: Focused on identifying opportunities to improve, The Commonwealth Fund’s State Scorecard on Health System Performance assesses states’ performance on health care relative to achievable benchmarks for 38 indicators of access, quality, costs, and health outcomes. The 2009 State Scorecard paints a picture of health care systems under stress, with deteriorating health insurance coverage for adults and rising health care costs.
State-by-State Pandemic Information: Each state on this map contains information about the state’s pandemic plan, summit materials, formal agreements, and other pandemic information pertaining to the state. This information is helpful to individuals and families to help maintain life as close to normal as possible in the event that any emergency takes place. the links lead to information located at Flu.gov.
State Health Expenditures: Health Care Expenditures measure spending for all privately and publicly funded personal health care services and products such as hospital care, physician services, nursing care, nursing home care, prescription drugs, etc., by state of residence. Hospital spending is included and reflects the total net revenue (gross charges less contractual adjustments, bad debts, and charity care). Costs such as insurance program administration, research, and construction expenses are not included in this total.
Healthy Behavior by State: The 2009 Healthy Behavior Sub-Index is one of six sub-indexes that make up the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index, and asks Americans four questions: do you smoke; did you eat healthy all day yesterday; in the last seven days, on how many days did you exercise for 30 minutes or more; and in the last seven days, on how many days did you have five or more servings of fruits and vegetables. The Healthy Behavior Sub-Index scores for the nation and for each state are calculated based on a scale from 0 to 100, where 100 would be a perfect score.
Obesity Related Statistics in America: Obesity is the number two cause of preventable death in the United States, and over 60 million Americans, age 20 and older, are obese. Additionally, nine million children and teens ages 6-19 are overweight. The charts and maps on this page can reveal how prevalent obesity is across this nation, with a special focus on a variety of images by state numbers for obesity.
American Indian and Alaska Native Heart Disease and Stroke Fact Sheet: This information focuses on a specific ethnic population nationwide, with statistics that focus on the information that heart disease is the first and stroke the sixth leading cause of death Among American Indians and Alaska Natives. The highest heart disease death rates are located primarily in South Dakota and North Dakota, Wisconsin, and Michigan. Counties with the highest stroke death rates are located primarily in Alaska, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, South Dakota, Wisconsin, and Minnesota.
Maternal and Child Health: While this title might lead a reader to believe that the statistics contained on this page are devoted totally to mother and child health, the material reaches into realms such as suicide deaths per 100,000 population by state, receipt of needed treatment for illicit drug use, information about adults ages 18-64 with histories of major depressive episodes and more. This information was prepared by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.
State Occupational Injuries, Illnesses, and Fatalities: The Bureau of Labor Statistics offers information on a state-by-state basis about work injuries, illnesses and fatalities. Information was gathered from nonfatal cases of work-related injuries and illnesses that are recorded by employers under the Occupational safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) record-keeping guidelines are available for 46 States and Territories from the BLS Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses (SOII); fatal cases of work-related injuries are available for all States, Territories, and New York City under a separate program, the BLS Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI).
Leukemia Statistics: Leukemia is a cancer of the bone marrow and blood. The two primary types of leukemia are lymphocytic leukemia, which involves an increase of white blood cells called lymphocytes; and, myelogenous leukemia (also known as myeloid or myelocytic leukemia), which involves an increase in white blood cells called granulocytes. Leukemia can be acute or chronic. Acute forms of leukemia progress rapidly, whereas chronic forms of leukemia progress slowly, leading to different approaches to diagnosis and treatment. The CDC also includes information on this site for Lymphoma and Myeloma, available in the left column menu.
Mental Health Statistics: This map shows total psychiatric inpatient and residential treatment beds per 100,000 civilian population in number by state, 2000. The types of mental health organizations covered are State and county mental hospitals, private psychiatric hospitals, non Federal general hospitals with separate psychiatric services, Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) medical centers, residential treatment centers (RTCs) for emotionally disturbed children, and “all other mental health organizations,” which includes multi-service mental health organizations, freestanding psychiatric outpatient clinics, and partial care psychiatric organizations.
Naturopathy, a way of living naturally with a focus on natural remedies and the body’s vital ability to heal and maintain itself. Naturopathy is focused on preventative measures, although many clinics offer to help remedy health situations that already exist. While some critics debunk naturopathy in favor of traditional medicine, entire families have adopted the naturopathic approach to life and — while the work is not easy — have learned that they are happy with an alternative way to healthy and creative living. [click to continue…]
If you doubt the veracity of video games for health, fitness and even for pain management, you might think again when you realize the fun you can have while working towards better overall well being. Video games have attained a level in fitness management that they even warrant a conference and a national program geared specifically to Health Games Research. To learn more about how video games can contribute to your health and well being, we’ve compiled a list of 25 fun video games, or fitness tools, that are geared toward health and fitness nuts (or wanna-be nuts). [click to continue…]
You can find a lot of interesting information and insights online. There are a number of medical professionals willing to share their thoughts online through blogging. Many medical professionals can provide you with the feeling that someone really does understand. These medical professional blogs are great reads, often with real stories. (Names and some details changed to protect privacy, of course.) Enjoy these 50 top blogs by medical professionals: [click to continue…]
When you are caring for patients, it can help to have a plan. For illnesses that require a great deal of care, it is a good idea to plan out treatments and regimens that can help the patient. Nursing care plans provide a structured way to provide needed treatment and help your patients. However, it can be difficult sometimes to know how to go about creating a nursing plan. As a result, it can help to look online for resources about how to create and then follow a nursing plan. Here are 50 sites that can help you develop nursing care plans: [click to continue…]
