Seeking A Career In Rehabilitation Nursing - What Is The Job All About?

In the medical profession field, apart from being doctors, rehabilitation nursing is also a rewarding career. Nurses? main goal is to help patients recuperate and deal with extensive injuries or medical issues. Most of the patients have just convalesced from intensive care and need specialized care and undivided attention that only rehabilitation nurses can provide at long term comprehensive treatment facilities.

A broad range of medical services can be provided by rehabilitation nurses to their patients. Patients who have met with accidents, work related accidents, drug or alcohol abuse or even strokes can require the aid of a rehabilitation nurse. In general, they wish to help their patients begin the long process towards a hoped for full recovery. Nurses also try to help patients develop life skills that will aid them in their healing process. Work for such rehabilitation nurses can be found at rehabilitation centers, drug and alcohol recovery facilities, mental hospitals, senior citizen facilities, or even private homes.

The first thing that a rehabilitation nurse tries to do is to help stabilize the patient in the new facility. Establishing a sense of stability in the new environment will help to ensure that further complications develop. For many patients with long term illnesses, mobility is a problem that they face. This results in bed sores or respiratory problems due to having to stay in the same position the whole day long. Rehabilitation nurses would tend to these patients and ensure that such basic issues are avoided, by shifting the patients around to other comfortable positions.

Another goal of the rehabilitation nursing staff would be to help the patient develop the positive mindset to cope with their current medical condition. There is a close working relationship with doctors, psychologist and other staff in order to draft out plans that can help the patient cope with their medical condition.

Rehabilitation nurses also have to consider education under their job purview. There is a need to educate the patient and their family members on taking care of the patient. This is important as the nurses have to try to change the mindsets of some of the more stubborn patients while exerting a positive influence.

Daily care and health maintenance is an important aspect that cannot be neglected as it would affect the patient?s overall well being and chances of recovery. Some of the areas nurses need to educate family members and patients on are: dosage and administration of the medication, wound care, proper nutrition and prevention of bed sores. More technical aspects would also include the maintenance of the tracheal tube, bladder and bowel movements for those with kidney complications.

All rehabilitation nursing staff are registered and licensed before they can be allowed to practice in the state legally. A positive mindset is an important thing to have when tackling with the more challenging patients or when faced with patients with long term medical problems. The vocation has its rewarding moments as one cannot quantify the gratitude that patients sometimes shower their rehabilitation nurses with.

Moses Wright is the webmaster of Rehabilitation Program. You can find more useful information on Alcohol Abuse Rehabilitation and Rehabilitation Services on his website. You can reprint this article if you keep the content and live link intact.

Flipping A Rehab House

What is "flipping" a rehab? It is making an offer on a fixer-upper, and then selling the contract. It can mean fast profits with little risk, and very little money invested. The downside? You may make less profits than if you fix it up yourself, and can spend a lot of time looking for the right properties.

We are talking about classic real estate "flipping" here. You never really own the property or have any of the headaches that go with fixing up a place. Instead, you find properties with a lot of profit potential, get your offer accepted, and then sell your "place" for a profit. What you need to make money this way:

1. A good eye for value.

Without any idea of what homes in an area should sell for, you will waste a lot of time. You should be able to look at a home and say, "It should sell for about x amount once it is fixed up." Of course, you'll do research to arrive at a more accurate estimate once you target a particular property.

2. An idea about repair and improvement costs.

Again, you can waste a lot of time if you don't know what it costs for certain common repairs and improvements. Guessing that a roof repair will be $2,000 and then getting a quote for $10,000 means a blown deal after perhaps days of effort.

3. A few good contacts with investors who like fixer-uppers.

Once you get that offer accepted, you need to have some investors to call right away. You have signed a contract with deadlines. This is not the time to start introducing yourself to other investors.

4. The line "or assigns" in every offer.

You put "or assigns," or alternately "or my assigns" after your name in every offer (talk to an attorney or experienced investor to see what language is common in the area). This gives you the right to assign the contract to another buyer. If the seller asks about this, you can tell him that you may want to bring in a partner or turn the project over to your partner, but that all the same terms apply, so there is nothing to worry about.

5. Financing contingencies and other escape clauses.

If you can't find a buyer to assign the contract to, you will have to complete the transaction yourself. Unless, of course, you can't, and you gave yourself a way out for just such a possibility. These escape clauses might include making the deal contingent on getting a certain interest rate, or on getting the approval of your partner within a week.

Flipping a Rehab - An Example

You have been in touch with a few investors that invest in fixer-uppers, or "rehabs". You know what kind of properties they like, and how much profit they expect to get out of a project. Now you start driving around town, looking for fixer uppers.

You find three for sale through realtors, two for sale by owner, and several homes that appear abandoned and might have owners looking to sell. You take a lot of notes, and you go to the courthouse to find the owners of the empty-looking houses. Once home, you start making phone calls and talking to owners and real estate agents - and taking more notes.

Starting with the one that has the most potential, you look at the properties. For each, you lay out a plan on paper, then estimate the costs. Using the formula laid out in Number 7, you estimate the eventual sales price, and subtract from this the costs and the profit you need to make you and the final investor happy. This gives you the highest price you can offer.

One of your offers is accepted. It is a house that will be worth $156,000 when it is ready. The costs will run about $16,000, and the buyer accepted your offer for $114,000, leaving a projected profit of $26,000. Your good faith deposit is $500.

Now you get busy talking to your investors. One agrees with your assessment of the potential, thanks to your detailed plan showing the repairs and improvements, as well as your market analysis showing what similar homes have sold for recently. He likes to make $20,000 on any given deal, so he offers you $6,000 to have the contract assigned to him.

Of course it can get more complicated than this, and you are not likely to get an investor who will pay you prior to closing, so you'll have to wait a few weeks. However, notice that you only invested $500 and your time to make that $6,000. Also you may not want to handle a dozen fixer-uppers if you were doing them by yourself, but flipping a rehab house is a lot less work, so you could be working on several such deals more easily. You can see why some investors concentrate on flipping properties.

Copyright Steve Gillman. This article was an excerpt from 69 Ways To Make Money In Real Estate. Want to know the other 68 ways? Visit http://www.99reports.com/make-money-in-real-estate.html

Rehabbing Houses: Six Tips On How To Choose A Contractor

Rehabbing houses is an outstanding way to increase your profits from real estate investing. When you put some work into a fixer upper, not only are you virtually guaranteed to explode your profit potential, but you also make a positive contribution to the neighborhood.

If you are an experienced do-it-yourselfer, you may be tempted to do your own rehabbing work. However, most real estate investing experts recommend hiring a contractor to manage your rehabbing project.

Choosing a competent contractor requires more than a quick walk through the yellow pages. You need to learn all you can about prospective contractors. The contractor's ability to do quality work is important, but your focus should be on finding someone you are comfortable working with.

Don't let the Better Business Bureau choose your contractor.

You may be tempted to call your local Better Business Bureau to see if they have anything on file for a prospective contractor. This might give you reason to eliminate a contractor from your list, but it won't tell you what you need to choose one. Remember, the Better Business Bureau is primarily a collector of complaints. The lack of complaints against a contractor doesn't mean the contractor is qualified.

Don't over-value experience.

It's easy to compare contractors by the years of experience they have. However, experience alone doesn't always translate directly into high-quality work. A contractor could have been doing substandard work for his entire career. Go beyond the numbers and evaluate their work.

Beware of high-pressure pricing tactics.

Both of you are professionals and there's really no need for the use of force. If you feel pressured when negotiating with a potential rehabbing contractor, don't be shy about asking him to back off. If that doesn't work, don't hesitate to look for another prospect.

Beware of big down payments.

You should be able to negotiate a reasonable down payment and a fair payment schedule. Typically, you should expect to pay no more a third of the total rehabbing cost in a down payment, with the remainder paid out as work is completed. If the contractor asks for most of the money up front, that could indicate he has a shaky financial condition.

Good communication is a must.

You and the contractor should easily find yourselves on the same page. You're going to be spending a lot of time working with each other. Being able to communicate with each other accurately and effectively will make the rehabbing project go much more smoothly.

The lowest bidder may not be your best bet.

Price should not be your only consideration for choosing a rehabbing contractor. You should decide ahead of time exactly what level of services you want done. Your goal should be value. If the contractor you feel best about has a bid that's too high, you can always ask for a lower price.

A good general contractor will make your rehabbing project go more smoothly. A smoother, more efficient rehab means more profits for you. These tips should help you find a contractor that not only is competent, but is also enjoyable to work with.

Author - Mark Walters is a 3rd generation real estate investor and author. He offers a FREE Real Estate Investing Video & Audio Series at http://www.CashFlowInstitute.com

Finding Alcohol Rehab and Drug Rehab Programs

When you love someone close to you, sometimes you need to make the tough decisions. When someone you are close to is obviously abusing alcohol or drugs, you know that the best thing you can do to help them is to get them into a rehab program. It will be hard for them and perhaps hard for you as well, but you know that this is what you need to do for them to help them before the problem gets worse.

The over-consumption of alcohol is currently rated to be the third most preventable type of death in the US today. The problem is that alcohol is readily available in bars, which are extremely easy to find, and alcohol consumption even seems to be glamorized in many of the ads you see in magazines and newspapers. Alcohol in and of itself is not bad or evil, but all people are different, and not all people know when to stop, people have different tolerance levels, and it can be easy to become addicted to without realizing that it has become a major problem.

Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) is, without a doubt, the most popular self-help group dedicated to alcohol rehabilitation. Many prefer to try a self-help approach to alcohol rehabilitation. People suffering from alcohol abuse are taken care of in dedicated rehab facilities as well as mental health clinics. A major problem with self-help is that the alcoholic will frequently not recognize that they have a problem. Rather, they start self-help techniques out of respect for people who care about them, like a spouse, but unless and until they admit and recognize that they have a problem, the self-help techniques rarely are effective for the long term.

In the United States, the number of alcohol rehab facilities exceeds 10,000. The effects of alcohol devastate the lives of many individuals and cause trauma to their families. With alcohol rehab, the longer a person abstains from alcohol, the more likely he or she is able to stay sober. It is easier if the affected person has a "buddy" or someone they are accountable to. Without being accountable to someone, it is just simply far too easy for the alcoholic to go back to their old ways and cloud their reality with the effects of alcohol.

Drug addiction is similar to alcohol addiction but can be even more devastating, and can lead to longer term adverse effects if not treated. Popular drugs today include vicodin, oxycontin, valium, Xanax, cocaine, crystal meth, heroin, and many more. Sometimes drug addiction can start with taking prescription medication that was prescribed by your doctor for some type of ailment. But long after your ailment has been resolved, your body has become addicted to the prescription drug, and the user needs more and more of it to pacify the body and avoid the inevitable withdrawal symptoms. Usage of other drugs may start as a "recreational" thing, perhaps being introduced at a party or gathering of friends. But the addictive powers of these drugs are just as devastating.

Interestingly enough, the state of Arizona has one of the worst drug problems in the United States. The use of heroin in the US has also increased in recent years, meaning that the drug rehab system now has to work harder than ever before. The use of crack cocaine is Chicago's biggest drug problem - since the early 1990's, admissions to Chicago drug rehab centers for the treatment of this drug have more than doubled.

Effective treatment is available for both alcohol rehab and drug rehab. Specialized doctors build a complex treatment that includes each patient's individual needs and problems, in order to succeed the reintegration in the healthy and normal life of the society. The basic principles of the drug addiction treatment start from considering each case a particular and individualized expression of the medical condition. They don't necessarily receive the adequate treatment to appease their psychotic desires. Alcohol rehab is similar, because each individual person is unique with different levels of being able to cope with the withdrawal symptoms.

Speaking openly and honestly with the person about the effects his addiction is having on those around him is often the eye-opener the person needs in order to see clearly enough to accept help. From a medical perspective, addiction can be compared to many other serious medical conditions in that it will require long term treatment, lifestyle changes, medication at times and if not monitored, relapse will occur. It has taken some time but, researchers have come to the conclusion that drug addiction and alcoholism are diseases and like other diseases, are chronic and those afflicted are subject to relapse.

Choosing drug rehab or alcohol rehabilitation is a positive step adopted by addicts in reclaiming their normal life. In the beginning, it is important to know that the addiction can be conquered with rehab. The Wellness Enhancement and Longevity Learning (WELL) program incorporates this powerful technique with other pioneering therapies in the their addiction treatment program.

Jon is a computer engineer who maintains web sites on a variety of topics based on his knowledge and experience. You can read more about alcohol rehab and drug rehab at his web site at http://www.rehab-alcohol-drug.com/

Dual Diagnosis, Eating Disorders and Your Drug Rehab

What is the Purpose of a Drug Rehab Program?

We all know that the purpose of a drug rehab program or alcohol rehab program is to help those suffering from drug addiction or alcoholism to achieve long term sobriety. The initial step in drug rehab or alcohol rehab is to check into their alcohol detox or drug detox program. Afterwards, most people move into the addiction treatment level of drug rehab. After many years of research into drug rehab programs and alcohol rehab programs we have found that well over half of the patients admitted to drug rehab and alcohol rehab have a dual diagnosis.

What Is a Dual Diagnosis Treatment Program?

In basic terms, a dual diagnosis is the co-existence of a drug addiction or alcohol addiction and a mental health disorder. As such, drug rehab programs and alcohol rehab programs had to adjust their addiction treatment services to treat both disorders simultaneously. But what about the person with an eating disorder as part of the dual diagnosis. Can the person with an eating disorder be treated in a drug rehab or alcohol rehab program?

Eating Disorder Treatment in a Drug Rehab Program

As with dual diagnosis treatment in a drug rehab program, addiction treatment services must be altered to meet the needs of the person with an eating disorder. Although the patient with an eating disorder has a dual diagnosis, their drug rehab needs are different. Before entering a drug rehab or alcohol rehab for treatment of an eating disorder, review their addiction treatment program and look into the drug rehab program?s ability to treat someone with a dual diagnosis.

For additional information on dual diagnosis treatment, call the national dual diagnosis helpline at 1-800-511-9225 or go to www.recoveryconnection.org.

Jonathan Huttner is a partner in Lakeview Health Systems which specializes in the treatment of dual diagnosis, drug addiction and alcoholism. lakeview also operates an addiction treatment program for the GLBT community called Freedom Rings.

Finding Contractors to Rehab Your Properties

Contractors are your right-hand men in this business. Without them, you?ll never be able to grow your rehabbing business. They are the ones that will be rehabbing your properties and ultimately, making much of what you do as a rehabber possible. Dealing with contractors is my favorite part of the rehabbing business, and that?s primarily because they can be such a great source of entertainment. (Because of them, I now have plenty of funny stories to tell.) Working with contractors requires a fair warning about what you?ll encounter with them, so prepare yourself. Never be surprised by anything that a contractor does. Never assume that they?ll do exactly as you hope. Keep this in mind whether they have worked for you one time or thirty times. And most importantly, remember that you are the one in control ? always!

I have not always turned out a finished property that I was proud of. In the beginning, I hired backyard handymen, rather than true contractors, because they were less expensive. I was not savvy enough to know that their work was crappy. They were small-time players who half-fixed everything and relied on super glue and duct tape to get them through their day. They did meet nor even know housing codes. They cut corners whenever they could. I believed them when they told me they had the expertise to fix anything that needed done: plumbing, electrical, furnace, etc. Boy, was I gullible!

These contractors would lie, cheat, and steal in order to make me believe that they were competent. In the beginning I was not experienced enough to know what quality work looked like, I did not realize that I was not selling a quality product. I soon had an epiphany: I was paying these small-time contractors $5 less and getting $1 results! I quit using backyard handymen. I began researching to find people who knew what they were doing and I was willing to pay to have these quality people. It was one of the most important lessons that I have learned. Professionals do a quality job within a reasonable time frame. They are priceless. I cannot emphasize enough the importance of a good, professional contractor.

You really need to be certain that home repair work is being done right. I am not suggesting that you learn how to do the work yourself (which may not be the best use of your time) but do become aware of what a job well done looks like. I use inspectors to survey a property before the work is done and after. I also have very specific contractor guidelines to insure the quality of my properties. If the contractor hasn?t followed the guidelines, they haven?t finished their job! You want to be able to turn over the best product available to your customers and you need to hold your contractors responsible for their work.

Mandy Sheckles is the founder and President of The Wealth Corp. Through her courage, opportunism, and perseverance, she did what so many of us wish we could do - she renovated her success and now is a self-made real estate millionaire living the American Dream!