How to be a new grad office nurse?

[prairiegirl]

I still have 2 years left in my BSN program, but I am thinking ahead. I think that I would enjoy working in a physician's office much better than a hospital (although I may change my mind later). How does a new grad go about landing their first job in an office? Does it happen often? I have checked out local hospitals and they advertise job only for the hospital, not their outlying physician's offices. How did you find out about the job you landed? I would really love to work for like an ear, nose, and throat doctor or some kind of allergy or dermatologist specialist. I just wanted to kind of get an idea of what I will be faced with.

[fp nurse]

I started in a docs office right after graduation, I wish i would had went to med-surg, nursing home or anything else. I love what i do but, I feel like I have lost skills that would be ness if i wanted to go anywhere else. I do feel stuck. I cant worry about that now, too late. The only good thing is i work primary care I move on to something new. Peds, O.B?

[amylou85]

My first job out of nursing school was for Ob/gyn group. This was in 1994 when there actually was an abundance of nurses. I applied through a hospital and my application was referred to a local office manager. I was so green and it was a great start for me, however, later I did go back into a hospital and gained alot of skills I had never really developed. 11 years later I am leaving the hospital to go back into an office setting. The 8-5 m-f no holidays and weekends is what appeals to me. I will contiue to work prn in the hospital to keep my skills up. Go for it- it is a great oppurtunity. Do a little foot work, get on the phone and call around and see if they are looking for any nurses- some advertise in the paper but mostly word of mouth. Good Luck..amy

[love for nursing]

I am working in a family practice office for two days a week while in nursing school. I am only doing vitals, assisting the doctor in pelvic exams, drawing blood, and doing EKG's. I am a certified EKG tech, and phlebomist. I have learned a great deal while working there especially about lab values and have seen some interesting patients. I would not dream of working in a doctor's office once I pass boards. The only thing I have seen the office RN do is give shots and teach insulin administration. I guess I just would hate to lose all the skill experience with trachs, caths, and colostomy. Just my two cents.

[Larabelle]

Hi All:

I worked in many different inpatient care settings for twenty years (Labor and Delivery, Peds, Post partum, mental health, med-surg) prior to my present position working in a very fast paced ambulatory care setting. I am not sure that I could be competent in my present position without the experience which I gained in my inpatient care settings.

[J Lynn]

I guess that's why I went for LPN. That's all the docs around here hire. Some even only hire MAs or CNAs to do the same work. The pay scale is less....more in their pocket. The doc I work for hired me b/c I'm a LPN. If I was a RN, I think I would be limited to a hospital or surgical center. I LOVE my job and plan on staying until he retires.....however, I agree with the other posters in that once you go straight into an office setting, most of your nursing skills learned in school are lost. We don't do any proceedures, so I'm very spoiled to where I work now.