Looking to go into cardiac nursing... can u help??

Specialties Cardiac

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hi. i am seriously considering going into cardiac nursing. i am a cardiac patient myself. i already have a bs degree in communications and biology with a lot of courses in medicine. i have a few questions though and i hope you can shed some light on this for me....

how often do you come in contact with blood (office vs. hospital) and how much at rick are you of getting stuck with a dirty needle or getting an infectious disease? i ask because i used to work at a hospital as a medical writer and came in contact with a disease that almost killed me. i am better today, but it took me four years to recover... and that was just being a writer working with doctors and patients... i also ask because i am a heart patient (my condition does not hinder my life), but i have to be weary of infections.

also... can we wear whites or is that just for the doctors?

and... do we get breaks on our shifts??

thanks very much for shedding some light on these issues as i try to make an educated decision... epona

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Epona,

I have been a Cardio-thoracic ICU nurse for 11 years. I have had ONE needle stick injury 9 years ago due to a careless coworker. Other than that safety has become a very big buzz word in the hospital setting (both for the patient and staff). Needless systems have infiltrated to even the smallest setting thus you almost have to work in order to get a needlestick these days. (unless others are careless - this is something noone can predict. So I think I am more at risk for getting in a car accident then contracting a disease from a needlestick injury. But the risk is still there.

Most hospitals allow you to wear pretty much anything that is profession but most nurses love wearing scrubs. They are comfy and allow you to move without the contraints of pantyhose (anyone remember wearing those to work?). As for wearing white - sure you can but in my field white turns grey pretty darn quick. And Betadine is a B**ch to get out!!!!!!

Breaks - well that depends on where you work. Of course every employer must give you breaks!! In the ICU most of us eat and take our breaks pretty close to our patients so we can hear alarms going off. On slower days, some will leave the ICU for a bit - to catch a ray or two of sunlight.

Nursing is a very broad spectrum career - there is so much out there!

Denise

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Specializes in Cardiac.

I agree with the above poster about the needlesticks. Our hospital too uses the needless system. With the exception of putting in an IV or giving insulin, (or occasionally drawing up meds which i do away from others), I hardly ever come into contact with needles. Just remember to wear gloves.

As for infections, on my floor (which is a telemetry floor) we run into MERSA, VRE, flu, adenovirus .. all kinds of things like that. You can't really get around those in the hospital. Our pregnant nurses take care of all but the VRE patients. Just make sure your employer knows about the type of infections you can't be around.

As for white .. our hospital just recently implemented a color policy. Nurses wear royal blue and or white , LPNs wear wine color , and the patient care and HUC's wear hunter green. Just ask about the clothing policy you all have there when you interview.

As for breaks. There are times during a 12 hours shift when I don't even get to pee, let alone eat. Then there are times when i can actually sit down for 20 minutes and eat and not have to worry about anying pestering me. Just depends on the day and how sick and needy your patients are.

Good luck if this is what you decide to do. :)

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Specializes in LTC, Psych, M/S.

I also very much want to work on a telemetry floor as a RN. I just graduated last year (ADN). Due to unforseen circumstances, I am working in LTC right now but next month I plan to start applying at hospitals. I've heard that LTC looks bad on a resume, but is there anything I could do to make myself more marketable for a tele RN job? Particularly, could anyone suggest any online courses that maybe I could complete to then put on a resume? I have taken a EKG class, and probably could take ACLS through the hospital or somewhere but I don't have time right now.

Also, I have worked as a CNA on a telemetry floor, would that mean anything in terms of experience to a hiring manager?

Thanks!

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I also very much want to work on a telemetry floor as a RN. I just graduated last year (ADN). Due to unforseen circumstances, I am working in LTC right now but next month I plan to start applying at hospitals. I've heard that LTC looks bad on a resume, but is there anything I could do to make myself more marketable for a tele RN job? Particularly, could anyone suggest any online courses that maybe I could complete to then put on a resume? I have taken a EKG class, and probably could take ACLS through the hospital or somewhere but I don't have time right now.

Also, I have worked as a CNA on a telemetry floor, would that mean anything in terms of experience to a hiring manager?

Thanks!

be sure to say in your cover letter that you are looking for something much faster paced and you really enjoyed being a cna on tele and miss it.

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