New to dialysis

jnette, ASN, EMT-I · May 22, 2003

Hello Crit ! And WELCOME to Allnurses !!!

I'm your neighbor up here in the SW part of Va. on the N.C. line...

I've been at my dialysis facility for 6 yrs. now and I love what I do.

I must advise one thing if you're interested in working in a dialysis clinic... look for a SMALL clinic.. no more that a total of 30 pts. ! I say that because most nurses burn out too quickly in the larger "city" units.. the turnover is horrendous, the pace is unreal, and patient contact at a minimum. You feel more like you're on an assembly line, and so do the patients.

Ours is a small clinic, and although the pace is still hectic, we do at least have an opportunity to bond with our pts., and enjoy what we do.. including each other, the staff.

I work for FMC, and there are a lot of negatives with this co., but I'm sure there are negatives with just about any of them. I hear Gambro is pretty good from some people, but I have heard not so good as well. I really couldn't advise you on that one,. as I have only worked for FMC. I'm sure all have their pros and cons.

Average day begins EARLY... before the birds wake up. I'm at work at 0400, our first patients walk through the door at 0430 or 0500. We do two shifts on M-W-F, and we are usually done with the second shift of pts. by 3pm.. go home about 3:30 pm. On Tues., Thur., and Sat. we only do one shift.. and leave by 1100 .

We work 4 days a week this way.. either two longs and two shorts... three longs and one short.. however we are scheduled.

I would suggest you read through all the dialysis threads and posts on this forum.. it will give you a feel for what to expect.

Yes, most companies, if not ALL, will train you pretty thoroughly before putting you on the floor... anywhere from 3-6 weeks, depending on the company.

Every unit is different, every unit is RUN differently, and every company is different as well. There are great ones (and I happen to be oner of the fortunate ones) and there are some I could never work at... all depends.

See what you find here, and I'm sure you'll be hearing from others as well.

Good luck in your search, and I hope you find what you're looking for ! :)

Hellllllo Nurse, BSN, RN · May 23, 2003

Jnette gave you some great advice, NurseCrit!

babs_rn · May 26, 2003

Ditto....occasionally there are still some MWF clinics out there, I have the good fortune to work in one (here in GA). I know that there are a number of Davita clinics in N. Carolina and after being around and talking to a number of nurses from other companies, I really could not work for another company other than Davita...guess they spoiled me. There's a 10 week orientation/preceptorship and that includes two weeks of classroom theory training before you get put out on the floor by yourself. If you're an RN, you can charge after 6 months.

I copied and pasted the current NC openings listed on the Davita website...but you can also check it out... it's http://www.davita.com

That may not be completely up to date so it's always a good idea to call...

Good luck!

Found 6 Employment Opportunities.

Keywords: RN Location: NC

Category: Medical & Health Care

Click on each title to view the details.

Position Title City/Town/

County State/Province/

Country Date

Facility Administrator Tarboro NC 04/21/2003

Facility Administrator Louisburg NC 04/21/2003

LPN/LVN Wilmington NC 05/12/2003

Staff RN - Hemodialysis Hamlet NC 02/28/2003

Staff RN - Hemodialysis Burgaw NC 03/18/2003

Staff RN - Hemodialysis Goldsboro NC 04/21/2003