Originally Posted by Corrin1RN I recently started working (7mo) ago in a small hospital. I don't know the pro's and cons of all the different "new grad"programs (they just put me with a great preceptor on a floor with NICE nurses) but I do think the floor I am on is a good start. it is a tele/stepdown unit, with a 4 pt max. I get to see some drips, and some pt's that are sick enough that i am learning, with out the high stress of the unit or critical care. I get pulled to the unit on occasion and enjoy it but I feel the stress level is to high for a new grad to work there full time. Experienced nurses sometimes take for granted things they do routinly without stress is something that we may feel anxiety about or have not done enough to feel secure in our knowlege. I also feel med/surg is not a place for new grads. I got pulled to med surg as a new grad one night and had a horrible night. there were to many patients and things to do for me to just stop and think about what i was doing, i feel that things were to fast paced for me to really learn, and i had to be a lpn resource, wich i was not ready to be. Don't get me wrong, my floor is busy, but, I only have 4 pt's to keep straight, not 6-7. I feel comfortable on med surg now. To my surprise, some of the nurses on the med/surg floor feel intimidated on my floor because of the telemetry and drips, things I am O.K. with and eager to learn from this one great supervisor who has kind of taken me under her wing. I think God has blessed me to be on a floor that is the perfect balance between the basics and critical care. That and plenty of prayer!
I agree!! I also work on an intermediate stepdown unit where we get four patients. We are primary nursing with no aides, so it is very challenging to balance all aspects of pt care. We get both medical and surgical pt's and I have learned alot because these pt's have multiple problems and multiple specialists. These pt's can literally be one foot between us and ICU and can go bad in a heartbeat!! But do what you really like and get ready for more learning and more challenges. Once you get down your time management on the floor and how the floor operates, you will be "ready"

A great preceptor is also very important, they help build your foundation. Don't settle for less and always ask questions!! Good Luck and God Bless!! AMARTIN1
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