[Sunshine382]

I'm new to nursing and have been thinking alot about all of the various and numerous career options in nursing. In your opinion, what is the best nursing job and why? On a scale of 1-10, how do you rate the stress level of that job. (I'm in pursuit of a job with minimal stress, if that is even existent). Also, what has been your worst nursing job??

[RGN1]

The trouble is that what suits one person won't suit another.

For me I really don't like geriatric nursing. I found it at best heartbreaking & at worst just heavy & messy. However, a friend of mine loved it from the beginning & chose to go into that field when she qualified & has had no regrets at all.

Some people thrive on the stres of the ER or OR & some people hate it!

Only you know what you like best & that's where you should go.

Personally I really enjoyed ophthalmics - we often closed at the weekends/public holidays, there was no heavy lifting & I got to extend my scope of practise.

However, now I'm on a busy med/surg unit & I really enjoy it. I prefer surgery to medical but at least I get variety.

In short I think you'll get as many different replies to your question as there are nurses on this websiite!! The worse thing is they'll all be right because their answers will be right for them.

You will have to draw up a list of what you like & what you don't like then try & match up as best you can. At the end there are no guarantees in any job but if you really don't like it you can always move on at the end of your contract.

[livefrmaust]

am studying for my RN. enjoyed clinical placements most of the time. i have with gerries(has it moment). and am currently working Spinal injuries rehab. and I LOVE IT. really heavy. but then i would liek to go the full circle-work in acute spinal, then community spina. i really hate paeds neuro,cant stand it. and am not a fan of obs and gynae(even though i enjoyed a two weeks placement there

[JR816]

Just a student here, but I really enjoyed my psyche rotation. It was very interesting. I thought I wanted to be an L&D nurse, but I think I changed my mind.~~~~

[Praiser]

School Nursing is the greatest job for me ! I love it ! Some may not like the autonomy of this job, but it is a good fit for me. The kids are great and each day is never the same. Summers, holidays, snow days off are wonderful also ! The downside is that I am the medical "guru" for the whole school, staff included. This requires lots of patience, but do-able.
The pay is not great, but the physical demands are not there either so it is a good trade off. These jobs are hard to come by, so if you are blessed to get on.....hold on to it !!

Good luck in whatever you desire.

LPN 90

[Sunshine382]

Good point, very true...it depends on who you are. The opthalmic job sounds interesting......what were your job responsibilities??? I will have to do some thinking, soul-searching, and researching...... Thank you.

[ashbrooke2006]

I work in ambulatory surgery and I love it. I have worked as an RN on the floor for over three months and as an intern for a little over a year. We are only open 12 hours per day M-F and closed on the same days as the post office and banks. On a normal day the stress level is about a 4-5, but other days I would definitely rate the stress level as a 10! On my floor we take care of surgery and endoscopy pts as well as do some chemo, abx infusions and blood transfusions. It is a relatively small hospital. Some people may not like it because sometimes it feels like you do about the same thing everyday, but I love it!

[TheCommuter]

I love long-term care nursing in a nursing home, also known as geriatric nursing. The slow pace, familiarity of patients, and sense of purpose are reasons for my everlastingly deep fondness of long-term care nursing.

[augigi]

I find ICU the "best"nursing for me, but I love the pace and don't find it that stressful.

Depends what "stress" means for you. Daylight, mon-fri work? Non-critical patients? Nice working environment? Once you know that, you can work out what areas are available:
- office/clinic
- occupational health
- schools
- short stay/day surgery unit
- short travel assignments

etc etc. There are hundreds or thousands of areas. Aren't we lucky to have such a flexible career choice?! Best of luck working out what your "niche" is!

[bhabby]

You may go through alot of jobs until you find your nich...I was a Unit Assistant in CVICU for 3 years, then an Anesthesia Tech for 6 years until I finished RN School. I love, love, love the OR. Specifically the CVOR.
Some think it is the same thing day in and day out...and yes, the protocol for procedures are the same but every patient is different.
The stress can be high at times but once you get a routine down you are alot more cofident.
We take call on weekends, a rotation every 8th weekend starting from Fri when you get off until Monday at 6am. That is really the only bad thing about the job.
Good luck with whatever you do. It may take you awhile to figure it out but when you get to an area you love you will know it. Good luck!!