[Dinith88]

Of all the areas in nursing, it is my opinion that cardiac-stepdown/IMCU's are one of the more demanding units a nurse can work. (i work primarily ccu, but float between icu/imcu).

In my place of employment, these nurses are responcible for 3-5 patients, ranging from 12-24hr post-op cabg, pre-post angio/ptca(responsible for pulling sheaths), AMI's, most every chest pain that walks into the ED, a variety of EP inpatients, ICU 'downsteppers', to 'upsteppers' from other units. They're required to respond to codes.

The unit scares the S%$T out of 'new nurse', kicks the S%$T out of 'lazy nurse', and will expose a 'weak-nurse' like a centerfold.

If a nurse can master an IMCU (at least at MY place of employment), that same nurse can go just about anywhere in critical-care and be successful. I beleive these types of units can rightly be considered a critical-care 'boot-camp'....(and no place for the timid!)
....

Do you agree?

[Elspeth]

I've never worked there but I'll take your word for it, lol....wow(!) My most stressful place believe it or not was hemodialysis, both acute and chronic, both in-hospital and out patient.....dear sweet lord some of those people were sick and there we were sticking gigantic needles into them and cranking up that blood pump and sucking off the extra kgs.....can we say hypotension, chest pain and arrhythmias ???? Course I loved it and worked there for 7 yrs...

[caroladybelle]

No - I don't agree.

[Dinith88]

Carolbelle,

You're a tease!

Ok...so you don't agree. Have you experienced any similar environment that you would consider 'nursing boot-camp'? And why/how is it so??? If you don't agree, it must be because you've experienced something more intense???

Has anyone worked a unit they would consider 'boot-camp'??
(Hopefully you're not as long-winded as Carolbelle )

[fergus51]

I don't really consider any area bootcamp, cause to me that implies it's a prep for any other area of nursing. I think what is challenging to one person is a breeze to another. My worst ever area was psych.

[RN~in~CT]

"Boot Camp" for me occured at a small, very small ~ tiny even ~ community hospital. I was on the med-surg floor, and the assignments had SUCH a variety of pts.

Let's see ~ hip fx's, fem-pops, pneumonia, hospice ~ complete with titrating MSO4 gtts, detox, multi-drug resistant pts with a variety of wounds, telemetry (no telemetry tech), oncology with occ chemo being infused on the unit.... a little bit of everything.

Also, there was no code team ~ and no residents. There was only one DR in house 24/7, and that was the er doc. When a code was called, outside of intubating and defibrillating, we were the ones who did the chest compressions, pushed the drugs, bagged, recorded, etc... all while still juggling an assignment of 6-8


To me, this was my Boot Camp.

edited~ typo

[fergus51]

I know some nurses who would say even having a doc in 24/7 is a luxury That being one of the reasons I won't work in a rural setting

[Dave ARNP]

Our nurses consider having ARNPs in house a luxury. They just got that, this year. It adverted a strike.

Now its not a, Do now... ask later situation.

David Adams, ARNP
-ACNP, FNP