What counts as experience?

Nurses General Nursing

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Specializes in NICU.

I'm a new graduate RN, and as most of you know, most places require a minimum of one year experience. My question is, what is counts as experience? I got called to take an exam for a nursing home. I don't want to sound ungrateful but I'm not thrilled. My goal is to be hired on staff on a unit-any unit. When I think things through I say, hey, push come to shove if I have to suck it up and work at a nursing home for one year just to gain that "experience", then I will do it. It's only one year and maybe I can learn a few things. The only concern I have is that, is nursing home work considered "experience"? Thanks for your help!

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Specializes in mental health, military nursing.

Working in LTC counts as experience - you will get a chance to hone a lot of your nursing skills (med passes, dressing changes, IVs, assessment).

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Specializes in NICU.

Alright, thanks a lot for the feedback!

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Specializes in Emergency, Cardiac, PAT/SPU, Urgent Care.

Yep, any type of direct patient care as an RN will count as "RN experience" in a hospital's eyes. Be it LTC, doctor's office, clinic, etc.

Good luck!

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while i thought that nursing home and home healh would count as experience i was wrong. they both require a different skill set than hospital experience. i have 6 years experience with hh and ltc but hospitals refuse to hire me(even for med surg) due to lack of experience,and even agencies will not send me to a hospital at all due to not havivg that type of experience.

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Specializes in NICU.

See, smartnurse, I've heard that as well which is why I decided to ask. I saw people on another forum on this site complaining that the hospital wasn't considering outpatient clinic, ltc, or home care as "experience".

*frustrated*

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Although it is better than sitting at home with no job, understand that many hospitals (especially in so Cal) specify minimum 1 year Acute Care RN experience. I personally would take the LTC job, but continue to apply for new grad positions in Acute Care (if one EVER happens to come along) while working. Best of luck.

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Although it is better than sitting at home with no job, understand that many hospitals (especially in so Cal) specify minimum 1 year Acute Care RN experience. I personally would take the LTC job, but continue to apply for new grad positions in Acute Care (if one EVER happens to come along) while working. Best of luck.

you are right,it is better than sitting at home. you will have great experiences working in a nursing home,and like many i know will not want to work anywhere else! i think after 6 months you are no longer considered a new grad regardless of where you work.

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Specializes in Med-Surg/Trauma.

I recently went to a job interview skills workshop put on at my school. The presenter was a lady who has been in charge of hiring in a large hospital system for several years. She told us that when we will be graduating next May we'll be coming out at a bad time (as have new grads from the last couple years). She told us that she will not even LOOK at applications of new grads without "experience" and mentioned a couple other major hospital systems are doing this as well.:uhoh3:

She did mention that they will still consider taking new grads, but you have to have had experience as a tech or CNA and they were looking for those who had worked in a hospital setting. They did not count home health or long term care settings when looking for that experience.

It seems to be split from the responses you've gotten: some facilities consider LTC and some don't. I'd go ahead and ask at the hospital where you hope to someday be employed. It's so rough to get your foot in the door in a hospital anywhere these days and it seems to depend entirely on who you know!

I'll be in your new grad shoes in a year and can only hope the job outlook improves. Good luck out there I know it's rough:redpinkhe

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Acute care hospitals change their RN hiring practices several times a year! It depends on their financial situation and nursing glut versus nursing shortage. Some acute care hospitals don't treat LTC as "experience" (though I think they should.) Try working at the LTC as per diem, extra help, if that is the only job you can get, and apply at acute care hospitals as extra help. Might have to work both a while. If can't get acute care work take classes through the local acute care hospital, get ACLS, make connections and let instructors and classmates know you are looking for a job.

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