Med-Surg Roll Call

[RNPATL]

Hi all ... thought it was about time to have a Med-Surg roll call .... please repond by telling us if you work in med-surg .... how long you have been there and if you plan on staying in med surg .... also, please let us know if you hold certification in med-surg through ANCC or AMSN. Thanks ....

I will start ....

I am a nurse manager for a 40 bed med-surg unit. Love med-surg, but am challenged daily by how busy the unit is and how sick our patient population is. I plan on remaining in med-surg for a number of years (at least until I finish my Masters degree and start teaching). I am not currently certified, but am planning on taking the test in October throught AMSN.

I think the thing I LOVE the most about M/S is the diversity of patients we see. You really need to be a nursing generalist to be successful in med-surg.

[NewYorkGirl]

Hi guys! I'm graduating with my BSN this May and I just accepted a position on a telemetry/med-surg unit at Hudson Valley Hospital Center. I'm very excited b/c it's a magnet hospital and it's only 3.5 miles from my house. My first day of orientation begins July 7th!

[st4wb3rr33sh0rtc4k3]

I have been in Med/Surg since last March of 2008. I took a break to work in Long Term Care after getting laid off last May, due to low patient census. Long Term Care, Alzheimers, and Sub-Acute was my first go at nursing after I did Labor and Delivery as a Graduate Nurse in the summer of 05. Hope I said that right.

I have had some tough times with Med/Surg. I loved the hospital in Massachusetts where I worked, but after the floor closed my LTC experience was not good enough to be transfered to a "specialty" unit. LTC wasn't paying the mortgage and I decided to travel out West, where the need was. I did one travel assignment in a 127 bed hospital, which was okay I guess. I had Peds patients sometimes and that was fun.

Now I am doing a permanent position on a Med/Surg unit, but my boss and the permanent staff on my shift are grumps, and make the workplace really stressful. I get laughed at when I ask for help or questions, and now they are sending me to the New Grad unit, because I failed a PBDS test, that I didn't know about, or have time to research or study for it. I would totally pass now, some travelers gave me good information on how to pass it. But, they want me to take one patient a day for the next couple of weeks, boring...

I really don't mind Med/Surg I just wish I could find a good place to work at, like Saint Vincent's hospital in Worcester, MA. I just would like to get my one year of Med/Surg and go back to LTC, and do the Med/Surg per diem.

[Dawn, RN]

I am new to this thread as I am a new RN that just passed NCLEX a couple of days ago!!!! I start my new position in med/surg on a medical/oncology floor in their internship program. Unlike my other classmates, I believed I should lay a good foundation before specializing and believe I will see variety in my patients. I will be in an area where I can further my education and hone my skills.

I honestly think I am the only person in my graduating class that made that choice.

I hope I love it and never go anywhere else. I am scared, nervous, but also excited at the same time! Nice to meet everyone!

[Penelope_Pitstop, BSN, RN]

i am new to this thread as i am a new rn that just passed nclex a couple of days ago!!!! i start my new position in med/surg on a medical/oncology floor in their internship program. unlike my other classmates, i believed i should lay a good foundation before specializing and believe i will see variety in my patients. i will be in an area where i can further my education and hone my skills.

i honestly think i am the only person in my graduating class that made that choice.

i hope i love it and never go anywhere else. i am scared, nervous, but also excited at the same time! nice to meet everyone!

welcome, dawn! i wish you the best!

i am no longer a medsurg nurse, but i am glad i had my medsurg time. i still can't believe i was capable of being one, and i think you'll shock yourself with how much you'll be able to do and how awesome your assessment skills will be.

and, for what it's worth, i think you made a good decision in starting off in medsurg!

jess

[namorce]

I too am new to general surgical. I have worked in a number of other specialties , most recently 4 years in acute rehab. I want to stick it out however and transfer to a critical care unit in 1 year. However, even with all my experience I feel like a novice all over again. There are procedures that I ahve never heard of before. Any suggestions on resources that might help me through the next year. I would welcome all ideas and suggestions.

Thanks a bunch,

evelyn:mad:

[emilysmom,RN]

New RN just passed my test yesterday. I will be working on a med surg floor at Lancaster General Hosp in Lancaster PA. It has alot of wounds and inf control pts too. I will be eventully be working 3rd shift.

Lee Dalessandro, RN

[LiViN_my_DrEam]

Hello...I am an LPN of 2 years, 18 months of which have been on a med-surg floor. I work both 8 and 12 hour days, I am currently in school and will be finishing in November with an Associate Degree...finally an RN !!! I have a flex position so it allows me to pick and choose when I work, lately it has been full time. I was recently offered 2 days/week at the wound care center, so I have been dividing my time between my floor and the clinic. Both have advantages and disadvantages and I have not yet decided where I will go once school is over. I have found that floor nursing is not really where I want to spend my days, I may change my mind once I graduate and I can perform more of the duties expected of me on my floor, I live in Ohio, I am given a team but have to go to the other RN's on my floor for IV pushes, blood/plasma, riders and initial assessments due upon admission, it becomes quite a hassle for everyone, at times. I think that the experience I have gained is extremely beneficial to my career, and I feel as though I can handle almost anything, after some of the teams I have been assigned.

I look forward to gaining more experience...everyday is an experience on a med-surg floor, and it appears that my floor receives the most difficult pts, requiring the most care, not critical, but very needy. I sometimes wonder what I got myself into. I love my job, but I find myself constantly questioning the care my pts receive because we are given such a heavy load, and my floor has a definite lack of teamwork regardless of the rotation that is working.

Working on a med-surg floor for me, right now, is where I NEED to be, the experience I am gaining on a daily basis is only helping me to improve my critical thinking skills as well as providing a daily refresher to all of the NCLEX related issues that I will be facing in the near future. Regardless of the negative aspects that I have provided,

(sorry for that) overall the experience for me has been a positive one.

[Surgical_RN08]

hello all,

i am a new grad RN in orientation/preceptorship for a surgical floor. so far everything going great.

[squee-gee]

Hi Everyone!

I am a new grad RN and will be starting orientation on August 4. A few weeks of classroom and then I will start with a preceptor until November on a Med-Surg floor. This is the route I envisioned for myself, and it will (I believe) give me the best background in general nursing and assessment experience possible (I eventually would like to be a home health nurse). It may not be the most glamorous way to go, but...I am excited to begin. I'm sure I will be haunting this forum for advice and support.

[LibraSunCNM, BSN, MSN, CNM]

Hi everyone,

I graduated with my BSN in May, and just recently passed the NCLEX! I start on an ortho/vascular surgical unit at the beginning of September, and couldn't be more excited! I eventually want to go on and become a certified nurse-midwife, but I really feel like I need to lay a solid groundwork for myself, so I'm looking forward to learning a lot on my unit.

[amybud, BSN, RN]

Hello fellow nurses!

I graduated in May with my ADN and passed the NCLEX in July. I have been in an orientation program for a Med-Surg position since July and will be on my own in November!

[Amysuenu]

Hello, I just graduated from PN school on August 15th. I was just offered a position on Med-Surg and start September 15. I enjoyed Med-Surg in clinical and learned so much. I look forward as this being my foundation for nursing right out of out school.