Med-Surg Roll Call

bbuff · Apr 26, 2005, 02:38 PM

I am graduating in 2 weeks- I'll start as a GN on the same Med/Surg floor that I've worked at for a year as a PCT.(like an NA/LPN)
I work steady night shifts, switching to 12hr. shifts June 1st. (I'm taking all of May off)
I love this floor- the variety keeps me on my toes but I wonder when I will feel confident.

Brandy

akemi · May 14, 2005, 09:27 PM

I'm a new-grad med-surg nurse. I've been working an a med-surg floor for about 6 months now. It is very challenging! At first I was kind of reluctant to accept this position because I really wanted OB. But I now realize that med-surg is where I will learn so much, especially being a new-grad. I'm hoping that the hands-on skills and critical thinking skills I learn on med-surg will help me become an excellent OB nurse (when I get there).

NancyJo · May 14, 2005, 10:02 PM

I have been in med-surg for 4 years now and do like it for the most part. As many have said the down side is inadequate staffing for the amount of work we are expected to do. I did my first 12 years in LTC and loved that too, enjoyed that too, but decided to leave when my back started bothering me and I was only 32-too many years to go. Then did 3 years in acute rehab but the unit closed so a friend talked me in to giving med-surg a try. I never had any desire to work in an acute setting and was scared to death, never thought I could do it. It was like starting all over, but it came to me quickly and I really enjoy it now.

*General E. Speaking, RN* · May 17, 2005, 12:07 AM

I have been an LVN for 15 years. First 4 yrs, I did Med Surg then switched to the float pool for 1 yr in the same hospital (500 beds). Next, I worked for TDH Immunization/Communicable Disease Program for about 4 years. I had a transitional job at a busy pediatrician's for one year while I watched my current hospital being built. I have been at that hospital for 5 yrs doing Med Surg. I do float to pedi occasionally. Med Surg is very hard but rewarding work. I think this is especially true in a smaller facility. Our hospital only has 58 beds- 38 Med Surg, with a few saved for pediatrics. Basically, if you are not critical or crowning- you come to our floor. My Med Surg motto: Variety is the spice of life!

Three 12 hr shifts/wk is considered full-time. This works well with my part-time school schedule. Currently doing RN pre-req's.

eightB · Jun 16, 2005, 04:51 AM

Sometimes I love MS and sometimes.....

Greetings everyone
I've worked Med-surg, for about eleven years now as an LPN. Night shift...yes I have no life...lol, but I love my unit and my co-workers. I've learned so much, made such good close friends.
But then there are times when my floor is stripped of staff and we are forced to work with a skeleton crew. It makes me want to run, but what kind of nurse would I be if I did that. So I've stuck it out and even though I'm tired and fustrated with management. I can't leave my Med surg floor it like my second home.

grinnurse · Jun 24, 2005, 08:39 AM

Hi everyone-

I am a new med-surge nurse. Just started 2 weeks ago-took about a month off after grad and then started after passing boards. So far, the thing that I like most about this floor is the pace. I love to be busy and the floor that I am on is just that. I had thought about oncology nursing at first but then decided that if I could make it in med-surge then I could probably do just about anything else in the future. The hosp that I am at is a small rural hosp which I like too b/c I know alot of the staff and the patients so I really have a "vested" interest in the outcome of patient care and hosp reputation. Right now just trying to keep my head above water.

virginiarn · Jun 25, 2005, 07:30 PM

I'm a new grad, starting orientation on the post-surgical wing of the med-surg floor in about a month. I'm incredibly nervous and excited, and am sure I'll have a ton of questions to post after I start!

fifi9857 · Jul 10, 2005, 07:40 AM

Originally Posted by 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.

I have been doing med/surg for three years, this time. After doing cardiac and home health, I have come back to my favorite specialty. I have just gotten my CMSRN through AMSN. I am the only one in my hospital with this certification and have found most other nurses don't know about this cert, I mostly see CCRN's. My best advise--keep trying until you find a specialty that you love to work in. My hospital let's you transfer from your unit to another after you have worked on the first unit for six months. I do not know of any nurse who has had trouble transferring--in fact, a co-worker went from med/surg to peds and then to ortho. I did not realize others had such a hard time finding their niche.

ShawnetteRN05 · Jul 21, 2005, 01:57 PM

Hello,
I am a new grad (may 10) and as of yesterday a new RN!!
I work on a 30-something bed med-surg/tele unit and I love it!! it suprised me though, because when I was doing clinicals in the very hopsital that I work, I swore to myself that I would NEVER do med-surg!! It took my experience during precepting that changed my mind. Through the experience I got a sense of what a true nurse does and what his/her specific role is. I love the variey of patients that I see and the vast amount of experience that I have gotten in such a short period of time ( i started on 6/6). I love what I do!!!
shawnette, RN BSN

RN-PA · Jul 21, 2005, 03:50 PM

Originally Posted by ShawnetteRN05

Hello,
I am a new grad (may 10) and as of yesterday a new RN!!
I work on a 30-something bed med-surg/tele unit and I love it!! it suprised me though, because when I was doing clinicals in the very hopsital that I work, I swore to myself that I would NEVER do med-surg!! It took my experience during precepting that changed my mind. Through the experience I got a sense of what a true nurse does and what his/her specific role is. I love the variey of patients that I see and the vast amount of experience that I have gotten in such a short period of time ( i started on 6/6). I love what I do!!!
shawnette, RN BSN

Congratulations on becoming an RN, Shawnette! I also thought I could never work med-surg after negative experiences during clinicals, but I ended up liking it for the same reasons you do: the variety of patients and all there is to learn and experience. There are times when I think I can't work med-surg anymore when the acuity of my patients is high and I have to spread myself too thin among 6 patients, but when I think about trying any other area of nursing, med-surg keeps me coming back for the reasons mentioned.

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Med-Surg Roll Call

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