Primary Care vs Specialty

rnsrgr8t · Jul 20, 2012

Congrats on your job offer! I am a PNP and went into pediatric urology right out of grad school (only job I have had). I think it REALLY depends on who you are going to be working with. My coworkers and MD's were very willing to train and teach me everything I needed to know and knew I was coming in with a blank slate and knew I knew nothing. I just was not able to find a primary care job at the time. If they are willing to train you and the specialty is interesing to you it is something to consider.

Georgia RN03 · Jul 20, 2012

Congrats on your job offer! I am a PNP and went into pediatric urology right out of grad school (only job I have had). I think it REALLY depends on who you are going to be working with. My coworkers and MD's were very willing to train and teach me everything I needed to know and knew I was coming in with a blank slate and knew I knew nothing. I just was not able to find a primary care job at the time. If they are willing to train you and the specialty is interesing to you it is something to consider.

Thanks! Still have to work out all the benefits, but sounds really good! It is 1 MD, looking for a second and I would make the second NP. They both seem great to work with, won't know for sure until I get there! What kind of benefits did you start out with?

rnsrgr8t · Jul 21, 2012

I work for a peds hospital, so it is different than a private practice...the hospital employs 50+ APN's so I got the standard that everyone has.... I think you start with 15 days paid leave that you accrue through the year...separate sick time, medical, dental, short term disability, $1500 CME, they pay my Liability Insurance and for all of my recerts/licenses/DEA. Salary was comparable for the area and I have gotten several increases over the years (in additional to my yearly 3% raise) based on the area. There are 2 other pediatric hospitals in the area (within an hour) so they keep it competitive. Private practices often cannot offer all of that b/c they have a lot less $$$ to work with. I also negotiated for them to pay back $4,000 a year on my school loans until they were paid off.

bsnanat2 · Jul 21, 2012

What do you guys think about a new grad going into a specialty area as a first job? I have an opportunity to go into urology, but wondering if I should go into primary care for a couple years just to get a good foundation. This job kind of just fell into my lap, another one may be hard to find! Any advice????

Take the job! This is no different than the 'need years of med-surg' thing. Besides, lots of money in urology! Good for you. Go for it.

Le-Lee_FNP, MSN, RN, NP · Jul 22, 2012

I will probably be in a similar situation when i graduate in december. I currently work in ICU and have gotten many unofficial offers from some of the MDs i work with to come join their practices. One is a pulmonologist and one is a Gastroenterologist. I'm not sure that i am that interested in either of these specialties and would prefer primary care initially, but as a new grad i feel like a begger can't be a choser. The competition is stiff where i live and i am going to have to take something if i want to work as a NP, so i will definately see whats out there but if you have a for sure job offer that sounds good and nothing else seems promising i wouldn't hold out if i were you. You can always do primary care later and i doubt that specializing first will hurt your future job prospects. Good luck.

Georgia RN03 · Jul 22, 2012

There are not a lot of jobs for new grads around here. If I take the job I figure I could volunteer at a clinic nearby to get primary care experience. I just feel like I'm "settling" without seeing what else is out there. Then again, there may not be anything else out there! I wonder how easy it would be to find another job, if need be, after working in a specialty area?

CCRNDiva, BSN, RN · Jul 24, 2012

As long as the MD is willing to teach and nurture you as a novice, I would take the job over holding out for something else. A bird in the hand is better than 2 in the bush, as they say! I think your plan is sound; you could always supplement this experience with volunteer work. I think that any experience is often considered better than none.

Georgia RN03 · Jul 24, 2012

As long as the MD is willing to teach and nurture you as a novice, I would take the job over holding out for something else. A bird in the hand is better than 2 in the bush, as they say! I think your plan is sound; you could always supplement this experience with volunteer work. I think that any experience is often considered better than none.

Yeah it does sound like a good deal! Now I just have to hear the benefits, we have not discussed those yet.

cherryames1949 · Jul 25, 2012

Graduated a Long time ago. I was in my early thirties and didn't want to wait to start in oncology. I accepted a job at a specialty hospital and never looked back. Take the job. I'm betting that you won't regret it. Good luck in your career!

bjkhrk21 · Jul 25, 2012

What do you guys think about a new grad going into a specialty area as a first job? I have an opportunity to go into urology, but wondering if I should go into primary care for a couple years just to get a good foundation. This job kind of just fell into my lap, another one may be hard to find! Any advice????

I have been a nurse in for 26 years and worked in a variety of different areas of nursing. I started out by working in a small hospital where you did everything as an RN. This to me was the best thing I did for my career, because I was able to "perfect" what I had learned in nursing school. I was able to do a little of every "skill". My daughter starts nursing school in the fall and I am going to encourage her to do some primary care initially because it gives her an increased knowledge base. Good luck with whatever you decide to do.