Goal is critical care, do I accept plasma center offer?

Nurses Job Hunt

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Specializes in CDU, cardiac telemetry, med-surg.

I'm a new grad of an associate degree program. Just started my BSN in August. I've applied to over 100 positions within 50 miles of my home - various different hospitals, and some dialysis clinics, and home health. Had a couple of interviews with the hospital I did clinical rotations at, but no offers.

This morning I got a call from a nearby plasma donation center that I interviewed for 2 weeks ago. My responsibilities would be to take detailed medical histories and to do really thorough physical assessments.

I don't know what do because my passion is in critical care, and I'm not sure that the experience I would get in plasma donation would make me anymore marketable to a hospital. I know that I wouldn't get a critical care position as a new grad, but I was hoping to get something that would allow for growth into that specialty. I only recently started considering applying to LTC but have not started pursuing it yet.

My thoughts are, if LTC is easier for new grads to get into, and if hospitals would view that more positively than being an RN in plasma donation, then I should turn down the offer and look for an LTC position. Or I should just take the job.

Thoughts?

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Personally, I would take the job. Paid nursing experience is better than no nursing experience. The longer you wait the harder it will be to get another job offer. I would take the job for now... you can keep pursuing other positions if you feel that would benefit you.

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Personally, I would take the job. Paid nursing experience is better than no nursing experience. The longer you wait the harder it will be to get another job offer. I would take the job for now... you can keep pursuing other positions if you feel that would benefit you.

I totally agree with this statement! Also, detailed histories and full assessments (not to mention venipuncture-which you will probably have plenty of) are skills that ALL hospitals will really appreciate. I don't know what part of the country you are in, but in some places (like where I live), hospitals won't hire ADNs, there are just too many BSNs out there and BSNs make it easier to achieve the goal of a magnet status. By the time you complete your BSN, you will have significant experience and should have a pretty easy time of getting a hospital job.

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Specializes in Acute Care, Rehab, Palliative.

It's a nursing job. I would take it. It does sound like it would be good experience. Best of luck.

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