Looking for some advice!

Specialties Ob/Gyn

Published

Hi everyone, so I have been an ICU nurse for a little over 2 years. I really do enjoy my job and love the hospital I work at. I was lucky enough to get a day position and even a part time one with ability to pick up extra time whenever, since having my son! The thing is I have ALWAYS had an attraction to women's health. I struggled having my son and figured I could help others given what I went through. So I have been applying to L & D positions for quite some time now and NADA. Everyone is looking for experience only and even having critical care has not been good enough. I heard about a "fellowship" for L & D but it is for a full time nights position only. I am not sure this would work with my sons schedule. I have a phone interview on tuesday and am deliberating weather or not I can take this position. I have been waiting so long for this opportunity and a fellowship at that would be amazing!! But I don't know if I want to go back to nights full time again. The pros to taking this position are... better benefits, more money, more opportunity in multiple ways if I want to go back to school etc. but the cons are further and longer commute, nights, starting over as a "new nurse" type feeling, making this leap and not knowing if I will love the move... does anyone have any advice to add to this scenario?? Im just not sure what I should do!! I know someone who works there who said its a 2 year waiting list for a day position and its very hard to even get a night time part time position....Thanks in advance to anyone who answers!!

quazar

603 Posts

Well, first off, how old is your son? That, to me, makes a huge difference. Sleep and night shift are super important. I was able to work night shift when my kids were little, but only on the weekends or when my spouse had time off so he could watch them while I slept. That really is my only concern here with this whole situation, to be honest, is your ability to sleep before and after a shift, and childcare.

As for the rest of it, a long commute is worth it for a job you love, and for coworkers you love. The "new nurse" feeling does suck, yes, but you get over it. It's scary to leave a familiar environment and routine and take a risk, because that risk doesn't always pan out. I've done it myself a couple of times. It worked out twice, twice it didn't. I always had a backup plan ready before I made the "jump" to a new unit/hospital, in case it turned out I was leaving the frying pan only to jump into the fire.

So my advice to you is this: make sure you have good, RELIABLE childcare and someone who can watch your son while you sleep and can be ENTIRELY responsible for him, not just a "backup" person. Make a backup plan in your head; figure out what you will do if you get there and it turns out you hate the unit or your coworkers are horrible or.....whatever. Just make your backup plan. Then, if you feel like you're ready, jump!

blackmamba123

97 Posts

Well, I can tell you that I raised my four children while working full time midnights in a nursing home, and it was challenging, to say the least. My children were all school age when I switched to midnights, so if I worked during the week, I could sleep while they were in school. But I was almost always running on 4 to 6 hours of sleep having to get homework, dinner, extracurricular stuff, and baths done before it was time for me to go to work. If you're doing 12 hour shifts three days a week, that sort of helps some.

As far as switching to women's health care, I had a similar experience. I always wanted to try women's health but no one would hire me without experience in women's health. It wasn't until I moved that I found a facility that hired me on the postpartum unit with no experience. That's after applying 8 times to this facility, and not counting the numerous applications I put in to other facilities. My advice is to be persistent, follow up your applications with phone calls, and take an updated resume into the facility and ask to speak with someone in the department if possible (if you're not doing that already:)). I'm six months in, and I definitely had that "new nurse" feeling all over again. But it passes eventually, as you become more familiar with how things are done in the department. Best wishes to you!

caliotter3

38,333 Posts

If this is your foot in the door.... Consider there would be about a two year time limitation to get what you want in the end. Better than being on the outside looking in.

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