Is ortho a good area for a new grad RN?

[AJ BSN 2008]

Ok, so I just resigned yesterday from my first nursing job after the 10th week of orientation on a neuro ICU. I realized that this was the complete wrong fit for me and that going to a less acute floor would be a great benefit to me so I can develop prioritization, critical thinking, and other nursing skills. Anyway, now I am looking at my options and ortho happens to be one of them. I can't say that I have a lot of ortho experience from school and don't want to get myself into something I am going to hate. I guess I want to know if ortho will give me a well-rounded start to my career so, that if I decided to move onto something else, the skills I will have acquired will be of use to me. Also, for those of you who work in this area (whether you started as a new grad or with experience), overall, do you like it? My previous job left me so drained both physically and emotionally (I cried practically every day!). The pt outcomes on my previous unit were usually very poor and I felt like all my hard work really never paid off b/c most of my pts were in comas or the family would want to withdraw care...I became very depressed. I have been told that ortho pts are very hard and heavy with lots of lifting, etc, which kinda scares me a little. I know that no job is going to be perfect or stress-free but, I'd like to atleast have a job that I can kind of enjoy. Any thoughts are appreciated...thanks!

[VURN2010]

I just started on an Ortho floor and absolutely love it. This would be a great fit for you to just start to feel comfortable with routines, talking w/ docs and if you'd like to see happier outcomes.

I would also say that it probably depends where you work. I used to say I'd never do ortho because I worked somewhere where nurses had 7-8 patients and could flex up to 10. To me, especially as a new grad, that is absolutely absurd. I know people do it, but I feel with less patients you have more time to work on getting them well controlled on pain, moving with their CPMs and out of bed and eventually out the door.

I'm also at a teaching hospital and as mentioned before we have the same group of interns. It's wonderful. We learn together & address each other as peers. This has made my life a lot easier because I never feel uncomfortable paging/calling/text paging when I need something or want to inform them of smaller changes/preferences or NEED them for a change in status. You do see a variety of co-morbidities and different devices, but its' a great place to start because most patients fit a standard routine.

good luck! PM with questions!

[Franjcamp]

I have been a nurse for 25 years and worked ortho for 12 and let me tell you ortho is physically stressing. You run, you pull, you tug, you really give your back legs and knees an awful workout. I think because orthopedics is not considered to be as acute as cardiac, neuro etc they are often not staffed as well. I saw several of the nurse that I worked with be actually fearful of being pulled to other floors cause they only knew ortho. Ortho is okay, but take some advise from an old nurse do your self a favor don't stay on any floor for your whole career.

[sistasoul]

I started on an Ortho/Neuro floor 18 months ago as my first hospital job. It is a great place for new grads as the patients are not as acutely sick. That can change quickly though as most of our hip replacements are confused little old ladies who have a host of other medical problems. You can get the occasional code and rapid response but their is always a team around you to help when things get hairy. What I find most challenging is our neuro patients who come in with a change in mental status. Things get crazy when thay are trying to climb out of bed every 5 minutes and are fall risks. Ortho is sometimes combined with neuro. Then you get the little old ladies and gents who are alert and oriented before surgery and come out confused due to the anesthesia and pain meds received in post op. Can be quite challenging as they try pulling out their IVS and foleys.

Most knees are elective surgeries and are usually middle aged people. Most of these folks are generally healthy and fairly easy to take care of. We can also get a lot of back surgeries (kyphoplasty) which really relieves the pain people have. I love to get these patients because you see a huge difference in their pain after their surgery. They come to you in severe pain and are like new people after the surgery. These people usually only stay for a day.

Where I work we also see a lot of pneumonia, COPD, abdominal pain due to crohns, kidney and gall bladder stones, detoxing patients, patients that need to be dialyzed, etc.. So yes, I would have to say ortho is a great floor to start as a new nurse.

[mjb0719]

Does anyone have advice on which stethoscope to get for a new grad RN on ortho floor?

[ray8825]

I graduated May '10 and got my first job on an ortho/neuro/trauma/gen surg floor. Most nights I'm running around like crazy because the patients need help with everything and I'm giving pain meds all night. I've learned in my few short months there, that if you can handle stress well, you do well on the floor. Having strong aids helps too. One of the pros of working on an ortho floor, you get to see your patients get better, which you might not necessarily see on another floor.

[pawnotesRN]

Anyone else joining the new cohort of GN's at Winter Park Florida Hospital for April 2011? I am so excited and THANKFUL to have this opportunity.