How long before you were able to get a position as a psychiatric nurse?

Specialties Psychiatric

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Hello! I recently graduated from nursing school and am working as a nurse in a doctor's office but have always wants to be a psychiatric nurse. I applied to a few new grad positions at a few different psychiatric hospitals. It is been a few days and I haven't heard anything. I know for most it takes a long time(weeks to months) but I thought due to the fact psych is a specialty and not as many people want to go into it I thought I would hear back fairly quickly. I plan on calling to check up on my application status about a week after I applied but I am curious when I should start to be be concerned. How long did it take you all to land a job in psych? Thank you for any input!

Congrats!!!! Very exciting!

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Specializes in Psych, Med-Surg, utter confusion, chaos!.

Grats! :laugh:

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Specializes in Psych.

Good for you! Welcome, welcome to the wonderful world of psych nursing! I passed NCLEX last Jan, was licensed last Feb. I went straight into psych and have no regrets. I always felt called to psych and felt at home during psych clinical. I felt like a deer in headlights for almost all of med/surg. I currently work with patients in the community, and yes you will see a lot of medical problems. Our population is not a very healthy bunch, the severely mentally ill have a life expectancy of 25 years less than people without a mental illness. A lot is due to poor lifestyle choices (drinking, drugging, risky sexual behaviors, smoking like a chimney and poor eating habits). Some are also due to the meds. Many of the newer antipsychotic medications can cause enormous weight gain, insulin resistance, and hypercholerterolemia. Most common chronic somatic illnesses you will see are diabetes, heart disease and COPD.

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i went straight into physch about 8 weeks total

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Being a Psychiatric/Mental Health Nurse has always been one of my dreams~ and I got the offer for it too as my first nursing job after graduating and passing the NCLEX December last year. I sent the DON an email directly and he replied after about 3 days. Called me for an interview the next day then offered me a fulltime position 3 days after that interview. So collectively, it took me about 1-2 weeks to get the job. :) Good luck! :) PMH nursing is exciting and rewarding! :)

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