Rehab Nursing advice please...not a real nurse?

Specialties Rehabilitation

Published

I just accepted a position on an acute rehab unit as a new grad. Now Im very excited and happy to be starting however Im feeling a bit discouraged. Im hearing from some people that nurses whom work in rehab (physical med) are not real nurses. Real nurses work in the ER,ICU and medsurg floors.. some people want to know why Im wasting time there and they are also saying I will lose all my assessment skills or so on. They also think Im just going to be passing out meds and lifting people all day. Im sure these are the same people that disagree with psych nursing as well. Ughhh I just need some advice :(

Thank you!

Specializes in Peds Homecare.

I find that when people say things to put you down, it's because they have low self esteem, and they are trying to pump themselves up. Ignore them! I'm a REAL NURSE! and So are you! It's not a contest, or a competition.

""Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind. "

~ Dr. Seuss

Teleflurry, I dissagree too..... in Rehab you get to do alot and learn alot...it's not just doing vitals and going home.. I have worked Rehab before I went into the OR and enjoy my time there and would go back in the right place..

With a background in Rehab she can do lot's ... I say get that training and if you find it redundant or boring, then consider your options... case management, insurance companies, home health.. just a little food for thought.

Specializes in Geriatrics.

Just because you choose to work in a speciality that is not widely attractive to others, does NOT mean you are not a nurse. You hold a nursing license, you ARE a nurse. Don't listen to anyone who tells you otherwise.

Same goes with psych, LTC, etc.. for some reason people just don't considered these "real" specialities, which is a shame. Everyone has their own niche.

:twocents:I just started my job as a new grad in a skilled nursing facility & I DO consider myself a real nurse. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.:)

Good for you and keep up the good work.... your degree, like mine, is as good as any "BSN"...

Specializes in Gerontology.

Rehab nursing is very rewarding.

Its a great feeling to see someone come in as a 2 person total lift, incontinent and unable to speak. And to leave walking with a cane, continent and starting to talk again. :nurse:

Specializes in RN CRRN.

Oh and I might add we have had pregnant women on the floor too! They have had strokes...but leave still pregnant, healthy and walking! You get everything in rehab.

Nursing is nursing regardless of location and field. You will nurse a patient! Your license validates your qualification! But your experience validates your skills and profession, which you will obtain as you practice nursing. One doesn't learn all in Nursing school. You'll have to commit to learning and then applying your knowledge. MedSurg is hard and things may change quickly! For example: arrive to unit after report on new admit you assess them and all of a sudden after a breathing treatment they are having an MI! You haven't assessed your other 6 patients now you have to make plans to transfer them to ICU and new orders from MD! Unknowingly what the next patients are besides in report they were stable and now......it's adrenaline time! not to mention night shift!:uhoh3:

I said MedSurg but this could possibly present in Rehab as well...each patient is individualized with some common problems as other patients. You must not have a redundant attitude but optimistic and ready to learn and be active! Regardless! your patient population or patient condition may be redundant...but you shouldn't! Seek more ways to learn and improve your communication skills, assessment skills, management skills, peer leader skills, and teaching skills. In nursing it's always something to do! Check out DVDs, read journals, go online, attend specialty training!:nurse:

Even in home health nursing,,,,,Your goal is to improve patient overall well being! If you stay patient focused! (passionate) then you will be rewarded endlessly and nursing will become part of your daily life even at home and in community! :heartbeat

The nursing profession is not limited to what your routine is in the hospital! Explore it! :heartbeat

Yes ignore this! I just started a clinical rotation on a BI rehab unit and I think I am going to be learning a lot. Need some advice, as far as assessment, are you honing in on neuro assess obviously? Any advice with assessments, transfers with hemi plag. pt's etc..?

Thanks!

Specializes in -.

A typical day working in rehab for me can be anything from helping people to shower themselves and go to the toilet to code blues, hanging drips, hypoglycaemic management, complex wound dressings..you name it.

I am a new grad and the experience is great, I'm improving my time management, learning new things everyday and not feeling totally overwhelmed - it's a good pace, a good starting point.

Good luck and I hope you enjoy your new job :-)

Ive been both and worked both...so here's my advice to you.

First off, are you an LPN or RN?

As an RN I would of told you the same...go to the hospital, not rehab. If your an LPN go to rehab, as your choices may be limied due to LPN's being phased out the hospital. As a new nurse...ANYWHERE you start will teach you something...time management, priorities, etc. BUT in the rehab it will become redundant, cliche, and youll hit that proverbial road block and find yourself asking, "is that it?" The mystique of the rehab wears off QUICKLY.

In the hospital you will see a change in patients, known as a higher turn-over, that will challenge you daily. More acute problems, requiring more speed and accuracy.

A job is a job, a nurse is a nurse...but Ill be honest with you....rehab is redundant; but if your an LPN you may be limited to that, or home health. As an RN...honey...go to the hospital .

whoa, whoa, whoa. Let me tell you, I also have worked as a surgical nurse on a med/surg floor and have now specialized in rehab. I have relied MORE on my nursing skills as a rehab nurse than as a surgical nurse. I feel that as a rehab nurse, more responsibility relies on your assessment skills. You are 100% in charge of your patients and work much more closely with your medical director/physiatrist than consulting doctors in acute care. They all come up and ask your opinion on your pt's recovery as well as their response to recovery. It is your job to understand that concept. You see a much more hollistic approach to a patient and do not have that "tunnel vision" that comes with being on a designated surgery, cardiac etc. floor. I have honed my assessment skills and my delegation/time management skills in rehab, not in acute care. As far as the redundancy, I disagree once again. instead of having just post op patients you get a plethra of pts including heart, neuro, orthopedic, trauma etc. So you have to have that specialized knowlege and assessment skills for all of those patients as well as knowing thier risks for complications and more chronic complications to these conditions. I do not feel that it matters if you are an RN or LPN, all nurses are equally worthy and valued in this profession, especially with healthcare today.

"Not a real nurse"? HaHA- you're more of a "real nurse" than all of the new grads sitting on their butts WAITING for a "real nurse job" in the ER, ICU, etc.

This coming from a new grad who has been unemployed for some time, but not picky, and who is deeply in love with many specialties that aren't "real" (Mom/Baby, Ambulatory, Public Health, OR Circulator, etc.).

I worked as a CNA at a rehab hospital and those nurses worked their butts off every day.

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