Advice from ICU nurses

[beeker]

Anyone change to ICU later in their career? I have been asked if I'd like to train for ICU and to be honest, I am afraid I won't be able to cut it. My last med surge was 2015 and I've been working in a hospital based surgical clinic since. Right now my job is easy and really boring but tedious and I am not loving it. But the schedule is flexible and I pick my days mostly. But because I don't love it anymore, I do not work that much and when I do I feel dissatisfied. A little bit about me, I am ADHD which makes me super Type A. I am a rule follower, and always look for the policies.I don't like to wing it, I like to be taught the proper way to do things. I am meticulous with my current job.  Learning the new skills is very stressful for me, but once I get it, I do fine. Does this sound like a good person for the ICU or the opposite of that? What personality is best suited for ICU? What personality makes you not good for ICU? I appreciate brutal honesty as this would be a big change for me and I am probably going to chicken out.  

["nursy", RN]

I have worked with all personality types in the ICU. The most critical thing is really good organizational skills.   And a thick skin.....ICU is tough and nurses burn out a mile a minute (including me). If you're not happy where you are, there are other alternatives.  Nurses that really really want to work in ICU have a tough time, if you're already not sure..... It also depends on what kind of precepting program they have....your preceptor can make or break you.   Is there any way you can shadow someone for a few days since your schedule is so flexible?

[Paralian26, BSN]

I have add and am very type a and I think it has helped me a lot in the unit! If they’re asking you to come to the unit then they see something promising in you! At times your head will feel like it’s going to explode because your patient will be crashing and you’ll have to work on fixing them but you will constantly be thinking of how much of a tangled mess all your IV lines are, but in the critical moments of a pt going downhill you quickly prioritize (and are constantly re-prioritizing) what actually matters and is needed for the pt. You will definitely have to wing things at times because someone’s life literally depends on it. As nursy said, ICU can easily put you through the ringer. Every shift is physically, mentally, and emotionally draining as you pour everything you have out for the patients you care for, and sometimes they still die and it seems like it was almost all for nothing. But for me, I love it and couldn’t see myself doing any other type of nursing. 
P.S. if you like your pts to remember you or show you any gratitude or give you any thanks for what you’ve done, ICU is not for you

[marienm, RN, CCRN]

Just like every area of nursing, I think there are times to follow the rules and policies in the ICU and times to prioritize what the patient needs. Like if their BP is dropping fast and you are seeing cardiac rhythm changes on the monitor and the provider gives you a verbal order for a bolus, a pressor, and an EKG, you had better not be waiting for the written EMR orders, even though that's probably what the policy says.  But at the same time you *do* need to follow up with the provider later when they forget to put in the order. 

If this is an intra-institution transfer, do you have the chance to transfer back within a certain period if you find it isn't for you? Can you shadow in the ICU for a couple of shifts or get assigned there as a helper to see what it's like?  Are you okay with working whatever the schedule is that they expect (including weekends, holidays, off-shifts, or not being guaranteed to work the same days every week?)