Advice for a new grad starting on cv unit

Specialties Cardiac

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I will be starting my first job as an RN on a CV unit. Can any on give me any helpful advice. Medications, procedures i may need to study up on, or advice and/or tips in general.

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Specializes in CVICU, education.

I am a new grad in CV recovery/CVICU, about 8 weeks into my orientation. When I asked what materials would be good to study, the following was suggested by my preceptor and I am currently reading the Manual of Perioperative Care.

-Cardiac Surgery Essentials for Critical Care Nursing Sonya R. Hardin

-Manual of Perioperative Care in Adult Cardiac Surgery Robert M. Bojar

I am also going to really review hemodynamics since almost every one of my patients have a Swan. If you have not taken ACLS you should highly consider it, or at minimum purchase the book and study it.

How long is your orientation?

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I have ACLS. my orientation will be 8 weeks on the CV unit and 8 weeks on the CV step down unit

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and thank you for the book you suggested. Good Luck! and as you continue if you can think of anything else you might think of please let me know.

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Specializes in CVICU, education.

Oh wow, my orientation is 11 months! I will do 2 weeks in Tele, CVOR, Cath lab, Cardiac rehab while completing the Versant program and then 16-24 weeks of CVR.

My facility is also providing in house classes on topics such as balloon pumps, pacemakers, cardiac surgery, hemodynamics, and 12 leads.

This is the first time this facility has accepted new grads to CVR/CVICU and I feel blessed to be there. Best of luck to you!

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thanks It looks like i might need it.

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Hi! Im a new probi nurse in a cardiovascular unit.... I find this thread useful... Can anybody pls share their experience in this unit... Perhaps the usual routine... Cases that are very common.... Medications... And the atmosphere. All will be appreciated! Thanks in advance... Anyway Im from a JCIA accredited hospital...

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I am a new grad going into CVICU as well! I plan to get these books as soon as I get my Nclex out of the way!

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Specializes in Cardiopulmonary Stepdown/Cath Lab, ICU.

Have been working on my floor as a new nurse for a little over a year. Biggest advice being new to the floor:

1. Learn you heart rhythms/arrhythmia's AND the interventions for them. You will see a rhythm changes, sometimes symptomatic, sometimes not. It's important to know what you can do to help the patients before you call the doc.

2. Not sure how your units will be set up, but we pull a lot of the cardiac sheaths from the cath lab. Make sure you do as many as possible while you are on orientation with the help and know what to look for after pulled (hematomas (most common), retro-peritoneal bleeds, pseudo-aneurysm etc.)

Get ready for lots of different chest pains, and the basic interventions for that. Knowledge of all the common heart medications is also helpful.

All sounds scary, but I love working on my floor. Couldn't have picked a much better floor to start on, good nurse to pt. ratios. We get a lot of variety because we take a lot of new strokes and people with lung problems as well. We are more of an intermediate care floor. Too sick/complex for med/surg, not sick enough (yet) to need the ICU.

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@TopsDrops Thank you so much for those info! I'll surely read on those... By the way my unit does a functional nursing system, instead of a typical primary care nursing... It means there'll be 2 medication nurses and 2 bedside nurses in a shift plus a charge nurse... Its quite toxic in a way that if we woud have a full census of 32patients it wil be divided into 2... So we have a 15:1 ratio in worst cases... And since Im a probitionary nurse I will be bedside for like 6 months. Any advice? seriously im too anxious! Specially to the workload.

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Curious to hear more about the "functional nursing system." I've never seen this operate.

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Specializes in pediatrics.

My best advice is to get to work early! I usually arrive about 30 mins early so I can get my assignment, then also I have time to look through the doctor's note or nurse's notes for the day. When I take report I can ask about things I read and I am not surprised as much. Also studying those top given cardiac meds is great!

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