Advice for a new grad?

[BSN16]

Hi everyone, i was wondering if any critical care nurses had some advice for me? I am a new graduate and have accepted an ICU job at a trauma center i did my preceptor at. I enjoyed every minute of my precepting experience, and decided to apply to the same hospital. To my surprise, i got the job!

However, initially i felt very confident and excited to start in June, but i have been getting lots of comments from friends, family, and current coworkers making me second guess myself. Statements such as "Wow, you are brave...being a new grad in the ICU"

Even concern from my parents telling me that they're not sure this is where i should start out.

So my question is, does anyone have any feedback for me? Or others that started out as new grads in critical care? Thanks!! :))

[OlivetheRN, ADN, BSN, RN]

I didn't start out in ICU but I started out as a new grad in the ED, so a similar setting. You'll hear a lot of people say that new grads don't belong in specialities, but I personally believe that it depends on the individual new grad and the orientation that they're going to get. Is this the same unit that you did your senior preceptorship on? If so then I feel like you have a good idea and a good grasp on what you're signing up for. Hopefully they'll be giving you a good, long orientation with a solid preceptor.

It's going to be impossible for anyone on here to tell you whether you specifically are going to be able to hack it as a new grad in the ICU-we simply don't know you. What I can tell you is that you can't go into this second guessing yourself. It's normal to have doubts and be nervous about this; you would have those same doubts and nerves if you were starting out on medsurg floor. Starting as a nurse is nerve wracking stuff! But going into this doubting you can do it is setting yourself up for failure.

[lavenderskies, BSN]

Did you precept there in the ICU?

Added to say: I should've just read Olive's post before asking my question. Ditto everything Olive said!

[Boomer MS, RN]

Perceptive perspective and wise advice from Olive. One size does not fit all, in nursing or in life. You already have an advantage having been exposed to the ICU environment and culture where you did your preceptorship. Try not to go down that rabbit hole when "friends, family and current co-workers" make comments that it may not be wise to start out in the ICU. I admit I am biased when I say I do not believe everyone has to start in med-surg. Med-surg opportunities offer invaluable experience, but so does critical care. I say "No guts, no glory"; "Nothing ventured, nothing gained." If you want it, go for it. How will you know if you don't try? Because you are a new grad, the playing field is level. It would be hard anywhere. It will be a huge learning curve for you and exciting, IMO. I acknowledge that I am projecting here, but I could not turn down such an opportunity. And yes, way back when I started out as a new grad in emergency nursing after observing a shift at my university hospital in the ER (major trauma) I thought, "This is what I want to do." It will be challenging, but what in nursing isn't? Best wishes to you.

[calivianya, BSN, RN]

These sort of comments from people are one of my pet peeves. I started as a new grad in ICU and I did fine. I had done my preceptorship in ICU as well, not at the same one I was finally hired in, but I was doing all meds/assessments for both ICU patients on the second day of orientation at my first job. If you are getting hired on the same unit you precepted on, your advantage is even greater than mine was, and you won't just do fine - you are probably going to succeed with flying colors.

Furthermore, most of the new grads we hire in ICU do fine, even ones that didn't have a preceptorship in school. In fact, they sometimes do better than the experienced nurses from other specialties right off the bat because they don't have any bad habits to unlearn from previous positions.

Sometimes I wonder if the people with this advice have a chip on their shoulders because they had wanted to start in a certain specialty, but didn't have the opportunity, so they think no one else should have that opportunity either.

[NightNerd, MSN, RN]

Girl, go for it! If you enjoyed your time in that unit previously and they liked you enough to bring you back, it's clear that the people who matter think you will be a great fit. Like a previous poster said, nursing is a challenge no matter what, so don't let that stop you from pursuing a great opportunity. I graduated a bit less than two years ago, and the only jobs I could get at first were in psych and hospice nursing. Great experiences in their own way, but not really my calling. Now I have an interview at a local MICU and am looking forward to a possible change of pace. I'm excited but also concerned about everything I've forgotten from school and whatever bad habits I've picked up. ICU as a brand new nurse may be baptism by fire, but as someone who didn't have this opportunity, I think you should take it and not look back if it's what you want.

[BSN16]

Thank you all for the encouraging words! For those of you asking if i preceptored at this hospital, i did but because of staffing issues i went with a different person each day, so i didn't really have one specific preceptor. Non the less, i am very pro-active and eager and got along great with all the nurses who mentored me and the nurse manager.

I just took my NCLEX today, so i should be starting next week. (If i passed)