Best department for new RNs

Nurses General Nursing

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Hello. I would like to ask for an idea/opinion. I'm a new RN. I'm confused of what department I should start. I am working currently as CNA in a hospital. Now that I passed, I will be promoted to RN. But I don't know where to start.

I have a friend working in postpartum, and she told me that I'll love the floor because the staff are very nice as well as the supervisor. But some says, that postpartum floor are for retiring RNs. Is that true?

And then, my manager is offering me the option of staying on her floor in the orthopedic. But, It takes a lot of lifting.

What do you think? Thanks in advance.

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Specializes in Pediatric/Adolescent, Med-Surg.

I've never heard anyone say that postpartum is for retiring RN's. Go where your heart is. New Grads can do anything, so you need to figure out where you heart lies. What clinical experiences interested you in school? Do you like the ortho floor?

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Specializes in Neuro ICU and Med Surg.

What interests you? If you don't know then work in med surg for a while until you find out. Orhto is a good start.

BTW Post Partum isn't for retiring RN's. That is a myth.

So you really need to figure out what you like. ICU or ER in my opinion can be VERY overwhelming for a new grad, but if that is your interest and you are able to receive a good orientation, then new grads can do just fine there.

Good luck to you.

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The clinical instructor that I have right now (last semester!!yay!) said that just because you are a new RN don't feel that you HAVE to start in med surg. I have been told by sooo much professors that you HAVE to start in med surg, and honestly i have NO desire to go there AT ALL! I am really hoping to work in postpardum once I pass my boards, i enjoy babies and teaching new moms. So i agree that you need to go where your heart is.

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Specializes in Med/Surg, ICU, ER, Peds ER-CPEN.

If you have no desire to go med/surg then don't, but also don't discredit the skills foundation you can build in med/surg if you are unsure what specialty and if you feel a life long connection to a specialty as many people do right from school, personally I'm a med/surg nurse all the way, I LOVE IT! still doesn't mean that I won't cross train to other areas in case of low census times and I need to float to keep my hours, but many times the ICU. psych nurses, and the occasional ER nurse that needs to preserve hours can't come into our floor and take a patient load no matter how experienced they are, last winter we had a full house for weeks on end yet the ER & ICU were all but dead, the nurses that floated down said they felt like they'd just jumped into the ocean with cement shoes on and by 2n float rotation they requested to be support and bed bath teams rather than take a patient load again.

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Specializes in Med-Surg.

I really want to be in the ER or ICU. However, in talking with a lot of the experienced nurses that I admired, they all recommended in starting out on a Telemetry or MedSurg floor. Reason being that it will strengthen your time management, critical thinking, and drug knowledge without the rush of the ER, which can potentially put a fresh RN in a position of playing tag-along. I hear that 6 months to a 1year is the average before moving to the ER.

I think I'll play it safe and go with the MedSurg advice when/if I graduate.

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Specializes in Med/Surg, ICU, ER, Peds ER-CPEN.
. I hear that 6 months to a 1year is the average before moving to the ER.

I think I'll play it safe and go with the MedSurg advice when/if I graduate.

WHEN you graduate! drop the if :D

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Specializes in ER/ medical telemetry.

Hello annles,

I was in your shoes 1.5 years ago.

My instructor also told me to start in a cardiac unit, such as medical telemetry.

I did not listen and went on to the ER where I had already been working as a tech a year and a half prior to my RN.

So , here I was, a fresh shiney RN that looked confident, acted confident ect... I WAS TERRIFIED! I was never a nurse extern and never acted in the capacity as a graduate nurse.

I just went from tech to RN.

As time went on they decided to let me free until a made a terrible medication error, that nobody wanted to back me up; except one veteran nurse who decided that I must go on another floor and learn first, before I return to the ER.

Well guess where I ended up at?

The medical telemetry floor. They welcomed me with open arms...

They asked me what my goal was, and I told them I was there to learn as much as possible...

Five months after being there I started precepting new RN's.

Wow the newbie is teaching others...

I have not returned to the ER yet.

I may stay on Medical Telemetry until January to mark my one year , then maybe try CCU, then eventually go back to the fast pace ER.

Final goal is be a traveling RN.

So, if you don't start as a new RN in a specialty unit, it is not so bad.

Critical thinking is done best with multiple patients that are somewhat stable, and when one or two go bad you practice the advanced nursing stratagies.

GOOD LUCK SHINEY NEW RN!!!! :redbeathe

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this is a matter of choice, when you first graduate you still have a lot of learning to do..best if you do it in a field that you want to stay in

some icus who have the choice, will require a nurse to be in med-surg for a certain length of time before going in unit but i have seen icu nurses who went in specility units after orientation

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Specializes in Geriatrics.

If I had it to do all over again, I'd of quit my LTC job and worked med/surg at the hospital, at least for a year. Most hospitals now won't hire me because they don't want to take the time to train me. I've been a licensed nurse for 16 years and I have zilch hospital experience.

I've also noticed here on this site when I read posts of hospital workers, they are really up to date clinically...sometimes I have trouble even reading the posts because they are talking about things I know NOTHING about...and that is scary to me.

I did a couple months in Home Health/Hospice and loved the Home Health part because I love patient teaching...but when hired, I requested to orient in the lab and ER so I could practice drawing blood and starting IV's.

So if you ask me personally, I would do med/surg first, then float to other areas.

Good luck!

Blessings, Michelle

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Specializes in Telemetry.

i started off on a telemetry unit which was funny because all through nursing school i wanted L&D, i didnt want nursery and didnt want postpartum i like the adreniline rush of L&D...but where ia pplied they do rotations to delivery, postpartum and nursery....which wasnt for me....so i decided to do tele...figuring if i ever want to do trauma, er, icu or high risk maternity i could get my cardiac experience...which in school i couldnt even figure the flow of blood through the heart without making a diagram HA HA....oh well there i am 5 years in and love it most of the time. The one thing with all tele units they are hig turn over, i like having a patient for more then 1 day which is rare but sometimes it happens and when i do i love it even more. I have learnt so much, and i would suggest that anyone starting out either do a med surge or tele floor for the experience.....i say tele only becuase you get that critical care experience and can advance, and reading monitors and starting drips is great learning experiences.

my 2 cents....:twocents:

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Specializes in ICU/ER.

Keep an open mind and interview with as many dept heads as you can. I thought all through school I wanted to be an OB nurse, but upon graduation there were no OB openings, ICU came along and I gave it a try.

I have learned so much this past year, way more than I ever did in school, I have good ratios, a great support staff, I do full patient care so I really get to know my patients. I couldnt imagine being anywhere else.

Good luck on what ever path you take!!

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