I will be starting nursing school in the fall and even though I know that I will likely figure out my passion during clinical rotations, I already know that I am interested in ICU and its sister units (PICU, NICU, etc). I ultimately want to be a CRNA and that does require 1-2 years ICU, however, I have heard it is hard to get hired in ICU as a new grad, and I want to work as a floor nurse for a little while before settling down in ICU and working on getting into CRNA school. My question is, knowing the path I want to take, what is the best job for a new grad that will not be hard to get hired in but also prepare me for eventually working ICU?
I have always been interested in L&D, peds, oncology, PICU, NICU, PACU, med-surg... I like a fast- paced, always doing something, never know what comes next type of job.
I know I'm young and have years to go before this is something to think about, but I am all about being prepared and would really appreciate any advice anyone has!
Also, feel free to tell me which area you work in and what it's like, what you like/ don't like about it, etc. I love to hear about different areas of nursing :)
Maybe you could consider applying to step-down units as well as ICUs. The ones in my area seem open to new grads, and it gives you a great balance of med/surg and critical care. Plus, once you have step down experience, ICU makes perfect sense as the next step.
I would caution you against going into NICU/L&D right out of school if your end goal is CRNA. They are both very specialized units, and it would be very hard to transition out of them into adult intensive care without any adult experience. Also, NICU generally is not considered acceptable ICU experience for CRNA school (although it does occasionally happen, and NICU can be a good supplement to adult ICU experience in your application).
I work in NICU and I absolutely love it: the patients, the families, the skills, the autonomy, and the nature of the care. Nobody wants to end up in the hospital. Maternity (including NICU) is the only place where I've seen pure joy in the hospital on a daily basis (i.e. a mom holding her baby for the first time).
However, babies are medically nothing like adults since their nervous systems are very immature. When adults are in distress, their respiratory rate goes up; in contrast, babies stop breathing; in distress, adults' heart rates go up, whereas babies' go down. I think that your clinical experience in NICU might make CRNA school harder since adult physiological reactions will often go against your nursing instincts. Just my two cents.
Hi maaadddzzz, I'm a new nurse too (started working in November 2015). I work on a surgical step down unit and I agree with adventure_rn, BSN, RN, I think it's a great place for new grads to start if they want to be an ICU nuse but can't get in to an ICU as a new grad! I love the balance of med-surg and critical care that I get; I get between 3-4 patients, my patients are on tele monitors, I get experience with medicated drips, a-lines, and other kinds of invasive monitoring but without the same intensity of an ICU which personally I did not feel like I was able to handle as a new grad still learning the ins and outs of how to be a nurse. (I know a lot of people who started in an ICU though and loved the intensity!). You also get to know the staff of the ICU's because you accept report from them often, so they would be able to give you insight on when positions open up. I haven't decided if I want to make the jump to an ICU just yet, but the MICU and SICU managers both reached out to me and said they would take me on if I was interested. I feel as a new grad having the step down experience would definitely make an easier transition to get in to an ICU than if I had been going from a med/surg floor. Good luck!
I would say if ICU is your goal, make sure you get it. There is an ICU somewhere that will take you when you graduate. I did not get hired for my local ICUs because of how competitive the residencies were, so I applied in five different states and accepted an ICU residency 400 miles away from where I lived, packed up my stuff, and relocated.
If it's what you really want, do what you need to do to make it happen.
adventure_rn, MSN, NP
1,598 Posts
Maybe you could consider applying to step-down units as well as ICUs. The ones in my area seem open to new grads, and it gives you a great balance of med/surg and critical care. Plus, once you have step down experience, ICU makes perfect sense as the next step.
I would caution you against going into NICU/L&D right out of school if your end goal is CRNA. They are both very specialized units, and it would be very hard to transition out of them into adult intensive care without any adult experience. Also, NICU generally is not considered acceptable ICU experience for CRNA school (although it does occasionally happen, and NICU can be a good supplement to adult ICU experience in your application).
I work in NICU and I absolutely love it: the patients, the families, the skills, the autonomy, and the nature of the care. Nobody wants to end up in the hospital. Maternity (including NICU) is the only place where I've seen pure joy in the hospital on a daily basis (i.e. a mom holding her baby for the first time).
However, babies are medically nothing like adults since their nervous systems are very immature. When adults are in distress, their respiratory rate goes up; in contrast, babies stop breathing; in distress, adults' heart rates go up, whereas babies' go down. I think that your clinical experience in NICU might make CRNA school harder since adult physiological reactions will often go against your nursing instincts. Just my two cents.