CICU vs CT stepdown to CTICU - which is best PLEASE help

[misha12]

To all CRNAs or SRNAs out there, PLEASE give me your opinion to help me choose my first job.

I have been offered a position in a CICU in a large teaching hospital which has a CTICU that does the open heart post-ops. So, the CICU takes the medical cases, not surgical.

I also have an offer working in a CT stepdown, hopefully progressing up to the CTICU after a year or so on stepdown (year minimum, then need a position to open)

PLEASE offer me some guidance as to which will provide me with the better experience for anesthesia school!! It is appealing to get right into an ICU, but I'm not sure if the CICU will provide good enough experience or not - do you think I would have to transfer to another ICU to gain more experience? I would love to get some help from those who truly know!!!!

THANK YOU!!!!!!!

[missnurse01, MSN, RN]

if you work cicu how long will it take you to get into the cticu? less than the one year that you have to do minimum on the stepdown? you are still going to gain valuable knowledge in the cicu.

[ckh23, BSN, RN]

If your end game is to be a CRNA I say start in the CICU because you can start gaining your critical care experience. I also find it to be easier to move from ICU to ICU than from non-ICU into an ICU because you have most of the training like critical care course, ACLS, etc. and you would already have experience caring for some very sick people.

[SRNA2011]

I also agree with starting in the CICU since you'll get exposure to the critical-care environment. The time you spend there will also count towards your ICU experience (which is required), and the CT stepdown won't. Good luck!

[misha12]

Thank you very much!! All good points that really helped me in choosing - I will start in the CICU!!! =)