Critical Care Experience and future opportunities

[stepaukob]

I'm a new graduate of last year. I've worked med-surg for a year. I'm 42 y/o and I'm trying to do whatever may be best for me in the long run.

I see that with critical care exp there seems to be many more opportunities. I am thinking of traveling but if this will help in the long run then I will work a few years towards some type of critical care.

I was offered a position in the Intermediate Care Unit IMC (new name for Tele). It would be a good experience and a way to transition into an ICU position in a year or two.

From what I've seen there seems to be many more options for employment for those who have some critical care exp, any comments? I would imagine this looks good on a resume, is this true?

This is an important decision that I feel I need to make sooner than later. I respect all of you who have worked, or are working in this field and value all of your comments/experiences. Thanks

[BBFRN, BSN, PhD]

My ICU experience helped me to get a part time teaching job (which I loved), and my new job as a disease management nurse (desk job for now, and work from home with same pay/benefits in 6 months). It was definitely worth it, and I loved working on the ICU.

[ready4crna?]

A wise woman once told me- if you can be a good critical care nurse, all other areas of nursing are open to you. Why? Because being a critical care nurse encompasses so many areas of nursing and other disciplines. You have to be a socialworker, respiratory therapist, biomedical engineer, sometimes law enforcer, physical therapist, and wound care specialist just to name a few areas. This explains why there are so many job and career opportunities for critical care nurses in all areas of healthcare and education, we are a special breed of people. Should you choose this line of work, it will be hard, but totally rewarding. Good luck to you.

[deeDawntee, RN]

I definitely agree that working towards ICU is a career move that you will never regret. I did it similarly to what you are talking about and having that telemetry experience was extremely helpful in both doing the ICU course and being an ICU nurse as well. Good luck!

:yeah: go for it!!

[Burnt2]

just go for critical care of it's what you want.

[Indy, LPN, LVN]

Tele is still tele, much like snickers, it always comes up peanuts. Tele is like medsurg, if you are very very lucky you have a slightly lower patient ratio and then you throw in post cath lab procedures and cardiac drips.

It'll run your everloving butt off and it still won't be considered critical care. Yes, the tele experience is valuable, but it sounds like the facility that says they'll run you through tele and transition you in a year or two is just putting you off. I would interpret that as "we need a tele nurse now and we hope you'll just stay here, and look, we have different initials for our tele unit!"

[traumaRUs, MSN, APRN]

If you want critical care (ICU) I would just apply there and skip the tele experience unless for some reason, you feel that is where you want to work.

[cardiacRN2006, ADN, RN]

Like others have said, skip the tele and go for the ICU now.