Do you need med surge for the first 2 years?

Nurses Career Support

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Do you need to work at a hospital on the med surge unit for the first 2 years of the beginning of your RN career? Also, what jobs pay the best..hospital jobs, nursing home jobs, clinic jobs?... By the way, I live in upstate Ny and I'm not even sure where I can find a job besides CPH, MMH, St Regis Nursing home, Highland nursing home...Does anyone else know of any places by where I live that I could get a RN job at?

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Depends on what the job requirements are for the specific job that you are applying for. Some people start in ICU, ER, etc without any experience and some need to build up their resume before being considered. Again, depends on the facility and their requirements.

I personally think that Med-Surg provides you with a nice background of time management skills, becoming proficient at many different nursing tasks, and building up your critical thinking skills. However, I do not think you NEED it for all positions. You can be successful in another area without a Med-Surg background.

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Specializes in HH, Peds, Rehab, Clinical.

In a nutshell, NO. You do not NEED to work med-surg for the first two years after licensure.

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Nope. But it is a nice, broad overview of patient care, the inner workings of a hospital, and generally getting your basic foundation of nursing and time management.

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Specializes in Psych ICU, addictions.

It definitely can't hurt you and does provide you with valuable knowledge, and it can make you competitive for many positions after those two years are up. But it's not mandatory for success. And many nurses start straight in their desired specialty and succeed without it.

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Specializes in HH, Peds, Rehab, Clinical.

MANY nurses start their careers OUTSIDE of a hospital as well. Doesn't make them any less of a nurse...

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Specializes in Psych ICU, addictions.
MANY nurses start their careers OUTSIDE of a hospital as well. Doesn't make them any less of a nurse...

This this THIS!

It's not where you work that makes you a real nurse. It's that lovely license indicating that you are a RN/LVN that makes you a real nurse.

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The reason you are encouraged to start your career in the hospital is for the experience. You receive additional training and that is where most of your clinical skills will be used. Most nurses develop the skills they need to carry them through their career in their first years. As a new nurse you should want to grab every opportunity you can to enhance your career. The more you can do the more profitable you are to your facility.

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