Does nursing home experience count the same as hospital experience?

nurseprnRN, BSN, RN · Apr 21, 2012

look at it this way: some experience as an rn is better "down the road" than none. take the job, be glad of the paycheck, keep studying and taking ce with icu-related content (join the local aacn), and keep your chin up. you know, you might just discover something about it you like, too.

Ted D · Apr 21, 2012

look at it this way: some experience as an rn is better "down the road" than none. take the job, be glad of the paycheck, keep studying and taking ce with icu-related content (join the local aacn), and keep your chin up. you know, you might just discover something about it you like, too.

by taking the job though, am i kind of committing myself to working there for a full year? how would it work if i hear back from a hospital shortly after i start working at the nursing home?

DoGoodThenGo · Apr 21, 2012

I'm a new grad RN and have not been able to find a job since graduating several months ago. I finally got a lead with a nursing home, but the thing is is I have zero desire to work in a nursing home! Is it bad to take the job for the simple sake of trying to rack up some experience? And will nursing home experience even help me land a job in ICU down the road or will they look at it as "non-acute" and therefore I'd be back to square one?

Is it bad to take *any* sort of employment merely to put food on the table, knowing the first good offer from elsewhere and one is out the door like a shot? Yes, it is. Do persons do it? Yes, they do, all the time.

As for your nursing home/LTC work experience getting you into ICU, much will depend upon what skills you master and how they are presented when applying. Mind you things will depend upon the situation on the ground. If you are the only RN for a large number of pts and mainly "throwing meds" and doing paperwork whilst a bulk of the care is done by UAPs you're going to have to be creative in selling that.

NO50FRANNY · Apr 21, 2012

I worked in nursing homes for almost a year when I first graduated for similar reasons. I had absolutely no desire to work in this area either, but I am so glad that I did. I can say this much, I learned my drugs, I learned my basic nursing skills and I certainly learned the art of time management and patience. The non-registered nurses taught me so much. I would never discourage anyone from working in aged care, particularly when you are a newly graduated RN. I know that working with the elderly may not be everyones' cup of tea but the experience that I gained was invaluable. If you throw yourself into your position, you can turn it into a positive regardless of where it is. I think that the time I spent in aged care gave me a significant advantage over those who hadn't in just about every nursing job I have ever had. I am still the first person my colleagues will come to in ED with upset geriatrics, there is an art to it and you will be surprised at the significant responsibility you have. I say go for it.

BlueDevil,DNP, DNP, RN · Apr 22, 2012

No, we would not have viewed nursing home experience as applicable or valuable when looking for a critical care nurse. I wouldn't take it unless I really needed the money.

Ted D · Apr 22, 2012

No, we would not have viewed nursing home experience as applicable or valuable when looking for a critical care nurse. I wouldn't take it unless I really needed the money.

Money is not a huge issue fortunately, but is it really better to stay unemployed vs. at least having a job somewhere with a job title as an RN?

nurse2many · Apr 22, 2012

No, we would not have viewed nursing home experience as applicable or valuable when looking for a critical care nurse. I wouldn't take it unless I really needed the money.

Wow! not applicabe, I can understand. Not valuable - really????

BlueDevil,DNP, DNP, RN · Apr 22, 2012

Really. :shrug: What do you want me to do, lie to you because it makes someone feel better? It simply doesn't offer anything we were interested in in our candidates. We wanted critical care experience, period. We sometimes took a chance on someone that had ED experience, but it would have had to be level I trauma, and lots of it.

netglow, ASN, RN · Apr 22, 2012

I agree, no apologies needed from BlueDevil, DNP.

There is so much crap out there that is not true. People are sold out to think that they have many options as a nurse when simply that is only a little bit true. Truth is, that you must climb the ladder pretty much a certain way to have those options. Of course if you know the right people, you skip most of those rungs on the ladder.

Remember there is no nursing shortage.

sistasoul · Apr 22, 2012

I would take the job. I worked in LTC for 5 months before I landed my ortho/neuro- med/surge job. My unit manager used to work for this facility so she understood how hard the job actually is. Truthfully, I would rather work with the elderly in the hospital than the younger folks. In general the elderly are kinder, more appreciative and less demanding, and more interesting than the younger folks. Most of my middle age and younger patients are much more demanding and entitled. The elderly are more work physically but are easier mentally. It is amazing how different the generations are.

Another reason to take the nursing home job is that these elderly have so many chronic diseases and you can gain a lot of knowledge. And the most important thing is old folks are absolutely adorable. It is like having to take care of a bunch of grandmas and grandpas.

Most of your patients in the hospital will be 65 and up so you will have an advantage in caring for this age group.

dirtyhippiegirl, BSN, RN · Apr 22, 2012

I did my senior practicum on an med-surg heme/onc that was also the catch-all palliative care unit and there were several nurses employed who had previously worked in LTC hospice.

Your potential career right now is basically a see-saw. Take the LTC position and in six months to a year, you will no longer be considered a new grad and thus ineligible for those positions. However, if you wait too long and end up unemployed for a year or longer, you are considered an "old" new grad and thus also undesirable.

Have you looked at the application process for non-new grad hospital positions in your area? Do they specifically state that they *require* acute care experience? Because LTC does not technically count as acute care experience, which probably means that your application would be screened out at the HR level.

I know that in my area, it's at least technically possible to make the jump from LTC to med/surg in most hospitals (acute care experience preferred) but nearly impossible to make the jump immediately from LTC to ICU because those positions *require* acute care experience.