Emergency Nurses, what is it about ER that you love?

Specialties Emergency

Published

What do you like the most about being a nurse in the ED? I like that you never know what may come through the door at any second and you must be able to act and react quickly.

Specializes in Cardiac, ER.

Would it be fair to say that you don't have as much "busy work" in the ER?

Obviously, I'm not insinuating that you aren't busy,..but things like tons of charting, skin cares, turn Q2, oral care, etc

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Specializes in Pediatric ER.

the lack of routine, the autonomy, the relationships with co-workers and the docs, and i love the fact that if my pt's status changes, i don't have to waste time paging docs and talking on the phone. they're right there. i love that if i have a pt/family that's high maintenance, i don't have to deal with them the next time i work. i like the variety of things we see and having a knowledge base broad enough to care for everything from a clinic pt to an icu status. i like not knowing what's going to walk in next!

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What about no care plans ? hehe

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Its a lot of fun, always has been and always will be. The Saves, The Losses, The Tragedies, The Triumphs. Lots of time off to play golf.

:rotfl: Ha,ha! Do you do anything else in your spare time? :rotfl:

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Hey Golf is fun!

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Specializes in ED.

I'm with the rest of the gang on variety and not having the same patients and families for days (well, most of the time anyway.) I love pulling someone's butt out of the fire. I love the endless lessons in the beauty of the human spirit and the depth of human stupidity.

I also love those feelings you get that help you know in a glance that someone is having an MI or dissecting an AAA or having a kidney stone or absolutely BSing you for drugs to use or sell. I love the art you gain to add life to the science of your practice. Maybe I'm not expressing myself well with that last sentence but it's the best I can do.

joe

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Specializes in ER, SANE.

i like the rush when things get fast, the laughs at the weird stuff you see and the sense of satisfaction when it all comes together. but i think if you are 'called to be an er nurse' that's just how you feel about it (all the things we all said) on the other hand, other floors probably feel the same about their kind of nursing. i really believe we all have a calling and a fit for where we need to be and i can sure tell when the fit is not there. my daughter is an ortho/neuro nurse - i can't imagine ! :selfbonk: yuk! she, in turn feels the same way about the er. it is a good thing to have differences but i thank the lord, my fit is in er.:balloons:

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Specializes in ICU, CCU, ER, PACU, tele, PSYCH.

carachel2 wish the place i did a travel assignmet had that attitude 'dont have to stay and get it done' i was told at the end of my shift by the charge that she wasnt goning to tell me who my relief was till i got all the orders done on my 4 patients, 2 were holds from a nsg home, and she yelled at me that i didnt order a hospital bed for those 2. now i know why i didnt wk at that place before. most places do have that attitude when its the end of the shift though which is great,, im like kidrn911 treat em and street em. love working er from busy inner city with lots of help to sm rural where you are there most times on your own.

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Specializes in ER, ICU.

Nowhere else do you have the variety. The staff is usually a pretty close knit team (not unlike combat troops!) We have a lot of autonomy and our docs are always right there.

I made a foray to the ICU for a year and got floated out to the floor one night (YUCK) my patient started to crash so I gave a fluid bolus, got an EKG, drew some labs and gave the patient some oxygen. The charge nurse yelled at me for doing stuff without an order and the attending was rude and obnoxious until he realized who I was and then he thanked me. It was a pretty big shock because I am used to being part of the team.

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Specializes in Med/Surge, ER.

There is no routine to any 12 hour shift! You never know what's gonna happen! I couldn't imagine doing anything else.

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Specializes in ICU,ER.

A little bit of this..... a little bit of that........ nothing lasts too long.

It's great.

If you are an ER nurse and you love it...then you really can't fully explain why you love it. But one thing is for sure. Once you go ER and love it, you'll never go back (to the floor).

It's a feeling of accomplishment....not just for the obvious "life saving" stuff. But being able to put up with and do what we do.... and know that not many people could do it.

Many people can criticize but not everyone could actually do it.

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Specializes in Critical Care/Teaching.

Why do I love ER? I love the chaos!!! You see a lot of different people....Medics, Cops, Doctors, Nurses, Social Workers....WE HAVE IT ALL!!!

I also love the excitement that you could see a wide variety of patients, and you always learn something new~~

And plus those rare nights where YOU HAVE NO PATIENTS.....it has only happened twice....but they were sweet nights.

ER crews are always more fun to work with!!!

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