So I am a nursing student that will graduate in december from the RN program. My plan is to try and get a job working at the hospital doing medical surgical stuff to get some good experience and really learn my skills well before i decide to choose a specialty. Does anyone have any advice? Am i headed in the right direction?
ozoian 27 Posts Nov 4, 2011 I'm about to graduate in May and I was thinking the same way throughout nursing school (and still am) about starting on a Med-surg floor and then moving on to a specialty floor and doing what i love. But the thing is, is that there are so many ppl graduating with nursing licenses nowadays that the work force is going to be larger than the need for labor in those specialty areas. The way I see it is if I start off on Med-surg but want to do ICU or ED why not start there? Yeah the learning curve is going to be rough but everyones got to start somewhere. Also another thing to think about is how difficult it is to move from unit to unit. I've read about nurses being stuck on a unit for so long it becomes boring and they feel useless. It takes months or even years to finally be able to move. Not to mention starting on the top (ICU PCU type units) and working your way down is easier then working your way up trying to gain experience that is hard to attain in other areas of nursing. Do YOU want to feel like that right out of school? I know I don't so I'm going for what I know I want to do. ANd i'll take the bumps and bruises along the way and through myself into learning every single day.I think its an old way of thinking of starting med-surg and moving after a few years. DO what you love and you wont work a day the rest of your life.
63539 4 Posts Nov 5, 2011 Wow...that is really great insight! I think that just actually being a nurse after wanting this so long will make it so that I wont work a day of my life but I guess I have been under the impression that it is much harder to get into specialty areas such as ICU and ED without experience. I have heard so many things and so many different rumors about these things that Im to a point I dont really know what to trust and believe...let alone know what to do. I really like to think that I am good on the floor and good at what I do...but honestly Im just praying that I can get a job...especially in a hospital since that is ultimately where I want to be. Thankyou for your ideas on the situation and good luck to you!
