Externship interview...top 3 units to work on???

[sophie<3]

so i found out some pretty exciting news...i have an interview for the summer externship that i applied for :) i know that it is still a long shot that i will get accepted since they only accept 20 students out of A LOT that apply from all the schools in the area BUT an interview is a step forward in the least so now i am starting to prepare myself for the interview that is in a few weeks. i know they will ask me my top 3 choices of what unit i would like to work on so i've really been weighing my options.. i work as a float pool tech at the same hospital so i have visited many ICU/Tele/MedSurg floors and so far I haven't been overly crazy about any of the floors I have worked on...I know I don't want to do tele or medsurg for the externship...ICU interests more so than those do. I really want NICU and the hospital I would be doing the externship at has a nice NICU from what I have heard..and I know that is my #1 choice..but for the other two options I just don't know! Normally I would choose peds but this hospital has a VERY small peds unit of about 6 beds only because a nearby hospital has a "Children's Hospital"...so PICU or Peds related units are a no-go. I have thought about ED just for skills and getting used to thinking in a stressful situation..I've also thought about OR, I really like surgery...but it wouldn't be using much of my skills. So anyone have any advice? What would you choose if it were you?? I want to have the best learning experience I can without working Med/Surg or Tele..because like I said, it just isn't my thing :) thanks in advance!!

[solneeshka, BSN, RN]

Don't do OR unless you think that's where you want to work, because as you already stated, you really won't use the nursing skills that you're learning (it's a whole different way of nursing). The ED would be a great place to go for an externship because that is where you will get the most practice doing the greatest number of skills. I did an ED externship in nursing school and started about half a dozen IVs per shift - so much for the mystery! It was great experience. Even doing things like teaching for urine samples, assessments (you do one on each of several patients per shift), wound care, running labs, all kinds of things. Any area of nursing you end up in, you will have benefited from the ED experience. I would make that my #1 choice even if you don't want to work there in the long run, just for the experience. Good luck to you!