First Job as a Floating Nurse

[Jade_Malahkai]

I've been out of LPN school for 3 months, and I passed my boards last month. My license came in the mail like a week later. Soo all I have to do now is get a job. I just had basically my second interview at a healthcare center, much like a nursing home, and the position is floating nurse. A former classmate had actually quit there because she had been told that it was floating nurse and not charge nurse. Should I be worried? In theory it sounds okay but after thinking about it for a while, it started to seem overwhelming. My main question is would it be a bad idea to take on a floating nurse position as a first job?

[NurseB14]

Guess what you'll be when you float? The charge nurse! I was a full time float nurse at my first nursing job in a LTC facility. I floated to all the halls except one (I didn't feel I could handle it) and I was the charge nurse for the night, second shift. It seems counterintuitive to be a float as a new grad, but the only thing changing on each hall is the residents, and if you get a good report and have the regular CNA's who know the residents, you'll be alright. Plus I oriented on each floor with the regular nurse and I was able to take good notes on how the residents take their meds, etc. I learned more than I could have imagined there. Good luck!

[guest114]

My first job as an LPN is a float position , and I actually have two jobs right now. I worked homecare my first two years in nursing and finally made the transition to LTC. Being that this is my first job working in a facility i was definitley nervous about not being in the same place all the time and always learning new things and the patients would be constantly changing along with everything else...now a year later I feel like this is the best place to start, especially because I just want to get the experience and move on. I'm learning SO MUCH so fast. I have made plenty mistakes and learned from every single one. I have grown so much as a nurse, and it's true that what they teach you in school is NOTHING like real life lol...

[Jade_Malahkai]

Yes that's the biggest thing to me. Even clinicals aren't like having a real job.

Update: I start tomorrow with orientation and paperwork, etc. At 10. I'm so nervous it seems unreal to me.