First Job as RN in a Poorly Rated Hospital

[enfermeraRN]

Hello everyone!

So, it looks like I finally landed my first nursing job! It's on a med-surg floor and I'm very excited about it. However, I started getting a little bit worried because I was reading a few news articles about the hospital and it is named the worst hospital in my county. It's a safety net hospital with funding problems, understaffing, safety violations, etc.

Being a new grad, I don't exactly have much of a selection of hospitals that are willing to hire me right now, so I'm taking the job because I really need the experience plus I am really happy I am going to learn tons of new skills on the floor (it's chemotherapy/radiation/dialysis). I keep saying to myself that as long as I do my best and always advocate for my patients, it should be fine.

My worry is that if I want to move on to a more prestigious hospital in the future, will my having worked at a hospital with a bad reputation be looked down upon? Will future employers think that because I worked in a poor quality hospital that I am a poor quality nurse?

I'd love you hear your feedback on this.

Thanks!

[NurseThis21, BSN, RN]

Hi There!

Congrats on landing a job and get excited for the amazing experiences to come!

Don't worry so much about the hospital's reputation. No hospital is without flaws; heck, our entire healthcare system needs some major reconstructive surgery! Amen to that!

It's great that you researched your hospital and now you know what to discuss with your supervisor or preceptor. Let them know that you want to make it a priority to not get anywhere near the problems that are currently plaguing their system and ask for support if you find these problems creeping up on you at a later time.

Also, for your future endeavors, know that other hospitals you'll be interested in won't concentrate on your previous location, but rather your performance. You could work at the prestigious University of Chicago Hospital, but be the most incident-report-ridden nurse there! Focus on how well you're going to do and how much you're going to learn where you're at now. That will excite every potential employer you come across; shows that you can make light of even the most dire situations!

Good luck in your new career and hopefully your hospital will get their undies out of a bundle soon! Have fun!!! :chuckle

NurseThis21, BSN, RN

UIC Alumna

[Jami RN, BSN, RN]

I keep saying to myself that as long as I do my best and always advocate for my patients, it should be fine.

I think you're right... you'll be fine and it may be really good experience. We have a hospital like that here (I think there's one everywhere) and when we interview someone who works there, we almost give them bonus points. "If they can work there, they'll love it here," is our philosophy.

I think you should take hospital reputations and ratings with a grain of salt. Most of the ratings are based on medical/physician outcomes and not on nursing. In fact, as a traveler, I worked at some big name hospitals, and found them to not be so impressive nursing-wise.

With this economy, I think you should take anything you can get and soak up your experience like a sponge. Learn from the good and the bad, be an agent for positive change and take good care of your patients. That's what really matters.

Best wishes,

Jami