First Time to work in a LTC facility,,,

Published

Specializes in LTC, AL, Corrections, Home health.

I am a fairly new nurse, passed my boards in March of this year and kept working for my homehealth agency as an LPN and work until recently in a correctional setting too. But I am starting an evening shift job at an seemingly nice band new nursing facility in the skilled unit. I'm really nervous... I mean I know it is going to be a serious change of pace but I'm afraid it might be a little more than I can handle. What can I expect? Is it really as hard as I think it might be?

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Hospice.

Hi there! And welcome to LTC / SNF nursing! You are in for a great experience.

Working on a skilled unit, you can count on getting a lot of great experience, and learning how to budget your time and prioritize care. That's half the battle really, learning how to effectively manage the time you have so that you can get everything done.

You may, depending on the facility be responsible for passing meds, (usually 2-3 times during a shift depending on your hours), doing treatments (Dressing changes, ointments, etc.) doing daily head to toe assessments / evaluations on your skilled patients, and a host of other things. Again, time management is the key to it all. On a skilled unit, you may also do a lot of admissions and discharges.

Yes, this will be different from what you've been doing since you graduated, but it's not impossible.

One more thing. Don't expect yourself to be super nurse right out of the box. It took me nearly 6 months after starting my LTC job before I was comfortable and really felt that I knew what I was doing. (LOL.. The first rime I did the morning med pass, it took me nearly 3 hours for 25 patients. Now, I get that done in half the time. )

Good luck! I hope you like LTC / SNF nursing. It's a great area to work in.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

I worked in a SNF straight out of school and only lasted a month. It was hard but I really kick myself now for not sticking it out. Now I'm stuck doing home health and am trying hard to get back into LTC. You definitely learn more in LTC. Just be confident and know that it will take you a while to get used to it!:wink2:

Up Vote Up Vote ×
+ Join the Discussion