Flinders Medical Center or The Queen Elizabeth Hospital

Scrubby · Oct 10, 2010

I'm assuming you're a graduate nurse because you mentioned rotations?

If so then this may sound a little grim but you really need to apply to every hospital in the state. Graduate positions are getting harder to obtain and I've had a few student nurses crying on my shoulder over the last year because there is not enough places for graduates.

As for choosing between FM and the QEH I'd probably go with wherever is closer to where I live. From what I've heard from others both hospitals run reasonably good grad programs.

I strongly recommend you apply to other public hospitals as well including the Royal Adelaide, Lyell McEwin, Modbury and even look into grad programs run by some of the private hospitals.

carolmaccas66, BSN, RN · Oct 12, 2010

You couldn't do better than the QEH. Lovely, helpful staff, new beds (all electronic), new equipment, plenty of impress meds, etc. I worked there as an agency nurse, couldn't have asked for a better workplace. And nobody minds if you ask tons of questions. I was a patient at FMC & wasn't impressed with my lack of care, the nurses were all tired, couldn't be bothered with many of the patients and it is an older hosp, quite run down, though you would probly get good trauma & teaching experience. But you also must think of travelling distances, as you'll have to do nightshift, days and afternoons (thought u have some flexibility to change ur allocated roster).

Yes do as Scrubby says, get on the net and look up the websites for ALL the public and private hospitals, & see if they run grad programmes. The big public ones are RAH, FMC, QEH, Lyell McEwin, The Repatriation Hospital & Women's & Children's Hosp in Nth Adelaide. I've worked at all of these hospitals except FMC, and in public hospitals, expect to be a leader and to work hard. As an RN you must do everything, ie: sometimes don't have PCAs making/cleaning beds etc, as the RN you have to do it and be in charge of students, etc.

The other private ones you can try are Wakefield Hosp, Calvary in North Adelaide, NASA (agency) does a grad program, though I wouldn't recommend working for them personally. Look up the Ramsay Health Care webiste as well, they run hospitals all over Australia. Even in the Adelaide Hills Mt Barker Hosp, Stirling etc run grad programmes. There was another website through my old alumni, UNISA, but I can't access it, maybe call them or have a look ursellf on ur own uni website.

Try http://www.gradconnection.com.au/ or you can Google graduate RN programmes, and it will come up with the site for each hospital. Ensure you Google separate areas for Adelaide, ie: Adelaide Hills. Also look at the job websites, like www.careerone.com.au they always list grad programmes for everywhere.

One piece of advice: apply for ALL grad programmes everywhere and do it EARLY to get in.

Good luck.