Getting in to NICU

[Zelda, RN]

Hey all!

I am a new nurse (May 2015 grad) who recently started working in an inpatient peds psych unit. I've been there about a month now. There are many things I like about this unit - getting to spend close time with the kids, just doing puzzles or art and talking - and there are some things I don't, such as that the kids are in bed by 10 and it's virtually silent until 6 am. It makes for long nights.

Though I like psych, it's not something I want to do right now. I long to hone my skills, listen to hearts and lungs, and just generally work in a faster-paced, more acute environment. I have always been very interested in NICU, PICU, peds, and L&D. My hospital has a very low peds/PICU census, but our NICU census is generally in the 20's (there are only a few level III NICUs in KS). For that reason, I am considering a transfer to NICU.

My question is, when is an ideal time to transfer? My facility allows transfers after 90 days (October for me). Should I transfer as soon as I can/a job is available? Or wait 6 months - 1 year? I know many NICUs like to train their nurses from the ground up.

Would working in a NICU for a while hinder me should I decide I want to do peds or even L&D?

Thank you for the advice!

[erinhrn]

I would suggest shadowing in the NICU that you are considering transferring to. That will give you a chance to see if you like that type of nursing and also a chance to meet some of the staff to see if you'd be a good fit. If you like it, transfer as soon as you can.