Help! Which specialty ER or ICU or OB??

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I'm a med surge nurse and have until Friday to decide to go to either ER, ICU, or OB. Please tell me your thoughts!!

Has anyone went to the ER and realized it was not for them?

Which is the most stressful unit?

What if I get grossed out by ER?

Has anyone gone to the ER and realized it was not for them?

Was anyone nervous about the ER only to discover it was good for them?

Note: If I choose ER, its a 2 year committment.

Please help to decide. I like the ER because it will be exciting -- But tooo exciting??? I like the ICU because I can use critical thinking and

keep skills up. I like OB because maybe I just need a break!

:) TY for reading and please share your experiences with me

TY in VA

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Specializes in ER, Infusion therapy, Oncology.

Believe me all 3 specialties you brought up require critical thinking, and all are high risk. ER is fast paced and requires good time management skills and the ability to handle a lot of stress. I would think OB could be that way too. ICU can be a little slower paced but if you have a couple of really bad patients it could be really stressful too. It is really hard to say which one will suit your personality. Good luck.

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Can you get a chance to shadow some of the nurses in the areas you are interested? Even one shift?

What about the amount and type of orientation you would be offered? To succeed in a speciality requires a proper orientation.

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Specializes in NICU.

I would go to OB. People usually end up loving something in maternal/child health, and never leave. You have to really love it though or you will be miserable. Your post sounds like you really want the ER and that is my other thought.:cheers:

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Specializes in Emergency & Trauma/Adult ICU.

From your post, you seem to be working on a med-surg unit presently. Did you apply for multiple internal postings at your hospital? I'm surprised you are being considered for all 3. What was it about those 3 units that made you apply? Surely there was some reasoning behind your action to apply for 3 radically different units -- therein lies your answer.

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Specializes in SICU, EMS, Home Health, School Nursing.
Believe me all 3 specialties you brought up require critical thinking, and all are high risk. ER is fast paced and requires good time management skills and the ability to handle a lot of stress. I would think OB could be that way too. ICU can be a little slower paced but if you have a couple of really bad patients it could be really stressful too. It is really hard to say which one will suit your personality. Good luck.

ICU is most definitely not slow paced!! All 3 can be slow paced at times, but extremely busy at times. In all 3 places, you have to be able to think on your feet and be prepared for just about anything. We rarely have codes in the OB area, but OB moms have a high risk of hemorrhage, etc. OB is generally less stressful than ER and ICU, but if you lose a mom or baby, that can be extremely high stress. ER and ICU have the most critical patients. ICU is geared more towards long term interventions and ER is geared more towards getting the patient stable enough to transfer to the floor.

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Specializes in OB.

reason for going to OB "To get a break"??????

then dont go. You need to want to be where you are placed or you ( and your pts) will be miserable.

There are more days than not that I dont get a "break" not even to pee

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Specializes in Rural Health.

All 3 jobs are stressful on multiple levels. All 3 jobs will require critical thinking and the ability to think outside the box. All 3 jobs will require creativity. All 3 jobs will have a different amount of automonmy that comes with the job.

None of the jobs will be easy and none of them will give you a "break" from M/S.

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