How difficult is it to move from med-surg to ICU???

[godbless-yute]

For those of you who started out in med-surg, how difficult was it for you to transition to ICU? How many years experience did it take? I asking because I'm a student nurse doing my final practicum on a med-surg floor, but I would really like to be an ICU nurse.

[PacoUSA, BSN, RN]

I am glad I found this thread. I am starting on a med/tele floor next week (going through nursing orientation right now) and am considering going to the ICU after a couple of years of experience on med/tele ... probably at a different hospital from where I am now (as I would like to relocate later). Interested to see how relevant my experience would be for the new role in critical care.

[Worldtravelgirl]

I worked 2 1/2 years on Med/Surg/Ortho/Tele before taking the dive into the MICU. I'm certainly glad I had that experience before walking into the most difficult unit I've ever worked in. I would recommend job shadowing prior to making the dive when the time comes. I wish I had done that because I probably would have stayed in med/surg. I personally love talking to my pts. That's hard to do when your pts are intubated and sedated.

[NurseMCE]

I worked 2 1/2 years on Med/Surg/Ortho/Tele before taking the dive into the MICU. I'm certainly glad I had that experience before walking into the most difficult unit I've ever worked in. I would recommend job shadowing prior to making the dive when the time comes. I wish I had done that because I probably would have stayed in med/surg. I personally love talking to my pts. That's hard to do when your pts are intubated and sedated.

Agreed. I did 1.5 years on a Med/Tele floor and wouldn't of traded my time there for the world before transferring to the MSICU. Good luck!