How do I get into mother baby?

[spaulson1, BSN, RN]

Hi guys, I've been trying to get into mother baby for the past year and a half. I started off at a nursing home then gained med surg/tele experience. Now I'm working PCU for the past 7 months at my dream hospital. Since 2019 I have been working as an RN. Recently I'm at a good hospital and I've been trying to transfer departments. Been in frequent communication with the hiring manager at mom baby. She told me to get in the county and to maintain my NRP, which I have done. She tells me there are hardly ever any openings in mom baby. I have tried to polish my interviewing skills and really try to impress them with the knowledge base I have acquired and my desire to continue learning. However, I can just never seem to be able to get in. Outside hospitals typically require experience to get into mother baby and I have encountered the same problems out there. Also, I never got an interview for mother baby outside the hospital I'm currently working at. So I feel like my best odds are still the hospital I'm at. Does anyone have any tips? Of course I will keep trying but I'm becoming more and more frustrated at this. I don't want to be working PCU or med surg my entire career. I feel like I have gained a good foundation to be able to be a good mom baby nurse. I have also researched and studied the subject to show that as well. I'm stuck and not sure where to go from here. Thanks. 

[klone, MSN, RN]

My only advice is to just keep applying. You may need to consider relocating to a different community - is that an option? I can tell you that smaller, community hospitals in more rural or isolated areas would DIE to hire you, because their candidate pool is just so small. A non-new grad, with acute-care hospital experience? Hell yeah!

In large cities, there are always experienced L&D nurses moving from hospital to hospital, so there is no need to hire a nurse who doesn't already have experience. If relocating is even remotely possible, I would consider that, even for just a year or two to get your foot in the door and gain experience. Can I ask where you are located?

[Skips, MSN, RN]

You have NRP already and you've shown interest. Keep applying! The manager knows your name and your interest, so you do have an advantage. 

Mother Baby is difficult to get into because it's where good nurses go to die in a good way. The babies, the parents (most of the time are eager to learn), the teaching, the tasks. I just love a good Mother Baby shift. It's not always butterflies and rainbows, but it's a good unit to work on. This is why it's tough to break into it.

Some places around the country are hiring all the time for Mother Baby. The hospital I work at has turnover because they have lost staff to graduate school or staff wanting to widen their nursing experience or simply not wanting to work night shift anymore. I am located in Virginia and there are several Mother Baby openings. However, the state I came from (Nebraska) had none ever. It really depends on the region. 

Keep applying, keep applying, keep applying! ? You will get somewhere eventually. That's what I did with L&D. I kept applying for 2 years and finally got in somewhere.