If you didn't start in NICU

[Satori77, ADN]

I love the new grad support thread. But I am also curious to hear from people who did not get their dream NICU job right out of school. What unit(s) did you work on? Do you feel they helped you either get a NICU job, or helped with the job itself (time management, etc)? And how long did it take you to finally get that dream job? How many people moved in order to get a position?

Really anything you want to tell me about your journey to the NICU would be very much appreciated!

[HyperSaurus, RN, BSN]

I started on a medical/oncology with telemetry floor. I was there for a year and a half before moving to NICU. My NICU does not hire new grads, so working on medical helped in that it gave me RN experience. A busy floor like medical was great for learning time management and prioritization, but other than that, it wasn't particularly helpful for the NICU.

[Seas]

I did 1.5 year in surgical telemetry and 1.5 year in mother/baby. I am starting in a level IV NICU next month. Both of my experiences helped me get hired. I don't know how it will be once I start my new position though.

[sommeil, ASN, RN]

I started in Med/Surg but also worked PRN as a substitute school nurse. I eventually just transferred to Peds. Our Peds and NICU units are managed by the same director so it was easy to cross train and get hired in NICU.

[hofamb]

I worked a year in the ER before transferring to NICU. I have about 4 weeks of orientation left, but I definitely think my experience has helped. It's obviously totally different but knowing how to manage my time and prioritize makes a huge difference when learning a different speciality

[Satori77, ADN]

These stories are definitely giving me hope! Keep 'em coming.

[JRich]

I started in a Chest Pain Telemetry Unit. I was there for 8 months before I was able to transfer over to a sister hospital in the NICU. I don't really think the specific unit I worked on helped me in getting into NICU. I had actually never been in a NICU before. My school was in a small area that didn't have a NICU. I moved from my original state of North Dakota down to Texas for my very first job. I have been in Texas for 2 years and am now moving up to Wisconsin to work in another NICU there. I never want to leave the NICU now.

[erinhrn]

I started in ICU and loved it, never thought I would leave my unit! But then I had to move to a different state for personal reasons and took a job in ER. I did not like ER at all so I started looking into transferring departments after 6 months. I saw a position open in the NICU (level 3), so I shadowed and immediately fell in love with NICU! It took several months, but I was finally able to transfer to NICU. I was told by one of my preceptors to "forget everything you know about adults". I did not find that to be necessary though. Yes, babies are very different from adults, but I feel that my critical care background helped me immensely. Another nurse started about the same time as me who only had mother/baby experience and I transitioned faster and more easily than her due to my ICU background. Now I have been a NICU nurse for 3 years and can't imagine doing anything else!

[Satori77, ADN]

That's great! I can definitely see a critical care background being helpful.

[vumblevee]

I worked in postpartum, doing couplet care for a year. And then I applied for a NICU nights position. Nights is pretty easy to get in I think. Our hospital also hires new grads and trains them.

[Guest343211]

I started in ICU and loved it, never thought I would leave my unit! But then I had to move to a different state for personal reasons and took a job in ER. I did not like ER at all so I started looking into transferring departments after 6 months. I saw a position open in the NICU (level 3), so I shadowed and immediately fell in love with NICU! It took several months, but I was finally able to transfer to NICU. I was told by one of my preceptors to "forget everything you know about adults". I did not find that to be necessary though. Yes, babies are very different from adults, but I feel that my critical care background helped me immensely. Another nurse started about the same time as me who only had mother/baby experience and I transitioned faster and more easily than her due to my ICU background. Now I have been a NICU nurse for 3 years and can't imagine doing anything else!

I agree, critical care, even if adults, and depending on what kind of hospitals and experiences you have, can make a huge difference. No you don't forget everything you learned in adult critical care. Things affecting hemodynamics will often be different, but how hemodynamics is supposed to function and how the infusions help with hemodynamics, etc, are the same. That comment always got to me. It's like telling med students and residents to forget everything they learned in their "other" rotations.

Intelligent beings don't necessarily forgot solid information--they adapt it appropriate to the particulars of the situation. It's called critical thinking. You just have to learn to understand differences.

Adult critical care is cool b/c you can learn a whole lot about the human body in variously stressed situations, and you may be given a lot more autonomy as compared with intensive care of peds or neonates. Due to the potential fears and liabilities associated with children, intensive care nurses in pediatrics and neonates don't get to have the same level of autonomy as that of adult critical care nurses may get--depending upon the center and other factors. I mean it's kind of understandable. You surrender a lot of autonomy when you go into pediatrics or neonates--and it's all good. There is a rhyme and reason for it. You simply just accept and adjust to the differences, and you find that they make sense in most situations.

[Satori77, ADN]

That is a great post SamAdams8. Thank you for your perspective.