Interview: I applied for ICU but the recruiter wants me to work in med surg?

[flipnbrenda]

Hello,

So I recently applied for an ICU position and the recruiter called me back but she said it would be for a med surg position or a primary care clinic....... I really don't want to work in a med surg floor (I already worked there for 2 years) I would prefer an ICU or ER position, should I email her back and ask if there are any openings in ICU? or how do I bring it up? I really want an ICU position, I don't see myself working doing anything else.

[kbrn2002, ADN, RN]

I am not sure about the job market, I do know there are many hospitals here I live in D.C., and I could wait and hope that I get an ICU job but I would not want to be without a job for more than six months. I am not working at the moment.

Maybe some DC area nurses could chime in here to help with how the job market really is. The amount of open positions posted does not necessarily equal the number of nurses they intend to hire. If the job market is tight, I would say start applying and accept any position that is acceptable to you. It'll mean a foot in the door and the opportunity to transition to the ICU at some point is probably easier for an internal hire than being hired into the ICU right away as a new hire.