Landed my dream job - gonna be a L&D nurse! :) Do you have any advice??

[punkydoodlesRN, BSN, RN]

I cannot wipe the giant smile off of my face - I keep pinching myself! Not only did I land my dream job, I got the offer before I even graduated!!

I wanted to ask some seasoned L&D nurses for their wonderful wisdom & advice...

What do you wish you had known about L&D when you first began?

What did you struggle with?

Any hints to learning?

What do you think new nurses should know?

[Stacey30]

Hey, congrats! My interview was yesterday and it was difficult but I think I did pretty well. They want me to come back and shadow this coming Tuesday, which I am told by fellow RN's that that's a sign they're interested in me (fingers crossed!). I'll be interested in seeing other posters' responses to your questions :)

[Lovecnmnp]

Congratulations punkydoodles! I'm so happy for you. I went into nursing school knowing that L&D was the only place I wanted to be after graduation. I was on a mission. I applied and got the job during senior year of my BSN program. Many told me that I shouldn't do that and that I really needed to do at least the first year in med surg. I didn't agree because I knew where my heart was and I didn't want to waste any time being somewhere I didn't love after all that school work! :-)

There's tons of advice one can give to you. What I will share with you is to study and know the policies/procedures for L&D like the back of your hand. The unit will have a copy of them all. Having your own copy of the ones you most commonly use would be wise. That will help guide you and keep you "safe" both as a new and seasoned nurse. All of the policies for each procedure are important, but one of the biggies is knowing the policies/procedures in administering pitocin. Know everything that there is to know about that drug.

Again, Congratulations! I wish you a long and successful career in nursing!