LTC to ICU job?

dayandnight · Sep 1, 2015

If I can give you a really realistic advice as a LTC nurse of 3 yrs experience now working in subacute and acute care, is to stop looking at LTC's in a negative light. Learn what you can from it, and move on. You can even apply for casual hospital positions as you haven't worked in LTC very long and it won't be held against you during interviews, the sooner the better. If you are going to work past a year the managers will start asking questions about why you didnt' go into acute care in the first place. I heard this question with almost every single nurse and manager I have met for 3 years after graduation. I had my reasons but hated hearing the question for so many times.

LTC is not a boring job. In fact, I work casually and still can't get a break sometimes. Do you have any management roles as a RN in your LTC job? I work as a manager after the manager is gone, take care of staffing issues (call for short staffing), maintenance calls and housekeeping duties are also on my list when all the workers are gone past 4pm. I also used to do MDS assessments as a full time RN in LTC, as well as Annual Care conferences for 12 residents and their family members and doctors. I take care of 53 residents with all their med passes including 1-2 palliative patients on a given time with all those duties and responsibilities from 6:30pm - 8 am.

I had to break off fights with my CNA's, deal with angry family members and also comfort family members on grief and loss. Learning these leadership positions and critical thinking situations, time management and priority skills will definitely

help you when you go to the interviews. I tell them that I have to know prioritization in order to do my job properly.

Like I said, learn what you can from it, use the experience to your advantage, and move on.

joanna73, BSN, RN · Sep 3, 2015

I still work LTC but I wanted to work with geriatric patients. It is what you make it. Aside from the hands on care, there are many administrative duties that you could ask your manager to assist with if you have down time.

I now participate on two committees for my site and assist the educators in developing workshops, in addition to managing a unit. Sometimes I cover 2-3 units. I'm not bored.

You may as well learn as much as you can and move on. The population is aging, so 60 percent of the patients in medicine or acute care are geriatric (unless of course you're working with peds or babies).