Managing a Department/No Experience in Area

[Jory, MSN, APRN, CNM]

Looking for insight for one of my co-workers.

One of my colleagues' husband has just got a job transfer to a region that is not midwife friendly, so she's job searching in the new city. There are no open positions for a midwife and she doesn't want to do bedside labor and delivery. She sent her resume to the hospital recruiter who asked her if she would be interested in interviewing for a nurse manager position for the emergency room. My colleague has never worked as an emergency nurse. Sounds out-of-step but the hospital has a goal of filling all management positions with MSN-prepared nursing staff.

This is a smaller hospital, around 120 beds? Maybe less?

She thinks this may be a good opportunity to bring midwifery into this hospital....eventually...but right now she needs a job. She is very open minded and has a great work ethic. She understands this is a different area--but she hasn't been offered the job and unsure if she should even interview.

Has anyone taken a position before as a manager in an area of nursing where you didn't have experience? How did it work out?

Any insight is welcome....granted, we have all had majority underqualified managers in our careers. However, my colleague is the type that truly listens and is flexible...we are going to hate to lose her in our practice.

Thanks in advance.

[klone, MSN, RN]

I believe it probably CAN be done, but it would take an extraordinary person. One of the things that I believe helps me succeed in my position is that I have "street cred" from staff as someone who knows the specialty well, and can jump in and help out as needed. That would be very very hard to do in a specialty one has no experience in.

[Jedrnurse, BSN, RN]

I believe that success in this scenario would be the extremely rare exception. I highly advise against it as the more probable outcome won't be pretty...

[OldDude]

Regardless of how capable your colleague is, I'd be wary of a hospital that would fill a critical care management position with some who has no such experience. You know, kinda of like the nursing homes that hire new grads as Director of Nursing...they just want the "paper" and someone to place at the bottom of the funnel to fade the heat and assume responsibility.

[klone, MSN, RN]

That's a good point - often at CAHs, the managers ARE expected to fill in and staff at times.

[Jory, MSN, APRN, CNM]

Thank you for the replies so far....I'll be looking forward to reading more and sharing them.

This...was my thoughts as well.

[brownbook]

I like the good work ethics, good listener, flexible, part. A manager with those qualities may trump a manager with a lot of ER knowledge but poor people skills.

Has she done any floor nursing? Does she have or can quickly get ACLS and PALS? Those would certainly help, or even should be mandatory.

[Jory, MSN, APRN, CNM]

1 minute ago, brownbook said:

I like the good work ethics, good listener, flexible, part. A manager with those qualities may trump a manager with a lot of ER knowledge but poor people skills.

Has she done any floor nursing? Does she have or can quickly get ACLS and PALS? Those would certainly help, or even should be mandatory.

Yes, she will have to get all of the needed certifications and has worked in med-surg as a new grad (maybe three years??), but worked for about five years in a high-risk OB unit before becoming a CNM. She's been a CNM for about four years and...as horrible as this sounds...cannot stand the thought of the drastic pay cut that would come with working bedside again. She doesn't have the option of not working. One kid in college and another getting ready to start in a year.

[klone, MSN, RN]

45 minutes ago, brownbook said:

I like the good work ethics, good listener, flexible, part. A manager with those qualities may trump a manager with a lot of ER knowledge but poor people skills.

Definitely, the former would be preferable to the latter if those were the two options. However, the ideal situation would be someone who is flexible, good listener, good leadership, AND has some type of critical care or ED background.

[Forest2]

That is a hard job to do without ER experience, I would not suggest it and question why a hospital would interview someone with no experience in that area.

[OldDude]

25 minutes ago, klone said:

Definitely, the former would be preferable to the latter if those were the two options. However, the ideal situation would be someone who is flexible, good listener, good leadership, AND has some type of critical care or ED background.

And...deal with the ER employees who will be pissed about hiring an outsider and not from within...

[CharleeFoxtrot, BSN, RN]

20 minutes ago, OldDude said:

And...deal with the ER employees who will be pissed about hiring an outsider and not from within...

^This. The term "malicious compliance" come to mind.