Neuro ICU to Nursery?

[ilovebirds]

Neuro ICU to Nursery - interview advice?

Hi guys! I’m a neuro icu nurse with about a year and a half experience with a nursery interview lined up next week. I did say something slightly off color on the phone and I think I may have messed up my chances a bit (She wants me there super early after my shift and I said we are often short so I may run a bit behind and will call her and give her a heads up as to my ETA which sounded better in my head). :(

I don’t think I’ll have time to change into business casual clothes - the interview is 730 AM after a shift. Should I risk running a bit behind and bring interview friendly clothes or just go in scrubs?

Additionally, what nursery specific questions do I need to prep for?

I’m so nervous. I hate interviews but I hate the unit I work in so much and working in either the nursery or nicu has been my dream since nursing school :(

Thanks in advance ❤️

15 hours ago, ilovebirds said:

I said we are often short so I may run a bit behind and will call her and give her a heads up as to my ETA

Honestly I do not think that sounds bad. I have interviewed many nurses in scrubs and as long as they made it clear they were coming directly to me for an interview straight off the unit I was fine with it. They always let me know ahead of time. Is there a reason why the interview HAS to be at 7:30 am? Can you push it to 8:30 for some wiggle room with end of shift and then change your clothes? I often find people are so grateful to get an interview they are quick to just accept the time offered and not ask if there are alternate times. Maybe reach out to her and see if there is a better time. Good luck!!

[adventure_rn, MSN, NP]

I agree with @MHDNURSE, I'd ask if you can push it back if possible. If you're trying to rush to the meeting, you'll probably be more stressed going into it. Plus, what will you do if you've got a really complicated patient and report takes forever, or if your patient chooses to code right at 6:50? If you're running late, it's going to make the experience worse for both of you. You don't want to waste the manager's time by making her wait or screwing up her subsequent schedule. I think you can find a tactful way to propose the time change to the manager, while still expressing that you're happy to stick with the current plan if she feels strongly about doing so.

As for questions, I'd just have a really thoughtful answer prepared for why you specifically want to work in the nursery.

I'd also ask about the logistics of how this nursery works. There are a lot of different types of 'nurseries.' There are term well-baby nurseries where your whole job is to perform minor procedures (i.e. lab draws, car seat tests, hearing screens) and keep an eye on the babies while parents sleep. There are special care nurseries for slightly sicker babies (too sick for mom-baby, not sick enough for NICU) where the baby actually stays in the nursery 24/7, and the parents come in to the nursery to learn things like breastfeeding and infant care.

The type of nursery you're applying for may guide your answers. For instance, you don't want to spend the whole interview emphasizing how much you love working with families if it's the type of nursery where you literally never interface with parents (i.e. if the mom-baby nurse just drops the baby off in the nursery for a few hours).

[Rionoir, ADN, RN]

When I went to the interview for my current position I was wearing scrubs, looked like a tornado hit me, said “sorry it’s been a day” and had a cup of coffee... and beat out the other candidates. I think if a nurse is interviewing they will get it. ?