New Grad dilema

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Specializes in Ortho and Tele med/surg.

Just stick things out at the current hospital until August, which is when you your time is up. Start applying to the new now and try to get a position on days. Look, the way I see is that you can't have all your cake and eat it right now. What's more important to you? Your personal happiness or getting some experience? From personal experiences, please go with what makes you happy. An unhappy nurse is not best possible nurse and employee. Good luck.

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Specializes in Trauma Surgical ICU.

You do what will make you happy and what works best for your family.. I too drive an hour to work and work nights but nights work best for the kids. They see me more.. Hubby is grown and can deal with it LOL..Plus it is only 3 days a week.. Can you request days at the bigger ER?

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Stick with it!!

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Specializes in med/surg, hospice.

i agree with newtexas and sun, you have to do what will make you happy. situations change, sometimes very fast and what works "right now" may not work next year (or next month even!). i was working nights (also an hour drive from home) at a job i loved but the stability (or lack thereof) of the company made me nervous so i began looking elsewhere. i found another job, not in the ideal surroundings, but closer to home and benefits were awesome, plus i figured since this was a very large company that i could get back into my "dream job" since i already had my foot in the door. well, to make a long story short things didn't work out the way i planned and now i'm looking for work again. the thing that's changed now is that because of the poor economy, it's very difficult to find any job at all. so while i'm applying to anything i'm qualified for, i'm really taking the time to reflect and reevaluate what my priorities are. although i really liked working nights because it was the most convenient with family life at the time, it took it's toll and now i think i'm wanting something days and with a smaller company again.

you sound like a very bright person and i think since you are putting so much thought into making this decision, you will make the right one for you.

good luck! :yeah:

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Specializes in M/S, ICU, ICP.

you did not mention if the smaller hospital that you are considering can give you day shift. that would be a perk to me, but i am not a "night" person. seniority usually has a great deal to do with getting into a day shift position. if days is not offered with the smaller hospital then you would have to start at square one as a new employee all over again.

it sounds like the bigger hospital offers a great many opportunities to learn and extend your talents. no one can really tell you which way to go because there are too many variables. i used to take a piece of paper and list all the pro's and con's and allow myself to imagine the worst case scenarios. that sometimes helped.

is there any way that you and your fiancé could move closer? small hospitals can offer many things but it is harder for a small facility to remain viable in this economy unless they specialize. just a few thoughts anyway.

in the mean time ... bloom where planted ... and make the most of your opportunities and gain all the extra experience and education available where you are. many er's offer acls, ekg, and pals. good luck with whatever you choose.

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I think you should stay where you are right now. You are extremely lucky to have landed a job and in the ER. I have been searching for a job since March 2009 and would be greatful to have a job. I'm sure you will gain more experience where you are. Good luck! Let us know what you end up doing : )

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Specializes in ER, Critical Care, Paramedicine.

You will feel much better if you stick it out for the 6 months before moving on. Burning bridges this early in your career can be a dangerous thing. Also, I am in favor of new grads working nights early in your career as it gives you more time to ask questions, look up unfamiliar terms, and really learn from some great nurses!! Hope you stick it out!!

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I agree. I am not a nurse yet, and am starting nursing school in the Fall. However, I can speak the scheduling issue. I have been married for two years, and my husband works for 911 emergency from 5pm-3am with Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday off. I work at a non profit from Monday through Friday from 9am-5pm, and I commute an hour and a half each day. I calculated that I spend 15 waking hours with him per week. I have to get sleep on the nights that he is off, and he has to sleep on Saturdays and Sundays. Basically, we do not have even ONE mutual day off right now. This is not going to change that much when I start nursing school, but it will a bit.

That being said, I know it's terrible that you don't see him for three days, but with jobs like nursing, 911, police, fire, etc., you are not always going to land the schedule that you want. It does take a toll, but I would stay put. I have read the posts here about the lack of jobs, and it sounds like you are in a great place and will get some great experience. Three days without seeing your fiancee is tough, but doable. Believe me, it's tough for me with our schedules, and we used to work together at 911 (where we met), and we used to be together every day, so it's especially hard. We miss each other a ton, and sometimes feel like we communicate by text most of the time.

I have a friend who is a PICU RN, and her husband and her have opposite schedules, too, but she says 3 days isn't that bad, and she's gotten used to it. Good luck to you. If the opportunity is better where you are right now, I would stick with it. Starting off the right way will pay off in the future. Good luck!!!

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I agree with everyone so far, especially MFRANCISCO. I am currently serving as a USN FMF Hospital Corpseman and I am a married father of 3. I am attached to a flight unit and stationed over 1000 miles away from my family and go months without seeing them. I will be switching over to the "real world" soon and aside from finding a job with the training I already have under my belt, I also will be transferring from one College to another to further my education into becoming a PA, so even though seeing my family is a very high priority, so is providing for them and doing what I love to do and what I have worked so hard for. That being said, if being an ER nurse is your "dream job" and if you truely feel like you have found success where you are and in all your hard work, then I say stay even if it is an hour from where you live and you miss seeing your fiance' and family. It IS only 3 days, and trust me, I would take 3 days over 3 months anytime. I agree with what was said earlier, you don't want to burn too many bridges this early in the game, or you may look up and find yourself wishing you stayed right where you are. Have you tried to see if there is an open day shift position in the ER where you are now? If you have and there aren't any positions available, then start searching for something closer, but driving an hour from home to work day OR night is going to be dreadful either way. Sounds to me like you already have your mind made up and missing your fiance' is taking priority over your job. You have to do what will make you happy and if you HATE going to work then you aren't exactly living up to what you could be capable of as a nurse.

My Chief told me early in the game, once you seek a position in the medical field, you donate yourself to the wellness of others and it comes with great sacrifice along with perks, but those perks come way later and are EARNED.

You can't have everything you want, especially coming right out of school. Working in ANY ER, close to home or an hour away, you are going to miss out on things when it comes to your family. The ER never closes, so sometimes you will feel like you've went forever without seeing your home, your family, your kids, your husband/wife/fiance', or your pets even. Thats just the sacrifice you make when you devote yourself to such a demanding position. Maybe you should look into a private practice. It may not be your dream, but it may fit your life style better. You sound really sad and miserable now and you haven't even been doing it 6 months. What are you going to do on Holidays when everyone is off and celebrating and you are working 3 days in a row?

My wife and I have a friend that works in the NICU on days about 20 minutes from home, but by the time she does get home from work she is usually exhausted, see's her husband and kids for about an hour and then goes to bed to be up and do it all over again for the next two days and she says even though it does "stink", It's only a few days. She started out on nights as well and did that for about 2 years before she could switch over to days, but she stuck it out.

You'll get used to it, so I stay stick it out! If you leave now, you will be starting all over somewhere else and if you are planning on being married by next year, will the new place be as understanding about time off for your wedding and honeymoon?

Sounds like your dream job isn't exactly meshing well with your dream love, but I think if you stick it out, you will look back one day and be glad you didn't give up!

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Specializes in ER/Ortho.

I have been doing days in an ER about 20 minutes from home, and I still don't have time to do anything. I get up at 6a, leave at 7:20am. I have to be there at 7:45, but leave a few minutes early in case there is a wreck or traffic. I get off at 8pm, but usually don't get out of there until closer to 8:30pm. I get home around 9ish. I shower, eat, and spend about 30 minutes with my son before he goes to bed. Then I go to bed, and get up and do it again.

I think it just comes with the 12 hour shift. As long as you work 12 hours a day there won't be much left. I mean even if you moved to the closer hospital it will only buy you an hour.

You could always look into areas of nursing where you could do 8 hour shifts.

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Specializes in Research & Critical Care.

I'm finishing my nursing pre-reqs this semester, and I've been stressing a ton about this lately. I have a son and a wife (who's also in prenursing), but it seems like you sacrifice nearly all but a minuscule amount of family time to be a nurse, which I don't think I'm ready to do.

I would love getting into an ER, but working 12-hour shifts 6 days a week sounds insane, to put it mildly. Is that really normal?

I would talk to your coworkers - likely they have family and are going through the same thing as you. Talk with someone about the possibility of moving to days. What are the chances of moving closer?

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