NEW GRAD INQUIRY

I am not a total advocate for one year of med surg experience, having never had it myself. But, in your post you state you don't know what you really like the most except not peds. I say Med Surg is a great place to learn what you like. You see all sorts of patients, with all sorts of conditions. I had a total burning desire to go into ICU nursing-I refused all interviews for Step downs or tele, or anything else. Even with that desire, the ICU as a new grad has been very very hard on me. without that intense interest, I definitely would have been lost. My best friend did Med Surg and has had a much more positive experience. Nothing wrong with a year of M/S-especially if you are still looking around and deciding where you want to go in nursing. Good Luck. One other piece of advice, don't go for the money, go for the place with the best precepting and organization, it will be worth more than its weight in gold in the long run.

[Wow! Thanks for the advice HOLLY! I have worked as a student aide on mainly an ortho-neuro unit for 2 yrs during my nursing school. I have floated to every dept but am going to keep my options open to new experiences. THANKS

Originally posted by niknurse:

Hi, I will be graduating in May 2001. I need any advice about what specialty to go into. All the instructors just say med-surg for a year and then. I am moving to Arkansas and so ANY advice about hospitals in the Little ROck area would help. Also, three that I am looking at are: A teaching hospita, Baptist Health, and Arkansas Heart Hospital. Through nursing school, I haven't determined my complete desire for a nursing specialty except that I know I DON'T like PEDI! Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks!