New Grad Nurse Starting Out in a Speacilty? Help?

Nurses New Nurse

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Hey everyone, I hope I'm posting in the right area. I'm used to posting in the Student Nurse area, but I need experienced nurses input, I think. I just got my first interview, yay! I'm excited and nervous all at the same time. I have one huge issue though that I need guidance on. I am a new grad and even though I applied for a medsurge job (like all my instructors told me would be most beneficial), I am getting interviewed for an OB/GYN job. Of course, I'm not going to turn down an interview after applying, but I'm curious to know. Will starting out in a specialty hurt my new nursing skills? I've been told by many people that I HAVE to do medsurge first (which is the floor I'm working on now for my 5th level preceptorship). Should I give up on the idea of going straight into L&D? Do I need a year of medsurge experience to be able to function as a good nurse? I really don't want to mess this up. Jobs in my area are slim pickings, so I don't even know if I could get a medsurge job if I tried (even though it's what I've been applying for). Any suggestions/tips/hints/ideas would be greatly appreciated! Thank you!

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Specializes in Hospital Education Coordinator.

every area is its own speciality. You will learn many valuable nursing skills in OB that transfer to other areas and, if you ever transfer, you will be taught how to work in that area. So do not sweat it.

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Thank you so much for this. You definitely made me feel better! :)

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Specializes in OR, Nursing Professional Development.

I truly do not understand the "everyone should do med/surg first" crowd. Med/surg is a specialty itself and has its unique issues. I've seen new nurses thrive in other specialties. I've also seen them drown in med/surg, become so disenchanted, and leave nursing. Had I been required to do a year of med/surg, I probably would have been one of those leaving nursing. However, I do love my job in the OR, where I started just out of school

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Thanks for your personal input, seriously. I've also been very interested in the OR. And I didn't think of medsurge as a specialty, so thanks for setting that straight! Very good to know. Thanks you so much!

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If you are interested in a speciality, well, what people consider a speciality, why would you need experience in a totally different area before you go into what you want? Especially if you have an interview or job offer in what you want...

The med surg thing came from people thinking EVERYONE would start out where they want. What happened was that most started in med surg. There are lots of nice basic skills in med surg, but some specialities may not use all of those skills, such as psych or L&D.

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Specializes in Critical Care, ED, Cath lab, CTPAC,Trauma.

If they are willing to interview you they are willing to train you....there will be a huge learning curve..but if they are willing...why not.

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I absolutely hated med/surg in school and would never work a day there unless I absolutely had to. So many nurses consider it "ground zero" but that makes absolutely no sense to me - you can learn skills in any specialty, and if it's a specialty you love then you might as well start there. I think it's nurses who felt like they had to start in med/surg (arguably one of the most tiring specialties, with a high patient load and lots of nasty messes) that try to force everyone else to. "If I had to so do you!"

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L & D is my ultimate dream so I am crazy jealous right now :) Every interview is a chance to gain experience, and if you get the job, take it, get your foot in the door and transfer when you can. You can learn a lot from any specialty (hospital protocol, assessment skills, bedside manner).

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This was my train of thought as well, but when I have five different instructors beating into my head that I must have med surg experience before doing anything else, it gets a little discouraging! I'm definitely not going to pass up a job if they offer it to me, because like I said, jobs are slim pickings in my area. A lot of people are having to relocate, and I was trying to do the same. It's crazy!

Oh, okay, well I can understand that, it makes sense. These comments are definitely making me feel better about my situation. Thank you so much for the info!

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Yeah, that does make sense. I'm a little worried about this learning curve, but hopefully I will be okay if I get the job. Thank you!

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This is EXACTLY how I feel about med surg! I hate, hate, HATE it. Why would I force myself to work in an area that I despise? That's what my instructors have said, it's basically "ground zero" for learning basic nursing skills, time management, etc. Haha, and yeah I've seen that mentality A LOT from other nurses!! They had to do it, so they think everyone else should have to suffer through it. Yikes. Thanks so much for this. Helps me out a lot!

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