New Grad...ups and downs...any advice?

[sunshine2727]

I am a new grad in the ICU and I am hoping that sooner rather than later I will start feeling more comfortable. I have some good days and some days that are just completely overwhelming! I did well in school but I definitely think adjusting to the "real world" has been harder than I expected. Any advice would be greatly appreciated! How can I make a good transition?

[diane227, LPN, RN]

I worked as a student nurse for 2 years while I was in school. At graduation I took a job on a 42 bed med surg floor for a year to get my skills up and to learn organization skills. I then transferred to the ICU and it made it easier for me. I did ICU for 2 years then went to the one of the largest county emergency departments in the US which was my ultimate goal all along. Having both med surg and critical care experience really helped me when I got to the ED.

When I became director and started hiring nurses for the ED I always tried to hire the nurse with med surg experience. Because they were usually experienced with dealing with large patient assignments they adapted to the ED better because they were more organized. I could teach them critical care skills but what I needed was someone who knew how to deal with volume.

Critical care is hard, especially when you are a new nurse. Read EVERYTHING that you can get your hands on. Look up what you don't know which is so much easier with the internet. You will have a day come to you before long where the light bulb will come on and all of a sudden you will just get it. Good luck and remember to have fun with it. Learning is great and in nursing it never stops. Diane