New grad who wanted ICU, got med surg, advice?

[meagenreason]

Hi everyone, I am a new grad nurse who recently applied for a "residency"-type program for new grads at a local hospital. I wanted ICU as I did my preceptorship there in that hospital and throughout school I KNEW this was my passion, but unforunately they filled all the slots for this program with internal employees and I was offered a med surg position. I accepted and I am scheduled to start next month. My dilemma is that I was also offered a position in an ICU at a hospital that's an hour away. But this hospital does no type of orientation-mentor program for new grads and has recently come under some legal issues for patient safety, basically just has a bad rep. I know the obvious better choice is the med surg position and I have heard that it is good to get at least a year of med surg experience before going into critical care, but it was never my intention to do so, and I'm terrified that once I get there I'll hate it. Sorry for being long winded but my question is basically whether anyone here was stuck** on med surg before they got to pursue your real passion and how you handled it/felt about it.

**I hate using that term because I don't want to shed bad light on med surg nurses at all so please forgive me.

[RNsRWe, ASN, RN]

Hi everyone, I am a new grad nurse who recently applied for a "residency"-type program for new grads at a local hospital. I wanted ICU as I did my preceptorship there in that hospital and throughout school I KNEW this was my passion, but unforunately they filled all the slots for this program with internal employees and I was offered a med surg position. I accepted and I am scheduled to start next month. My dilemma is that I was also offered a position in an ICU at a hospital that's an hour away. But this hospital does no type of orientation-mentor program for new grads and has recently come under some legal issues for patient safety, basically just has a bad rep. I know the obvious better choice is the med surg position and I have heard that it is good to get at least a year of med surg experience before going into critical care, but it was never my intention to do so, and I'm terrified that once I get there I'll hate it. Sorry for being long winded but my question is basically whether anyone here was stuck** on med surg before they got to pursue your real passion and how you handled it/felt about it. **I hate using that term because I don't want to shed bad light on med surg nurses at all so please forgive me.

Noting bold type, I find it hard to believe you have a real dilemma here. Yes, I understand your desire to go to ICU, but the reason the ICU job you were offered is in such a bad situation is because they are doing exactly the opposite of what most suggest: get some experience, learn to be a NURSE first, then when timing is right, request transfer. Or with enough experience, change jobs. But to go to a job that you KNOW exists because of the hot mess the facility is in? Run the other way.

As for getting "stuck", I'm sure you'll hear all kinds of stories. Personally, I have seen many MANY nurses get experience on m/s, learn the procedures and protocols of hospital, get to know what the h*ll they are DOING first, before making a move to another unit (ICU or otherwise). I know you can go straight into an ICU training program, and when a GOOD one exists, that's all fine and dandy. But you're describing a BAD one. Take the med-surg job, learn to be a great nurse, and make them want you in ICU :)

[DoeRN]

Go with the med-surg residency and get proper training. Get your year of experience and transfer to an ICU. Trust me you don't want to start in an ICU without proper training. That's a disaster waiting to happen. Why would you want to work at a hospital who is in legal trouble just because it's an ICU job?

Sent from my iPhone using allnurses.com

[JustBeachyNurse, LPN]

Duplicate threads merged

[HyperSaurus, RN, BSN]

Go with the med/surg. The other hospital sounds like a hot mess. There's nothing wrong with starting out med/surg (speaking as someone who just finished a year on a med/onc/tele unit. You learn things that you wouldn't necessarily get the chance to in ICU and you can take those skills with you when you eventually move to ICU.

[meagenreason]

Thanks guys, I've just had friends/family of mine (not in nursing) who keep questioning why I accepted the med surg instead of ICU like I had hoped for who were making me doubt myself. You guys have helped reassure me that I was making the right decision!

[prep8611]

I always wanted icu but started in med surg then went to stepdown then icu which is where im at now. I learned a lot in med surg and its invaluable from a time management perspective.

[RNsRWe, ASN, RN]

Thanks guys, I've just had friends/family of mine (not in nursing) who keep questioning why I accepted the med surg instead of ICU like I had hoped for who were making me doubt myself. You guys have helped reassure me that I was making the right decision!

You can tell those friends and family that you'd rather be the nurse who has the ability to be of help to their own loved ones in the ICU, instead of the nurse who has no idea what's going on and what to do about it!

Your query made me remember something from some years ago, when I was working med-surg (and did occasionally float to ICU when needed). Got a call from a nurse assigned to ICU (who I had no idea how she got there anyway, no experience); she didn't know how to start a CBI and the unit was crazy so no one had time to teach her. Fresh post-op doing poorly, didn't come to our floor as planned and instead landed in ICU. Had she spent time in m/s, she'd have learned this easily. Instead, I had to take time away from my own patients, the staff for whom I was charge, and go set this thing up. If I hadn't had time, or made the time and CBI didn't get started? Shudder to think of consequences for that. Food for thought.

[R!XTER]

Go for med surg! The ICU job you described sounds terrible and you will be way in over your head as a new grad with no additional training plus the hour commute is totally not worth it!!!

A year is nothing in the grand scheme of things it will be over before you know it and you will likely be able to do an internal transfer anywhere you want! Go in with an open mind you just may end up loving it!

[PRNketamine]

RNsArewe,

Nursing is a profession of life long learning. New grad or not, there is always SOMETHING you've never done. I don't believe in berating anyone for asking. Think of the consequences of not asking... Much worse.

[BSNbeauty, BSN, RN]

OP there is nothing wrong with jumping into ICU right after school. I believe the who "get a year in medsurg" is not a one size fit all. Some new nurses do need to go to medsurg first and some don't. Everyone learns in a different way and at a difference pace. I've worked in ICU and have seen new grads flourish in critical care.

I would advise you to take the medsurg job only because the ICU job does not seem to be supportive of new grads. good luck !

[Lennonninja, MSN, APRN, NP]

I wanted ICU desperately but got hired to med/surg for my first year. I was miserable because I just did not want to be there, but I made myself stick it out a year. Of course, if I'd had a better attitude about it, maybe the med/surg floor wouldn't have been quite so bad. I changed hospitals and got into an ICU with a phenomenal training program and I couldn't be happier now. I did learn a lot on med/surg and my time management is definitely better than it would have been otherwise. It was nice to come into the ICU orientation and already know how to be a nurse and just spend my time focusing on how to learn to be an ICU nurse.