New RN: don't like job in ICU

[mrsbech05]

Hello!

I'm a new RN in an ICU. I deal mostly with MI, codes, post cath procedures etc. It's very fast paced environment which I enjoyed when I teched on the floor (was a tech during nursing school on the unit) but now not so much. I don't feel like I enjoy critical care. I would rather not code someone , of course I do but I prefer not to. I don't care for having 7 IVs hanging, pressies going, titrating, etc. We also go to codes and RR on our floor and another floor, we also have a STAT RN phone where other nurses can call us if they have questions. I absolutely love my co workers though and everyone keeps telling me to stick it out longer at least to 6 months to a year. The problem is I count my days off and when I know I have to go back to work I get really bad anxiety day before. I am so worried about titrating a drip too low or missing something that could cost the pt his/her life. I didn't apply anywhere else because I accepted the position a whole semester before I graduated. In my head there was no where else I'd rather be but now I'm stuck. Is this really just new nurse jitters? Or, is it maybe they critical care isn't for me? I want to go to the OR just don't know how to tell my supervisor. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

[jennylee321]

Stick it out longer if you can manage it, seek out EAP through your job to help with the anxiety. Being anxious going to work is a new nurse thing not just an ICU thing.

[Irish_Mist, BSN, RN]

I think it's new nurse jitters. Not only are you learning how to be a nurse but also, an ICU nurse. There's a huge learning curve. Give yourself more time to decide if you truly don't want to do critical care (at least a year). If you still don't like it after a year, maybe apply to a PCU step down or a telemetry unit.

[Rocknurse, MSN, APRN, NP]

You're new...it's natural for you to feel like you're forgetting something. Try to develop a method or routine so that you get used to doing things in a certain way, and soon it will become second nature. Search online for an ICU report sheet and use that. I still use one to this day. I carry it with me and make check off lists of things I have to do. For example if I know a lab or med is due I add it to a bullet list with a little check box next to it and I check them off as I go, and frequently look at it to make sure I didn't forget anything. I happen to live having tons of drips and things going...I'm a bit OCD so I find it satisfying. Even if it's not your thing, try to stick it out at least a year because that ICU experience will stand you in good stead wherever you end up. Having ICU experience has opened many doors for me, You just need some time to get comfortable with it. I still dread going to work but I'd have that no matter where I worked, but once I get there I slip right into my shift and everything is fine. It will get better.

[Robert.CFRN]

I really don't like the idea of new nurses in the ICU. I think a year on med/surg or telemetry should be required in order to get used to bedside nursing, and to improve critical thinking and organizational skills should be required. I did a year and a half before I moved to critical care, and am glad that I did. That being said, it'll take you a year to really be comfortable in any clinical environment, but especially ICU.