NICU or Med/Surg

[pyct39]

I am about to start my second year of an ADN program. I've never been too sure what area of nursing I want to go into, so I planned to work in Med/Surg for a couple of years and then move on to a specialty. After doing a clinical in the NICU, I cannot get it out of my head. I would like to do an internship in the NICU so I could work there, but I really want a solid foundation for my nursing career. What should I do?

[Bedside_Life RN]

Take the opportunity to explore NICU as an intern; since there is so much interest in it. When you are being interviewed for a med/surg position you can apply those acute skills learned in your NICU internship as assets to a med/surg floor. If you do decide to do the internship, you will realize that NICU an PEDS surgeons are thorough and sweet and willing to string you up like a puppet if everything isn't to their extremely high standards.

But this demanding awareness and knowledge of infants and children comes from the bottom line understanding that infants and PEDS are not like adult patients. They usually do not tend to wax and wane like adults do before death...... they just DIE.... and at the drop of a hat. So precise and thorough actions and assessment skills need to be used at the highest of levels. Anything less and sweet Dr. John doe, who reminds you of your GM of GF will quickly, but politically, yank a knot in your a** , all within he same breath.

but getting to the pros and cons of choosing one of these specialties, NICU internship should not hinder you from getting a med/surg position. I would say it is more likely that you would find the exact opposite going from med/surg to NICU.

While you are in school and beginning your career as a nurse, I would take advantage of every option available. This will be the only time you can do this before you get licensed. And in my personal opinion, with you being a new nurse, the unit that selects you will want to mold you into their own little minion anyways.

Good luck!