No NICU as GN

llg, PhD, RN · Jan 19, 2004

I think the externship plan is the best idea. While I can't speak for the hospitals in your area, some units that don't usually hire new grads make exceptions for those who have worked as externs or in some type of nursing assistant role -- in other words, if they know you and like you.

If you are faced with the decision of where "else" to work ... I a Level II Nursing (or some other type of "step down" nursery), newborn nursery, maternity experience. A general pediatrics floor that includes babies also provides great experience.

Adult ICU's are good to get student experience in, but I haven't had much luck with orienting their former staff members to NICU, so I wouldn't recommend it. Not only are the patients, diseases, equipment, etc. so completely different ... but the history and cultures of those units are so different for that of NICU that it can be difficult for a nurse to switch.

As someone who has spent years orienting people to NICU's, I have always prefered someone with experience with babies and families over anything else.

Good luck,

llg

nurseiam · Jan 20, 2004

We hire new grads in our NICU. Some work out and some don't. But the same is also true of nurses with experience. It is a big adjustment for anyone! To see a baby with no life experience crash and die is difficult!

We are now letting ADN students do their senior clinical in our NICU, which is great since we have just as many as BSN....

Our area does not use them but within the hospital there is a Nurse Tech...you qualify after 1 year of an ADN program. Check with your local hospital and if they do not use them encourage them to! It is usually a glorified gopher that makes about $12 an hour wher I live. But it is a great foot in the door!

NICU_RNwantsFL · Mar 14, 2004

My NICU unit hires new graduates, but when I graduated, there were no NICU positions open. So I worked for a little over a year in Mom/Baby (Postpartum) before a NICU opening came up -

I think taking care of well newborns was good experience in learning how to take care of sick ones -

suzanne4, RN · Mar 14, 2004

It all depends on what the hospital needs at the time that you actually graduate. I would recommend doing an externship in peds or even the regular nursery if at all possible. This way also the manager of the unit will get a chance to know you, and perhaps will make an exception for you. This worked for me when I was starting out.

Good luck :balloons:

Gompers, BSN, RN · Mar 14, 2004

I got a job as a CNA in a NICU prior to graduation, hoping it would be an easy way to get my foot in the door of their unit. NOT SO! They didn't hire me when I graduated, but they hired a few other outside new grads!!! :angryfire

I did my final clinical/preceptorship in the unit where I work now, and they much prefer people who've had this kind of experience in ANY NICU. The main problem they are having with new grads who haven't had more than a day or two experience in the NICU is that sometimes they realize that they can't handle the stress, so they leave right after orientation leaving us high and dry. If you've at least had a preceptorship in NICU and still are really interested, chances are you'll stay on. They didn't do externships when I was in school, but from what I understand they are more intense than just working as a CNA, so that might be a good idea too.

On the unit I worked at during school, CNAs didn't do much with the babies at all, so they really had no idea of my nursing skills. I felt it was a little unfair that they didn't hire me and offered jobs to outside new grads, but maybe there was a personality difference. Either way, my "plan" backfired. Even now, we have secretaries in school for nursing who want to work on our unit, and we've hired them in the past - but it's VERY hard for them to switch positions and there is a lot of tension at times.

So I'd say yes to a school clincal/preceptorship or an externship where you will have direct patient contact and work side-by-side with nurses. I'd say YES to accepting a first RN job in the normal newborn nursery, as many NICU nruses feel that you have to understand normal before you can start to deal with the abnormal. I'd say NO to a secretary or CNA position because, honestly, I was usually too busy to even spend time soaking up the NICU atmosphere to really get in good with the nurses.

Just my own experience.

Sorry for rambling.

PURDUENICU · Mar 16, 2004

During my summers off of nursing school, I worked in the well baby nursery and post-partum as a tech/student nurse. It helped me a lot and now I receieved a job as a NICU nurse. I love it and think working there in the other areas helped me get the position over others. good luck!! :)