Skip to content
View in the app

A better way to browse. Learn more.
allnurses

A full-screen app on your home screen with push notifications, badges and more.

To install this app on iOS and iPadOS
  1. Tap the Share icon in Safari
  2. Scroll the menu and tap Add to Home Screen.
  3. Tap Add in the top-right corner.
To install this app on Android
  1. Tap the 3-dot menu (⋮) in the top-right corner of the browser.
  2. Tap Add to Home screen or Install app.
  3. Confirm by tapping Install.
Discussion

Opinions please

Hi! I am on the hunt for my first job as an RN and I'm unsure about where to go.

I just moved to a new city, far from my nursing school and my contacts from my tech job. I spent one year working as a tech on a surgical floor, did a nurse externship, and did 4 months as precepted SN in the SICU of a level one trauma center. I really tried to like working in the hospital, but every day was a stressful struggle and it left my nerves frazzled.

I went to nursing school with the desire to be a psych nurse and get an DNP eventually. I loved my psych clinicals and I really felt in my element during them. This made me feel pretty weird since all of my classmates seemed to hate psych and everyone discouraged me from pursing it.

I originally got a BA in psych, so I attribute it partly to that.

So now in my new city, I know hardly anyone and I've been applying for a ton of jobs. I had an interview with a group home to work as an RN for clients with DD. I'm starting to think that this might be a really good fit for me.

My issue is that I'm a little worried that this will limit me later on in my career. If I want to stay psych and go back to school I feel like working there kind of makes sense. That being said I probably won't get that real med/surg experience (that I don't really want, but everyone says that I should have). Do you think that it matters considering my interests?

FYI I don't have an offer on the table yet, and I don't have any other interviews. Just trying to do some soul searching in case I get offered a position and have to decide.

If you read this, thanks! Have a great day wonderful nurse!

  • Quote

    • Featured Replies

    If you get offered the job, I would recommend taking it. It's in the specialty you want. If you find that it isn't a fit for you and you leave, you can then pursue that med/surg experience if you want. Psych experience will be valuable for you given your stated career path desires. I find that med/surg is a great experience for nurses to have before moving into specialties because it helps to ground your basic nursing skills so that you can move into a specialty unit knowing that you understand basic assessments, time management and teamwork. Psych is a beast all its own. I've only worked Psych once as an RN because they were short so I floated. You don't do the same things. You certainly get some basic nursing skills like cleaning up messes and working with a team, delegating tasks to nursing assistants, etc but you may not get experience with the weird lung sounds or bowel sounds.

    That being said, pursuing a career in psych, you need psych skills, not necessarily med/surg. You should be able to recognize a medical problem so that it can be treated and the patient transferred to a medical unit if needed, but it's not essential to work in med/surg in order to recognize a medically ill patient. As much as it pains me to say, any new grad offered a job in the specialty they want, should take it because it's hard enough to find a job! If the facility is willing to put in the training required to get a new grad up to speed, take the job!

  • Quote
    • Guides

    Given that you are a new grad and in New York, one of the toughest markets in the country, I would advise you to apply for anything and everything. Hope for the best, plan for the worst. Good luck!

  • Quote
    • Author

    Thank you both for your feedback! I actually ended up with two offers, one at rehab/LTC with practically no orientation, or the DD job with a well structured training. I had a really good feeling about the DD job and I accepted it today. I'm pretty excited! Good luck to all those on the job hunt!

  • Quote
    Thank you both for your feedback! I actually ended up with two offers one at rehab/LTC with practically no orientation, or the DD job with a well structured training. I had a really good feeling about the DD job and I accepted it today. I'm pretty excited! Good luck to all those on the job hunt![/quote']

    Congrats! I hope you enjoy your new job!

  • Quote

    • Join the conversation

    You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

    Guest
    Add a Comment
    Go to topic listing

    Currently Reading 0

    • No registered users viewing this page.

    Account

    Navigation

    Search

    Search

    Configure browser push notifications
    Chrome (Android)
    1. Tap the lock icon next to the address bar.
    2. Tap Permissions → Notifications.
    3. Adjust your preference.
    Chrome (Desktop)
    1. Click the padlock icon in the address bar.
    2. Select Site settings.
    3. Find Notifications and adjust your preference.