Outpatient clinic as first job

Nurses New Nurse

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This may be me worrying all for nothing. I'm a new grad looking for my first position. I've applied for positions, but there really hasn't been any openings or opportunities for new grads at the local hospital. Today I applied for a position at an outpatient behavioral health clinic and was called to schedule a phone interview. While I'm really excited about this opportunity I worry about future growth. If I start at an outpatient clinic in psych, am I going to be "stuck" there? I enjoy psych nursing and have a previous bachelor degree in it, but I'm not sure i want to be there for the rest of my career. I also worry about not having an acute care position. Any advice is appreciated.

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Specializes in OB-Gyn/Primary Care/Ambulatory Leadership.

I'm not going to lie - it will limit you. I work outpatient now, after several years working inpatient. Many of my RN coworkers who have only done clinic nursing have tried to get jobs on units and have had a lot of difficulty.

OTOH, you may find that you love outpatient nursing and have no desire to work at the bedside in the future.

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I think it depends on the market/ area you are in, if you are in a poor hiring market for new grads then take the position if you think you can stick it out and wait for a better position then do that. I took a job in a methadone clinic which is considered outpatient psych. I was recently given an opportunity for a hospital position not related to psych. In my opinion, any nursing experience is better than none at all and you will always learn something. Psych is applicable to every unit in the hospital and you can always use your improved communication skills gained in a psych setting in other areas as well. Good luck!

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You can always keep applying for acute care jobs in the meantime. But hey, maybe you will enjoy the outpatient psych job and not mind missing out on the "fun" in the hospital. I agree with the poster who said that "any nursing experience is better than none at all". There are so many avenues to take in nursing, and how will you know until you try? I know lots of people on here complain about "job hopping" and yes, while it is not always looked at as the greatest thing to do, how do you know if you do or don't enjoy something until you try it? Especially in nursing where there is so much variety. Good luck with your decision!

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Thank you all so much for the advice and words of encouragement. My interview is today in about an hour, so we'll see how it goes.

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