Possibility of Working in ICU as a new grad

[Joyce22]

Hello everyone,

I am a final year BN student in one of the colleges in Ontario and I will be starting my preceptorship in January '09.

I am interested in doing my preceptorship in the ICU unit of Sunnybrook Hospital, Toronto. My question is this; What is the probability of getting a job in an ICU thereafter as a new grad?. Must all new grads in Ontario work in Med-Surg units for at least a year before going into a speciality field?. Your inputs will be greatly appreciated.

Joyce

[thegoose]

If that's the area you want to work in and you have a palcement there, I suggest you work really hard at your placement, make sure you meet the manager of the unit and at some point in your placement, express your interest in working there. Some staff nurses may tell you that it's very difficult to star there and that you need to do med-surg. That's not a bad idea as it depends on your knowledge base, however, if you work hard and it's what you want, the only thing stopping you from getting a job would be if there are no positions available at the time you graduate. Don't forget you can start applying for postings a few months before you graduate even as most people in my year (2006) had jobs prior to graduation.

I went from my last placement, which was ER, to working there as my first job. As a student I got on well with my preceptor, the staff and the manager and after applying online (through the normal channels) I was offered the position without an interview. It was really what I was passionate about and I think they could see that I had a good work ethic, attitude and took responsibility to fill in my own learning gaps.

So if ICU is what you want, you should go for, just be prepared to work for it.

Good luck!