jasskaRN

(FYI, This post is mostly rants and ruminations) So I'm a new grad RN with CNA experience on OB and Med-Surg. I landed two hospital interviews, one on med-surg days and the other on medsurg/tele nights. They are both magnet and teaching hospitals, however reviews on glassdoor mention corrupt management at both hospitals, wonderful. I recently came across some articles about nursing burn-out, and how it's especially prevalent among new grads, and on med-surg units. The thought of burning out so early in the game honestly TERRIFIES me. And people were commenting on how they left the profession because of all the stress, and understaffing, and working for top-heavy hospitals and how they don't recommend nursing to anyone. WAIT, THIS IS NOT WHAT I SIGNED UP FOR! I knew nursing was a stressful job and I have a vague idea of what the job is like, but I did not expect it to be THIS BAD (maybe I'm over-exaggerating?). I'm starting to think if I should look for RN jobs that are less "stressful" (aka away from bedside and floor nsg), but providing bedside care is something that drew me to nursing in the first place. A family friend suggested going into OR nursing, because you don't have to do a lot of bedside care, no discharge teaching/care plans, minimal to no talking with the pt and fam, it's an overall chill job and the only potential stressful situations would be codes, wrong pt, wrong site, missing tools/gauze etc. As an introvert, OR seems like a comfortable place for me, however the competitive atmosphere and constantly sticking up for yourself, and portraying a don't mess with me attitude isn't exactly my cup of tea. Also feeling like I had stage 3 pressure ulcers on the bottom of my feet at the end of the day was less than appealing (maybe dansko's are worth investing in). I realize this is mostly new grad jitters and nervousness about starting to work as an RN, and questioning if I made the right choice/ applied to the right units. But I'm having a mini crisis and I just need some encouraging words or advice on how to adapt to the world of nursing, and if finding the dream nursing job can be turned into reality.

I worked as a CNA on mother/ baby and some of the nurses on post-partum worked in the NICU as well. Maybe try to get hired on Post-partum (more hands-on newborn care than on L&D), and after a couple of months working on the unit tell the DON/ charge nurse that you're interested in working NICU if an opening comes up. Your experience with newborns and teaching moms about newborn care that you gain on post-partum may be useful in the NICU, and you would already be an internal applicant which would put you ahead of other RNs applying from outside. Peds experience might open the door for you too, but it's on post-partum where you will be taking care of newborns so I would think that kind of experience would be better.

I know you probably already started your nursing program, but I just wanted to put in my 2 cents. I think being a CNA is extremely beneficial when it comes to becoming a nurse. You learn patient communication, skills, what can be delegated to a CNA, and how to prioritize/ take care of multiple patients at the same time. Clinicals won't be as nerve wracking because the CNA background helps you a lot with patient care and the nurses will love you since you know how to do everything. I did some volunteering at a hospital in high school and it was NOTHING like being a CNA. CNA looks a lot better on your resume than Volunteer. Plus, you get a little taste of nursing being a CNA and it can help you realize if nursing is really what you want to do. As to working, I work registry (6 times a month, so once or twice a week) and I'm in nursing school and it's pretty doable. I know they tell you not to work during nursing school but you can always work in the summer when you're on break. Honestly, without being a CNA, clinicals in nursing school would have been a lot more stressful and I would of been like a deer in headlights. Yea it can be expensive, but I think it's worth it. Best of luck to you!

Hey there, So I will be a RN in 3 months and I have a couple of job opportunities coming up and I have trouble deciding which one will be the most beneficial for my future nursing career and a possible career as a PA. I would like to go into ER/critical care, but as a new grad with an ADN (I'm starting a BSN program next year) and no experience in those areas, my chances of getting hired on those units are pretty slim. However, I work on postpartum as a CNA and I have a 90% chance of being hired as a RN on Postpartum, L&D, or NICU at my hospital. I will also start following a preceptor at an urgent care clinic where they are looking to hire new RNs. I have also been thinking about starting out on Med-Surg to gain experience and skills. I'd like to know which of these potential positions do you think will give me the job experience I need/ make me a competitive candidate when it comes to applying for a future ER/ICU job.... NICU, L&D, Med-Surg, or Urgent Care?. I will obviously be applying everywhere, but which one should I accept if I get the chance? What should I do??? Thanks!