newbienursie

Hi! I recently just switched specialities and I got into an L&D residency. I am so excited and so much happier than I was in adult medicine. Although I do love L&D, I see myself in the near future doing something thats not bedside nursing. I have a year a half of telemetry/ PCU experience prior to L&D. If I stay in L&D, will I be able to switch into another speciality like PACU or Same Day Surgery? Some people say once you get into L&D its so hard to go into another specialty then others say it does not matter anymore. Just curious! I don't want to be stuck in bedside or stuck in one certain area of nursing.

yeah I agree. That is true, I appreciate your advice.

I worked as a PCA for 1 and 1/2 years. As a RN I worked at a nursing home for 3 months. then a little over a year at a community hospital and now 4 months at my new job. I worked as a PCA for 1 and 1/2 years. As a RN I worked at a nursing home for 3 months. then a little over a year at a community hospital and now 4 months at my new job.

Hello. I get the best advice from this website and spilling out all my feelings here is quite therapeutic LOL. I have been a nurse since May 2020. I was thrown right into this Covid mess and I have reached my breaking point. I started at a nursing home because it was the only job that was hiring new grads and stayed for 3 months. I received an opportunity on a telemetry floor and took it. It was a very small community hospital. The staffing got so bad where for 4 months straight I had 7-8 patients, I was on top of that precepting and being charge nurse. I always had goals to go into critical care. So after a little over a year of being at this small community hospital I got a job on a surgical step down unit in one of the biggest hospitals in my state. I have been at this job now for 4 months and I have absolutely reached my breaking point. Every shift I have 6 patients and NO tech. My orientation was cut 1 month early because they are so short staffed. I just cannot do this anymore. I am going to get certified in botox and filler but I wanted a job outpatient. I am torn. I feel like if I leave this job I look unreliable. My mental health is the worst it has ever been. I cry before each shift and I cannot sleep the night before because of my anxiety. On my days off I feel so crippled because I just think of my next shift. I do not know what to do. Stick it out for more experience and stick it out for my resume or leave ? This is technically my 3rd job since 2020. nursing home; 3 months --> telemetry; 1 yr 2 months --> surgical step down; 4 months. I would appreciate any kind of guidance. My parents do not think I should be a nurse at all because I am so depressed at every job which discourages me. My boyfriend is supportive but does not know how to guide me. I graduated at a horrible time where new grads were not being hired so I feel like I got screwed. And then I was thrown into the mess of covid healthcare. I tried and tried but bedside is not for me. What should I do? ?

Hello. I love coming on here and asking questions to all of you nurses/ healthcare workers because I feel that none of my close friends/ family truly understand what it is like right now working as a nurse. I currently work on a telemetry/ oncology unit. In February I will have worked here for 1 year. I graduated in 2020 so I am still kind of new. Telemetry is definitely not for me. I have 7-8 patients, I am training other nurses and going to be charge now. Before this position I worked at a nursing home for 3 months. I am on the hunt for a new job. Maybe step-down, Labor and delivery, PACU (if I can get in)... Will my previous job at the nursing home and me being at this current job for roughly a year now hinder my ability to get a new position? I feel stuck. I am so unhappy and over-worked and underpaid. Will nursing recruiters look at my resume and say I am unreliable? I was a PCT for over a year and also a home care health aid for over a year as well (both are on my resume). I also graduated the top of my nursing class and was in every honors program you can think of. I am just worried that because I did not stay at a nursing job for 2 years +, I will not get another position ?

Thank you for this. It is truly so sad the working conditions that almost every nurse is dealing with. I for sure am going to look elsewhere

Hello. I am a new nurse. I graduated May 2020. I started my career at a long term care facility that was a far drive from my house. I stayed there for about 3 months until I got presented with an opportunity to work at a small community hospital on a telemetry floor. I have worked here for 7 months. I love how much I learn and how I work with a diverse population. BUT there is major staffing problems. Every shift on days I work I have 7-8 patients. This is seriously taking a toll on my mental health and I just cannot handle it anymore. I feel the unhappiest I have every felt. It is definitely affecting my personal life as well. Do I stay at this job another 4-5 months or apply to another less demanding nursing job? Is it bad that I leave after less than 1 year experience? Any advice will help. Thank you

Hi! This comment means so much to me ❤️.. it has been really hard to find a job, more than half of my class still is jobless. I worked in a hospital previously and they got rid of their new grad residency and were not hiring anyone with less than 1 year experience. I hope things will get better for you! I wish you the best. Thank you again for the kind words.

I posted a post about 2 days ago and I received zero replies. I do not know how the forum works and I just thought to switch my topic heading to something different so maybe more people can give their opinion to it. I am about 2 hours away from NYC. The hospitals upstate are on a freeze as well and things are still a little crazy with the hospitals preparing for a second wave. But thank you for that advice, that really helps. A lot of my friends do not think LTC is good experience and it discourages me. Thank you again.

I graduated in May 2020 with my BSN and passed my boards in June. It is has been extremely hard to find work in NY with covid. I have a passion for pediatrics and I was offered a LTC pediatric position at a skilled nursing facility. I am on the pulmonary floor where all of the children are vented 24/7. These children are very complex and have many rare genetic disorders and disabilities. I have a passion for these kids and I love the job but long term care is not for me. IV's are very rare so we don't give IV meds. We give injections, and feeding tube meds. With this experience will I be able to get into a hospital? I worked as a PCT at a hospital for over a year, I was a home health aid and I will be getting certified in PALS and PEARS. I am anxious because I hope I did not make the wrong decision. Half of my classmates are still waiting for hospital jobs!!

A couple of weeks ago I made a post about getting an offer for a RN position at a skilled nursing facility. I ended up taking the job being that covid basically put every hospital on a hiring freeze and that was my only option being a new grad nurse. I love the facility and I love that it is pediatrics. I have a strong interest in further my career in peds but I really want to move to acute care in 1 1/2 - 2 years. I am getting anxious because I am hearing nurses say it is really hard to move to a hospital after being in LTC. I am on a really critical unit in the SNF. All of my pts are on a ventilator and have peg tubes and have trachs. They are severely medically complex. The only thing I am worried about is that we rarely give IV medications. Maybe 2 children have PICC lines. I know I am going to acquire a good foundation and learn different skills but I am worried a children's hospital will not take me. Can someone please tell me I did not make a mistake and I will not be stuck here forever? I am going to take PEDs courses and get certified in PALS, PEARS through the facility so I hope that will help also. I just need someone to calm my anxiety ?

Thank you!! I know I have to keep telling myself my first job might not be my dream job or what I pictured myself in. I really appreciate the advice ❤️

Wow thank you so much. I never thought about it this way.. all of my friends are waiting around for things to get back to "normal" hoping to get a call back from the NYC hospitals Hi thank you so much for your reply. This makes me feel more at ease. I was thinking about getting my CT license but I might wait and see how I like working at this facility.

OMG guys! thank you so much!! This makes me feel sooo much better. Im so happy and definitely feel more confident with my choice of accepting the job. Thank you again ❤️

Hello! I seriously would appreciate any insight or advice from any nurse out there. I graduated in May with my BSN and passed my NCLEX in June. This year has been absolutely wild.. I have not had a chance to relax. Job hunting has been extremely hard in New York. There is a huge hiring freeze and most of the hospitals have no money to fund a lot of new grads. There are 4 classmates of mine that have received RN positions so far. I received a position at a highly skilled nursing facility. It is long term care and I am on the unit with children who all have trachs, peg tubes, vents and severe medical diagnoses. I am so hesitant to start because it is not a hospital setting. I am afraid I will not get the experience I need to reach my goal of getting into a CV ICU or a step down unit.. heck I am afraid I wouldnt be able to get a med-surg position after a year of staying at this place. I feel like most hospitals want acute care experience. I have no other choice other than to wait but I really want to start to making money along with learning nursing skills. I feel like my parents, friends, and boyfriend do not understand my concerns and that if I do not take the job my parents would be disappointed. This long term facility offered me a tremendous salary, but is it worth taking? Will I be able to get a hospital job with this long term critical care experience? Please help ?