DMCRN

I have worked for an ALF and in order for a patient to qualify to stay in assisted living they have to be "chronic and stable". And yes nurses in ALF are qualified to do skilled nursing care, however it is the facility that requires them to refer to a HH agency for a "skilled" wound...not just a skin tear cleansed with NS and covered with bacitracin and telfa. Also these patients are private pay...in the place I worked they paid around $6k a month in fees to live there. The ALF cannot bill Medicare for a skilled nursing tx, so you are incorrect when you say that Medicare is paying the ALF. You won't see many pressure ulcers at any decent ALF so I can't speak on that facilities behalf...

Hey Everyone, I am a new grad and have been working in the OR for a couple months as an RN and it's just not for me. I just got an interview for an inpatient psych facility on the kids floor and I'm so excited! I did some clinicals there in my psych rotation and loved it. I feel like I don't get the patient interaction that I need in the OR (they're sleeping for most of the time!) and I've always been interested in psych so this could be a great opportunity. Does anyone have any idea of what kind of interview questions they might ask? And what do you think my chances of getting the job as a recent graduate are? Thanks!

Just to update everyone- I was forced to resign, the reasoning being that my director isn't convinced of my commitment to the OR. I did talk to HR and they said although it isn't the right thing to do and she would push for me to get my job back, there are no policies against management forcing me to resign. On the bright side, I haven't been fired and I will be kept on the books for 30 days so I can find a new job more easily. I think in the long run this situation will make me a better nurse, because when I do get a new job I will be more appreciative of it- and will hopefully be on a floor where I will get alot of experience. Let this be a lesson to everyone, if you are having doubts about your job, keep it to yourself!

Thank you for the responses...I now understand the mistakes I made and that I shouldve just kept my mouth shut if I had any reservations. Its hard as a new grad to know who to talk to and what you can say. Its not easy specializing in an area such as the OR thats so different from any other department as a new grad, i think its probably normal to be confused- but i know that means nothing to management.I am going to HR first thing Monday morning. Im so confused about the situation but I will keep everyone updated on what happens.

I actually had just passed the 90 day probationary period by about 5 days, I forgot to add that in the original post

Thank you everyone for your responses, I probably didn't make this clear but I do want to stay in the OR, I was going through alot of confusion during this computer class due to lack of patient care and the torture of sitting on a computer 8 hours a day for 8 weeks. I did circulate with my preceptor the past 2 days and again realized why I had loved the OR so much and that I had made a mistake in trying to transfer. I had never had any reservations about the OR prior to taking this online class. I have put alot of time and effort into training for this position, and I totally understand the hospital's financial point of view. But I do believe that I should be given another chance. After talking to some of my co-workers I realized that I didn't technically get terminated. When I asked the director if i was being fired she never said yes or no. She only suggested that I use my PTO time while looking for another job. Its almost as if they are trying to force me to resign. I never got a pink slip or any paper work. I got advice from one of my coworkers who has been in this OR for 30 something years that I should keep showing up to work since I am on the schedule and not technically terminated. And also have a meeting with the director, manager, and educator and prove to them that I really want to be there.

Hi Everyone, Here's my story- I am a new RN, graduated in May, passed the boards in July. I worked in the OR for over a year as a student nurse tech before taking a position as an RN in the OR. My facility requires that new nurses to the OR take an online Peri-op 101 class for 8 weeks, so I have been on a computer in the library at my work for 8 weeks for 8 hours/day. During this time I started to rethink my decision about coming to the OR as a new grad. I don't know if it was the computer class that was getting to my head or the lack of patient care for these 8 weeks but I was really confused. So I talked to our RN orientation coordinator, who was really helpful and supportive. She told me if i wasnt happy I should talk to my manager and apply for another position in the hospital. Well our OR manager left for another job over 6 months ago so we have our assistant manager filling his position at the moment. I ended up talking to our nurse educator first and told her the confusion I was experiencing. She was also very supportive and told me I have to listen to my heart and if it is not in the OR i should seek out another position. So I applied to the surgical floor in our hospital. My nurse educator took it upon herself to tell our assistant manager and our director(who is also the director of the surgical floor I applied to). The director came to talk to me and again she was very understanding and even told me that she would never be able to work in the OR, that she enjoys more patient care (and she is the OR director!) and that she would recommend me for the new position, but she wanted me to finish my peri-op 101 course before leaving so that I could have it if i ever wanted to come back in the future. So i interviewed on the surgical floor and hadn't heard anything back until yesterday when the director came and found me and took me to her office. I thought she was going to tell me i got the job on the surgical floor. WRONG! She informed me that I didn't get the job on the floor and that Monday would be my last day in the OR. She suggested that I use any PTO time I have to look for another job and she will "keep me on the books" saying that I work at this facility for one month to help me with references for another job. Her reasoning for letting me go is that if I am not sure I want to be in the OR, why would they waste anymore time and money on training me? She then told me she thinks I'm very confused and I need to figure out what I want to do (duh I'm 21 and a new nurse!). She then preceeded to tell me that she's not even convinced that I love nursing at all! That really hurt, I was shocked that someone that barely knows me could make an assumption like that. I replied that that is really offensive and an unfair judgment to make. I just worked so hard through nursing school and have dedicated so much to this profession which I do absolutely love, I am still so shocked someone could say that. So I went back to my department crying my eyes out and some of my co-workers asked me what was wrong and I told them the story. They were shocked and outraged and said that they can't do this, it's not legal. In my facility you have to tell your manager if you are applying to another department, it is the policy. From what I understand, they can't terminate you for applying to another floor. People apply to other floors all the time and dont get the job, but they dont get terminated from their current position either. I am going to HR on monday to talk to them and see what my rights are. The director never gave me a pink slip either. I have never had a warning or have been in any negative situation in my OR. I have done very well in my student tech position, I'm pretty sure all of my co-workers like me and I really understand how the OR works and I was finding my transition into a circulating nurse rather smooth. I feel so shocked that I just got terminated from my first nursing job, I just can't believe it. The job market in my state for nurses is very limited right now, especially for new grads. I know I am going to have a hard time finding a new one. I do love my job in the OR, as a new grad I think I just went through a period of confusion with alot of people telling me that new grads need to do med-surg before specializing. My question to you is have you ever heard of a situation like this? Is this illegal? And should I fight to get my job back or should I just cut my losses and start looking for a new one (I dont really want to do this, but I am scared if i get my job back, management will make my life hell)? Sorry this is so long, and I appreciate any and all suggestions. Thank you!

Hi everyone, I am still a new grad RN, passed the Nclex in july and in orientation in the OR. I did 1 year of student nursing here and I used to think this was what i wanted to do. Now I am uninterested and not challenged, and I feel like I am wasting my education and nursing skills. I just feel like this is not nursing, and I really miss the patient interaction. I would really love to work in the ICU and they do accept new grads at my hospital. My question is should I stick it out here for a year so I don't waste all the time and money put into training me? I feel like it would be very rude to leave while I am still on orientation (ours is 6 months-1 year). The other question is that do you think I should go to a med/surg floor for 1 year before applying to the ICU to get my skills and time management down? I am just so unhappy with the OR, but feel guilty because I should be lucky to even have a job. Thanks in advance.

I just started in the OR as a graduate nurse and I did do a year of student nurse work before I started in which I mainly learned to scrub, and I am very glad I did so because it is very overwhelming. In nursing school we only had 1 day of clinical in the OR which wasn't even a full day so it was useless. It is very hard in my area to find a student nurse tech position in the OR, I was apparently the 1st student in 8 yrs and they just told me they are getting rid of the position due to the budget. Most OR's don't accept new grads with no OR experience so if you find one you are very lucky. I used to be SNA on the med/surg floor before I transferred to the OR so if they allow you that option, take it.

I've been interning as a student nurse in the OR for the past 8 months and I love it. I'm not sure what you will be doing in your internship but I have mostly been focusing on learning to scrub (like a surgical tech) since I can learn to circulate when I become an RN. I've scrubbed many different cases in my internship and it's been awesome,hopefully that's what you'll be doing but most in most internships you don't get to do that, especially not in 10 weeks. Either way some good advice would be to learn as much as you can about surgery in this time by asking questions, most surgeons like teaching and will be very helpful as well as the RNs and surg techs. Im sure you read that the OR has alot of strong personalities so its a really good idea to not rub anyone the wrong way. You definately have to be thick skinned in the OR and be able to take constructive criticism without getting offended. When you first start you will feel so overwhelmed bc alot of what you learn in school doesn't help much in the OR and it's completely different than the floors. It's very technical and there is ALOT of equipment...it took me forver to learn just the basic instruments. If you have any more questions let me know...congrats!

I have been doing a student nursing internship in my OR for about 7 months now and I have been taught sterile technique, setting up the field, scrubbing, etc. Basically have been training as a CST. It's been awesome and it was difficult to learn all the instruments and keep up with the cases but I've learned alot and I love it. And I have an RN job for when i graduate so what's better than that? Let me know if you have any other questions.

I started working in the OR as a student nurse intern this summer and I really love it, especially after coming from the medical floor. The OR i am working in has put alot of time and effort into training me to scrub so that I will be able to both scrub and circulate when I graduate. I would love to work there as soon as I graduate and I know I would have no problem getting hired. What I am worried about is losing alot of the skills I learned in nursing school, and I know alot of people suggest med-surg experience first but I really hated the medical floor when I worked there as a student. My eventual goal is to either become a CRNA or PA...I love scrubbing but I just don't see myself circulating forever. My question is that if i decide to apply to CRNA school I know I need ICU experience first. What are my chances of getting hired into the ICU after going straight to the OR as a new grad? I've really been looking into CRNA school and I figured I could work in the OR as an RN while I finish up my bachelors degree (i will grad w/ an ASN this may) and then transfer to the ICU for a couple years before applying to CRNA school. How realistic is this? I think it might be a little easier and faster to get into PA school since I will have plenty of clinical experience. Any advice is greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Hi everyone! I am currently a nursing student and will graduate in May 2009 with my associate's degree. It is my absolute dream to become a CRNA. I plan on continuing on to my bachelor's degree upon graduation which should only take 1 year. I currently work at St. Vincent's Medical center in Bridgeport CT as a student nurse tech- I've been on the medical floor since January and I will be transferring to the OR in a couple weeks. I've been told by many nurses that everyone should have at least 1 year experience in med-surg before applying to the ICU, and as everyone knows you need at least 1 year experience in the ICU to apply to crna school. My question is is it absolutely necessary to have that med-surg experience if your ultimate goal is to go to anesthesia school? I really want to continue on with my education right away, and the 1 year in med-surg will put me back a little bit more not to mention the at least 1 year in ICU. Also, do many hospitals in CT hire new grads into the ICU? And do you recommend being a new grad in the ICU? Also, anyone who is/has attended any of the crna schools in CT- how hard was it to get in? how do you like the program you are in? What path did you take to become a CRNA? Thanks everyone! -Diana

Hi Everyone! I'm in my first year of nursing and this summer I have decided to do a student nurse externship at the hospital where I work/go to school. I'm having trouble deciding which floor to do the externship on...They offer ER, OR, ICU, medical, surgical, OB, psych, respiratory, ortho, telemetry, post angioplasty, and Float. Some nurses have told me to do it on the medical floor so that I could see a little of everything...but I already work as a student nurse tech on the medical floor, so I wanted to try something else. I'm leaning towards ICU but I was told that I should do something less advanced since I havent had clinical rotation there yet. Does anyone have any suggestions? Where did you do your externships??