CTRN2679

I have an interview tomorrow for a per diem RN position at a pediatric practice. However, I will be 16 weeks pregnant. Should I disclose my pregnancy during the interview? At time of job offer? After I have been hired? I am very conflicted about what to do, as I don't think I would work very much (or possibly at all) after giving birth. I have previous experience doing this position, so I don't think extensive training would be required. Plus, it's only a per diem position, which doesn't make me feel very obligated to tell them during the interview. But I still want to do the right thing. Would love to hear any advice/feedback. Thanks.

I've started a new job at a pediatrician's office, and have been there just under a month. Part of my job will be doing telephone triage some of the time. I've sat and listened to the other nurses answer calls for a couple days, but I am having terrible anxiety about doing it myself. I just don't feel confident enough in pediatrics yet to do it (prior to this job, I spent a year working on an adult med-surg floor). My question is, does anyone have some good suggestions on ways I could prepare? I've taken home the Barton-Schmitt book a couple times to read through it, but I really feel as though I need something more. Does anyone know of an online course, perhaps? I really don't feel the need to try to get certified at this time. Thanks for your help!

i'm a new, second-career nurse and having been working on a med-surg floor for 5 months. it is an awful fit for me and i have never been so miserable in my life. i having been considering or nursing but am very concerned about whether this is the right fit for me. i want to make a wise decision. i wanted to become an or nurse when i first began nursing school, but there was a lot of pressure for me to begin my career on a med-surg floor. i thought i could handle med-surg for a year, but it turns out i can't. i am very stressed out working in med-surg. i'm somewhat shy and this job has made me realize that i'm not as much of a "people person" as i originally thought. i get a lot of anxiety about performing direct patient care, dealing with the psychosocial issues of the patient, and dealing with families. i enjoy the technical side of nursing and feel much more at ease with patients who are not very oriented or conscious. although the constant multi-tasking and overstimulation certainly is overwhelming at times, i do not believe this is the main cause of my anxiety. anyway, whatever the cause, it has gotten so out of hand that i have started anti-anxiety medication and see a psychiatric nurse regularly. i just reduced my hours to part time and hope this will improve my stress level. i am concerned about becoming an or nurse because some nurses have told me that or nursing is much more stressful that med-surg nursing. ("why do you think there is a shortage of or nurses?" i was told. "it's much more stressful than med-surg!") what is your opinion of this? while i'm sure it is stressful, i imagine it is a different kind of stress, one that my personality may be better equipped to handle. i enjoy the thought of working as part of a team of colleagues, instead of performing direct patient care alone. while i've heard that surgeons can often be mean to or nurses, i feel that this is something i probably could deal with and would likely improve as i gained more experience. so what are your thoughts? if i can't handle the stress of med-surg, should i not even consider going to the or? i would appreciate any advice and thank you in advance for your input.

Hello all....I wasn't sure exactly which forum would be best to post this to, so I'm posting it here. I am a new grad nurse and just began working on a med-surg floor. I'm only in my 7th week (still on orientation) and I feel as though I'm close to having a nervous breakdown over it. I agreed to start on med-surg only because I wasn't certain which area I wanted to specialize in, but in this short period of time I have realized med-surg is definitely not for me. Now, all I can think about is wanting to work in a NICU. I realize the patients would be much more acute, but I prefer the idea of providing intense care to fewer patients than running around like a crazy person, trying to provide general care to 4-6 patients. I also prefer to work with babies than adults. I know there are two schools of thought when it comes to doing med-surg first as a new grad....some really believe in it, but others say you don't need it for NICU. Any advice on what I should do? Should I try to stick it out on med-surg for maybe at least 6 months or try to move to a NICU immediately (not that I see any jobs available for that!). I hate feeling like a quitter. Also, can anyone tell me if NICU is a competitive speciality? Just wondering, because I haven't seen any NICU job openings listed at any of the hospitals in my area of Connecticut. Thanks for letting me get all this out....it's been a bad week.