mandababy0326

love how easy it is to keep skills up, also makes you an iv pro

an icu admit? what kind of hospital do you work in?! that's a typical med surg admit, and no we don't always address those things right away. especially a sugar in the 200's, not that high for an er pt... we have bigger fish to fry

Hi there! I'm at an EC that sees 70-80,000/year at this point, becoming increasingly more busy! We are not a trauma center yet, however our sister hospital is a Level I trauma. We are in a large suburban area that sees Level I traumas and all fairly often, we stabilize and send to the sister hospital as needed. We typically rotate throughout the teams so just about everyone works peds at times, high acuity beds, occasionally minor care, and all of the acute care beds. 1) What is your standard nurse to patient ratio? Depending on how busy we are and acuity of patients, we range from 3 to 6 normally. 2)How receptive is management to staff going back to school? They seem to be indifferent. Small amount of money given by the hospital as tuition reimbursement. 3)What shifts do you guys work? 7a-7p, 11a-11p, 3p-3a, 7p-7a 4) What are the requirements to work ur traumas? We all work the resus room which includes resuscitations and traumas, and anyone that needs to be seen right away. Everyone is oriented in there and assigned in 4 hour blocks to respond if one is called, you are placed in there shortly after you're off orientation, at least at the secondary scribe nurse. 5) What certs are required and how soon? BLS- upon hire, ACLS- within 6 mos, ENPC- within 12 years, TNCC- 15 months 6) Do you have midlevels (NPs and PAs ) in your ED? Our PA's run minor care and our NP's see the pediatric pts. 7) What do you wish someone told you about ur ED before you started working there??Actually, nothing that I can think of! 8) I know no one like to talk about $$, but what is ur base pay rate.... $20-23/hr, $24-27/hr, $27-30/hr../ >$30/hr??? Are weekends required, any shift diff? Starts at $25, top of pay scale is about 10 or so $ more. Shift diff for afternoons is like $1.50 and for midnights is $2.50. We work every 3rd weekend, you also get weekend shift diff :) 9) How long have you been an RN?? 1 year! Still a baby;)

I have also been an RN for 10 months and have been working in a busy ER since the day after I graduated NS. I am so glad to hear someone else is feeling this way, because I too, am more scared than when I first started. It's a different kind of fear, like you mentioned- not so much a safety fear but how quickly things can go wrong- and in the patients you don't always expect! I love my job, but some days I feel like a nervous wreck, especially before the shift starts and I get into my groove! I too, pray it will go away at some point:rolleyes:

I work in a busy ER and get out on time 98% of the time and we get paid for every minute of OT we work! There are tons of opportunities to pick up extra hours as well! There's also not as much charting What I'm trying to say is, it is NOT that bad everywhere! Look for another job where you actually get paid for your time :redbeathe

I'm an ER nurse and in our ER (as well as every ER I've ever heard of), the ER nurses are the EMERGENCY nurses and the ICU nurses are their own specialty. The ICU nurses do not step foot in the ER, the ER nurses do however transport pts to the ICUs. The ER nurses are the jack of all trades but master of none, we stabilize the patients prior to transfer to the ICU, cath lab, OR, etc. I don't see the point in having an ICU nurse respond to traumas/codes, after all isn't that what the title EMERGENCY nurse entails? The ICU nurses are great at running their own codes, however in a much more controlled setting where they KNOW what is going on with the patient. This is usually not the case in the ED. Also, sometimes the ER physicians are called to complicated codes in the ICUs, and ER nurses are to respond to all codes on the 1st floor (same floor as ER). We stablize, they fluff and buff (and ask tons of questions we haven't had time to deal with) in report . For every aspect of their job we don't want, there are plenty of ours that they feel the same about I'm sure! We have respect for them and they have respect for us, but that doesn't mean we want each other's jobs! :redbeathe

I was (am!) VERY fortunate:heartbeat.... Graduated: May 2010 Licensed: June 2010 Been working as an ER nurse since the Monday after I graduated:yeah: Located in metro Detroit, MI

I am a brand new nurse (graduated May 2010, passed boards June 2010), and am working in a busy Emergency Center which I LOVE. I always knew I wanted to work ER, my parents are old ER nurses and I grew up exposed to the culture. In nursing school, I discovered another LOVE of nursing- L & D:redpinkhe. I LOVED my OB clinical and knew that this was something I wanted to do too. I've been SO fortunate with my position in the EC so far, I started orientation as a GN the day after I graduated from nursing school. I LOVE emergency and want to stay here, however I can't stop thinking about OB, and would love to get my feet wet in a contingent position now that I am settled in my full time job. I think that my evolving EC experience will be a big asset to me as an OB nurse, and I think that OB can really benefit me as an EC nurse. The problem is- EVERY OB related (PP, L&D) job posting highlights the need for OB experience, but how am I ever going to get any (outside of the pre-eclampsia, threatened miscarriages, ectopic pregnancies, impending deliveries, etc in the EC)?? Any advice about becoming a contingent L&D or PP nurse? Will EC experience look favorable to the hiring staff in OB? Should I apply with no experience? I would appreciate any advice you can offer! Thank you

Try St. Joe's Ann Arbor- I know they will sometimes hire new grads, i think mostly in med/surg type units. I know a friend who is a new grad and got hired at U of M as well. There are plenty of hospitals in that area, be persistent, drop your resume off in person if possible! Good luck :)

I'm a GN and actually just had a required legal education class this morning. The way it sounds is that unless you do something on purpose (such as giving a wrong med on purpose), your employer will support you and they will be the ones sued if it goes to court. If they fire you first for making a huge mistake then you are pretty much on your own. Other things I learned today- the top areas that are sued are OR, OB, and ER (where I'm at!). Doctors are sued more often than nurses. Nurses rarely lose their license and almost NEVER have to pay for lawsuits. Also, they said that if you don't own up to a mistake if you realize that you make it than you are a LOT worse off than if you own up to it. I was also told never to carry your own legal insurance- because then lawyers WILL come after you and not the hospital. A big reason for being sued these days= poor documentation! Hope this helps somewhat!

Thank you so much everyone for the advice! We do get a 12 week orientation, 6 weeks on days/afternoons and 6 weeks on nights, which also includes various training classes. I definitely know what you all mean about connecting with my preceptor and asking questions- which I will be SURE to do! I feel slightly better about resus with you telling me that I won't have any major responsibilities until I'm more experienced and certified. I start Thursday, I will keep you updated!

22 weeks... that's awesome! We have a 12 week orientation where we work with a preceptor and go to various classes and what not. I'm in the minority of new grads that they hire in the fact that I don't have any emergency experience, many have precepted in the ED or worked as a tech. Good luck to you starting as well!:)

Michigan!

I am a brand new graduate nurse (had my pinning yesterday! woo!) and I am both thrilled and blessed to be starting in a busy community hospital ER on FT midnights next week:yeah: THe only problem- I am becoming increasingly nervous as my first shift looms closer. I absolutely love nursing and love the fast-paced and diverse nature of emergency nursing, however I am extremely nervous, particularly for my role in code situations, considering I have only observed two codes previously. I am especially scared for my first trauma patient and my first peds resuscitation:uhoh3:. I would LOVE any advice that fellow emergency nurses- whether new or seasoned, could share with me! Thank you so much:D

I just graduated from nursing school this week and am starting in the emergency department on midnights at a busy community hospital next week. I am SO excited... but even more nervous as my start date gets closer !!! Does anyone have any advice about being a GN, particularly about being a new nurse in emergency??? I know that I have SO much to bring to the field of nursing and everything will turn out okay but I'm starting to panic a little bit about my first trauma patient, my first peds resuscitation, etc. Not to mention the fear of all the smart, seasoned emergency nurses I will be working with! Any advice would be greatly appreciated!