OBRNinTN

Hi...I just accepted a job in the OR as a new grad...a 6 month perioperative fellowship...I'd love to talk!

I graduate in May...so I'm not a nurse yet...but I live in Knoxville, and I know there is a PICU at East Tennessee Children's Hospital because I did clinicals there, and I think there may be one at UT. http://www.etch.com/ http://www.utmedicalcenter.org/DepartmentSystem/default.asp?id=C86D707E1DF848FAA66A250443EA3E9C&app=0&N=1&Link=&target=N&target=N&C=1&parentid=7D30CEBA7FBC434199AB8D01987EAAC7 I hope the links work, and good luck! P.S. Knoxville really is a nice place to live. I'm originally from Memphis, which has alot of great hospitals as well.

I have to weigh in here too. I did all my pre-req's at a community college, and I now go to a university, and the community college was so much more difficult and demanding. From my experience anyway.

Welcome! I sincerely hope to a be a new grad in L & D come May 2006! I'm very interested to hear about your experiences!

OK guys, I tried to read through all the posts...because I'm sure my ?'s are answered in there somewhere...I didn't get through them all...so here goes. First of all...this is a great idea, making this a sticky..and the fact that the OB nurses on the boards are willing to answer all these questions! Here is my thing... I just finished an externship at a LDRP unit...and I absolutely loved it. I am moving as soon as I get out of nursing school (in the spring 2006), so I will have to apply at new, unfamiliar hospitals. Are there any extra things I can do to make myself more marketable for an OB job? We do our preceptorships in our last semester...but of course there is no guarantee I will get OB, it's a pretty sought after spot. I've head that nurse managers consider where you precepted, among other things when hiring new grads. Should I do anything extra...I mean w/in my scope...take classes? Or, do they even consider anything like that? I didn't realize I would react as passionately to OB as I did this summer. I really, really, enjoyed it. It actually wouldn't kill me to start in another area of nursing, but I do want to give OB my first shot. Sigh, if we were staying here, I have an almost guaranteed job where I externed! Any suggestions? Thanks in advance.

Wow...that sounds good. Does anyone know of any of these types of distance programs in the states?

I echo the above posters...I say go for it...apply for the L & D position.

:) Hee hee!

Thanks guys for the good advice. Last night I spent a verrrry loooong time going back through the posts in the career/advice forum while watching the news. I found some really great suggestions. I will probabaly contact the local hospitals next spring and see what their hiring process is. The resume/interview thread is great. I never even considered the "thank-you" note after an interview. That is a good idea. Anyway, thanks for the words of encouragement.

You know, my first GI bleed in clinical made my stomach do somersaults. Something about squatting on the floor, with my stick in a bloody hat trying to get a hemacult (it was EXTREMELY obvious to @ least 4 of my senses it was positive...so why was I doing this? ) sort of made me gag...so I would say yeah...it's pretty normal. 10 GI bleeds later, it isn't pleasant...but the nausea is gone...so far at least! Yuck!! I can't believe I actually typed that!

possibly a very stupid question...but, here goes. When applying for nursing jobs as a new grad, do you actually apply for certain positions open in the hospital...or do you just put in an application as a nurse and choose from what is offered? I'm asking because I have some definite interests, but I'm not sure if I'm supposed to apply for only the areas I am interested in or what. Some hospitals hire new grads into all areas, and some want experience. I'm not finished with school yet, and I have found out that my husband will be transferred to another city right after I graduate. I know the hospital where I work now as an extern and have made some good contacts, and even been invited to come back and work on my floor as an RN...but as a brand new nurse in a different city...I'm just not sure how to go about getting that first job. Sorry if I asked a question with an obvious answer...but my brain is fried!

I understand what you are saying. I know you weren't being judgemental, just curious. As a fellow nursing student, I was tremendously excited about my OR rotation. I love OR nursing. But, my first case was a little disappointing as well. The circulator in the room I was in talked about a lot of inappropriate things, even about the unconcious patient, and set a bad tone for me...it really freaked me out. Now...the other cases I observed were absolutely nothing like the first. Very professional and educational. So I say, give it another try. It's fascinating, and the OR nurses do a tremendous job. As a matter of fact, I liked it so much that during my summer externship (I didn't get the OR), I have arranged to go down and "observe" for a few days. I have noticed during school to not make up my mind about something until I've given it a second or closer look. I think asking these questions of other OR nurses is a great idea, otherwise...how would we know?

I agree. I am currently working as a nurse extern on a 23 hour obs floor, and then I will be moved to a specialty area for 5 weeks. I have learned so much from the nurses. Sometimes I wish I had my "summer" back, but I think this experience is invaluable.

Funny Funny Funny!

Ummm...I googled it like everybody else I guess! I was looking for info on links for nursing students!

I watched the video, and I cried. What a beautiful family. Her father had me in tears. That wonderful child has a hard road ahead, and it seems like she has a lot of love and support to help see her through it.

I watched the video, and I cried. What a beautiful family. Her father had me in tears. That wonderful child has a hard road ahead, and it seems like she has a lot of love and support to help see her through it.

Thanks for posting your experiences. I am in my 2nd semester, so I'll be right there w/you some day. I'm sure you did great. BTW...I love your avatar! Where did you get it?

Oh Leslie, I'm so sorry. I know we don't know each other, but I do want you to know that you and your family are in my prayers. Christy

My husband is an aircraft mechanic!

Actually, Christianity is one of the newer religions. I believe Hinduism has been around much, much longer, not to mention Judiasm (remember...Jesus was a Jew..there was no "Christianity" before him).As for the prayer..please, say a silent prayer for my dead body if it brings you comfort. I am a believer in the power of prayer, no matter what religion is doing the praying. Prayer, meditation...whatever brings you inner peace.

Angie O'Plasty...you just made me cry. What a beautiful story. This is why I want to be a nurse. :)

Prozac. :)

oh yeah...I also wanted to add we wore tank tops and shorts...not bras....thinking of myself siiting there in a bra makes me want to crawl under the table! And some of our shorts were very long. Hang in there! Good Luck!

We had to do this too, and I was mortifired..but believe me, it was really no big deal once we did it. There are a select few people in my class who are young and beautiful...and I am not one of them. Somehow we managed to pull this off with dignity, which is I think the goal with our patients. It was a learning experience to be sure. And I agree with the above posters. If they can see you now, I doubt they are going to see you any different with your shirt off. We were all concentrating so hard on doing it right, I don't think any of us even noticed what the other people looked like. Something about having an instructor standing over you tends to shift our insecurities. You will be fine, we all survived this skill. Although I understand your feelings,( I shared the same ones) try not to make it so big in your head...in actuality it was not that bad for me. As a side note, It's kind of funny, we have a guy in our class who weighs around 375 lbs, and ironically, he was the one trying to quell the fears and insecurities of the rest of us! He said, "I just don't see what the big deal is..." And once it was over...neither did I.