RNRose

Hello, I applied for a psych position and did not think I would be called for an interview since I do not have any psych experience and am a newer nurse. Well, I was and the interview went well overall and I was asked to come back for a second interview to meet the rest of the staff. My concerns are that I will be working with psychiatrists and social workers, but no other nurses. It is an outpatient program. The description of the nurse's role would be 80% group/individual therapywith the staff/getting referrals/admissions/discharges and daily departmental meetings to discuss cases. The other 20% would be medication administration, VS, and checking lab work for patients. My major concern is not having other nurses to bounce ideas or questions/concerns. I want to prepare a list of reasonable questions to bring with me for the second interview to make sure that I am the best candidate for this position. My biggest concern is being able to give the patients the highest level of care that they deserve. I already have a few questions in mind, but thought that someone on this board could help me with some questions from a more experienced point of view. Thank you in advance! I really appreciate any insight. Rose

I cannot wait to check out these books!

Hi, You mentioned in another post about having book suggestions on assertiveness. I would love to know some good titles. It is definitely an area I need to become better at. Thanks! Rose

Hi, I had to read Birth In Four Cultures by Brigitte Jordan/Robbie Davis -Floyd for a class I took once. If I remember correctly it was pretty interesting. Maybe an online search would give you a description. Good luck!

Hi all, I am a new nurse who was lucky enough to get a postion in L&D right out of school. I thought it would be perfect since it is part-time nights and I have a young family. I thought I would be able to handle third shift, but am really struggling. I am very sad about this . I love this type of nursing and have learned so much in the short amount of time I have been there. It is my family life that is suffering. All I want to do is sleep or catch up on sleep. I sometimes am up for 48 hrs straight minus 4 hours of sleep. My dispositon is horrid. I do not even like hearing myself speak to my husband and my patience level is minimal with my children. If I leave this position, I will feel like I have failed and hate to disappoint the manager that hired me. She took a chance on me being a new grad. I just do not know what to do. I will never get another opportunity like this again if I leave. What to do??? Well, I really needed to air out my thoughts. Thanks for reading this. Rose

Hi, When I was hired at my current place of work, I had titers drawn by employee health. My HEP B levels came back as being nonimmune even though I had the series in 2000. I am currently receivng the series of three vaccinations again. Here is an interesting site... http://www.immunize.org/catg.d/2109hcw.htm I hope it helps you. :)

For all of your great replies!!! I apologize for taking so long to respond. I feel like I have been going non stop all summer. I officially started nights last week. I will be doing it full-time for a couple of weeks with a preceptor. I have been doing more and more on my own now. It feels great when I actually am able to make the connection between things I have learned and clinical experiences. So far the night shift staff is very welcoming and helpful. Of course I am still asking a ton of questions. My major fear is being handed a baby that isn't doing well. I have been trying to alleviate my fears by becoming familar with all the equipment. Everytime I do a set up for a baby I practice putting a delee together, pretend to use the ambu, etc... I figure at least if I am comfortable touching it all that will be half the battle. Well, I will keep you all updated. I know one thing though... I LOVE OB! Thanks again, Rose:)

Hi all, I am a new grad/RN who was hired for a night position in L&D. I am so excited. I love orienting so far, but the more I learn, the more I feel I still do not know. I am currently orienting on days - full-time. My questions are for anyone else who was hired to L&D as a new grad... How many weeks was your orientation/how many hours per week? Was it only in the labor room or did it include postpartum/nursery? How prepared did you feel to go on your own at the end of your orientation? What would be one or two things you had wished you learned or had more experience doing before being on your own? Did your preceptor have you work with one patient from start to finish or one week do only labor and the next week do only neonate? I am in the last 4 weeks of my orientation and am extremely nervous about the prospect of being on my own. I am told that I will have a lot of support from the rest of the staff once I make the transfer, but I am still scared! Does this feeling ever go away? What can I do to make myself a better L&D nurse? I guess I am basically trying to get an idea of how other hospitals orient and how the transition was for you. Thanks so much for any and all info! Rose