secondfiddle

Yes, I am aware that most home care agencies (if not all) will not take new grads. And I do agree with that policy - it wouldn't be safe to send new people out in the field alone. However, this is what I'm talking about - it seems that you need to have a couple of years of med/surg to do just about anything. At 30 years old and having spent 7+ years in school (undergraduate plus the ADN now), I really don't want to waste too much more time doing something with my life that I don't enjoy at least somewhat.

I'm graduating from my ADN program in about 6 weeks. I passed through with flying colors - 4.00 GPA and excellent recommendations from my instructors. I was a "returning" student, 30 y/o, have a previous bachelor's degree. Problem is, I am not too excited about my prospects upon graduation. My program was in a rural area and all of our clinical experiences were in the same community hospital. I was also a nurse extern at this hospital while in school on med/surg/telemetry (basically an aide). I did my preceptorship on another med/surg floor at this same hospital with some orthopedics. I have come to the realization that I REALLY hate working med/surg. I learned a lot on my preceptorship from a clinical standpoint, but I truly cannot imagine myself working as a floor nurse in that capacity. I hate the work, the stress, the patient population, and just know I would be miserable there. This was not what I envisioned doing in nursing - I guess I had my head in the sand. To complicate things, I am also pregnant with my first child and plan to stay home until after the birth and I feel comfortable returning (probably 4-6 mos.). When I am ready to return to work as a new grad, I am deathly worried that there will be nothing for me that I can stand. Most of my experience has been in med/surg, which I fear will pidgeonhole me in there. When I decided to go to nursing school, I thought the options were vast. I kind of saw myself working in a clinic or doctor's office setting, or some kind of outpatient surgery. L&D might be an option, but going into school I thought that would be a ridiculous choice for me as I had never been pregnant. It seems now like the options are so much more limiting for a new graduate. Anybody have advice for me, experiences to share? I am so worried that I've just wasted the last 2 years of my life (I know that sounds dramatic, but the thought has crossed my mind...)

jov, thanks for the advice! I agree with what you said, and that has actually been my decision - I have an interview coming up next week. I am going to interview as I would have normally and give myself a chance. I guess the question to myself will be whether I decide I want to take the job when they send out offers. AND whether I should tell them of my situation at that time (when I've already been offered the job). My husband and I are now sort of leaning toward me not working at all until after the baby is born, so I'm wondering if would be possible to defer a job offer when, and if I get one. This is such a confusing situation - I have to say that it takes a lot of the happiness out of the pregnancy for me (Doesn't help that I'm nauseous 24/7).

RN Amanda, did you go back full time after the baby was born? How long did you stay home before you returned? If you did return full time, how did it work out? I figure I have no chance of getting hired part-time for my first job. Thanks for your input!

I took this part of your post as saying that MRSA could negatively affect the fetus - the use of "fetus" sounded to me like you were talking about effects MRSA could have while the baby was still developing inside the womb as opposed to something that would occur after it was born. I'm sorry if I misunderstood.

Thanks, everyone for the replies so far. Just to clarify, whatever my decision turns out to be, I would NOT postpone the NCLEX until after the baby. I'd probably just take an extra month or so after graduation to brush up on the studying as there would be no rush if I wasn't needing a job ASAP. It is interesting that most of you feel that nondisclosure isn't a great idea, because I have been feeling the same way. I would think that it would just create conflict later on when the truth came out if they hired me not knowing. I'd rather just be straightforward and tell them when I'm due and that I'd ideally like to come back part-time afterward - but I fear that they won't hire me because of the part-time part. As for the health of the developing fetus, I wanted to add also for other pregnant people who might read this - I agree that there are some patients a pregnant person would want to avoid (shingles patients, for example), but that MRSA itself is NOT a teratogen. There would be a risk that a mother colonized with MRSA could acquire a resistant infection and even possibly that the new baby could develop one - similar to the risk anyone colonized with MRSA would face undergoing invasive procedures where skin damage might occur. Just don't want any preggies to freak out about dealing with MRSA people - it can't cause the fetus to have 3 heads. :)

I'm graduating from my ADN progam in May, and I'm 7 weeks pregnant right now. This is my first pregnancy and was quite the surprise, but we are happy (despite the somewhat bad timing!) I was planning on trying to get a year of nursing under my belt before getting PG. I am trying to figure out the best way to approach taking a job after school. I am due on Sept. 25. Although money would be a bit tight, we could have me stay home and study for boards and start work after I have the baby and feel ready to start working. Or, I could take a job right away and try to get 3-4 months of experience under my belt before the baby assuming all is healthy in the later stages of this pregnancy. The clincher is that I do not want to return to work full-time once I have the baby. I am trying to decide if I should take interviews and mention nothing about the pregnancy (I am not showing, of course) - this is the suggestion of my nursing instructors. Or, whether I should be open about it and tell employers that I would like to return part-time or PRN after the baby. OR, whether I should just postpone work entirely until I pop this thing out! My fear there is that I'll technically be a new grad then and I'm sure will be expected to work full-time for at least 3-6 mos. Any suggestions on this topic would be great - especially from those who may have been in this situation or have friends who have. Thank you!

Hi everybody. I'm not a new grad yet but starting to plan - I graduate from my ADN program in May. I have been working as an extern on the Med/Tele (essentially a CNA) for the past year at the local community hospital where I will most likely seek employment upon graduation. For better or for worse, I'm doing my preceptorship in the ICU which is a medical (not trauma) ICU. I'm not sure that was the right decision, but our program has not exposed us to very many clinical areas and I had to choose something. Here's the problem: the longer I work on the Med/Tele floor, the more I realize that I am going to be very unhappy working there. I could suck it up for a year or so to get the experience, but it isn't going to be a fun year. I just don't like the work atmosphere, the patient population (many very sick total care geriatrics) and I just don't feel "at home" there. It seems to be a high-stress area for the nurses without being fast-paced like the ER. I am wondering what my options are as a new-grad for employment. I don't want to dread my job, but us it best to just suck it up with Med/Surg to open the door to other areas later? Or, are there other possibilities I should look into for my first job? I felt that the ER would be too much for me as a new grad, and I did not like the OR. Thanks in advance.

Thank you so much for the replies. They confirmed my gut feeling that I should just start out in med-surg given my situation (also not a bad idea regardless to get that broad experience, I think). I want to clarify, though, that I don't plan to start nursing and then "stay home and have babies" as one poster seemed to think. Being a stay-at-home mom is really my worst nightmare - I definitely want to return to work as soon as it is healthy and comfortable to do so. Depending on how I feel, I may want to come back part time for a while, but I'm going to play that by ear. Thanks again :)

Here's my situation: I'm an ADN student graduating in May. I'm 29 years old and currently work as an extern (pretty much a CNA) on the tele floor of a community hospital. I plan to stay at this hospital when I graduate. I have always been interested in ER nursing, but we only get 1 day in the ER to observe as students so it's been hard to make a judgement call based on this limited time. This is a "second career" for me, so I am still learning basic patient care from scratch, but I do consider my critical thinking skills to be strong. I'm trying to decide whether to do my preceptorship in the ER and try to get hired there upon graduation, or do my preceptorship in ICU or general tele and get hired on the floor where I currently work. The monkey wrench in this situation is that my husband and I want to have a baby (our first) this year. I know, sounds crazy trying to do this as a first-year nurse, but many factors have weighed into our decision and we feel that now is the right time. I am wondering which choice might be easier on me considering our plans. I have more familiarity with the tele floor, but it is certainly not an easy place to work either. Regarding the ER, it is a community hospital as I said, so serious traumas get flown out. Although I ultimately see myself in the ER, I wonder if given my situation it might be best to get the general med-surg experience while I deal with a pregnancy and then head to ER when I have more experience. I am trying to find a balance for what is best for my family, nursing career, and mental health :chuckle, which makes for a tough decision. But any advice and input would be much appreciated. Thanks in advance. :)

Indy, thanks! Nah, I know 30 isn't old in any sense! My sister is 36 and due any day now with her first baby (however, I would not wait until my mid-30's by choice). I don't have any health problems now. I just got to thinking that it is more ideal from a health & fertility standpoint to have one sooner than later, and we have been married for 6 years (hubby is almost 34). At first I was thinking that being pregnant in school then taking a short break before beginning my first job to have a baby (if I had lucky timing) would be an idea. Like I said, the folks on the student board heavily warned against it, so I was thinking of going off the pill as soon as I graduate instead. That way I'd be likely to get a year of experience under my belt before having a baby. I am just concerned that being pregnant during my first year as a nurse might be extremely difficult. Financially, yes we could handle 3-6 months of me not working if needed. But we do need me to be able to return to work eventually, at least part time.

I've posted over on the student nurse forum about my family planning - hubby and I were originally thinking about TTC for the first time in the late summer or fall (I graduate from my ADN program in May 2007). However, almost everyone responded with a resounding NO (don't get until school is over). However, I will be 29 by the time I graduate, so I won't want to wait too much longer for my first. So I am considering TTC once I graduate and pass the boards. However, I am concerned that being pregnant as a first year nurse will possibly be worse than being so in school. We only have 6-7 hour clinicals 2x a week and the school work has not been difficult for me thus far. I'm much more worried about transitioning into being a "real nurse" for the first time. However, if I wait until I'm comfortable in my job, I am concerned that I will be pushing my age further than I would ideally like. Anybody have experiences/advice to share on the topic? Thanks for listening!

Thanks, Suzanne4 - that's exactly what I needed to know. I'll head to the hospital for my first year. Thanks for the advice!

I'm in an ADN program, with a previous unrelated Bachelor's degree. I'm graduating in spring of '07. I am very interested in oncology nursing, as my dad is an oncologist and I find the field a fascinating one. There is a new cancer center breaking ground about a mile from my house that is affiliated with the hospital, but is a separate entity (outpatient). I would love to look into starting my career there, but wonder if would be possible as a new grad without working in a hospital at all. Any ideas or thoughts? Thanks!

Hey guys, Thanks for the replies! Very interesting to see the diversity in what keeps you going as nurses. Another question though as I see a couple of you were nurse externs while in school - did they pay you for that? My local hospital offers an extern program starting in the summer after the first ADN year, and I was wondering whether it was likely a volunteer position or whether they would pay a little.

How did you choose your current specialty, and what about it makes it the right "niche" for you? And if you care to elaborate, was this the specialty you knew you wanted to choose right out of school, or did it take a few false starts before you found the right field for you? I'm headed to school in the fall and have little idea other than that I'm not cut out for pediatrics or geriatrics, and would love to hear about your experiences.

Beth - do you remember who you might have contacted at the NLN? I was thinking of maybe sending an e-mail off myself to them and seeing if I could get the same sort of help you did. Sounds like your program had a legitimate reason not to be accredited. I don't know that that's the case with the one I'm looking at, but it would be worth asking.

Wow, thanks for the the answers everyone. I feel like a real dumba$$ for not realizing this sooner and applying to a different program. If I had figured this out and gotten my act together earlier, I possibly could have made it into the accelerated BSN this fall. But now I'm going to have to wait another full year if I do it at all. At this point I'm so bummed out that I'm thinking about scrapping the whole idea of going back to school. I feel a little resentful that this school didn't make the accreditation issue a little clearer. In speaking with them, it seems like they feel it is an unecessary expense to get nat'l accreditation, and possibly offended that I am even asking the question. I know that I might seem obsessive to them to be so worried about accreditation, but it is two years of my life and my entire career future we're talking about here, and that stresses me out just a tad! My husband seems to think I am nuts to turn this opportunity down, and that I'm only going to work locally anyway and not necessarily go on for the masters. He might be right, but I just can't shake the worry that I am making a foolish choice if I do this non-NLN program. Anyway, thanks for the advice. Better now than later, I guess.

Hi everyone, I hope it's OK that I'm posting on the general nursing forum. I've been accepted into an ADN program that is state board accredited but NOT NLN accredited. It allows me to sit for the N-CLEX/get RN licensure. I have been desperately trying to figure out if the NLN accreditation is really important or not and am having a really hard time getting straight answers from anyone. My biggest concern would be whether it would affect employment opportunities as an RN, or whether that RN license would be all that mattered. My other concern would be whether it would affect my progression into an RN-MSN pathway (I may ultimately want to do this). I already have a bachelor's in an unrelated field. I thought about doing an accelerated BSN, but just getting the prerequisites I'd need would take me two semesters and would cost twice what the entire ADN program would (and that doesn't even count the actual cost of the accelerated BSN!) If anyone has advice on this subject, please post. Thanks!

Oh, gosh, Sunshine9, I definitely did not mean it to sound like I felt you didn't need to use your heart in the LTC setting. Actually, I meant that to be a separate thought in my rambling (i.e., reasons I thought nursing would be a rewarding career). I definitely agree that it requires a great amount of compassion to devote your career to LTC nursing and have a lot of admiration for the staff I see. Those people are angels (well, except for one or two grumbling & crabby individuals who I don't think I would want taking care of my final needs should I ever end up dehabilitated... )

Hi everyone, I just received my acceptance to the ADN program I applied for for this fall. I'm sure this seems like something I probably should have already investigated, but it actually just occured to me that I better make sure... The community college I will be attending is accredited with my state board of nursing (and also with the state community college system). However, I do not think it is accredited with the National League of Nurses or any other Nat'l organization. I have noticed that most RN jobs require that you have graduated from an accredited school, but don't specify WHAT accreditation they require. Could someone clarify this for me? I plan to call some local hospital HR depts. tomorrow to see if they can clarify, but in the mean time thought you all would probably know the answer so I don't worry all day. Thanks!!

Paula - I am not a nurse yet (hopefully entering ADN program this fall!) so I can't help you on the specific employment question. But I am originally from Richmond, and now live in Northern VA (land of miserable traffic and ridiculous cost of living)! You will love Richmond though - it is a great place to live. Virginia is very beautiful, IMHO. The piedmont area is probably the prettiest as you get out toward the mountains. Richmond itself doesn't have any particularly breathtaking natural features, but the weather is pretty darn nice and there are so many great places to live around the city and its environs. There are a number of hospitals in the area besides VCU and Childrens, including St. Mary's, MCV, and Johnson-Willis. I have never heard anything negative about any of them, and my dad is an MD. Good luck with your move and relocating - wish I were you!!

Everyone - Thank you SO MUCH for all the thoughtful replies. I feel reassured that it might be the LTC environment (and this particular LTC) that is the problem for me. However, KatieBell, you raise an excellent, and very helpful point about the smells. I have never thought of myself as an overly sensitive or "squeamish" person (in fact, I am a horse person and happily spend plenty of time in dirty stalls picking through poop & urine soaked shavings, etc). Of course animal smells are different than human smells, but all the same I consider myself pretty tough in that regard. It is not the smell of feces/urine/wounds that bothers me per se, but the general smell of the facility. The whole thing smells like strong cleaning chemicals mixed with dirty hair and bodies, urine and occasionally feces (on certain parts of the halls). It takes me a day (and a shower) to stop smelling it after I leave. I honestly don't know if this is normal for a LTC or whether this one is a bit rough. I don't notice that it looks visibly dirty or poorly maintained, but again I don't have enough experience to really know one way or the other. Everyone's advice was excellent though, and I am absolutely going to think about what my expectations would be and talk to a practicing nurse to see if I'm fooling myself. I certainly don't want to make a poor decision, but I am hoping that it might just be the LTC that is turning me off. Thank you again!

Hi everyone - I'm applying for an ADN program to start this fall, and in the meantime I decided that volunteering might be a good thing for me to do to get an idea of whether nursing is right for me. (It would be a second career for me). The local hospital volunteer program told me that I wouldn't get much real patient interaction there, and that I should try volunteering at their 115 bed LTC facility. I'm on my second week as a volunteer in the LTC facility now, and I already know that it isn't something I'd want to be doing. I find the environment there to be extremely depressing - most of the people are not alert and some are on feeding tubes or catatonic. The smell in there is really terrible as well - a combination of bleach & cleaning chemicals, urine & sometimes strong feces. I am pretty much just changing ice water, but from observing the staff I can say that the work looks to be depressing and quite boring as well. So I'm worried now that this might be an indication that I'm heading down the wrong path. I know nurses work HARD and that the work can often be emotionally draining. But I'm looking for advice as to whether it might just be the long term care environment that is wrong for me, & how to figure out if that's the case. I chose to apply for nursing school because I am looking for something to do where I can use my brain and heart, have some meaning in my career, and quite honestly to be able to have some job security and flexibility. Any advice/experiences would be much appreciated.

Hi everyone, I am (hopefully) beginning an ADN program in the fall. Among many other things that led me to nursing is the demand for RN's, interesting and important nature of the work and my medical background. Also factoring into my choice was that nursing seems to lend itself to more flexibility in hours than a standard 8-5 office job, and eventually has part-time opportunities (very hard to find in most careers). I am 27 now, and my hub and I do want to eventually have children. I plan to work at least 2 years full-time once I graduate before thinking about pregnancy. I am wondering though, for those of you who have children - how hard is it to juggle your career and your family responsibilities? Do you find that the profession is easier or harder to work with in terms of being a mom as well? I'm just trying to figure out if I am fooling myself about flexibility in this career. I do believe that a healthy life should be a balance between work/family/personal pursuits (which is why I hated law so much while I was in it). Any perspective on this from personal experiences would be much appreciated. :)