sfk26

Can anyone offer some suggestions for getting a job in an area outside of the NICU? I have 5 years level 3&4 NICU experience and I am interested in changing specialties; particularly PACU or OR, but also open to some other possibilities. I'm sure others have heard, as I have, that Nursing is such a great career because there are so many different areas and it is easy to try different ones to find your niche. However, I have not found this to be the case. Most positions require previous experience in that particular specialty. I have been applying to positions for two years and my application is almost immediately updated to "no longer being considered". It feels like the catch 22 of being a new grad again: how do you get the job with no experience and how do you get experience when no one will consider you. Thoughts? Thanks!

Hoping to get some feedback from other NICU nurses. I have 4 years NICU experience and that is the only area I have ever worked in. I recently began a travel assignment (not my first) and have been floating pretty regularly. In the past 4 years, both in permanent staff positions and previous travel assignments, as a NICU nurse I was only expected to care for infants under 1 year of age. Recently, on one of my float shifts I was assigned teenage patients. I refused this assignment as I have no experience outside of the NICU and a 15 year old is a very different patient population than a NICU patient. I feel like often times nurses feel intimidated and accept assignments that they are not comfortable with. Do other NICU nurses feel that refusing a teenage patient load is unreasonable? I always come back to the feeling that a floor peds nurse who routinely cares for 15 year olds would not be expected to care for a 23 weeker if floated to the NICU. Thoughts? Suggestions?