TracyRN

Yes, I think med-surg is the best place to start for any new grad. For an example, in the small (13 bed) LDRP in which I work, every new grad that has started there fresh out of school without doing time in med-surg has lasted less than 1 year ( out of the last 3 years). We're not eaters of our young: other, experienced nurses are still going strong even without previous OB experience. I believe that the difference comes from a self-confidence gained through experience on med-surg. It was there that I learned how to deal with difficult families, irate MDs and uncaring/ignorant adminstrators. It was also there that I discovered that, no matter where I go from here, I'm a great nurse and can function well in any unit. Of course, if I had been hired into OB straight out of school, I'd have gone rushing in... and probably quit after 6 months...

The worst I've had is when a teeny little old confused lady grabbed my left breast in a death grip and twisted... and gripped... and twisted. Had an interesting bruise. Learned not to lean over confused pts.

I live in South Central Florida and have worked in a (somewhere around) 125 bed hospital, most recently in OB. Pay scale is somewhere around $13. for new grads, based on total years nursing experience for others. After 3.5 years, I'm $15.50. I know that local SNFs are paying higher but haven't been interested enough to check it out. Sounds truly awful until you consider our cost-of-living which is very reasonable. We're a fairly small town, high on the retired side and very seasonal. Great place to raise kids but if you're looking for single-person excitement and dating possibilities... head for the Coast.

I'm pretty sure that there is a law somewhere that states that your output will always exceed your income by 10%. I make only $15.49 per hour as an OB RN which I see some of you wouldn't even consider. I also live in an area with a relatively low cost of living. Sure, I'd like to make more money per hour but I'd hate to live in a big city. I enjoy being where I am so I guess I'll have to take that into account when I compare my wages with others'. All in all, I'm content. Am I worth more? Sure!! Could I make more locally? Undoubtedly. Would I be as content? Nope!! I'll stick with where I am. Would I let admin know that I wrote this here? Heck NO! I'm content, not stupid.

On two separate occasions, in two separate units, he pushed two different nurses while having two different temper tantrums. Whew! That was a mouthful! Both were deliberate, hands-on pushing. Neither one was me. I was just lucky in not being closest when he was ticked.

I took 1 year of pre-recs. The average of the pre-recs multiplied by my NLN score was the basis for acceptance into my program. There were 76 applicants competing for 12 available spots. You'd better check what those pre-recs are used for before you go in and whether you'll be taking a placement test. Consider this: those pre-rec classes are necessary for your degree. You'll be taking them eventually anyway so don't consider it a waste of time. Yes, it takes 3 years to get your ADN but, depending on what classes you do take, when you have the ADN, you're only about 3 semesters away from BSN.

Okay, if, theoretically, of course, an MD shoved you, in front of a patient and the patient's family, what would you do? Not just the fantasy answers (although, as nurses, we can be quite creative in coming up with revenge tactics ). Please evaluate what you would do as well as the possible consequences of your own actions. If, however, you have a particularly irrisistible revenge fantasy, lay it on me!!!

I posted something a few months ago in regards to importing nurses from Enland. My facility recruited approx 50 nurses from all over the world thru an international agency based in England last November. For an update: its 4 months later. Nobody's here yet. The Visas haven't been granted & the Boards haven't been taken. We're surviving. So be warned: it may take a while before they're there. Incidentally, there are at least 2 foreign nurses at my hospital whose temporary work Visas hadn't been renewed and have been waiting over 4 months for renewal. Anybody know if perhaps there's something going on at the national level? In any case, I work with a bunch of Philipino nurses and several MDs, male and female. They are a good bunch of skilled, friendly people who are no more afraid to stand up for themselves than I am (and I'm no shrinking violet). They have a very strong work ethic and often choose to work OT. Yes, they do send a good portion of their money back to the Philipines: their sense of family is strong and extends to nieces & nephews whose schooling they often finance. These are educated people (the RNs with whom I work are all 5 year BSNs from the Philipines) and I think you'll find that they will be a benefit to your team. Since they do have a very strong sense of family, they are very much more cohesive than we are. If you're looking for an example of nurses standing together, look to the Philipinos, Wildtime.

I keep reading about nursing students who are nervous about clinicals for different reasons. Seems that IVs and foleys are high on the list of fears. I thought maybe there are some out there who'd like to get off the controversial issues and maybe reminisce about where we came from. What do you remember as your best or worst clinical experience, how you overcame and what it taught you.

I think that because nursing school is so intense, we all go a little looney towards the end. I know that I had about a month off between graduation and boards/starting work. I went thru a pretty severe depression that I only recognized after I was thru it. I spent that month laying around the house, doing minimal studying, very little housework, reading romance novels. I scared the crap out of my husband! I've talked with others who say they went thru a weird time, too. I think it has to do with eating, sleeping, breathing nursing school for 2-4 years and then being cut loose abruptly into the big, bad world. Perhaps you can seek a position at a facility with a strong mentoring program to help you. Just don't think you're alone in how you feel. Anxiety comes in many different forms and manifests itself differently in everybody. If you are having a hard time dealing with it on your own, remember what you learned in psych: there is no shame in seeking help outside yourself.

To be honest, I don't think that nursing has a significantly higher degree of job DIS-satisfaction than most other professions. I have many friends in fields from stay-at-home moms to teachers to truck drivers. Each person has valid complaints concerning his/her working conditions and pay. Consider this: this web site is strictly for nurses. The people who come here are nurses, nursing students, or want to consider becoming nurses. We aren't going to discuss the pits of other jobs, we're going to take the opportunity to blow off some steam about our own profession. Personally, I love nursing and couldn't realistically come up with a job I would rather do. Okay, sometimes I fantasize about how easy I had it back in my waitress days... but, hey!! If life had been so great, why'd I get my butt into 3 years of mind-blowing school to get an ADN? Go and check out some of the humor on this site. Alot is nurse-specific and may go over your head, but it proves that we do have some fun at work. Here's a suggestion: if you don't have anyone close to home to talk to about the reality of nursing (since we tend to mainly discuss the negatives here at this board), find some e-mail friends to ask specific questions regarding your concerns. Many of us here have listed e-mail addresses on our profiles... maybe you can make some good contacts. Tracy

I will always remember one of my penile implant patients from a few years back. The only thing remarkable about it was his name: Mr. Little. I guess it just goes to prove how juvenile we nurses could be since we laughed over it for days. Incidentally, Mr. Little wasn't little so I guess that can explain why Mrs. Little was more than a little happy with the results!

Bottom line? Book learning only gets you past the Boards. Experience earns you respect. I won't go to an NP or MD that I don't respect.

I can offer an idea on why you haven't been offered OB. Since OB is such a highly specialized unit and since it takes so long and such a great investment in the nurse to end up with a first rate L&D nurse, the hospitals can be expected to look for experience first. I recently completed the transfer from med-surg (with 4 years experience, all at the same facility) to our LDRP OB unit. I started by floating (yep, the nasty F-word of nursing) and caring for mother/baby and gynies, helping out with L&D as time allowed and just doing the general grunt work; answering call lights, doing admissions, starting IVs, pulling foleys, etc. When I was sure it was something I wanted to do full-time, I applied. The process wasn't as simple as I'm going to describe it, but in the interests of not losing your interest with a long post... I got the transfer. I was a known quantity in the hospital, the team with which I am now orienting knew me and I know that I'm compatible with them, and I have a head start over a new hire because I'm already familiar with all the non-unit-specific workings of the facility. Its turning out to be a fairly smooth transition. My advice? If an offer of OB doesn't come your way using the others' suggestions, accept a med-surg position at the hospital with the OB unit of your choice with the written proviso that the hospital will provide you with classes (fetal monitoring, NALS, or whatever its called now, etc) and "first shot" at an opening in OB after a decent period of time of continuous employment, perhaps 6 months to a year. (This is part of my story that I didn't bore you with that a competing hospital offered me & I came near to accepting.) It may not be ideal as far as time is concerned, but it gets you in the door and, at least here, the pay is the same so money isn't a factor. Just thought I'd throw out the idea for another route to take. I wish you the best.

Med-surg is the make or break of acute care. If you can make it on med-surg for at least a year without going nuts, you can head into pretty much any specialty unit with confidence. School gives you just enough knowledge to be dangerous. Its the real life experience that makes that license mean more than the paper its printed on. If the only knowledge you get is what you learn in a specialty area, what happens when you burn out in that one area? You have to start all over from scratch somewhere new. If you have a strong med-surg base, minimum 1 year, you have honed assessment skills for everyone from 18 to 100, all body systems, about all major diagnoses, and become comfortable in your nursing skin. In this day of nursing shortage you can certainly skip med-surg. But be very careful about the specialty you choose: you won't have the mobility that the med-surg-experienced nurse has earned.