Where to go after the year of med-surg

RoyalNurse · Aug 25, 2008

Any advice at all? I searched through this forum, back to 1998, and couldn't find any answers to this question.

I just want to know, is it better to start on a hospital-based psych unit, with more short-term acute patients, or in a psychiatric hospital, with more long-term chronic patients?

Thanks for any replies,

ChristineN, BSN, RN · Aug 25, 2008

If your area has a specific psych hospital, they might have a geriatric floor. The geri floor has elderly pts with psych admissions, but many of them are also insulin dependent, have wound bacs, IV's, tube feeds, chronic illnesses. I spent 6 weeks on a geri psych floor in school, and it was definitely not what you think of when you think psych.

medsurgrnco, BSN, RN · Aug 25, 2008

I'm glad you searched through the psych forum to try to figure out your own answers. Sorry I haven't replied, but I can't figure out what info you want to know. Can you be more specific? What options are available in your local area, or are you open to moving?

againmlg · Aug 25, 2008

What is the med-surg level unit for psychatric nursing?

Hello RoyalNurse!

I'm not completely sure if I understand what you mean by med-surg level of psych. Clarification might help you get more specific quality answers from the experienced Psychiatric RN's. Like medsurgrnco, I think giving more info specific to your situation would garner more replies to your query. :wink2:

ie - Are you in the US or UK? Do you live in a Large city with lots of Psych RN jobs to choose from?

The answers depend on these factors because psych is a smaller field with fewer opportunities than med/surg. For example, the demand for ICU experienced RN's in my area is far greater than psych. But I'm in a college town with 4 nursing schools. (So there is a larger pool of new grads for both the acute and the state MH hospitals to hire from.)

I understand that you're thinking about making a big career move and I'm glad that you're exchanging information with others here and researching on your own. It's a tough choice.

Best of luck! :up:

RoyalNurse · Aug 26, 2008

Now that I read it, my question wasn't worded very clearly, so:

I have two opportunities: a state psychiatric hospital, or a behavioral health unit at a medical hospital (a regular hospital with a psych unit).

1. Does anyone have experience working at a state psychiatric hospital? Would it be feasible for a new psych nurse to start out on an "easier" unit here? Or would the patients be too complex?

2. Or does anyone have experience working at a medical hospital with a behavioral health unit (acute psych unit)? I'm guessing the patients might be less complex here, so would it be easier for a new nurse to start with these patients?

Thanks for your help so far, :loveya:

medsurgrnco, BSN, RN · Aug 26, 2008

All other things being equal, I would suggest starting out on the behavioral health unit of the medical hospital. The state hospital is where our psych facility sends the patients who are not improving, don't know if they would have any easy units! I am guessing that you would be more comfortable and find the work more rewarding if you saw faster improvements in patients, and you will still see chronically mentally ill patients in the medical hospital.

But I also suggest you take into consideration other factors that affect job satisfaction. These factors include the salaries, driving distance, scheduling styles, staffing ratios, teamwork, # of support staff, coworkers, managerial styles, paperwork, and typical number of admissions per shift. I'd also try to get a feel for how often restraints/seclusion are used, how involved the nurses are with the patients, and whether the nurses appear to like their jobs. Hope this is what you were looking for in advice!