As I am trying to still find out how to get into specialty, I got a question that needs to be asked. I met and talked to OR manager at my hospital about how to get into specialties, and she said basically I need to look into residencies.
Is it the same way with ER? I see some ER job postings and they require "1yr experience" but doesn't necessarily specify if they have to be ER or not (some do, but not all). So for a MS nurse to get into ER, does it always happen through an internship/residency (like for GNs) or can you be hired into ER so they will just train you there?
I always loved loved loved code blue situations because of the excitement and adrenaline and how much we can do to save a person at that moment, and I know I will fit in much better in ER than MS.
Cheri1859- don't listen to people who tell you negative things! Honestly it's what YOU make it. Ask a million questions.. You will at first feel overwhelmed but what new nurse isn't? Just ask questions and be a good team player! When you aren't busy go help others as much as possible. Build relationships because you will want the help of coworkers. You got this!
ya, I do realize that lot of people come for very dumb reasons, for which they could easily go to urgent care and not waste ER nurses' and docs' times at the actual ER (for some, they come for things they can just stay home, I'm sure you know). Whatever the case, anything is better than MS, especially the very slow, non-acute ones since I want to work in critical areas.
so you are saying you internally transferred straight to ER without going through residency program, but they just trained you on the job right? didn't know PCU nurses floated to ER either.
Yes, PCU and ICU nurses floated to the ER quite often where I work. They never really trained me, either, they just sort of threw me into the mix and I was able to handle it. I already had 2 years of PCU experience under my belt so I wasn't a new nurse. And the charge nurses knew which type of patients to assign to me in the beginning so it's not like I was overwhelmed or felt unsafe. In retrospect a little orientation would have been nice but staffing was such an issue at that time.
I work at a 700-bed academic facility that hasn't had much success with hiring new grads... the learning curve is too steep and we're too busy to help people along. We have a had a lot of success in hiring nurses off the floors. Interestingly, we've had less success with some of the ones out of the ICU because they struggle with the chaos and pace of the ED.
Any other encouraging words are welcomed because for the most part I've heard nothing but "most nights you'll be driving home in tears and most mornings you'll be driving to work in tears"...hmmm.
Don't know what that's about.
Some shifts have me cursing but I'm always up for another go round...
The same thing that makes the ED so vexing is the thing that makes it so cool... You can never go more than a few shifts without seeing something you've never seen before and the pace makes the hours fly by.
I would have to agree, If your hearing that you will be crying coming and going, then I would suggest that there is something wrong with the way that ED is run. That would be a warning sign to me.
Although the ED is a very fast paced place where the nurse has to be able to assess and prioritize on the fly, it is also a really cool place. At first it looks like everything happens on the fly, but there really are protocols that are followed, and people do work well together, and this allows us to form a team for a very short period of time to treat someone and then once that emergency is averted, we can disband that team, and form another team for the next emergent situation.
It takes a while for people to get a full understanding of those protocols, the team work, how to deal with all of the individuals and their different roles on an equal and collegial manner, etc. But once I got it, I would never want to go back to something where that didn't exist!
I work at a large level 1 teaching facility, residencies are only for new grads with no previous nursing experience.
I applied for my current position with telemetry and critical care experience, but no ED experience. From what I have seen (at least at hospitals near me) not having department specific experience wont prevent you from getting the job as long as you have transferable experience and a passion to work in the area. I was ACLS certified, telemetry certified, experience with sedations, monitoring/managing patients receiving pressors etc. I really wanted to work in the ED and they really want employees that want to be there. At least that is what HR said before I was hired. They try to match employees in department they will be a good fit for.
A tech friend of mine interview with HR for a full time day position on a med surg floor, during the interview she mentioned her passion for working in the NICU and the reasons why. They ended up offering her an interview with the NICU manager who offered her a part time position on nights. She was looking for full time but accepted because it was where she wanted to work even if it was less hours and a different shift. Maybe 6 months after being hired she was able to land a full time spot on the shift she wanted.
My ED orientation was 8 weeks although now orientation is 12 weeks for any nurse even those with ED experience and 1 year for new graduate nurses.
While I always knew I wanted to work in the ED, I am glad I got the experience I did before landing my dream job. I feel like it enabled me to come in with a solid foundation to build off of. Lots of people do great starting out in the ED, I might have too but I am happy I did not. When days get crazy I know there is no place else I would want to be!
junejames
18 Posts
Cheri1859- don't listen to people who tell you negative things! Honestly it's what YOU make it. Ask a million questions.. You will at first feel overwhelmed but what new nurse isn't? Just ask questions and be a good team player! When you aren't busy go help others as much as possible. Build relationships because you will want the help of coworkers. You got this!