"Dangerous unit?" need advise

[ShannonSRN]

I sent this message to Suzanne, but maybe someone else has an idea as well. I need all the help I can get....

I am wondering if you could give me a bit of advice.

I put the post "Dangerous Unit" and you responded...thank you!

I am in a bit of a predicament at this fork in the road.

With all of the difficulties of our unit at this point, with no end in sight...I am thinking of transferring to another department, probably at a different hospital. The L&D unit at this other hospital requires more experience...so therefore, I am considering just going to another department. Problem is I don't know where I would fit after being in L&D for such a long time.

I was an L&D scrub tech for many years prior to graduating from nursing school last year. I went to a graduate nurse program at the hospital I now work at, but started in the ER...to try something different. But the ER was awful, mismanaged, outragious patient load, poor equipment, etc...so I transferred to L&D, as I knew it was what I enjoyed, and had the experience required. Well as you know from the previous post, this hospital is pretty much dangerous, no matter where I turn. So transferring within the organization is just not going to work. It seems to be an epidemic here.

What would you do in my shoes? I do not enjoy med/surg...I truly enjoy critical care areas such as : ER, Critical Care, and OR (kind of seems obvious, as I did surgery for years, and still scrub on a regular basis). But I am starting out like a new grad, never been in one of these areas as an RN. What advise would you give?

Thank you so much,

Shannon

[kmoonshine, RN]

Nurses who are comfortable with L&D are godsends in our ED! Just the other day, a woman gave birth right in the ambulance bay.

If you really liked working in ED, critical care, or OR I'd suggest to go for it. And don't worry about feeling as if you are "starting out as a new grad"; if you get in a good department, you'll be more than welcome. I'd suggest looking for open positions at other hospitals based on what you've said in your previous posts.