do i really have to do med surg

nessajune21 · Aug 20, 2008

You don't HAVE to, most just recommend it to hone your assessment skills, etc.

almostthere08 · Aug 20, 2008

I disagree with the belief that you need your "year of med-surg" If you know what you want to specialize in for sure, go straight into it. The only negative will be that if you want to change specialties later, you may be trapped.

cardiacRN2006, ADN, RN · Aug 20, 2008

I The only negative will be that if you want to change specialties later, you may be trapped.

No you won't. If I wanted to go into ED, OR or L&D, I'm sure I could find a hospital willing to train me.

soulofme · Aug 20, 2008

I never did med/surg...started out in acute dialysis, then L&D, then LTC/Rehab and back to dialysis...never ever wanted to do med/surg.. do what ya wanna do...it's your life:smokin:

Maynmom · Aug 21, 2008

I agree with soulofme. Do what you want to do. That's the beauty of our profession. There are so many different directions we can go in. Follow your yellow brick road.

Ruby Vee, BSN · Aug 21, 2008

i want to kno if i have to do one year of med surg after obtaining my license before going into a specialty especially if i already kno wat specialty i want to be in

no, you don't have to do med-surg. i think it's a really good idea, though. you'll get a chance to hone your assessment, communication and technical skills and get your feet wet being a nurse before jumping into the pressure cooker.

it might also be a good idea to work on your writing skills. spelling and punctuation are important in charting.

RNsRWe, ASN, RN · Aug 21, 2008

no, you don't have to do med-surg. i think it's a really good idea, though. you'll get a chance to hone your assessment, communication and technical skills and get your feet wet being a nurse before jumping into the pressure cooker.

aw, and here i thought my med-surg unit was the original pressure cooker, lol! all those things you mentioned are expected to be learned as you're flying from room to room :)

jeepgirl, LPN, NP · Aug 21, 2008

you don't have to do med-surg. its a lie people tell to try to get more med-surg nurses! actually, in my area, a lot of times if you don't have previous experience in the field you are going into (critical care, or, L&D especially) you will be hard up to get in it later on.

PICNICRN, BSN, RN · Aug 21, 2008

NO NO NO NO NO !!!!!! You do not!!! I can see it being helpful if you want to work with adults. However, if you want to be a PICU, NICU, Peds, L&D nurse, ect.... honestly, it will do you no good. Just start out where you want to be! Now, some might argue that med surg will give you a concept of disease process- maybe, however, kids are NOT small adults and their care and treatments are TOTALLY different and one year of med surg will not do you much good in these areas. Start out where you want to be!

FERN-tastic · Aug 21, 2008

I'm actually torn on this idea, and I started in the ED as a new grad. While I did just fine, it was tough. I wonder sometimes if it would have been easier with some floor experience.

I think if you have the personality and drive you can start out in the specialty areas, but it really can be tough. It may have more to do with the specialty than the experience, though. I've seen some nurses with experience not do well in the ED.

ilstu99 · Aug 21, 2008

I want to kno if i have to do one year of med surg after obtaining my license before going into a specialty especially if i already kno wat specialty i want to be in

No. If you're going to work outside of an acute setting, or if you would like an adult critical care position and there are none open to you, I would recommend it. If you want something else, though....L&D, NICU or all of the other positions already mentioned, med-surg won't do much to further your career. Don't get me wrong; any experience is good, even if it's in a crappy unit.

As for the "trapped," issue - not so much. I met a new RN in our unit today who has been on the job for about 20 years, and she's done NICU before, as well as CVICU, LTC, med-surg, L&D and school nursing. Gotta love the flexibility in nursing. :)

Let me echo the writing skills sentiment. The chat slang is fine, if your friends accept and appreciate it, but I have yet to meet an experienced nurse who thinks it's as cool.