Renal Dialysis - Possible as a new grad?

[NooNieNursie]

Hey all...

I've been really wondering what might be "the thing" I want to do, what specialty to go into... after every clinical experience it's the same: I like the experience but it doesn't really GRAB me as something I am passionate about.

Well, this changed when I went to the hemodialysis floor. I'm pretty sure this is what I want to do (at least in the interim). My ultimate goal was to work with diabetics in a primary care (NP) or as the role of an educator/councilor... BUT I really wanted to work more in the role of prevention rather than with the end-stage of the diseases. Ironically, for this reason, I thought I would hate renal dialysis (I was worried that it might discourage me from doing what I really wanted to do, that I would see all of these tragic amputees on deaths door and I would just feel so overwhelmed that I would doubt my ability or desire to get into prevention).

I was really surprised, hemodialysis wasn't anything like I pictured... the patients were just regular patients with chronic diseases , if anything less acutely ill than your traditional med surg patients.

What I really liked about it was that the patients really rapidly were helped after hemodialysis treatment... this is always what I wanted to do anyway, prevent illness (true maybe preventing death with hemodialysis isn't quite the same thing as preventing renal failure in the first place, but it's surprisingly a similar rewarding feeling for me as a would-be nurse ).

I also liked that the dialysis nurse seems really manage the whole treatment, you know; it requires a great deal of monitoring and seems like a more high-level nursing work, which also appeals to me as I wanted to further my education and go for NP.

I'm a bit concerned about needle sticks (I imagine this is a big problem in renal dialysis) but I can budge.

SO if possible I would love to just start on a renal floor right after graduation, problem is I imagine this requires some kind of additional certification, right? Is it possible to start in this area right after graduation? Is there a demand for these nurses?

Any suggestions?

[chill598]

Yeah it is possible to get a job as a new grad. I graduated from nursing school and I am a charge nurse at a dialysis center. I will get six months of training before being on my own.

[quackmoonstar]

^wow. Charge nurse...cool. ^__^v

I'm also a fresh graduate and board passer too. I trained for a month in hemodialysis in a dialysis clinic then I tried applying there. I'll be starting there next week as an orientee. More or less I'm still a trainee but now I'm part of the institution.