Should I choose a different hospital for clinicals each semester?

[qcobra]

Next week I will be registering for my second semester of clinicals. I like doing clinicals and feel comfortable at the hospital I am at now for my first semester. However, I am looking for advice on what to do next semester. Are there any advantages or disadvantages to staying at the same hospital? Does it make a difference to future employers if you stayed at one hospital for all 4 semesters or change each semester? Any advice would be helpful and welcome. thanks.

[ashleyisawesome, BSN, RN]

i dont think it will make much of a difference to future employers what hospital you did clinicals with.. they most likely wont ask. it MAY be beneficial if that is the hospital you want to work at and YOU bring it up in the interview that you are very comfortable with this particular hospital because you did clinical time there throughout your whole program, but i dont know how much of an impact it will make.

im in a hospital based diploma program so 90% of my clinical experience is within the same hospital network (with the exception of a couple observation days at off campus sites). the pros are that i know what to expect, i know how the computer systems work, how all the floors are set up, protocols etc. Cons are that I have no idea how stuff works at any other hospitals. I mean basic nursing care should be standard everywhere but there are differences in how places are run and it would be nice to get a taste of diversity in that aspect, especially because i do not plan on exclusively applying to that hospital.

so i would say if you are deadset on working in that particular hospital, then go for it. you can use your time there to get the nurses and managers to remember your face/name and use it as a networking strategy. otherwise take the chance while you can to experience the feel of different hospitals and you will be a more well rounded new grad.

[sandyfeet]

I have gone to different hospitals for each rotation because I want to see the different experiences of each hospital. Unless you know for sure that you are going to be hired at a particular hospital, it's good to see a variety. This also gives you a chance to network with a wider pool of people, and I've found out things about hospitals that I never could have found out otherwise. For example, one clinical site had a large amount of nurses leave all at once, and my group happened to be on their floor, so we got the whole story and got to watch how the hospital handled this. Based on what happened, this hospital is one of my last choices to work at.

[theantichick]

Due to scheduling needs with work, I've ended up at different facilities for each of my clinical semesters so far, and next semester is guaranteed to be at yet another different place since we'll be in OB/Peds. I personally like going to different places and seeing what the environment's like and how different places run. I don't care for this hospital layout and "atmosphere" as much as where I had Foundations or Psych, but it's interesting to see the differences and how it impacts things.

[futurenurseya33]

Wow you get a choice? In our program, we are assigned to whatever facility they want. That's wonderful for you!

[Aurora77]

We didn't get a choice. I ended up doing clinicals at a nursing home, 2 large hospitals, 2 smaller hospitals, and one long term acute care facility. I felt it was beneficial to get a chance to see how different facilities operated, different charting systems.

At this point in your career, I wouldn't assume that you're going to end up at one hospital versus another. I'd keep as many options open as possible.

[classicdame, MSN, EdD]

generally the hospital and the school have an affiliation agreement. I am not sure how much wiggle room that gives the student. You may be assigned a facility. But if you have a choice I would vary the experiences. Although an experience on one floor will be different than another floor, even in the same building.

[CaptScrubs13]

We don't get a choice either. I have done Intro/Fundamentals, Pedi and Med Surg 2 at the same facility; different locations for every other rotation though. I can see in some sense maybe if you were a familiar face or name, with experience in one facility they could possibly be interested when it comes time to apply as an RN there, but personally I'd rather the different experiences and settings. (And yes unfortunately for me the hospital I've been at 3 times is in a complete hiring freeze so doesn't even "help")

[KimberlyRN89, BSN, RN]

We don't get a choice either. I'm in Med-Surg 1 and I'm on a sub-acute unit at a nursing home. Last semester we were at a hospital. Next semester we'll either be at: the same nursing home as this semester or at the same hospital from our previous semester. Not a lot of options here lol. Like you said, every place is different, so I think it's good to experience different settings, protocols, etc..good luck :)

[Sanuk]

We didn't get a choice when I was in school, but my advice is to see as many different hospitals or systems as you can. This really narrows down where you need to apply when graduation nears :)

I knew I could disregard a whole hospital system based on my scary experiences there, and that helped. I'm jealous you get to choose.

[nurseprnRN, BSN, RN]

what she said. i can't tell you how many people i used to see come into my little community hospital when i was the staff development maven who had never done clinical anywhere except the one hospital near their school. they were never exposed to anything different, didn't know "this is the way we do it here" wasn't the only way, and had to learn how to use their critical thinking skills all over again.

why on earth would you want to get less experience? go for it all, gurlfriend. and no, prospective employers won't ask you and won't care.