Should I give up on NICU?

[AnnieOaklyRN]

Hi,

I have been a nurse for 9 years now, most of which has been part time or per-diem because I have only been able to land ER jobs because of my background.

I hate working as an ER nurse so I left that and am now doing IV nursing, which I like, but I would not do it full time unless I had to. I work full time as a medic now an am thankful I have that to fall back on.

Anyway, I have been trying for YEARS to get into a special care nursery or NICU without success. They all want experience! I have some experience taking care of neonates in the ER, some that have been very ill. I have put that information in my cover letter and resume and nothing. No interviews even. I have rewritten my resume and cover letter multiple times to see if that is the problem and it hasn't changed anything. I live in the northeast where the nursing job market isn't great. I am just so fed up and ready to give up on nursing and pick another route like PA or FNP.

I have no desire to care for adults and have ALWAYS wanted to work as a nurse in a NICU. Should I give up on that dream? What else can I do to get an interview at least? I keep reading on here about nurses that are new grads or that have less experience than I have landing NICU jobs. I am just at a loss...

Annie

[verytallnurse]

Annie,

Don't you even think about giving up your dream like NICU. Neonatal specialty needs nurses like you, who worked somewhere else but NICU was a true calling. Children hospitals and teaching hospitals hire new grads, therefore will take you with general experience before new grad. Although they wanna save money and cant afford you... You just havent found a right hospital. Before you consider giving up whole specialty, give up your hospital.. If they dont wanna take you into NICU with ER experience, they are fools!!! We just hired 12 new grads for NICU. I wish they had any, any experience anywhere. That makes a difference. So no, you can not give up. We need people like you. On the other hand, are you willing to move for NICU job and where are you now?

Agne

Neo Rn (10 y. In NICU)

[AnnieOaklyRN, BSN, RN, EMT-P]

Annie,

Don't you even think about giving up your dream like NICU. Neonatal specialty needs nurses like you, who worked somewhere else but NICU was a true calling. Children hospitals and teaching hospitals hire new grads, therefore will take you with general experience before new grad. Although they wanna save money and cant afford you... You just havent found a right hospital. Before you consider giving up whole specialty, give up your hospital.. If they dont wanna take you into NICU with ER experience, they are fools!!! We just hired 12 new grads for NICU. I wish they had any, any experience anywhere. That makes a difference. So no, you can not give up. We need people like you. On the other hand, are you willing to move for NICU job and where are you now?

Agne

Neo Rn (10 y. In NICU)

Hi there,

Thank you for the words of encouragement, you are very sweet!!

I pondered the idea greatly with regards to moving for a job, however I decided with a lot of thought that that is not something I want to do at this point in my life. I have my roots set here and I love where I live, just not the job market. It is very competitive since it seems everyone else wants to live in this area too unfortunately!

I could not get a NICU job as a new grad because I did not have my BSN at that time. So here I am applying to every NICU job I see with a small glimmer of hope that fades every day...

I know part of this is my own fault as I got a job in 2010 in a level IIb Special Care Nursery at the hospital where I worked as an ER nurse. The staff were less than welcoming and my preceptor was a true witch, all she needed was a pointy hat and a broom. She seemed to get her kicks being mean to people. I ended up leaving three weeks after I started, which of course I am regretting now, as I never thought it would be this difficult to find another job in a SCN/NICU.

I will try for as long as I have it in me, then unfortunately I will need to figure out a new career path, as I have no desire to care for adults, for the long term anyway.

Thank you again everyone.

Annie

[tallynurse]

Have you tried getting a post partum or labor and delivery job? In my NICU we hire from post partum a lot, with the idea being that they know well babies and can easily transition to taking care of sick babies. Or just try getting into a hospital with a bigger NICU, no matter what area and ask to shadow in the NICU and talk to the manager about what you can do to get hired.

[JustWandering78]

Any updates OP? Did you get a nicu job?

[AnnieOaklyRN, BSN, RN, EMT-P]

Any updates OP? Did you get a nicu job?

Hi,

Nope, I gave up! The job market here just isn't conducive it seams. They either want new grads ( I am guessing because they can start fresh and not have to pay them as a ten year nurse) or they want someone with experience.

Thank you for asking though.

Annie