Should I work in CCU?

I am not the best one to answer this, as I am still a student, but I am doing my residency on a cardiac step down unit which is similar to a CCU. On this unit, they get all the post-cath patients, all chest pain/MI, dysrhythmias, ER or ICU transfers with cardiac issues or history, post-CABG patients, pre-CABG and pre-cath patients, as well as overflow from other critical care units (so stuff like renal failure, etc). We had a guy today who had fell off a ladder and broke ribs, they thought he had flail chest! The unit is monitored so all pts are on tele. I LOVE this unit and accepted an internship after graduation here - can't wait to start!!! Good luck!

My unit is a CCU/OHU. We get mainly CABGs and valve replacements, with MIs and other ICU patients thrown in- mainly sepsis. We have lots of SWANs, IABPs, CVVHs, chest tubes, pacer wires, vents, A-lines, pressors, etc. Every now and then, we get neuro ICU overflow patients as well, although they try not to give us brain drains.

Usually our vent-dependent patients get transferred to a long-term vent unit, once it has been determined we can't get them weaned.

We don't have a CTICU, per se.

In CCU you can expect to find MI's, CHF, different cardiomyopathies... one that we had a good bit of was pregnancy induced, endocarditis, post cath, post CABG.... tons of A-lines, SWANs, balloon pumps, tandem hearts........

Usually, in a CCU you will have the sickest of the sick patients. Our Open Heart/CICU unit extubates the patient within so many hours post-op.... if the patient isnt off the vent within 24 hrs, they come to our CCU.

At one time our CCU was split with MICU.... I would much rather have a CCU patient than an MICU patient when it was split. Usually, not always, but usually, with a cardiac patient...you can see trends beginning and know ahead of time when the patients are getting worse....... MICU pts..... not so much.

I still work both.... I love cardiac, but I still work MICU as well just because of the doctors. We all worked well together, and usually knew what the other was going to do before it was spoken.

Good luck in whatever you decide!

If your hospital has a CVICU/CTICU and a CCU...>You will likely have more medical based patients in CCU and your surgical population would generally be found in CVICU/CTICU

Do you enjoy the surgical patient population or do you think you would like to work with medical patients? Everyone has their own preference. I definitely prefer surgical patients and it took me awhile to figure that out.

Also, on my cardiac recovery unit patients often become medical patients if they aren't able to wean so I still see a lot of different disease processes. Each hospital is different though. Sometimes patients that don't wean off the vent are transferred to other units in the hospital such as ICU or CCU.

I definitely prefer the surgical patients.

It depends on how big your hospital what patients you might expect in CCU. Do you also have a SICU? The CCU where I work can get surgical, medical and neuro patients. Also, we get the post CAB pts who are not doing well.

I know a lot of people love doing the open hearts and thrive on that intensity and then watching their patients (most of them) improve quickly and walk out of the hospital. Often though, some nurses complain that it becomes too predictable.

In the CCU you will get a far more variety of patients and ailments but the outcomes can be disheartening at times. We see the long term ICU patients who are finally terminally extubated. If you don't want to deal with often very sad end of life issues, CCU may not be the best fit for you. Of course, there are a lot of good outcomes as well, but just to warn you there will be some who will be in the ICU for a month or more and then won't make it after all that was done for them. I find the sepsis pts very interesting. You are titrating drips, giving fluids, watching all body systems. The post PTCA pts and sheath pulls are very fun. Then of course, the COPDers, the Renal/Liver failure, the ETOHers, the overdoses, Pancreatitis, plus the post surgicals of all types.... then there are the pt's who will be organ donors, with Lifesource around, that is very interesting and extremely busy pts. If you get neuro pts, you will have the ventrics and the lumbar drains, the post crani's etc.

IMHO, CCU will make you a more well-rounded nurse, but hearts are very fun and people love those pts as well.

Hey, you can always start with one area and switch in a few years!!!

Thank you for the insight!

I finally decided and chose CCU

we do actually have a SICU, MICU, NeuroICU, and CTICU at our hospital (very very large teaching hospital in NYC) so I don't know if I'll get such a variety of patients, but they will definitely be sick as this hospital is known for high acuity ICUs

looking forward to joining the CCU world of nursing...!!!!

Congrats! I hope you enjoy it.

Good Choice!!! Have fun and good luck!!!

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