Starting on medical/oncology unit next week

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Hi!! I am a brand new grad. I graduated in December of 2013! I am very excited to say that a month ago I accepted a job offer from an amazing hospital in Chicago! It is my FIRST nursing job and although I am excited to start this journey, my nerves are more prominent. I dont know what to expect and I am nervous I wont be a good nurse or wont catch on quick enough. The orientation at this hospital is shorter than most and is only 5 weeks long. I am nervous I will drown as I have so much to learn as a brand new nurse. Does anyone have any tips or words of advice for me as I start my new journey?! I would greatly appreciate it! I am slightly freaking out!!!!!

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Specializes in Oncology; medical specialty website.

My standard suggestions for beginning oncology:

1. Join ONS (Oncology Nurses Society). http://www.ONS.org You will get discounts on CEU, publications. They have some excellent online courses, including the Chemotherapy/Biotherapy Provider course.

2. Take the online Chemotherapy/Biotherapy Provider course. It's online now, and if you complete it successfully you will get your provider card. Even if your hospital has its own course to teach staff about administering chemo, I would still suggest the course. You get quite a few CEU for completing it.

3. Get the ONS "Core Curriculum for Oncology Nursing." It's a good resource to have. It reviews a lot of basic oncology, as well as some other complex disease processes.

4. Get the manual for Chemotherapy/Biotherapy administration from ONS. It will help when you start administering chemo., and will be essential for the Chemotherapy/Biotherapy course.

5. Join your local chapter of ONS. It will provide you with educational opportunities, as well as give you an opportunity to earn CEU and network with other oncology nurses in your area.

Good luck!

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Specializes in Hematology/Oncology.
My standard suggestions for beginning oncology:

1. Join ONS (Oncology Nurses Society). www.ONS.org You will get discounts on CEU, publications. They have some excellent online courses, including the Chemotherapy/Biotherapy Provider course.

2. Take the online Chemotherapy/Biotherapy Provider course. It's online now, and if you complete it successfully you will get your provider card. Even if your hospital has its own course to teach staff about administering chemo, I would still suggest the course. You get quite a few CEU for completing it.

3. Get the ONS "Core Curriculum for Oncology Nursing." It's a good resource to have. It reviews a lot of basic oncology, as well as some other complex disease processes.

4. Get the manual for Chemotherapy/Biotherapy administration from ONS. It will help when you start administering chemo., and will be essential for the Chemotherapy/Biotherapy course.

5. Join your local chapter of ONS. It will provide you with educational opportunities, as well as give you an opportunity to earn CEU and network with other oncology nurses in your area.

Good luck!

Thanks for your suggestion.

#1. Completed

#2. Registered

#3 I will buy it.

#4 Its online

#5. my local chapter is small.

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In my opinion, 5 weeks is not nearly enough for a newly minted nurse. This is particularly true for oncology where you will have to deal with chemotherapy as well as most other drugs that you would see in med/surg. I would speak with the nurse manager and ask if it is possible to extend orientation if at the end of it you feel like you need it. Support is going to be key in this type of environment. Hopefully you will be working with a good team of people who are willing to help out and teach.

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Specializes in Hematology/Oncology.
In my opinion, 5 weeks is not nearly enough for a newly minted nurse. This is particularly true for oncology where you will have to deal with chemotherapy as well as most other drugs that you would see in med/surg. I would speak with the nurse manager and ask if it is possible to extend orientation if at the end of it you feel like you need it. Support is going to be key in this type of environment. Hopefully you will be working with a good team of people who are willing to help out and teach.

This is medical/oncology. this is not just oncology patients... they probably wont let a new nurse admin chemo for a while....

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I work in oncology, and I hung chemo during orientation with my preceptor. I had to complete the ONS chemotherapy/biotherapy provider course (paid for by my unit) before I could hang chemo by myself. Well, you never really hang it by yourself because it always needs a 2nd RN check, anyway.

And regardless of whether it's a medical/oncology unit or any other type of unit, for that matter, 5 weeks is simply not enough time for a brand new grad to become oriented. For a nurse with experience, I could see orientation only being 5 weeks. My unit orientation was 14 weeks long. Obviously every hospital and unit orientation period will vary...

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Specializes in Hematology/Oncology.
I work in oncology, and I hung chemo during orientation with my preceptor. I had to complete the ONS chemotherapy/biotherapy provider course (paid for by my unit) before I could hang chemo by myself. Well, you never really hang it by yourself because it always needs a 2nd RN check, anyway.

And regardless of whether it's a medical/oncology unit or any other type of unit, for that matter, 5 weeks is simply not enough time for a brand new grad to become oriented. For a nurse with experience, I could see orientation only being 5 weeks. My unit orientation was 14 weeks long. Obviously every hospital and unit orientation period will vary...

I guess mine was 6 weeks. I am already at 4 months, maybe I am more competent than most and the nurses around me answer so many questions and go out of their way to help eachother out in every way possible.

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Specializes in Oncology/hematology.

I was given 6 weeks orientation on my oncology unit and am feeling like it was enough, even as a new grad. My preceptors are now my coworkers and still answer my stupid questions when I have them. We are not allowed to even witness chemo until we've gone through the course and can't do that for a year, so I haven't hung chemo yet. I can't wait until my year is up and I can fully do what the nurses on my unit do.

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