Switching specialties?

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Hello fellow nurses! I'm in desperate need for advice and I can't ask my friends at work because no one is aware I want to leave. I graduated nursing school in May 2016, started the critical care residency in august, and I have been on my own since December. When I started I had so much passion for this job, I thought it was my dream! But since I've started on my own with no preceptor I've dreaded work every day. I am so stressed, anxious, and surrounded by death and hardly any happy endings. I'm in deep Dallas so the patients don't care about health and are angry/rude/homeless/drug addicts/alcoholics etc. Sooo I am DESPERATE to get out! Problem is I only have 6 months experience and I feel bad leaving the staff, they are the only reason I'm still there. I was thinkinf about becoming a newborn nurse in the nursery. It was my 2nd choice after ICU. Is it a good idea for me to leave? Is it even possible to go from adults to babies? Every job opening says I need women's health experience. Help!

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Specializes in Clinical Research, Outpt Women's Health.

You need to give it more time in my opinion.

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Do you want to become a NICU nurse? Because there aren't really jobs for nursery nurses anymore since the standard is that babies room in. Some postpartum units will have a "nursery nurse" who helps with circs, admissions, ect. But I imagine they don't hire directly for this, they would just have their postpartum nurses rotate in.

if you did want to get into postpartum maybe take a related course but you should stay in your current position longer.

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Specializes in ICU.

Newborn nursery is getting phased out. It's all about LDRP. If you're at Parkland or BUMC then there is a nursery but, will you stay there forever? probably not..

NICU does not sound like it is for you unless it is a level two or lower. If you can't deal with the death of people who are terminally ill and old, I find NICU impossible for you. Can you care for a newborn born at 23 weeks? 7/10 die. As soon as they are born they are resuscitated, meaning that is your job when you are present for the birth in L&D.

If you can't deal with death any ICU is not for you. Inpatient nursing is probably not for you. Do your time and switch to a procedural area.

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