Too gutsy??

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Specializes in Med surge/ tele.

Hi all,

Just looking for some advice. I recently accepted a job on a pediatric dialysis floor. Now it has been my dream to work at this hospital & I loved peds in clinicals. But I am wondering what is working as a dialysis nurse really like. I’m going back to observe next week just to make sure it’s what I really want.
Anyone can offer insight into working as a dialysis nurse? Also what is the usual pay rate? & I know this clinic is the only children’s clinic in the state. So although they are in a hospital they run a little bit different. It’s more like Davila clinic I’m told

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Specializes in Dialysis.

I have worked as an adult outpatient dialysis nurse for 5 years and as a pediatric dialysis nurse for the last 8 months. I work for a large university hospital and my unit is NOT like a Davita clinic.

Firstly, pay is largely going to depend on where you live. I will say that my current position pays me about 30% more than my previous positions in chronic dialysis, but that may be specific to my area.

Dialysis can be a very rewarding profession if you enjoy building relationships with patients.

Good things to know about the position: do you have technicians? what is your orientation like? will you be required to set up/take down machines? Are you also doing the inpatient pediatric dialysis treatments at the hospital? What is your nurse:patient ratio?

As someone with experience in dialysis it wasn't a huge jump for me to go from chronic, adult dialysis to chronic/acute pediatric dialysis. I already knew the machines, how to set up and troubleshoot and how to react quickly to avoid certain issues that come up.

I would be most interested in what the training is like and how much support you will have. Some patients may seem fairly stable, but it's very important to be observant and think critically to avoid complications.

Best of luck! Feel free to message me if you have any questions!

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Specializes in hemo and peritoneal dialysis.

How young can these patients be?

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Specializes in Dialysis.

Our youngest inpatients are newborns, the youngest outpatient I've had is 3 years old. We really try to initiate peritoneal dialysis, especially with the little ones.

Right now most of my outpatient peds patients are teenagers.

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Specializes in hemo and peritoneal dialysis.

I applaud you. It takes a special person to work with the little ones. Keep’em smiling?

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Specializes in Dialysis.

Thank you ?

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Specializes in Vents, Telemetry, Home Care, Home infusion.

Check out allnurses Dialysis forum: https://allnurses.com/dialysis-renal-urology-c36/

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