Torn

[Kaligirl02]

Hello all! I've been offered two positions, one is a new grad residency for the ICU and the other is on a tele unit. My dream is to be an ICU nurse and right out of school I have that opportunity. The only thing is... For about 4 months the pay is only 16.88, no benefits until 7 months are completed. The tele floor is a 12 week orientation and benefits after 6 months, base pay is given from the start. Right now I am working my regular shift in home health, I was able to transition my LVN role to my new RN role and have been able to save up some money with that. I'm just worried that I will be pretty much poor for 4 months if I take the ICU job. Doing what I dreamed of is very important to me, but being able to pay my bills is a priority. The wait for benefits are comparable, so that doesn't impact my decision too much. Do you guys have any advice?

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[musingmom]

"Do you guys think it is possible to actually do the three 12's, and 8 hr education class and do a prn shift every week?"

Yes, absolutely. I finished a similar four month residency last year, that sounds similarly structured. If it's only you, it will be a rough 4 months, but it's doable. Maybe a PRN shift every other week, to give yourself a break. If ICU is where you want to be, don't pass this up.

[turtlesRcool]

My guess (and it's only a guess) is that the low pay is tied to the extremely high cost of training a new ICU nurse. One of my clinical instructors also worked per diem in the ICU, and she said the training costs are so high because they are essentially paying two nurses to do one job. The usual ICU load is two patients, so nurses cost more per patient than a regular floor to start, and as a newbie, you won't even be able take on those two patients for a while. So in the beginning, the hospital will be paying the new nurse and the preceptor to care for one patient. Benefits also probably kick in later because, depending on how generous the benefits are, they might represent a significant cost to the employer. I know people who have lost their jobs and were unable to keep their coverage because the COBRA payments were just too high.

New Grads are going to take longer to orient than nurses with a year or more of med-surg experience, so it takes longer before they become really 'useful' to the hospital. I know you are probably the exception because of your LVN work, but I'm assuming the residency is designed with the brand-new no-experience grad in mind.

I think if you really want to be an ICU nurse, 4 months of low pay is worth it. Think of it as some form of continuing education (which it basically is). If you keep in mind that so many internships in other fields are unpaid or only get a small stipend, it might make the half pay of this position seem like a better deal.

[Kaligirl02, ADN, BSN, MSN, LVN, RN, APRN, NP]

TurtlesRcool-

I didn't think of it that way. Thank you all so very much with helping me with this decision. All of my classmates are telling me to just do the tele job since there is no pay reduction during the training. ICU is where my heart is at, and I really want and am grateful for this opportunity. It's really exciting to know that I'll be an ICU Nurse. Once again, thank you all!

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[Red Kryptonite]

Think of it this way: a semester is 4 months. Just look at it as your final semester of school.

4 months that suck to set you up for life with the job you want sounds like a pretty good deal.

[Purple_roses]

Make out a detailed budget sheet for yourself and see if you can pay your pills with that pay. Maybe you'll have to cut back on a few things. But if it's your dream job and you can afford it for those four months, go for it!