Unit Secretery

RutterMama · Jan 13, 2009

I have never been a Unit Secretary, but have been a Patient Registrar and LOVED it! The med term course will certainly help, but you will get alot of that actually in the Unit, without paying for the course. But - a great decision non-the-less. Let me know how it goes for you!

BellasMommyOBRN · Jan 13, 2009

i will be interested in any input from others as i have thought about becoming a unit secretary. i live in upstate ny currently and rgh (local hospital) is always advertising for this position.

thanks!!

VenaKavaRN · Jan 13, 2009

I fill in occasionally as a unit secretary, and it can be stressful. Weekday day shifts will be the most busy, with a lot of people making miscellaneous demands on your time. At my hospital, the unit secretary is responsible for transcribing doctors' orders from the chart to the computer and that's what I'm mainly doing. There's also answering phones and call lights and relaying the calls to the correct nurses, who may or may not appreciate the message you have to give them

I also am responsible for filling the charts correctly, ie lab results here, EKG strips there, etc. Also, when a patient is being transferred to another facility or floor, the chart must be copied completely, and that's usually 100+ pages.

I really like being the Unit secretary because it gives me a lot of experience with the orders that doctors give. Even my (currently) limited information on medications and lab work has been from working with the orders and the charts. I also like knowing most of what's going on, and most things happening go through the unit secretary.

Nights and weekends are wonderful because there's far less going on so you don't feel so overwhelmed. But, doing a day shift will get you a lot more experience and personally I love the adrenaline rush. So it's up to you, and I wish you luck!

LovingNurse, BSN, RN · Jan 13, 2009

Unit Secretary was one of many positions I held before becoming an RN. I loved it! I highly recommend taking a medical terminology course. The solid foundation of a med term course will serve you well and make the job sooo much easier. Good luck.