What can I do as an RN?

[foxc1121]

Okay, so while I was in school I was told that I could do so many things with my license. I am not finding that to be the case. I have been an RN for 10 months and I don't know what to do now. I am unhappy with my current position, yet I like floor nursing. I want to have more hands on with patients. I am ACLS certified and am fascinated by ER nursing, maybe I should do that. I have worked in women's health for over 20 years (not as an RN), so maybe I should do that. I am so confused.

Can any ER, labor and delivery nurses or any other nurses respond and make any suggestions?? I don't have much experience in NG tubes, I suck at starting IVs. However, I will say this, I do not panic in an emergency situation. I have two children (now grown) and have never, ever panicked in an emergency situation (I guess I feel that if I don't panic with my kids - I can handle anything)

We had a code yesterday on our floor (tele), the patient died (not my patient) As I watched the code and helped out to a certain extent - I just thought - I would loved to have been in the mix of this. What do I need to do to be an ER nurse? Is there a course I need to take? My hospital will not tell me because they do not want me to leave my floor.

Every job that I apply for asks for 2 years experience, which I do not have, yet. Just don't know what to do. Any suggestions??

[GingerSue]

Ask at the educational facilities about their courses.

Ask in the Allnurses Specialty forum for Emergency Nursing.

Ask in your human resources office or the manager in your emergency department.

[SheaOBRN]

I think that you would be more hands on in the ER or Labor and Delivery....it depends on the hospital and staffing situation. If you have residents and MA's and CNA's then some of the hands on, task stuff is taken away and done by people who are trained or certified to get nurses back to the paper work . As far as the code stuff-ask your educator or human resources as to who you would need to talk to to become involved in this. Good luck!

[ZooMommyRN, ADN, RN]

Keep pluggin away at applying, sometimes hospitals say they want 2 years experience but will make exceptions and train the right person, I have been bitten by critical care bug hard these past 3 weeks while doing my practicum in the ICU & floating to the ER, while they normally want a nurse with experience, they saw something in me that I hadn't seen yet, I was made for critical care lol however I did not accept the floor position because I had already accepted a position with the same facility on a med/surg floor, but I too will be like you a new grad with ACLS and a drive for something other than med/surg so they are willing to cross train me so I can float to other units, keep asking, go to your clinical education dept and request cross training, I don't know what other facilities you have around you if any (only 2 hospitals here and I couldn't even get a return phone call from the other's HR dept), if med surg isn't where you truly want to be then make the change, check into classes for critical care nurses, take some of those and maybe that will help your case as well, good luck!!