What nursing specialty interests you the most for the future?

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I am just going to be starting nursing school in the fall, but as of right now from doing research, watching shows and hearing from people with the experience, I'm leaning toward perioperative (OR) nursing. How about you?

Specializes in M/S, LTC, Corrections, PDN & drug rehab.
Then don't set the bar too high. A LOT of ER is handling a 3 year old with an ear infection that comes to ER because Mom doesn't want to have to make a clinic appointment, a bean pushed up a 6 year old nose, a fever that the parents haven't even tried to bring down with tylenol. You're in for a rude awakening if you think it's 24/7 knife and gun club with the occasional code thrown in to make things interesting.

I use to want to work ER. Then I became a nurse, looked around & realized how much was trauma vs. clinic stuff. So I changed my mind.

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Perioperative is great. I had the opportunity to work in that area as a nursing assistant and plan to go back when I get some experience. I've always had an interest in PACU, OR, critical care, and maternity. Still trying to figure it out :)

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Right now, I'm most interested in OR/perioperative, ICU (especially CVICU), and research nursing. Hospice, forensics, and school nursing are also interesting. Maybe I'll even specialize in SAFE nursing, IV therapy, or wound/ostomy care!

I'm keeping an open mind as I go through my clinical rotations. So far, everything has been awesome, but I know I DEFINITELY do NOT want to work in women's health!!!

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Specializes in Emergency/Trauma/LDRP/Ortho ASC.
Then don't set the bar too high. A LOT of ER is handling a 3 year old with an ear infection that comes to ER because Mom doesn't want to have to make a clinic appointment, a bean pushed up a 6 year old nose, a fever that the parents haven't even tried to bring down with tylenol. You're in for a rude awakening if you think it's 24/7 knife and gun club with the occasional code thrown in to make things interesting.

Truth.

You'll have a 3am EMS call for a chronic toothache in one room, a broken toenail in the next, a med refill in the next, and an intubated baby with a hysterical parent in the next. The toothache or med refill will give you grief and cuss you up and down that they aren't seen first. ED is awesome experience but it's not 24/7 multiple traumas either.

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I had an ICU rotation in school and was taken by the autonomy the nurse had there, but a wee bit intimidated and I didn't think they'd hire a new grad anyway. So then I was certain to be a pedi nurse practitioner when I graduated, since I spent time in a freestanding NP clinic rotation as a senior (these were very new and hot stuff, and I wanted it sooooo bad). But my then-husband got a job transfer, so we moved across the country. I interviewed for three hospitals and got offers from all, but the one I took was a PACU, because I had had a summer job in an OR/PACU once and it was familiar to me. Well, from there I went to ICU, because the head nurse kept seeing me bringing me patients there and asked me to transfer to her staff ... but before I got to make the move, we moved for his job again. I figured if somebody thought I was OK for ICU, that's where I'd apply, so I did, and spent 5 years in a world-class CVICU/SICU/MICU. I did a lot of precepting and teaching at that job.

So some of my colleagues there were going to grad school (also a very rare occurrence in those years) so I thought I'd do that so I could teach in schools. Bingo, moved again... So I took a couple of grad-level courses to supplement my GRE scores and got into one of the top 3 schools in the US. I did critical care and teaching students in one form or another for the next dozen years. Married a better man, moved across country again!

Six years later the community hospital I went to closed their nursing ed department and I was out of my critical care clinical specialist job. Took a temp job in work comp case management and found myself in a totally different milieu and loving it for the autonomy and schedule, kept at it for another decade+. From there I ended up as what amounts to a clinical specialist in case management, life care planning, and legal nursing. I figure I'll retire from that in about ten years, unless something else comes along. (Ed McMahon, where are you now that I need you?)

Moral of the story: Ya just never know what life will bring you. No knowledge is wasted-- I use all of that-- and you have to be brave enough to make the jump when you have to do it.

This is why I'm making the jump from sports medicine to nursing! I love the huge variety of opportunities, and I'm betting I'll never get bored knowing I love change!

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Specializes in OR, Nursing Professional Development.
Before I started nursing school I was interested in women's health/OB. I am currently in Med/Surg and Maternity clinicals...and I am disliking every minute of my Maternity class and clinical. Don't get me wrong, I love working with patients and enjoy the experience I am having and am learning a lot, but I now know that women's health/OB is NOT what I want to do.

I am, however, loving every minute of my Med/Surg class and clinical.

So, moral of the story...things may change;)

This is why every student should go into school with an open mind. I thought I wanted to work in OB or peds. They were my very least favorite clinicals. I now work in the OR (didn't even get an observation day as part of school but fortunately did my final practicum in PACU) and love it.

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Specializes in CTICU.

I can't get it out of my head that I need to find myself in the NICU. I'm not sure why, but I haven't been able to shake it since I started my prereqs 2 years ago

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Specializes in NICU, Trauma, Oncology.

My interests are oncology, peds, mother-baby/pp, pacu

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I'm open to trying almost any type of nursing at the moment, but I think I'll be most comfortable in palliative and hospice.

Psychiatric nursing and neuro, maybe even TBI are interesting to me as well, and working with geriatric patients. Anything else I'll do out of formality (everyone tells me to do the med-surg thing, but who hasn't heard that by now?). Regardless I'll feel honored to be offered a job as a nurse anywhere, though I'm not really big on pediatrics, and my experience in the ICU was a bit boring for me but I had a great learning experience.

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I have been going back and forth between labor and delivery and NICU for a while now. With only 2 semesters left I'm still not sure which one it will be, but we'll see!

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Specializes in Progressive Care.

I'm a telemetry nurse right now and would like to eventually settle in a procedural area, like the Cath lab or IR. I spent a day in each of these places during orientation and they fascinated me and felt right.

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Corrections or Infection Disease Control...love to do Holistic, but not sure how can make it work off the bat. Maybe down the road can open my own holistic healing center.

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