Where should a new grad work?

Fiona59 · Sep 3, 2008

Head to General Surgery and stay away from Medicine. General Surgery units wind up with everything from thyroids to prostrates to compassionate care to neuro trauma.

Basically when the beds are full a general surgical unit gets the overflow. You'll build skills and time management abilities like you never dreamt of and there are enough shifts floating around to keep you busy.

RAH or UofA?

Corvus · Sep 4, 2008

Hey! I think I might know who you are! Did you apply for an AHFMR student research grant in summer '06?

Monkeyman · Sep 4, 2008

Fiona I'm applying to the UAH, but I might also be interested in picking up some shifts at the RAH because I loved the unit I was on during the time there.

Why do say to stay away from general medicine? Thanks for the input!

Corvus, I did get an AHFMR summer studentship, but that was back in 2000 during my first degree!

Fiona59 · Sep 4, 2008

General Medicine is too much like LTC for many nurses. We've had their overflow on the Surgical floors and the patients are awful. Pages and pages of 08 and 10 meds, needy, stay forever, and don't get the concept of it works use it. Add in the fact that the doctors take forever to act on nurses concerns.

I guess in Surgical we expect patients to go home, usually within five days and be responsible for their recovery. The surgeons respond quickly to concerns raised by the nurses and appear to enjoy giving us information on the patients conditions. Medicine docs just take forever to come see their patients and don't willingly share. But then they get paid by the number of days their patients stay in hospital.

I work with nurses who transferred from the medicine floors and they say they are much happier in the Surgical Dept.

Come to us, we have snacks and good stuff on our units and we share...

Monkeyman · Sep 4, 2008

Fiona, totally agree with the fact that its actually nice to see patients get better and get discharged!

That's one of the reasons I was leaning towards surgery as well. Are you on a gen. surg. unit? I did a rotation on a gen. surgery unit at the UAH during my schooling, and I really liked it. I'm not sure if there are any postings for gen. surg at the U right now though.

Fiona59 · Sep 4, 2008

Check our RAH, we're fun, we're friendly, did I mention we have snacks?

Hell, we work our asses off like everybody else in the system. We just enjoy ourselves and the big egos get hauled back in line pretty fast.

Did I mention snacks?

Pediatric Critical Care Columnist · Sep 4, 2008

There are two postings for Gen Surg at the U and a couple on ortho surgery, a couple neurosurgery, a couple cardiac surgery, one for the inpatient transplant unit and some small FTEs on ENT. Pretty much everything else is medicine or medicine-like. New postings go up on Fridays.

Monkeyman · Sep 5, 2008

I actually had an interview w/ neurosciences today for a neurosurgery RN position. It would definitely be an interesting and challenging place to work. Ideally I'm looking for something with a 0.6-0.8 FTE. The cardiac surgery postings look nice!

I have a few more interviews next week too with surgical wards, including an ENT and a float position.

Does staffing let you pick up shifts on medical units if you work on a surgical units at the UAH? I've heard that at the RAH, if your position is on a surgical ward then you can pick up extra shifts on other surgery units, but usually not on medical units.

Is there a lot of extra shifts available nowadays?

Fiona59 · Sep 5, 2008

RAH will let you cross services if you have experience.

There are lots of extra shifts around. Very few part timers work their allocated hours. Staffing Office has this wonderful idea that every part timer wants to be a full timer and once they have your phone number, they know how to use it.

If you want variety in your job, the float position is the way to go. It lets you experience different units and helps you decide where you would like to find a "home" unit. But I know floats that have been floating for years and stay that way to avoid unit politics.

Good luck in your decision.

Pediatric Critical Care Columnist · Sep 5, 2008

Very few part timers work their allocated hours.

Sorry but I have to dispute that. Part timers are required to work their FTE. They can't just take a shift off and not replace it somewhere else in the schedule. As a 0.7 FTE I am expected to work 14 twelve hour shifts every six weeks (full time is 20 shifts). If for some reason I'm only scheduled for 13 in one six week block, I'll have 15 in the next. Our benefits (vacation, sick time and stat pay etc) are predicated on working our required hours.

Fiona59 · Sep 5, 2008

I guess I should have been more specific. Very part timers only work their .4, .5, or whatever. Most wind up working at least two extra shifts or staying past quitting time and doing OT.

And then hiding from the Staffing Office.