Which will help me get to NICU eventually??

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Hey everyone! I'm a senior graduating in June and I really want to work in the NICU! Unfortunately, no NICU's in my area are hiring :( So my question is this...which of the following options would help prepare me the best for working in the NICU one day?

Option 1:A new grad internship program in adult critical care. This is a 20 week program with both classes and rotations through adult critical care areas.

Option 2: A job in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at the Children's Hospital in my city.

Option 3: A job in surgery. This is another interest of mine so I decided to apply when I heard that no NICU's were hiring.

Any advice would be great! Thanks.

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Specializes in NICU - 112 bed NICU.

I would say any of the above however it may be easier to transfer within the same hospital when an NICU opening becomes available.

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Specializes in Maternal - Child Health.

Of these 3 choices, I would recommend the following order:

1. Picu

2. OR

3. Adult

In my experience, nurses with adult experience have a very difficult time transitioning to the NICU. They have so much to "unlearn" that many try it for a while, then give up. PICU has many similarities to NICU, and in my opinion will offer you very good, diverse training and experience. The OR doesn't have a lot in common with the NICU, but at least you won't have to "unlearn" things in order to transition to the NICU. Adult experience may prove to be a detriment.

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Specializes in Neonatal ICU (Cardiothoracic).

As a PICU nurse in a addition to a NICU nurse, I say go for the PICU. You'll probably be floated to NICU once in a while, and you'll get to hone your pediatric/neonatal critical care skills, which are very different from adults...

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Specializes in start in NICU 7/14/08.

I'm not a nurse...yet...but would a job in a newborn nursery be a good preparation for NICU since it would be an opportunity to hone assessment skills specifically for a neonate?

I know that wasn't on your list, and maybe it's not even an option for you, but just thought I'd throw it out there perhaps for the seasoned nurses to comment on.

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Specializes in Level III NICU.
I'm not a nurse...yet...but would a job in a newborn nursery be a good preparation for NICU since it would be an opportunity to hone assessment skills specifically for a neonate?

I know that wasn't on your list, and maybe it's not even an option for you, but just thought I'd throw it out there perhaps for the seasoned nurses to comment on.

A position in NBN would definitely be good preparation for NICU. Knowing what is normal for a baby helps you to see what isn't. We send our new grads to work a couple shifts in NBN while on orientation for that reason.

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Specializes in women's health, NICU.
I'm not a nurse...yet...but would a job in a newborn nursery be a good preparation for NICU since it would be an opportunity to hone assessment skills specifically for a neonate?

Yeah, I found the NBN thing to be helpful for me. Prior to transferring to the NICU, I worked mother baby and NBN. I think that experience made it easier for me to transition into the NICU setting. What the last person said about knowing normal parameters on a well baby before seeing a sick baby is correct. At the same time, many people who start out in the NICU straight out of school or even come from a completely different specialty area do just as fine. You would just have to be ready and willing to learn all over again.

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Specializes in Nurse Scientist-Research.

I do agree that the PICU would give you the best chance to hire into NICU next.

But as for adult experience being a detriment; I don't think so. The former adult nurses I have worked with (and I'm one of them) tend to progress more quickly to the higher acuity babies.

Whereas our typical new grad will spend 6+ months with feeder growers before the charge nurses trusts them with sicker kids/admits the former adult nurses will progress to the sicker kids within 2-3 months after getting off orientation.

As for former NBN nurses. Just my experience here . . . They tend to never progress to the sicker kids. They tend to stay with the feeder growers. Not that there's anything wrong with that; it's my preference too.

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Specializes in Pulmonary.
But as for adult experience being a detriment; I don't think so. The former adult nurses I have worked with (and I'm one of them) tend to progress more quickly to the higher acuity babies.

Whereas our typical new grad will spend 6+ months with feeder growers before the charge nurses trusts them with sicker kids/admits the former adult nurses will progress to the sicker kids within 2-3 months after getting off orientation

I'm glad to hear this, as a nurse with nearly two years of adult med/surg vent expirience, it's disheartening to hear that some think that having that expirieince is a barrier to being successful in the NICU.

As for the original poster, I wish that I had more constructive information for you...good luck on finding a position that meets your interests!

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Thanks everyone for the posts. I found out that for my senior leadership course this last quarter I got into the NICU!! So I'm super excited about that and hopefully that could open some doors :) Thanks again

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