Senior nurse student

Posts: 6 · Joined: 24 Mar 2006 Posts: 6 Location: Los Angles

Hi,
I was wondering if experiences nurse can give some advice. I am thinking about applying for a floor nurse in ped or an OR. Can you please tell me the pros and cons. ANything would help for my decision

Posts: 1 · Joined: 30 Mar 2006 Posts: 1 Location: NJ

Congratulations on completing nursing school- alot of opportunities await you in your future. You asked pros/cons of a peds and OR position. My first question is what is your ultimate goal? If you really love the OR and cannot imagine doing anything else, by all means take the OR position. If you like floor nursing and want to be able to 'move around' , peds may be your best bet ( actually med surg may be the best choice for the first year- especially if you want ED or critical care in the future). Peds is pretty intense, and jobs are more difficult to find than med surg jobs if you are thinking about relocating in the future. If you love kids and their parents, and like a challenge, Peds will fit the bill. Both Peds and OR may be self limiting, depending on the actually units, but if you are not in a Children's Hospital, most peds units take med surg overflow due the the variable census.

There is alot to think about, but your question should be which position will give you the experience you need to reach your ultimate goal. I have found that if a new grad is happy and comfortable in the unit, the 'pros and cons' really mean very little. Your first year is primarily adjusting to being an independant professional nurse. You will need to become part of the unit as well as using and improving your critial thinking skills to incorporate the art and science of nursing. Whatever you do, always remember to provide the best patient care you are able to give. Welcome to the profession!
Laughing

Alice

Posts: 1 · Joined: 31 Mar 2006 Posts: 1 Location: South Carolina

I give you two thumbs way up for the areas of nursing you are looking at going into. I have been nursing for only 8years, but in that time I have worked on med-surg, in endoscopy, and now as a travel nurse in hemodialysis. The best experience I got was working the 2 1/2 years on med-surg. Everyone says if you can work on med-surg, you can work anywhere. I am a firm believer in that. I try to encourage everyone to work at least one year on the floor before going anywhere else. You may find that many peds floors have med-surg overflow, in smaller hospitals, so you would get exposed to adults and children. My best friend from nursing school does that in Mullins, SC and she loves it. One other small thing is that in the OR, the nurse is a circulator. Most of the time there is not much for an RN to do except be an extra pair of hands to go get more supplies. I found that out after talking to some OR nurses. PACU is one on one pt care, but still best to have med-surg. Good luck with whatever you decide.
Wink

Karen