XP: nurses come in...

MissMex

I love my job. I have about 2000 "patients", summers off, ok hours. There are some things I hate, as all jobs have, but I am pretty satisfied. In the past 2 weeks we have had some major medical emergencies on campus, and it helped me remember why I came into nursing in the first place- that quick split second thinking that saves lives and knowing that you did your job well afterwards. I'll def need some more school if I do this because I'm only an LVN , but It's made me think about going back to the hospital. I know we have some nurses here so:

what unit/ area of nursing do you work in?

what do you love/hate about it?

Would you go to a different area/ unit right now if you could?

I'm especially curious about Trauma or ER.

TIA

MrsBlayne

I work in the ER at a level 1 trauma center. I love the variety, that I will end the day with a different set if patients than I started with, that almost nothing surprises me anymore. I love using the split second thinking that you mentioned, that on some days I will have to use the full extent of my knowledge and critical thinking skills. I love knowing that I really make a difference in peoples' lives (at least some days). I love people being impressed when they hear what I do and I love knowing that I can be totally calm under pressure. What I don't like - it's very hard work, I am on my feet all day, I work 12 HR shifts (which i love and hate), and some days I don't even have time to pee. A lot of that is because our staffing often sucks, which hopefully wouldn't be a problem for you in Cali. I hate my boss. Hopefully not an issue for you either. I hate that lots of people come to the ER for crap that is not even close to an emergency, and that they don't understand that their cold is not the biggest emergency happening right now. My plan is that this will be a stepping stone toward being a flight nurse. Other than that, the only other area I would consider working is L&D. I actually have also thought about getting a job as a school nurse, for the hours, but not until B is older. At this point, I feel like the long shifts are worth it in order to work fewer days. At our ER, we use LVNs as techs. I don't know if they do that in your area, but it might be a way for you to check it out without committing to go back to school.