L&D vs Trauma
I would advise you, as a new grad, to get some med/surg experience first before going into L&D or Trauma. Med/surg is the basis of all medicine; get comfortable with the basics first.

L&D RN

Re: L&D vs Trauma


i would say go into L+D because as your friend stated most will not take a seasoned M/S Nurse and then have them trained into L+D, but they will train you to become L+D straight from school sounds stupid but i am trying to go into the ER and am running into the same thing (have alot of tele,pcu,icu experience but no er so no er will take me or willing to train me)

I have been a nurse for 14+ years. I have worked all of it in the ER. I am also a paid firefighter and do volunteer rescue and first responder calls.

I have spent 10 years in a level one trauma center and the last 4 years in a small town ER. I have never worked med -surg I know friends who do and love it but it seems to stressful to me; Too much different stuff going on and having to deal with the entire family doctor personalities issues. Most ER Docs are easy to get along with. I ain't working L&D although I did meet my wife in L&D. she worked there for a few years and after taking a few pregnant women to her specialty area from the ER I kind of fell for her. She looked hot in her scrubs no .. Lol it was more than that. She was a smart ass to me the first few times we met which turned me on. So. I took her out one night to McDonalds. That was 12 years and two kids ago.

The ER is an easy place for me to work. I know the language and how the game is played and I care about my fellow employees and patients. Pick an area you want to work in and will possibly enjoy and go for it. It will take time for unit specific skills to develop and mature. There are some days I can hit any IV from neonates to code patients in one stick and then some days I wish I could start an IV period.

I am an instructor in ACLS and PALS. I am not a rocket scientist. Simply plug those algorithms into anything that appears in the ER and you got it made. Whether you have a chest cold or sucking chest wound; It�s still the basic abc�s.