— By Brandy Couchot, Senior —
Brandy is gaining experience at CHI St. Luke’s Health, and learning the importance that work environment can have on job satisfaction.
The CHI St. Luke’s program allows you to work on two units during the summer—one floor unit and one ICU or ER unit. I was on 11 Tower all of June, a specialized cardiac and telemetry unit consisting of patients that are post valve replacements and coronary artery bypass surgeries.
Currently, for July, I am in the Coronary Care Unit (CCU), a specialized ICU unit for patients with cardiac problems. Common things you may come across in the CCU include patients that are intubated, in a coma or under a high level of sedation, have an Intra-aortic Balloon Pump (IABP), or are in induced hypothermia. However, some are completely alert and orientated. I also had the chance to shadow healthcare professionals in other areas, including:
- Rapid Response
- Integrative medicine
- Dialysis
- Catheterization lab
- CV Recovery
- Nurse practitioner/Clinical nurse specialist/Nurse educator
I am very satisfied with CHI St. Luke’s and my experience thus far. The nurses are willing and wanting to teach. There are pros and cons to working at every hospital, but one thing that stands out with CHI St. Luke’s is family. People know each other and greet you in the hallways no matter the color of your scrubs (which is how it should be, but sadly is not always the case). I am constantly hearing that people have been here for 10, 20, 40 years! Because they love the way they are treated as employees. CHI St. Luke’s is commonly known for two things, Cardiac and Transplants. If you are considering CHI St. Luke’s I encourage you to look into the Cooley Transplant Center and Dr. Cooley himself, for he is known nation-wide in the medical community.
I think it goes without saying that an externship is a great way to enhance your clinical nursing skills, resume, and ability to communicate with patients. Do you need to have an externship? No. Does it help you to get a better understanding of the type of area you want to work in following graduation? Certainly. Does it open up other doors and possibilities? Absolutely. However, don’t let the idea of needing to have an externship stress you out. During my time at CHI St. Luke’s I met multiple nurses who landed an ICU position without any externship experience. I also met some who had an externship and that was the tiebreaker that landed them the job. Everyone has a different journey. All that matters is that you have a goal in mind, and experience as much as you feel necessary to find a place you will love to work. Remember, at the end of the day you need to take care of yourself in order to take care of your patients. Part of that, I believe, is finding the right type of work environment for you.