Can you go straight into community as a newly registered nurse and is it better to have ward experience first?

This is a topic that comes up again and again in student nursing forums and chats, can you go straight into community or should you get ward experience first? The simple answer is that you can and it is entirely up to you if you want to go straight into community or onto the wards first.

For me, I was lucky to receive a district nursing placement as a first year student and I remember being terrified when my mentor asked me on the first day to get her some aquacell and kerramax dressings out...we had done nothing about wound care at university and I didn't even know what she was talking about, so I went through the box and eventually found what she had asked for but I didn't have any understanding about wound healing or even the role of community nurses and my mentor could see that. I was lucky that my mentor in that placement was so good, that afternoon she gave me wound formulary books and guides and told me to take them home to read and also went over the vast role that community nurses play in ensuring continued care of our patients. After a week I was a pro at dressings but still found it difficult being in people's own houses which were sometimes vastly different from my own. Over the six weeks of that placement I learn a lot and enjoyed the work but never seen myself as a community nurse.

Fast forward two years and in third year I was again given a district nursing placement, this one was completely different, it was in a rural setting and all of the town knew the nurses by name. By that point I had a great many experiences and skills under my belt and after a few weeks with my mentor she said that I was doing well and did I want to have my own caseload? Of course I jumped at the chance! The most difficult things were initially stepping through the door to someone's house and not knowing what you may find and also having to make decisions alone but after a few weeks I really had the hang of it and completely fell in love with community practice. I loved seeing the same patients again and again and being able to really build a relationship with them and I loved to see improvement and how comfortable people were in their own environment.

By the time I got to my final placement I had requested district nursing and was disappointed to find I had been given A&E, however now I realize that A&E has given me invaluable experience of seeing deterioration and a range of conditions that are applicable to community nursing.

When I qualified in February I already had a community staff nurse position lined up and going straight into community was the best decision I made, the support and training has been fantastic and I have never felt completely out of my depth. The most difficult part is still having to make decisions often quickly when a patient is deteriorating but I think that is something I will get used to with experience.

So back to the original question...if you love community work and feel that you will be happy there then do not hesitate to go straight into it, there will be scary moments but your skills will be honed to community practice and there is always someone who can help if you are not sure about something. Some people think that ward experience is essential but ward work is so completely different to the community that the only benefit is having experience of skills and in many circumstances these are not applicable in the community anyway.

Lynsay x