ABSTRACT
When a nurse begins his/her job, he/she may be supernumerary for the first few weeks. Find out where the following departments are: salaries and wages, human resources, the nurse bank office, hospital chapel, chapel of rest, porters' base, theatres, recovery area, ITU, high-dependency unit, coronary care, medical assessment unit, Accident and Emergency, medical records, outpatients, pharmacy, X-ray, pathology and the emergency drug cupboard. By the end of his/her first day on the ward, make sure that he/she knows about the following: the place where the equipment is kept; the equipment required in an emergency situation; and all emergency equipment should be checked by a trained nurse once a day to ensure that it is working correctly and that it is all there. Think about the fundamental nursing care that he/she will need to provide for his/her group of patients.
