Cardiac Rehab Nursing

carachel2 · Jul 30, 2009

Hey there and yes, there are lots of EP's who successfully made the switch. I have an EP degree and loved what I did, but they pay was horrible compared to the responsibility required. I went back to school and got my BSN (which I highly recommend...it only took 2 years).

Honestly, I had job offers at major cadiac rehab centers right when I graduated, but I chose to get some good inpatient cardiac experience for 1.5 years and I highly recommend you do that. So much of what you will do as a cardiac rehab RN depends on you being able to recognize crazy rhythms, manage the CHF patients and be alert for subtle signs and symptoms.

I've posted previously about making the transition. Hopefully you can find some of those old posts. Good luck and you are making a great choice! I've never regretted going back to school for my BSN. You will more than likely always have a job and the flexibility is great. DO be aware that RN's in cardiac rehab make about 6-7K LESS than an inpatient CCU RN just because you will not have overtime or shift differentialsl. There were lots of times when I supplemened my nice cardiac rehab job with a few extra 12 hour CCU shifts a month and it was totally no big deal.

Feel free to ask me any questions.

mjenk · Jul 30, 2009

Thanks so much for your response! So...if I can ask some more questions....what is your schedule like? Did u have to put in a lot of night and weekends in the beginning? How long did it take to get where you wanted- just the 1.5 years?What area exactly do you work in now? Did you ever have to work in telemetry? Are you doing (did you have to do) any bedpans, etc. That is what scares/bothers me the most. There is a BSN program near me- a bit more expensive then the AS RN program at our community college. With the BSN I need more of the pre-req.s to even apply and that would take another year at least. The AS program, I could get the 2 pre-req's I need and start in the Fall. DO you think I should go for the BSN or do RN to BSN later? DO I need aBSN to work in cardiac? Was your program geared toward cardiac nursing or do you learn most on the job? I only have one EKG class under my belt and I feel like I've already lost the knowledge because I haven't ever used it. How was nursing school? What are your likes/dislikes about your job? DO you miss being an EP? What type of salary difference is there? SO many questions! I'm going to look for your previous posts- thank you!!! I just want to make the right decision for me and for my family....

carachel2 · Jul 30, 2009

1. Schedule: I worked as a student tech in the CCU while in school. I would urge you to do this after your first semester in nursing school for both the great experience AND due to the fact that most hospitals provide some sort of tuition assistance or scholarship. My hospital paid for almost all of nursing school because of this. My CCU schedule was three days per week, no nights since there was a day time opening when I graduated. My cardiac rehab schedule varied a lot depending on where I was in my life (i.e. 6-3 when married with no kids; 9-2 when I had a child.)

2. I did just the 1.5 years in CCU before jumping ship back to cardiac rehab. During that time I kept in touch with the nurse manager of cardiac rehab and she clearly knew of my indications to return to CR. I would advise doing the same OR find some sort of way of keeping your foot in the door in CR.

3. Right now I am in graduate school to become an FNP and I finish in December! I am not currently working due to the schedule.

4. You do not need a BSN to work in cardiac rehab. In fact, I was the only one in our program for quite awhile. In my area, it would've been practically the same amount of time for an ADN as for a BSN since I already had a BS. This probably differs by school and area. Where do you live?

5. As far as EKG experience...nursing school doesn't give you a whole lot of that. Seek out the experience on your own. You will get a lot of OTJT when you are hired by a hospital and they will send you through pretty advanced EKG classes. In the meantime, you can seek out classes and experiences offered through your current job as an EP.

6. Nursing school ---eh, there were parts of it I hated. You just suck it up because you know what you want to do in the end. Hated anything associated with phlegm, didn't mind the bedpan, bed bath, body parts, blood, etc. though. Hated the care plans and such but they all do serve a purpose to help you learn to think in a whole different way. It will be a LOT different than EP school. I found that with my EP degree it was just a bunch of memorization whereas in nursing school the main point is to get you to think critically on your toes. Applying all that information is way different than memorizing...but you can do it!

7. I do not miss being an EP. Being an EP was somewhat like being RN but a very frustrated RN who was expected to know a huge amount of the big picture but who did not have the required education and training. However, a lot of people find they are not comfortable with the autonomy and expectations of being an RN and it is critical that you shadow someone so you understand this before you start.

8. In Texas after 5-10 years of nursing experience the average RN makes 25-30.00/hour. I don't know where you live but I would suggest going to the regional boards here to ask. Whatever the rate, it is WAY better than the $12-15.00/ hour as an EP!

9. Nursing is a very sought after and flexible career. At any point if you do not like the field you are in, you can literally walk to the nursing office and say you want to do something entirely different. I have done this many times (I needed more varied experience for NP school so I literally walked over to the ER, asked for a transfer and was given a very flexibile schedule and most of the training needed to switch to the ER.

carachel2 · Jul 30, 2009

Oh...and I would advise NOT getting a Masters in EP. The pay is still comparably lousy.

mjenk · Jul 30, 2009

Thanks for all the great info. It really helped a lot. I have been out of the workforce for ten years so I think my transition will not be as "easy" (I know it wasn't) as yours- (my background is mostly obese patients and elders - with no hospital rehab experience) but still my love is cardiac physiology and helping people so I think if I can make it through nursing school I will be ok! I think because it is closer and less expensive I will go thru the AS program and go from there. I hope that will still be a good choice even though I am sure I will have to further my education at some point. (Is it wise to do this and gain some experience working, or should I wait it out , pay more $ for school, take the prereq's and start a year later(2011) for the BSN?) I am in MA and I am not sure how things will work here. I plan to speak to the head of the nursing dept. to find out if I can move toward this specialty throughout my schooling and gain some experience along the way. Thanks again- you have been so very helpful in my decision!