[goldren lab lover]

I have bad crohn's and now will need to start on more severe immunosuppressive drugs. I'm a critical care RN and love it (16 years). I don't want to give up patient care but I keep getting sicker more freq now. Any ideas what kind of jobs would be good for me. I like to be busy but need my bathroom breaks too.Thanks for any info.

[Marie_LPN]

Hmm. It's not necessarily pt. care, but to keep in touch with the critical care aspects, maybe (if you don't mind public speaking) you could do the inservices for the unit you work on. It wouold probably take researching beforehand, and if you had to interrupt an inservice for a trip to the bathroom, i'm sure the people there would understand.

What made me think of this suggestion is that we have an almost-retired diploma RN who does research at home, etc. and does our monthly inservices.

[Angie O'Plasty, RN]

Yup. Similar difficulties here.

Here's a link to a thread that might give you some ideas:

http://allnurses.com/forums/f8/if-no...edside%2C+what

[Wren]

Goldenlablover....Hubby suffers from Crohns so I empathize. You might consider working in research...check out a medical school if one is near you or a large hospital. Nurses with ICU experience are often required for studies that involve critically ill patients.

Another option is telephonic nursing support, either disease management, triage, education or something like that.

If you don't mind losing the patient contact, you could consider an insurance company nursing job. Nurses there review claims, authorize procedures and other clinical/administrative type jobs. Good luck!

[atwtrn]

I also have severe Crohn's. I've been on immunosepresive drugs and IV remicade. Luckily, I'm in remission at this point. But, I'm glad to hear that others in Nursing have this question. Sometimes I wonder what will happen if I'm not able to provide patient care. I've also heard of Nurses working with Lawyers. Anyone know anything about that?

[NRSKarenRN]

Per diem Home care allows you to plan # visits per day around your needs....working for hightech infusion would keep you on cutting edge meds administered in the home if you still want hands on.

Many options listed in above thread.

[LadyNASDAQ]

Originally Posted by goldren lab lover

I have bad crohn's and now will need to start on more severe immunosuppressive drugs. I'm a critical care RN and love it (16 years). I don't want to give up patient care but I keep getting sicker more freq now. Any ideas what kind of jobs would be good for me. I like to be busy but need my bathroom breaks too.Thanks for any info.

I think that most here that are posting don't understand your dilemma. You're going to get sick from your patients because you won't be able to fight off germs due to your drug therapy. Also, your Crohns is getting you to the bathroom far too often and can become worse due to stress on a regular basis.

I can only say that you should think about becoming a Recruiter for a Travel Nurse company as an at home job. There, you will be able to stay away from sick people that may get you very sick and still be paid. The only other option is to apply for social security disability. You can always get off of it when you're better.