Nursing Avenues

[MrsK1223]

Hi all. I'm 2 yrs out of nursing school and currently work in dermatology which is a fine specialty...it's my employer I'm less than pleased with. Before this I worked for a psych hospital and wasn't thrilled with that. I've never had a desire to work in the hospital due to the fact that my local hospital has a horrible reputation for nurses. I love office nursing but am also interested in ambulatory nursing, like in admission testing etc, outpatient surgery, school nursing. I'm even looking into correctional nursing since there is a federal prison close by. I'm waiting on the prison cause I have to have exactly 2 yrs nursing experience...i'm short a few months. Ideally I love patient education. I love to talk to my patients and explain things and show them diagrams and visual aid. I'd be very interested in school nursing. I guess I feel lost. All the things I'm interested in are non existant in my area or not hiring RN's but MA's instead or not hiring at all. I am an ADN RN and have applied to the BSN program for this fall but often wonder if this is the route I should go. If family is a priority it cuts out other options like working in an hospital. The hours are usually dreadfully long and with mandatory overtime, it becomes even more unappealing. I guess I just wanted to see if I'm alone in this feeling or if anyone had any advice. I even thought about getting my bachelors in health education. I live in southeast ky and my options are few. HELP!!!

[sjoe]

"I am an ADN RN and have applied to the BSN program for this fall but often wonder if this is the route I should go"

Having a BSN will not substantially increase job opportunities for you, so you might want to keep that in mind.

School nursing usually pays very little, ambulatory clinic work at a hospital is ordinarily highly sought by nurses already working at the hospital (who usually get first grabs), outpatient surgery jobs are usually held by nurses with OR experience (reasonably enough).

You might also wish to carefully explore the job opportunities for someone with a degree in health education before putting in more time and $$ in school, or you could well find yourself asking these same questions again, but this time as a health educator with a substantial school loan to pay off.

You may well discover that your choices will be between 1) moving elsewhere, 2) a long commute, or 3) corrections work (perhaps per diem or part-time) but be advised there will be things about that also, that you would not like.

If there is a nearby community college, they often have very good (and free) career testing and counseling programs that might help you define some goals and a direction.

[BBFRN, BSN, PhD]

Maia, I have PM'd you.

[Agnus]

Home health?

Consider self employment: diabetic educator, consulting, wellness educator, home health, you might try contracting as a patient educator at the hospital.

[kellilou3]

Home health?

Consider self employment: diabetic educator, consulting, wellness educator, home health, you might try contracting as a patient educator at the hospital.

What type of education/experience is required to become a patient educator? I looked it up on the internet but wasn't able to find anything. I'm sure there is some type of certification you need to obtain, but do you generally have to be an RN, and do you need to have a BSN minimum?

[suzanne4, RN]

Most educator positions require some type of certification. Some require an RN degree, others don't. Example is a diabetic educator. You can get certified by by completing the appropriate materials and taking a certification exam. Most important is to find the area that you are most interested in.

Good luck..................