Thinking about Home Health

Specialties Home Health

Published

So I am a new RN. I graduated with my BSN in may. I accepted 2 jobs, one in pediatric home health PRN and a full time position in an ICU at a level I trauma.

Long story short, I don't like my full time job. The people on the unit aren't supportive, and my commute is hour and a 1/2 when I work nights.

I only worked one case for the HHA before my full time job started, and I loved it. I got more fulfillment out of that than I have the last 2 months at the hospital.

I'm thinking about finding a full time case, and quitting the hospital position.

My question to y'all is, do you think it's more helpful to have bedside hospital experience before entering the home health world full time? Do you think it would behoove me to stick out a miserable year and then try and switch over?

I know I would get valuable experience if I stayed, but I'm so unhappy.

Thoughts?

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Specializes in Complex pedi to LTC/SA & now a manager.

It sounds like your per diem job is private duty ( shift work) not home health ( intermittent skilled nursing visits). Private duty work is inconsistent especially if you have one case full time..kid goes in the hospital and you are out of work. Need benefits? The costs are often $400/month for bare minimum with high copay and deductible. You can get stuck full time on the case and lose out if there is family drama or another nurse is favored. Little PTO if it is even offered. Plus it's difficult to transition out of if you start out as a new grad in private duty

The experience you will get in the hospital will increase your skills and marketability after a couple of years. It takes 1-2 years to feel (and be) competent in an area of nursing.

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This major question has been discussed ad nauseam on the site. You can find plenty of posts. However, from my perspective, you would be doing yourself a big disservice, akin to shooting yourself in the foot, if you leave your hospital position before at least one to two years. I have worked in extended care home health for many years. It is not an area that necessarily offers a steady income stream and/or career progression. Better to have hh as your adjunct employment, as most hospital nurses do, and keep your steady job for the time being. You will gain a lot more from gaining experience in your clinical area than you ever will, sitting at home waiting for an agency to [maybe] call you with another case, where the client [maybe] will be 'satisfied' enough to keep you employed for longer than six shifts, six weeks, or six months. JMHO

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BTW, the comments I made about extended care home health also apply to a lesser extent to intermittent visit home health.

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Thank you guys for the advice. I appreciate it!

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We don't want to see anybody make any big mistakes (that we might have made ourselves)! I can testify to the fact that extended care home health is not a guarantee of long term reliable employment.

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Specializes in Hospice, Internal Medicine.

I made the mistake of leaving my hospital job after 6 months and I've regretted it ever since. Almost everything you apply for wants 1 year acute even if it's not an acute position. Stick it out for at least a year so you'll have more options in the future.

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I made the mistake of leaving my hospital job after 6 months and I've regretted it ever since. Almost everything you apply for wants 1 year acute even if it's not an acute position. Stick it out for at least a year so you'll have more options in the future.

Thanks!

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Specializes in Critical Care.

Mmmm what about MLTC?

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Mmmm what about MLTC?

What is that?

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Specializes in Critical Care.

Managed long term care. Insurance company

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