confused about med surg or hospice

[jfj0710]

hi, im currently in a big dilemma between doing med surg

and hospice. i was offered a job at this well-known

hospital in LA. good pay, great benefits but hell it's

med surg all over again. ive been an RN for 3yrs now, doing

mostly medsurg/tele/psych and i wanted a non bedside

job.. the hospice job offered to me was like a director

so basically its an office job, 9-5pm mon-fri. no weekends

no holidays. pretty cool. but at the same time i dont want

to miss the opportunity working for such a well known

hospital. any advice please! thanks! btw, i dont have

any background in hospice nursing so i really dont know

if there's like a career growth if i decided to take that job.

[tewdles, RN]

I wonder more about the hospice job. Seems odd that they would hire you as a director if you have zero hospice experience or knowledge.

Are you sure they are not talking about a case manager position?

[jfj0710]

im a little confused about it too. anyways i really

dont know which one to choose. im really tired of med surg

but at the same time i dont know anything about hospice

too.

[tewdles, RN]

Hospice is a good job, and if they are offering you a case manager position you should do some research and seriously consider the position.

If it is a field job it will be very different from your current experiences, but many transition very well.

Good luck!

[joanirobertson]

I recently took a case management position with a home hospice. I came from the hospice/oncology unit in a large hospital system and I'm finding it a relief to be able to focus on one patient at a time during the visit. If you aren't familiar at all with the hospice philosophy it's very different from med/surg and the focus isn't curative. Many meds have alternate purposes I would suggest taking a few CEU classes to familiarize yourself somewhat with it. But it's a good area to work in but it definitely take a special person to do it.

[CJ9330]

I worked a cardiac floor at a hospital before going to hospice CM. They are 2 entirely different worlds. Personally, I dearly love hospice, but I know many that have tried it & did not. Every nurse has their own niche. As mentioned above, I would get more info on the job offered. The only full-time desk position (nursing related anyway) at our company is our PCC (Patient Care Coordinator) & that position requires extensive knowledge in hospice care; the PCC coordinates all CM's, LPN's, CHHA's, Social Workers & Chaplains; and is familiar with all the comfort meds we use, the DME & Medicare requirements, etc. That being said.... if you've had enough of a hospital, and can walk a patient & their family through end-of-life issues - definitely look into hospice; it's amazingly rewarding! Good luck!

[salvadordolly]

a word of caution if they are offering you a director position with no hospice experience. there are a lot of fly-by -night bad hospice and home health companies out there. you have to have good knowledge of palliative care protocol, thorough knowledge of regulations and Medicare. Likely they will low ball you because they don't want to pay for someone experienced.