Dr Office vs Med-Surg

[armadaLPN]

I've been working in a Med-Surg unit for almost 4 years that deals with everything from PEDs to pre- and post surgical to comfort care. Its a very small hospital with the only specialty units being OB, ICU/CCU, and SDS. Med-Surg deals with everything else. I really enjoy what I do and I'm very proud of my clinical and bedside skills.

However, our hospital has been taken over by a larger health system and they have been running us into the ground. We have a new policy change about once very two weeks, we have mandatory meetings often about what nursing can be doing differently to make the health system more money (we even signed a form stating that we will do everything we can to benefit the hospital financially). And scripting everywhere, I feel like a robot when speaking to patients. Frankly I'm fed up and feel like we're phasing away from.good patient care. I went into nursing to help my patients, not to make more money for the CEO.

Since I live in a rural area, I don't have many options for other jobs. There's and opening at a doctor's office with a great schedule and not a huge pay cut. I just don't have any experience in an office. It sounds like a great idea now, but I'm worried I'll regret it in the future because I value my experience with IVs, NGT, Foley, etc., and that I will be less marketable in the future if I decide to go back to acute care.

Any advice from other LPN/LVNs that have made the switch?

[HazelLPN, LPN]

When my husband finished his residency, I was his office nurse in his peds private practice after I had been working in med/surg for a few years. That kind of nursing simply wasn't for me. I think I lasted about three months before I went back to the hospital and if I would have stayed any longer, we would have gotten divorced because it wasn't good for our marriage either.

I ended up getting a job in a teaching hospital and transferred to the ICU shortly after it opened and had a wonderful career in critical care nursing.

If you love the technical aspect of nursing...as your post hints at....you won't be happy in an ambulatory setting. I also understand the corporate greed model of health care and am glad that I retired before it came into full swing. It might be a drive for you, but is there a university/teaching hospital in the area that might hire an LPN? Even if you might have to drive, you'd be able to do the kind of nursing you like to do with less emphasis (though still too much!) on making the CEO richer. I worked with an RN once who lived about an hour away from the university and would stay in town the weekends she worked and then go home during the week...these were the days of weekend option.

One way to make the CEO richer is to get rid of LPNs and replace them with UAPs and give the additional work of the LPN to the already overworked RN. I've seen it happen time and time again. Hopefully this isn't in the works.

Best to you,

Mrs H.

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

Since you place an extraordinarily high value on procedural bedside skills such as IV starts, NG tube insertion, and Foley catheter irrigation, it is probably best for you to stay put and remain at your current place of employment.

As Hazel previously suggested, you can also explore the option of commuting to another hospital that would be willing to hire an LPN with acute care experience such as you.

[xoemmylouox, ASN, RN]

If you like the skill portion of your job, you will be bored in the office setting. Are you wanting to advance your education or are you happy with your current role? I only say this because typically when take overs occur LPNs are let go. This doesn't always happen, but it does.

[LPNtoRNin2016OH, LPN]

As an LPN who has worked in a few clinics, be weary. I say this because in your position now, you are "the nurse". In a clinic, you may often be referred to as an MA or nurse assistant and paid as much. But from your post it sounds as though you will be compensated for your experience. It's a big change in gears and pace. A lot of spoon feeding patients (i.e.: calling in scripts they could call in themselves, calling in referrals they should really be doing themselves) and depending on the office, the most skilled thing you do is take out stitches. I don't mind clinic work at all if it's fast paced but I think going from that skilled of setting, you may perhaps become bored.