WHAT'S THE BEST WAY TO CHANGE AREAS OF NURSING

Nurses Career Support

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Specializes in Med/Surg, Ortho, Rehab, ACU-Telemetry.

I HAVE BEEN A REGISTERED NURSE ON A SURGICAL FLOOR FOR THE PAST EIGHT YEARS. I HAVE BEEN LIKE A ROCKET IN THE SKY WITH "BURNOUT" SYNDROME. I LIKE THE NURSING ASPECT OF NURSING (WORKING WITH THE PATIENTS, INTERACTIONS WITH THEIR FAMILIES, THE TEACHING ASPECT, ETC),BUT I WANT TO GET OFF OF THE FLOOR.

MANY NURSING INSTRUCTORS HAVE TOLD THEIR NEW NURSING STUDENTS TO ONLY BE A "STAFF FLOOR" NURSE FOR ONE YEAR ONLY,DUE TO THE "HIGH BURNOUT" RATE.THIS IS TRUE.IN ORDER TO GET GOOD NURSING SKILLS AND A GOOD BACKGROUND, IN REGARDS TO MED/SURG, IT IS HIGHLY RECOMMENDED THAT A NEW GRAD. WORK ON A MED/SURG FLOOR FOR A YEAR, THEN PROCEED TO HER/HIS AREA OF INTEREST.

MY PROBLEM IS: HOW DOES ONE GO ABOUT THIS?

SURE I COULD GO BACK TO SCHOOL (MY INTEREST HAS ALWAYS BEEN TEACHING),BUT I AM ALMOST 42 AND IT WOULD TAKE ME YEARS TO GET MY MASTERS'S DEGREE. IS THERE ANYTHING OUT THERE THAT WOULD ENABLE ME TO USE MY TEACHING SKILLS IN REGARDS TO PRE AND POST-OP TX TO INCLUDE DISCHARGE TEACHING, WITHOUT HAVING TO GO BACK TO SCHOOL?

I ALSO HAVE A BACKGROUND IN COMPUTERS.

ANY SUGGESTIONS WOULD BE GREATLY APPRECIATED AND RESPECTED.

THANKS

KATHY DOWNEY,RN

DAYTON, OHIO

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[This message has been edited by kdblueey (edited April 24, 2000).]

Kathy,

I am a diploma nurse who eventually returned for a BSN and a MSN so I guess I believe in education as a venue to give you more opportunities. If you like teaching but do not want to return for the MSN, consider teaching in CNA, CMA programs. Look at the requirements to teach in a LPN program. Some nurses have enjoyed working for a medical supply company to market a product. That is, they may be the company rep to demonstrate a product. A lot of this depends on where you live (opportunity-wise) and (especially in the latter case) how well you can market yourself in the job interview. Many nursing programs will hire you with a BSN and a plan of completion for a MSN, meaning you have to be actively working on a Masters. Working a new job and embarking on a MSN can be stressful, but it has been done.

If you are 40-something you have 15-17 years left in the work force. Many of my colleagues in the MSN program were that age. Going to school to change the course of your career beats the heck out of staying in a stagnant position for 15 to 17 years.

At least investigate msn options...

Also FYI, netiquette says that writing in all caps is the equivalent of shouting (ie great emphasis).

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