Jobs for older nurses

billyboblewis · Jul 19, 2012

shh I am 66 and just stopped working 12 hour shifts. That happened just by chance as I happened to be in the right place when a case manager job opened up..and guess what **** happens and it is not necessarily an easy job.. You have to fix all the mistakes everyone down the line has made to make sure everything goes smooth. You need to just start checking all the papers and other sourses of employment opportunities and apply for everything you can..Eventually you will get a job that suits where you are at this point in your life and remember full retirement age is 67 so u betta start looking and listening. I got most of my best leads from being registered to recieve job opportunites from the state and maybe you can too. Every area is a little diffent but the most important thing is start applying and listen to people who interview you. they may offer you another opportunity. I myself am finished with further formal education. If after 40 plus years of nursing I cant show enough qualifications for a job I will just go on to the next opportunity.

krazenurse · Jul 19, 2012

Hi

I can see your plight but you are trying to make progress. Give yourself credit for that.

The economy is bad and that makes the job market that much tighter.

I'm 56 myself and I guess I never thought of my self as "older" until I started having knee problems last year. I have worked in hospitals for years.

Now I work for Hospice and this is much less demanding physically and a larger organization may need your degree.

If you have your heart set on a hospital then you just have to keep pounding on the door and hopefully someone will let you in.

There is a prejudice about nursing homes, LTACS and HHC in the hospital setting.

Unfortunately thats the way it is.

Maybe you could do nights again and then wait for a job to transfer into that will value your education?

I'm considering going back to nights for a while myself even though I said "never again"

Good Luck,

Kraze

I am 52, can't work 12 hr shift or nights, just don't have it in me anymore. I am currently studying for my MSN, trying to find a job that is not so physically demanding. I am certified in gerontology, have a certificate in patient advocacy and am also working on being a HIT trainer. I almost don't care what I do as long as it is days and not shift work. What kind of job can I get? I have applied for over 100 jobs. Most of my experience is in home health which I think killed alot of my possibilities. No one seems to understand what a HHC nurse does, therefore do not value it. I think I may be wasting my time on school now, I don't know what direction to go. How do I get in the door of a hospital, no one will call me except for those night shift jobs that new nurses have to take. I hate to say it but I've already put my time in on that kind of work. I am confident and skilled and knowledgeable and a great communicator. I also dress very professionallyand am neat in appearance and manner. So what do I need to do to get a good day job?

schooldistrictnurse · Jul 19, 2012

I might get flamed by my fellow school nurses, but many in our field are over 40. Even without peds experience, your knowledge and assessment skills would be valued. Pay is always considerably less but the hours are usually great. Something to consider, or come over and look around the school nursing board.

somedaypeds · Jul 19, 2012

I would think Case Management in Home Health would be a good option for you. Of course, with your masters, you can teach.

SHGR, MSN, RN, CNS · Jul 20, 2012

Consider clinic nursing in any setting that interests you. I'm not old, but my body is (arthritis, multiple injuries, etc) and most of the nurses with whom I work are either older, in their 50's-60's, or in the same boat as me. One of the nurses on our team said the other day (he's in his mid-50's), "this is a job I could do for the rest of my career." It's not easy, you use your brain a lot- but not your body. I love it.

Since we're a family medicine clinic, any experience is valued, from psych to OB to ED to med surg and believe it or not home health would be a FANTASTIC background to bring to a setting like ours.

brandy1017, ASN, RN · Jul 20, 2012

Have you tried a temp agency, sometimes they have contract positions in hospitals and sometimes there are local travelers positions.

Also taking a night shift position doesn't mean you have to stay on nights, its just a way to get your foot in the door till you can get a day shift position. By us many new nurses start on nights and are able to switch to days or PM's quite quickly, within a year if not sooner. There's a large turnover of night shift RN's and a few steady RN's who prefer nights for the flexibility and calmer work environment.

Even if you don't like nights, at least it would be a way to get some hospital experience if that is what you are looking for. If you are going for MSN to be an educator at a hospital, those jobs are few and tend to be low paying, but you never know, maybe you could get that. Have you applied for an educator job, if you are working towards a MSN they might still consider you even if they say MSN required or preferred, you've got nothing to lose to try!

jasnms · Jul 20, 2012

Have you considered private duty nursing if it's available in your state? You take care of one patient. Home health is another option as well as hospice. Believe it or not, correctional nursing is actually easy. It's basicallly like working in a clinic. Hope everything works out for you.

martymoose, BSN, RN · Jul 20, 2012

Consider clinic nursing in any setting that interests you. I'm not old, but my body is (arthritis, multiple injuries, etc) and most of the nurses with whom I work are either older, in their 50's-60's, or in the same boat as me. One of the nurses on our team said the other day (he's in his mid-50's), "this is a job I could do for the rest of my career." It's not easy, you use your brain a lot- but not your body. I love it.
Since we're a family medicine clinic, any experience is valued, from psych to OB to ED to med surg and believe it or not home health would be a FANTASTIC background to bring to a setting like ours.

any suggestion as to how to get/apply to one of these jobs? thx

Esme12, ASN, BSN, RN · Jul 20, 2012

any suggestion as to how to get/apply to one of these jobs? thx

I would start Looking for clinics/offices in your area that are hiring in newspapers etc. I have found they usually advertise locally in smaller newspapers preferring to have their employees local.

lostinal · Apr 12, 2014

Keep looking...something will come up. It's more difficult depending on the area you may live in...rural vs. metro. You might consider taking a prn/pt position in hopes it may turn into full time...or maybe you'll be satisfied with those hours depending on your financial needs. Seems as if your assessment skills would be your greatest asset...valuable in many areas.

Good luck in your quest.

virgogirl · Jun 24, 2018

I think travel nursing might be fun. If you're not tied down at home. I thought it would be a good way to scope out potential places to retire. If you own a place, you could offer it up as a rental and maybe the agency could place a couple of nurses there while you're away and you could make money that way too and you wouldn't have to leave your home vacant...also we had a 70 yr old travel nurse come to the psychiatric hospital that I work in and I'm sure they would hire her back!