I wanna be an ANP (in Occ Health Nursing) suggestions please

Specialties Occupational

Published

This is also posted in the NP section, I hope that isn't a faux pas.

I've almost two years experience in Occupational Health Nursing. I'll sit for the COHN-S by November. I Have a BS/Chem; a BS/Safety Studies and an Assoc. D. in Nursing. Prior experience: 6 months Med/Surg; 8 months Adult ICU at a major tertiary hospital. I left there due to stress (and increasing BP) and a 2.5 hour/day commute plus reversing 12 hour shifts. I fell into Occupational Health Nursing and love it. My BP w/o meds now averages 117/67, at the ICU it averaged 168/95 w/meds.

I'd like to become ANP but with a focus in Occupational Health. But where, and how? I enjoy musculoskeletal issues, toxics, and emerging science like nano stuff. I'm quite passionate about problems that need solving.

I'm not young, and have $30k in loans already. It's getting to the point that I'll be paying long after people then my age will be retired. So cost is a factor. I live in NH and so the best places would have to be in NH/MA. Harvard/Simmons has a sub-specialty in Occ Health. Maybe any old ANP will do with the sub-specialty taken at Harvard/Simmons.

NIOSH has grants for the Harvard/Simmons sub-specialty, but I don't think they do for any, nor does there seem to be an ANP/subspecialty combo in Occ Health Nursing....

I'm 57. Age is the only thing that I lie about...everyone in my work life thinks that I'm 46. (I look young and am very fit). At age 57, having a loan with a 25 year payback, I'll still be paying at age 84. Now I do hope to be still working (or alive) then...I cannot imagine retiring but.... see the quandary? Also consider that twenty years in the future most industries will have as employees only two... one a dog, and the other a man. The man is there to feed the dog, the dog is there to make sure the man doesn't touch anything. *grin* But I'm willing to travel to Outer Sumanatstyan if necessary, there will always be work...

Have we any experienced Occ Health Nurses that might be willing to write or talk with me about suggestions or options? I have thought about programs in WA and NC and could move. Trying to figure out the best path gives me a HA.

I'm acutely aware of the need to plan a path, and to plan ahead in this rapidly changing world to be in demand. (Especially at 84!)

Thanks,

eww

Just an update to any in the group still around. I completed my BSN last December and my first semester in the NIOSH Occ Health/ANP program at UAB. It certainly is hard work, but like most things in life you get what you give and it is working out nicely. Jim

Specializes in Occ Health; Med/Surg; ICU.

Nice to see the thread active again. Congrats on the BSN!

Hard to believe that it was in 2007 that I wrote the first post. A few things have happened, the 4,000 hour OH nurse experience dropped to 2000 hours.

Not being able to find an OC job in my area due to the non-compete agreement I looked outside the area and am working for a major corporation managing a small Occ Health Clinic. It's just me, myself and I, and a MD that comes in for a few hours a week. I started 14 months ago with about 125 workers, but that has dwindled to 80 and "the end is nigh." I suspect that around the end of the year or soon after, I'm history.

I still would like to do the NP in Occ Health, but the 39K debt that I have well, freaks me out, especially in these odd and hard times. I've heard of agreeing to teach in exchange for school costs, but can find little on that. Ultimately I'd love to become a NP, get some experience in several areas (ortho, ED and Occ Health) and then teach. Wooo.....that'd be fun.

Funny world we have. Shortage of teachers, but try to find an education that does not destroy you economically and it's hard to do. Worse, it is not just the amount you owe, now if your debt/income, debt payments to income, or debt to assets do not meet exactly within the prescribed limits of the omniscient and omnipotent Sallie Mae, or Freddie Mac, you we "don't have no banannas today for you," nor house, nor refinance, nor auto loan. So if one goes to school, in a way the debt becomes a strange sort of death sentence.

I suppose since I'm turning 59 if I rack up enough debt to put it into a 30 year repayment plan, it is unlikley that I'll ever have to pay it...as I'll probably be dead. Heheee... how funny.

I'd love to do Occ Health NP with a global bent. We simply have exported most of our RSI's and so many occupational hazards overseas it is pathetic. In India recently hundreds, if not thousands of workers have been diagnosed with silicosis, being "contractors" to sand blast jeans go give that faded effect. I'm not sure that I could make much of a living in International Occ Health, but I feel it is an exciting opportunity, if it exists at all.

Hard economic times make for hard decisions, and sadly too, for delayed decisions. I'd like to hear from others how they are doing...

Steve

I was suprised re-reading the discussion that we had so long ago. I guess time is going to go by no matter what we are doing. Where are you located at? I am 3 hours away from Birmingham AL but it is doable for the free education and a little stipend to go along as well. Congrats on your COHN-S, I just took the test a month ago as I was waiting on completing my BSN. Sounds like a great OHN position if the manning level will allow it. I believe that any of the NIOSH centers have some sort of MSN program available for free. You may want to see which of them are closest to you or UAB for the NP program. Jim

Specializes in Occ Health; Med/Surg; ICU.

Would you kindly tell us or place a link to where one would find the NIOSH Centers.... Free with a small stipend sounds very good to me, and I really don't mind moving for a few years...

This link will provide info regarding the different academic education and research centers. You would need to link on each one to obtain information on what programs each offers as they differ.

http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/oep/centers.html

Jim

i am about to attend UAB I think, but I'm wondering about the tuition. I'm out of state so I think it's like 620 an hour. is it 200 on top of that for online? also how do you like it? I'm nervous because it's so expensive and I want some opinions before I send my acceptance letter.

melissa

Melissa, have you looked into the Academic Common Market? I don't know where you live but in the southeast universities have instituted this program to allow in state tuition rates for out of state students if the state that they reside in does not have a comparable program. Dr. Heaton or Dr. Brown at UAB will know how to direct you in obtaining that info.

I am loving the program, but ensure you set aside some study time each and every day. It comes at you fast. Best of luck, Jim

Specializes in Occ Health; Med/Surg; ICU.

Melissa (Mpittsrn) the NIOSH funds a lot of ANP in Occ health, though it seems hard to find a list of who offers what. H60Medic has talked about this in the thread and I have heard elsewhere that one can attain the degree for free and even with a living stipend if you research what is available (which does not seem all that easy as there is no "overall site."

Additionally there are many grants in states whereby "if you work in the state for say two years," a loan is forgiven. Also there is the Nursing Re-investment Act which will probably remain viable and allows for (I think) a 25% write-off of loans each year for 3 years, reducing loan debt by 75% (and I think actually up to a reduction of 85%.) (One must work in a hospital, not just in industry but hospitals use a lot of Occ-med NP's. There are, I hear programs where one can get free tuition/stipend if she agrees to teach for a few years.

I'd like to start a ANP program next September, and if I come across information I'll place it here and hope others will do so too.

I would like to thank you guys for your replies. The Academic Common Market does not include ANP online unfortunately. So I sent them an email to see if they could add it or if they had any suggestions because the site said to email them if you have requests. Well in the mean time I called UAB and asked them about in state versus out of state and the lady said that as of right now UAB online courses are considered in-state no matter what! So now I can go. Paying $620 per semester hour is just a bit much when you have to add $200 for each course on top of that! So I'll get in-state tuition! YAY! Now the question is, is this plan of study something that I'm going to be able to manage? And how do I obtain a preceptor? Also, where do you take tests, online??? Thanks again for your input guys!

Drop me a line at my yahoo account and we can trade phone numbers. It will be a lot easier to discuss your questions that way. I am in my second semester and hopefully will be able to answer your questions. My email address is [email protected]

Talk to you then, Jim

Hello-

Have enjoyed reading this thread. Same story here... new to nursing as a second career. In the past life work in shipyards and transportation. Feel like those are still my people. Think I would really enjoy occupational health nursing, probably with NP. Because of a scholarship obligation for my accelerated BSN, cannot move for 3 years. Closest OHN school is U of Iowa. They focus a lot on Agricultural issues.... Main question now finally coming... do different schools have different focuses? Ag is important in Iowa... is manufacturing more important at U of Illinois or U of Mich or UAB?

Thanks

I know that Ag is very important within the medical program but is not emphasized greatly in the NP program which is more geared towards the industrial hygiene arena. They do vary though based upon location. The NIOSH ERC home page may give you some better information. Jim

PS: Figured I would throw in an update since this post started a couple of years ago. I have two more semesters left in my ANP program through UAB. Yes it is doable and yes it is paid in full through NIOSH. In hind-sight would I recommend it and would I do it again? Yes, and sooner, Jim

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