Want to refocus on the patient through PhD?

[CDeniseGo]

I am in school to become an RN but have been doing research on furthering my education. I would like to ultimately help nurses love nursing again and refocus on the patient, something like what i believe you, llg, are doing, with the PhD, CNS-staff education program. What all does that entail, if you don't mind me asking? The reason I want to do this is because of a lot of the things I have witnessed in clinicals and these have shifted my priorities (wanted to be an anesthetist)

[llg, PhD, RN]

Hi, Denise.

Perhaps you should look at getting into Nursing Staff Development. That's the department that provides education for nurses working within a hospital. Staff Development Nurses teach orientation and other classes for existing staff. We serve the patients by serving the staff, providing them with the education they need to be best nurses they can be.

Staff Development Nurses also work on projects that evaluate nursing care, develop improvements in care, etc. We often become the "go to" people when a new policy/procedure needs to be developed, implemented, or evaluated.

I suggest you do some research into Staff Development roles to see if that appeals to you. Check out the NNSDO -- The National Nurses in Staff Development Organization. They have a website and a great journal.

To get into Staff Development, you'll need to first become competent as a nurse. That will take you a couple of years. Then you'll want to get your MSN. People with BSN's do sometimes work in Staff Development, but those with MSN's are usually paid more and have more options.

I'll be going out of town over Thanksgiving. So, I don't know if I'll be checking back on allnurses for a few days. So, if you post again and I don't reply, please don't take it personally. You can PM me after you get more experienced on this site. I think you need 15 posts before you can PM or something.