A challenging & rewarding job.... but a "dead end" in nursing?

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Hi LTC nurses!

I have heard that LTC is a proverbial "dead end" in a nursing career...is there any truth to this?

Just curious about your thoughts ?

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Well, that would depend on whether or not the individual tried to get work in another area of nursing after having worked in LTC. Many people go to LTC and park themselves, without trying to get other kinds of work. You can't say that anyone put obstacles in their path if they decide to stay in LTC of their own volition.

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Specializes in Progressive Care, Sub-Acute, Hospice, Geriatrics.
On 1/1/2020 at 2:12 AM, WildflowerFairy said:

Hi LTC nurses!

I have heard that LTC is a proverbial "dead end" in a nursing career...is there any truth to this?

Just curious about your thoughts ?

I have heard about this as well. I find myself in this position right now. My main goal was to work at the hospital, no specialty preference. I just want to get my foot into the hospital door. However, hospitals in my area do not hire RNs with only ADN. Therefore, I found myself applying to SNF/LTC. I just wanted to get my foot into the door of any nursing job. Fast forward, I have been at my job for more than year (first nursing job) and I feel like I have "parked" myself at SNF/ LTC as what the posters mentioned. Now I have fear of finding a new job, moving forward, and being in an acute setting. I currently deal with sub-acute patients, some 3 days post-ops. I have fear because it's out of my comfort zone and I have been used to working at my current job. I know I will have to move on and get out of my comfort zone soon. I feel like it will sooner than I think it will be.

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Dani_Mila

Hang in there! It seems you have been getting good experience...take it and apply. Many facilities help pay for bridging to an RN. Good luck in your future!! ?

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Specializes in Dialysis.
17 hours ago, Dani_Mila said:

I have heard about this as well. I find myself in this position right now. My main goal was to work at the hospital, no specialty preference. I just want to get my foot into the hospital door. However, hospitals in my area do not hire RNs with only ADN. Therefore, I found myself applying to SNF/LTC. I just wanted to get my foot into the door of any nursing job. Fast forward, I have been at my job for more than year (first nursing job) and I feel like I have "parked" myself at SNF/ LTC as what the posters mentioned. Now I have fear of finding a new job, moving forward, and being in an acute setting. I currently deal with sub-acute patients, some 3 days post-ops. I have fear because it's out of my comfort zone and I have been used to working at my current job. I know I will have to move on and get out of my comfort zone soon. I feel like it will sooner than I think it will be.

Did you get your BSN? If not, work on that. Also, sadly, you don't qualify for most new grad residencies either, as you have experience as a nurse. But my knowledge for you (take it with a grain of salt if you wish), is that acute care isn't the highlight of any career. Many of those nurses are just as overworked, unappreciated, and miserable as their counterparts in any other setting

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Specializes in Progressive Care, Sub-Acute, Hospice, Geriatrics.
2 minutes ago, Hoosier_RN said:

Did you get your BSN? If not, work on that. Also, sadly, you don't qualify for most new grad residencies either, as you have experience as a nurse. But my knowledge for you (take it with a grain of salt if you wish), is that acute care isn't the highlight of any career. Many of those nurses are just as overworked, unappreciated, and miserable as their counterparts in any other setting

Thank you for the advice. I am working on getting my BSN. I have about 7 more classes to go till graduation. My issues I believe is my confidence and I always question my competence as a nurse.

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Specializes in Med-Surg, Geriatrics, Wound Care.

Some places may hire you as a "new grad" after you get your BSN. But, your LTC experience will surely count for a lot, especially time management.

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I parked my fat behind here and I’m going for my adult geriatric np. It’s up to you whether you reach a dead end or not.

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What do you mean by dead end? Do you mean that you can't transition to another specialty?

I know plenty of people that have transitioned from LTC to acute. Depends on the job market and the individual nurse.

Additionally, there are several jobs within LTC for RNs besides working the floor - management, case manager, MDS, admissions nurse, educator, infection control, administration.

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Specializes in Geriatric/Sub Acute, Home Care.

I started out after Nursing school working in a local hospital....being a newbie I found a hospital setting to be very non personal/cold and it had made me feel very separated from my patients, not getting to really know them as human beings. Basically IN and out of the room and that was it.....

This was my prerogative however I only worked for 3 months in a hospital setting........ One day all the computers crashed at this hospital (back in the 90s) and I was so stressed out and discouraged at that point working there. It took me 3 hours to revamp my nursing notes and all wondering what I did all day writing them out on paper!!!!! We had in patient room computers at the time..the computers crashed at 3pm right at the next shifts start!!!

Being new to the nursing world...I became very discouraged right from the get go and I was in my 30s........... This set me on another road...I ventured into a very fine nursing home back in NJ....best one I ever worked for. We wore our caps and white nursing uniforms...Staff was great and then the DON decided to retire after 30 years(NOT GOOD) she was the best one they had..........then the place never was the same again, it went downhill...lucky me right?....since then I have been stuck in nursing homes ever since, looking for the same thing I had in that particular nursing home....

. One senior nurse who was semi retired of whom I worked with at this nursing home, asked me one day...".what are you doing working in a nursing home when you just got out of school?" She had worked as a Nurse anesthetist before...….so I sat there answering her question saying" I thought hospitals were cold and I didn't have that personal real feel with my patients and felt I never got to really know them" and told her the story about the Computer crash too)......she seemed to understand but persisted on me going into something else besides a nursing home.saying I am going to lose my skills.. Since then..I have been a Geriatric nurse for over 35 years....I have tried to get out of the nursing home scene because I was injuring myself too much lifting patients and all when they fell. Outside of being low staffed and trying to help them when they needed other physical help...so it took a major toll on me physically and later on in life...mentally.......

Now I am going on 64 years young and have had my days with pain and being disabled from knee, back and shoulder injuries from nursing home work........, I don't like to be negative...but this was my personal experience......... In a nutshell.....I am the type of nurse that when a call bell rings I go there right away...(due to being so short staffed you have to too.) but through the years I have tried to get other jobs outside of nursing...mainly office and one time being a flight attendant I was so desperate...which didn't work out...had a very bad feeling I had about it then...was in 1996 and I had intentions of moving to a new York airport which would have been in 2001 after getting my feet wet with the airline........which was when 911 hit...so...something bad was telling me shouldn't e doing this and I turned back and went home, I only had the practical in the plane to do, I passed the written with flying colors...relating it to a nursing test..(lol) but it was far easier...…... and I would've had my wings...but like I said...the intense feeling of dread I had at the end of my flight attendant course was intimidating and haunting me...I couldn't get rid of the feeling of dread that I shouldn't be doing this.....so I left...the instructor was so upset.. LIttle did I know that the feeling was related to 911...and that God was telling me or something warning me.. cause I had intentions to fly American airlines in New York city who knows what was warning me at that time.was really unnerving to me

...……and of course many offices don't hire RNS so I was in a conumdrum also........so Here I am now with optic nerve damage from glaucoma...and cant do my regular geriatric nursing job anymore outside of walking physical limitations also.....I wanted so badly to get out of the nursing home scene back in the 90s due to myself living in doctors offices from injuries..sorry for being so long winded but I now firmly believe God put me where He wanted me and just didn't want me to go outside of a nursing home no matter how hard I tried to get out of it. .it was just meant to be. and believe me I tried like the dickens to get out of nursing homes..my family and friends were getting tired of me complaining about it...

You don't have to get behind in anything you feel is important in nursing..I always kept myself up to date on the latest nursing information on Nursing homes and kept the skills I learned still up and fresh in my mind, many nurses didn't even keep their CPR/AED/First aid current.which I felt was very important in a nursing home....but this is me ...in fact..my old last nursing home NEVER had IV recerts which I kept telling them to get...because we did get IVs at times....but.....this is the way of the world of nursing homes I guess.

Frustrating world we live in .

I don't desuade any nurse from going into a nursing home, Old people need nurses who are dedicated and caring.........its finding the right one...go by your gut feeling(which I always did ) work with your team and try to organize yourself to keep yourself and your patients safe. Its a hard job nursing homes but the old adage of it being the bottom of the barrel is nonsense....cause we all get old...some are more fortunate than others to be able to stay at home and be cared for by family or friends or have a caregiver. ...we all get older and we don't know what the future will deal to us where we ourselves would need help..so I always keep this in mind. I did my time....and now I am a Housing Moniter for the Salvation army...non medical. only thing which worried me is being alone at this facility...I was never really ALONE in a nursing home , you always had staff there..no matter if it were just ONE aide to depend on, its someone...….....but I did my time as a geriatric nurse...and its time for me to semi retire now....God bless and I hope you find what you are seeking. Nurses are a blessing for many people and many do so much good for those in need. good Luck to you and I hope your decision comes out spectacular for you.

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