Alternative Nursing as a New Grad

[popcrnlvr]

Hey all, I was wondering if there are many options for new grads looking for a non-hospital RN job, maybe in the community, outpatient, etc. Or even any not in direct patient care...are these generally open to new grads?

Also, Once in one of these "alternative Nursing Jobs" is it nearly impossible to work in a hospital or acute setting down the road?

Thanks in advance!

[HouTx, BSN, MSN, EdD]

Those great 'alternative' jobs are usually not an option for new grads for a couple of reasons. First of all, those settings usually don't have the funding or staff to provide the transitional support/training that a new grad needs. In addition, those jobs are likely to be structured in a way that requires the nurse to be fairly autonomous with no direct supervision or immediate backup available... the incumbents have to have the expertise to work independently.

Transitioning 'back' into an acute care setting with only outpatient/ambulatory experience can be very difficult. You can poke around here on AN and find many examples -- nurses with previous experience who are unable to return to acute care after making the switch to ambulatory settings. I'm not saying it would be impossible, but certainly very difficult without any previous acute care work.

[popcrnlvr]

thank you for your input! I was afraid that would be the case