Anyone who was a secretary now a nurse?

Cherybaby · Oct 8, 2009

I wasn't a secretary, but I was a paralegal. Started as an administrative assistant in a law firm originally. I did that for 15 years before nursing became a calling for me. You have to assess your desire to be a nurse. If that desire is greater to you, then by all means, go for it! It's not an easy transition to make, I can tell you that much. It's much different working at a desk full time than catering to the needs of your patients. You have to be ready for being on your feet a good part of the day, physical labor and forget about "lunch hours". They don't exist! :) Long days. Long hours. Get used to staying past your scheduled time. Nursing is not a nine to five job, that's for sure.

I didn't work during nursing school because it was simply too demanding, so you have to ready yourself for a possible financial strain. Nursing school is tedious, demanding and sometimes quite grueling. You may even start to wonder what the HECK you have gotten yourself into!

But, for me? There is nothing else in the world I would rather be doing. It's deeply gratifying. The first time you get a hug from a patient thanking you for your care...it's like no other feeling in the world.

Good luck in whatever you decide.

southernbeegirl, BSN, RN · Oct 8, 2009

i was a bookeeper for 15 years before going back to college for nursing. most days i'm very glad i'm a nurse. but there are some days that i long for the quiet of my office, just me and my calculator.

Selene006, BSN, LPN · Oct 8, 2009

I worked as a unit secretary in a large hoospital for a year before my admission into nursing school. My schedule was very flexible and I worked 20-32 hrs/week. Once I began nursing school, I was thankful for my secretarial experience. I transcribed medication orders, requested labs via phone and submitted it into the computer, paged the MD's during emergencies, requested various types of consults, and had constant contact with the pharmacy to make sure medications were stocked in the omni-cell for the nurses. It was my job to sort through the admission paperwork for new patients and organize it so that the nurses could find everything quickly, and my desk was near the conference room, so I always heard the nurses giving report to each other. This experience made me feel even more comfortable when I started my clinical experience. When some students were trying to navigate their way around their patients' charts, I was comfortable with finding anything because I was so used to putting charts together for the nurses that I worked with. I was used to reading the chicken scratch of the MD's, and I became familiar with the dosages of drugs. All in all, I value my past experience as a secretary.

SuesquatchRN, BSN, RN · Oct 8, 2009

A long time ago.

What will drive you most nuts about being on the floor are the incredibly ridiculous methods of communication. Sticky notes taped to the desk. Folders with stickers in them. Expectations of telepathy. A stultifying lack or organization.

I like procedures. Try finding an updated manual anywhere!

roser13, ASN, RN · Oct 8, 2009

I was a legal secretary in my previous life. I now coordinate pre-op telephone assessments with H&P's, MD orders, etc. Best of both worlds. Go for it!

LovesGreyhounds · Oct 8, 2009

Very interesting thoughts! Thanks everyone! Anyone else out there? And to SuesquatchRN - believe it or not - alot of how you say your floor communicates, we do in our admin. office now! Ha ha.

elliejayRN · Oct 9, 2009

Yes, I have an associate degree in legal secretarial science, many of my credits from this degree actually transferred to prereqs to help with my nursing degree. I've meet other nurses with degress, and they just did one year for a BSN. I made the switch years ago, as I don't like paperwork. I would type of worker's compensation cases wondering how the person was coping with the loss of whatever body part was accidentally cut off, etc. While in nursing school, though I could easily find work as an aide, but worked as a receptionist for the county, so keep that it mind too. My background is psych so didn't really have much medical experience and I did extremely well, you will too! :nurse:

brighella · Oct 14, 2009

I was a secretary for over 13 years and found that it helps with organization and prioritizing. I also don't have to learn how to be an employee in addition to learning new nurse duties, like some of my very young classmates who had never had a job. When I was looking for a new direction to go in, I realized that paper/computer work will accompany just about any job I want to do, I have to find something where I like what I do IN ADDITION to the paperwork. Anything you do in a past life can provide value in a new nursing life, its up to you to see how it best works.

AlabamaBelle · Oct 15, 2009

I worked as a unit secretary for about 8 years before I went back to school and got my degree.

I worked 32 hrs a week. My schedule was flexible, built around school. I also had an understanding manager and supportive co-workers. I can read the worst chicken scratch handwriting. I learned the policies. I knew where all the paperwork went - this was especially helpful when preparing for clinicals. I didn't have to spend wasted minutes looking for something. I was a top-notch secretary - my skills and abilities were welcomed on any unit in our division. I learned how to get along and anticipate RN and MD needs.

While I was in school, I struggled with working as a CNA. I talked to several trusted RNs - all assistant NMs. They advised me to stay in my current role - the skills I had were too important to discount and they pointed out, I was learning/knew alot about ordering, staff interactions, appropriate orders, etc. Also, I couldn't afford the drastic pay cut.

My classmates enjoyed clinical prep with me - I was able to save them time by knowing where to go to get the best, most appropriate information.

Good luck - you can do it!

Cindy

catshowlady · Oct 15, 2009

I worked in a child support enforcement office doing case reviews during the summer while I was in college for my first degree. Then I was a night auditor in a hotel for almost 4 years, which is low-volume guest services for an hour or two at the beginning & end of each shift, and mostly paperwork otherwise. Then I became a unit coordinator in a combination telemetry/MICU unit. I would echo everything Selene006 & WarEagle4Life had to say about the value of that experience to my nursing school experience and, later, my nursing career.

The biggest difference to me between an office and nursing is that nursing units are chaotic. Sometimes the chaos is controlled, and sometimes it isn't. They are much noisier environments than an office. You also have to deal with a certain degree of lack of control over your workflow. In nursing, you may have to drop whatever you are doing to deal with something more urgent, whatever that may be.

Although I have days where I hate my job just due to circumstances of that day, overall, I like this job better than anything else I have done.

Best of luck to you.

:paw: