Are there many health educators in medical facilities

stephenfnielsen · Dec 10, 2011

There are lot's of what I would call 'health educators' in acute care (hospitals), almost all of them are BSN prepared RNs. MSWs do very little health education, they are more concerned with social issues such as medicade enrollment, long term care facility placement, and domestic conflicts- not my cup of tea, and not a lot of jobs out there.

Bottom line- you want to teach? Get your BSN it will provide you with the most job opportunities, unless you really like the social worker line of work... which is cool, it just doesn't pay much and rivals nursing for burnout.

tishluvnc · Dec 10, 2011

The only part of social work I feel I would like is the counseling. I could be wrong, I shadowed a lcsw at a mental health agency and they all seemed to sit behind a desk most of the day. Some of them did home visits, I thought the environment was so quiet and boaring.

The university Im graduating from has a good BSN program and I actually flirted with the idear in my junior year, but chickened out and took the easy way out! My next move is my last, gotta get it right. Thanks!

Chico David, BSN, RN · Dec 10, 2011

I would agree with the first response with a couple of additions.

Most of the health education that is done in the health care setting is disease or system specific. I'm an RN, cardiac patient educator - work with a spectrum of patients from the person having their first heart attack to the person with end-stage heart failure. Our hospital also employs diabetic educators - Also RNs - and an educator who works with stroke patients. And a couple of respiratory therapists who work with chronic lung disease patients.

Pretty much all of those jobs in the acute care setting are going to be RNs - and usually are people who have acquired some degree of expertise in their area working as a bedside nurse with that category of patient. Most people who do what I do have an ICU background, just for one example.

There is very little employment of people with a non-clinical background doing health education in acute care settings.

If one has the technical knowledge and truly wants to focus on education for wellness, there may be other settings that are more open. I think there is still an important place for the right person running wellness programs in the corporate setting - helping the employer reduce insurance and absenteeism cost by helping the workers be healthier. But you would usually have to be more entrepreneurial to get a job like that - you may have to design the program and sell it to the employer, not just answer a job ad.

SummerGarden, BSN, MSN, RN · Dec 10, 2011

a health educator can be a non-nurse. however, you may not see this role for non-nurses in a hospital setting. outside of the hospital setting i have seen and worked with health educators that are non-nurses. such health educators provide "one-on-one" and group teaching sessions as well as community presentations regarding disease management and referrals, but are only bs or ba prepared. thus, you can work in this area prior to nursing if you can find a job at this time. gl!

MC1906 · Dec 10, 2011

I'm both a health educator and nurse. I started out being a health educator and working in public health. I found that most jobs that looked interesting required a RN. I've focused on clinical health education but those jobs are not very "consistent" but yet so important. There is a shift that is occurring now requiring hospitals to focus on certain populations (CHF, Diabetes, etc). Most places will just take someone and put them into that position. You can look into getting your BSN and get your MSN as a public health nurse. There are two fields that have very different training but can be blended with experience.

Good Luck!

Chico David, BSN, RN · Dec 11, 2011

The only part of social work I feel I would like is the counseling. I could be wrong, I shadowed a lcsw at a mental health agency and they all seemed to sit behind a desk most of the day. Some of them did home visits, I thought the environment was so quiet and boaring.
The university Im graduating from has a good BSN program and I actually flirted with the idear in my junior year, but chickened out and took the easy way out! My next move is my last, gotta get it right. Thanks!

The LCSW is one of those jobs that varies immensely depending on the setting. Some are primarily psyco-therapists in effect. Others do work that is very bureaucratic. The clinical social workers at our hospital actually have fascinating jobs, if very challenging. I kid them regularly that when I encounter a patient with a totally intractable set of life issues - homeless, no money, no insurance, needing expensive drugs to survive, or needing a stable situation to manage their illness and no hope of getting it, bizarre family issues: living with someone who has threatened to kill them, or the patient is threatening suicide themselves - for any of the above, my first thought is "I know, call the Social Worker!" They never get any easy ones. for the right person, this kind of challenge can actually be fun. But it's not for everybody.