Arthritis and Bedside Nursing?

[freesia29]

It has taken me 12 years to finally become an RN, all part time, taking care of kids and dying parents.

I am finally here, and have always wanted to work in the hospital.  I am worried I won’t be able to keep up.  Just turned 50, and recently diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis, osteoarthritis and fibromyalgia.  I feel so depressed right now.  Two full 8 hr days back to back in clinic leave me recovering for 2 days.  I am bored with clinic work, phone triage.  
 

How are you over 50 nurses handling beside?  Can it be done? Are nights less running than day shift?  
 

Thank you!

 

[HarleyvQuinn, MSN, RN, NP]

On 7/19/2021 at 6:40 PM, JadedCPN said:

Every floor is going to be different. But with inpatient nursing you're not only going to be doing all those steps, you'll also be turning patients, rolling patients, moving/re-positioning frequently, helping boost in bed, helping ambulate to the bathroom or on the bedpan, etc.

This. I had to give up acute in-patient care and I'm in my thirties because of traumatic arthritis and a joint replacement. Hospitals often aren't willing to make accommodations for these conditions, again I will grant this can be depending on the unit/floor, and the continued lifting, pulling, bending, and twisting worsens old injuries and creates new ones over time. Never experienced actually having access to lifts or other assistive devices for transferring patients. Took twelve people to transfer a 600lb+ patient between an EMS stretcher to our bariatric ED bed once. It was insane. 

[freesia29, ASN, RN]

Thank you for all your responses!  I have been working 2 per diem jobs, As PACU in a surgery center 3 days per week, which I love but was crippling me, being on my feet 8-10 hrs and especially those pain clinic days where we see 25 patients for injections.  And then I started 2 days per week doing phone triage in a pediatric clinic.  
 

after this last flare up again, leaving me at home all week again unable to work, I decided to let go of the surgery center job and just sit on my behind on the phones.  I have no pain when I work there.  I am sad no patient care, as all on the phone, but it pays more than surgery center , so always a silver lining right?