Best Specialty for Someone Prone to Burnout

[kellylauren]

Hello all,

I've worked several jobs before and burned out. Where should I work as a nurse to prevent that from happening? Thanks

[sallyrnrrt, ADN, RN]

Not med surg,

i always loved over various areas of critical care, especially ER & cvicu

[heron, ASN, RN]

What's your definition of burn-out?

[roser13, ASN, RN]

What stresses you the most?

Avoid those areas.

[Soliloquy, MSN, APRN, NP]

I'm prone to burn out! I did med surg, Neuro, surgical oncology, nicu, ortho...

I think the best thing for me is finding a way to do different things and maintain control of my schedule. Keeps me away from the craziness all the time. So I'm trying to reduce the amount of time I spend in any one specialty. I've liked everything I've learned and understand the need to focus on one thing in the start but too much of a good thing....is too much.

I also don't like the kind of adrenaline rush the hospital has to offer. Lol

[Jolie, BSN]

Please take my post in the spirit intended: to help you find a better fit in your next job, not to be critical of you personally.

You mention having worked in a number of specialties, and I presume that those jobs involved different employers. Yet you ultimately burned out of all of them. The one constant has been you.

I believe you would benefit from taking some time to evaluate your strengths, weaknesses, interests, tolerance for stress, chaos, unpredictability, desired hours, willingness to do OT or on-call, salary requirements, family needs, desire for further education, benefit expectations, etc. Take time to write your "dream job" description and set out to find something as close as possible to it. Decide what terms and conditions of employment are non-negotiable to you (such as a particular shift or salary level) and what you are willing to be flexible on (amount of PTO or insurance choices). Don't limit your thoughts to clinical specialty, since much of what makes our jobs satisfying or pure hell has to do with other variables, such as rotating shifts, staffing, length of commute.

In short, I would say that the least stressful clinical area is the one that fascinates you the most. Not because it will be stress-free, but because your tolerance for the negatives will be higher when you are engaged in something that is meaningful and important to you. But even that needs to be balanced out by acceptable working conditions, which includes so much more than money.

Good luck to you!