Career Counseling for Nurses??

[kitti419]

How in the world do you know where to go when your current job has gotten stale?!

I have been a floor night nurse since Dec 2010. Over the past couple of years, there have been some major changes to my unit, resulting in a completely different patient population. I started on a busy orthopedic unit with med/surg overflow, and the vast majority of our ortho docs up and left the hospital. Our census dropped significantly, and I found PRN employment at a surgical center. There is no FT opportunity there and has not been since I started in Jan 2014. I left my FT position at the hospital to try in home care mgmt with Senior Bridge, and the experience was a nightmare. I now have 2 PRN jobs, and while I enjoy the flexibility of my schedule, it's a roller coaster. The census is up and down at the hospital and since we became beggars for patients, we get a steady flow of altered mental status, cellulitis, pneumonia, & the rare orthopedic patients who now have to share their hallway with confused patients.

I absolutely LOVE my co-workers. We are a team and I feel very loyal to the unit and the workers, and I also love my supervisor. I have looked at job openings in other facilities, other floors, and even considered coming back FT. I went back to school and graduated in Dec 2014 with my BSN. I have no other certifications beyond ACLS, PALS, & BLS, although I could probably easily certify in ortho.

I have considered the NICU, L&D, Same day Stay, Interventional Radiology, Specials...those are openings that pique my curiosity. I do believe critical care experience will come in handy, but any of the specialty units above have consistently required experience. I'm willing to work nights but there is a big part of me that craves a day schedule and a twinge of normalcy after all these years on nights. I'm ok with weekends and holidays. I just really don't know what I want to do, and I'm not the kind of person who will up & quit without giving it a good year! So I want to make a good decision the first time.. Any suggestions??

[Been there,done that, ASN, RN]

"I just really don't know what I want to do".

A career counselor will not help you with that decision. Your credentials and experience Can open any door.

Think outside the box, I LOVE working from home.

Best of luck, let us know how it's going.

[kungpoopanda]

Good luck with finding someone to talk you through some options and possible career paths. I mean that. The one time I spoke to someone about this they became quite aggressive and told me I was crazy for wanting anything more than just slaving away until I die.

[kitti419]

I always have loved working from home. I was active in real estate prior to starting my second career as a nurse. I did not like in home care mgmt, however. I worked for a very shady company to start with and I was not a big fan of sitting in people's houses. I think home health would have been a little better, but I had a friend at the time who continually complained about her job in home health. Research nursing appeals to me!

[kitti419]

Thank you. Even though I have been a nurse for almost 5 years now, I still feel painfully new to the field.

[FloatRN19]

Maybe try and find a float pool/resource team job at your current facility or others in town. It will help expose you to some areas you might not have considered. Do that for a year or two and then decide where you want to go from there.

[Been there,done that, ASN, RN]

If you want to work from home.. go get it. There are positions for: telehealth, disease management, case management, utilization management, and more.

Seems like you need to focus. You've gone from NICU to research. Yes, you can do all of that... but focus on where you REALLY see yourself.

[kitti419]

I got into nursing because of the diversity in nursing...When I was working on my Psych undergrad, I fell in love with research. Don't even really know what research nursing entails, but it does interest me. I feel like critical care experience is the next logical step, but the ICU seems like a scary place. I would not have been able to stomach NICU as a new grad, but there is a part of who thinks I can do it and might even be great at it (I have my own reasons for feeling this way). I was pregnant when I got into nursing school and always wanted L&D, midwifery, etc. I was first on the list for a preceptorship in L&D and just before my preceptorship started, my L&D preceptor backed out due to a death in her family, and the school scrambled to find someone who would take me last minute. I ended up in the ER, nights, where I had nightmares throughout the whole experience. My preceptor was the charge nurse, so I was frequently tagging along behind other nurses who were more hands on. I saw and learned a lot but I learned enough to know ED is NOT for me. Outpatient infusion seemed kind of neat, but I was honest about my 60% success rate in starting IVs and did not get the job I interviewed for. I do believe in full disclosure..never had a knack for IVs& lab draws, but I can get by & do believe I will get better...I'm really open! I don't know what I "see" myself doing. I am teachable, compassionate, smart, & loyal. I love to learn! I do value my home life so schedule is SO important to me...I have a phone interview on Fri with talent acquisition at a big hospital within 40 mins of my home.. We shall see. In a sense I want to lay it out on the table & let the chips fall where they may. I have a lot to offer in many ways. Have been told also I would be a great clinical liaison. I got to the 2nd interview there, but it didn't go so well as again they wanted someone with experience. The person they hired has since resigned, but I was offered a PRN position every Friday. I declined... simply because I am not looking for a 3rd PRN job. Too picky???