Could a seasoned bedside nurse be a thing of the past?

BlueShoes12, BSN, RN · Mar 27, 2018

I think in certain locations, the NP field is already oversaturated. It depends on the field and the school that people attend - I know someone who graduated with an MSN and wasn't able to pass their boards despite multiple attempts.

As a newer (younger) nurse, I certainly don't plan to work at the bedside for twenty years, at least not in a full time position. I see how the folks who have been working that long limp around and wince when moving patients and I don't want any part of that. I like being functional and able to be active on my days off. It's interesting on my unit since we have a mix of nurses who have been there 25+ years and others less than five - very few in the middle

Guest757854 · Mar 28, 2018

this is a really good question...

my grandmother,who has been an RN since the 60s said when BSN degrees were first started, it was mainly for management positions. now look at the nursing economy. A BSN is needed(in most places) to even get you resumÃ© looked at by hiring managers.

Nursing homes used to be just for the elderly. now look! Young and old alike, (ages 8-80) share rooms, dine and shower together in these places.

Pretty soon you will have to be an NP to work at the bedside.

klone, MSN, RN · Mar 28, 2018

No, I don't think it ever will be. On my unit, 50% of the nurses have 10+ years of experience, and of those nurses, over half have 20+ years. I can't imagine my unit is a complete anomaly.

Editorial Team / Admin · Mar 28, 2018

Kind of a timely thread. Sitting at AORN expo, and our speaker today was about generational differences in the workforce. The majority of the workforce is either the older folks or the younger folks- the middle is only a small percentage.

allnurses Guide · Mar 28, 2018

Nah. I'm sure there are plenty of nurses like me who:

a. Don't feel like going back to school

b. Don't feel like going into any type of management

c. Don't have the MONEY to go back to school

MrNurse(x2), ADN · Mar 28, 2018

The other limiting factor is the employer. There is an attitude that experience is not worth the pay. Experienced nurses are forced out.

RNperdiem, RN · Mar 28, 2018

It depends on where you go. At my big academic medical center, there were a higher number of younger nurses who did not have plans to stay in bedside nursing than the nurses who I worked with at a small community hospital.

If you go looking in PACU, OR and some of the procedural suites, you will find older nurses with years of experience. Smaller rural hospitals, the VA, places that hire ADN tend to have more bedside nurses who stay.

Accolay · Apr 3, 2018

Also need to keep in mind that 10000 Boomers are reaching retirement age every day, and will countinue to do so until 2030:

Baby Boomers Approach 65 – Glumly | Pew Research Center

I didn't bother looking it up for a source, but I have read that younger generations (those nasty millenials ) don't want to work in the same job until retirement age when the company fires them right before receiving their pension- there isn't the same company loyalty. They'd rather try switching jobs to find something better: better schedule, more satisfying or that has better pay. I'm not //that// old and find myself much more risk averse for job prospects than many of my younger colleagues.

sallyrnrrt, ADN, RN · Apr 3, 2018

After 45.5 years, bedside I've abandoned

But I still have ER game

WalterWho · Apr 5, 2018

I've often wondered this myself. I read a statistic the other day, that if i remember right, said the largest portion of nurses leaving the field have less than 10 years experience, and it makes sense to me. A lot of young nurses graduate with big expectations and come to find that they're not a good fit for nursing or that becoming an NP, or rather finding an job as one, is harder than they thought. To top all this off, they get yelled at all day by patients and doctors