Difficulty Re-entering nursing field

Editorial Team / Admin · Nov 4, 2016

You haven't mentioned what area you live in. Is it an area where there is no nursing shortage? If so, it's quite likely that employers are going to take on applicants who have more recent or more relevant experience. Have you tried direct patient care settings outside of the hospital? That may help make you more marketable.

Been there,done that, ASN, RN · Nov 4, 2016

I did not work PERIOD as a nurse for 2 years. I was providing hospice and home care for 3 loved ones. I signed on with a nursing agency. Every facility I went to saw my performance and offered me employment. Whatever recruiter you are working with.. is full of beans.

You STILL have all of your nursing skills. Most importantly assessment and communication skills.

Why are you feeling the need to get back to hospital nursing?

Karen3500 · Nov 4, 2016

Hello, I am in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area. There are a lot of nursing jobs available, but no one is responding to applications and the recruiter is blaming it on my time away. I will look into the other areas you mentioned. Thank you!

Karen3500 · Nov 4, 2016

Thank you for your feedback. I miss the ER and I'm ready to return if someone would give me a chance. The recruiters words just deflated me. Thank you!

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Nov 4, 2016

Hello, I am in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area. There are a lot of nursing jobs available, but no one is responding to applications and the recruiter is blaming it on my time away. I will look into the other areas you mentioned. Thank you!

I am also in the D/FW area...there's absolutely no shortage here. Nurses have relocated here from basically every other state in recent years. In addition, the nursing schools are churning thousands of new nurses into the local employment market every few months.

You will probably need to commute to an outlying hospital such as Lake Texoma, North Texas Medical Center, Wise Regional, Weatherford Regional, Hill Regional, Palo Pinto General, and so forth.

I know, I know...you will need to commute 90+ minutes to get to some of these facilities. However, if you are desperate enough to return to acute care, you have few other options.

Good luck to you!

Boomer MS, RN · Nov 5, 2016

I think the comment after this one from "Commuter" is wise, especially since he/she knows the D/FW area. But I also want to encourage you because I was in the same boat as you, well, sort of. I was out of nursing for 16 years to raise my children and wanted so badly to return. Although my passion and some experience were in the ED, I tried and was told that being put of the hospital for more than two years was a huge detriment. Then I met someone, an RN, who encouraged and believed in me. Her advice was to "network", a term I had not heard before. I took ACLS ( had taken it years before) from this person and got to know her. I ended up getting hired as a "new grad" in med-surg because I had been out so long. It helped that the nurses on the unit wanted me to succeed. I ended up staying two years before leaving to go to graduate school to specialize in critical care/trauma, my passion. Then I went back to ED nursing. It is possible, and, with your 15 years of ED experience and having been out of acute care only three years, I think it is very doable for you. Sometimes luck is involved, but you can do this. In these times of over saturated areas with numerous applicants for every spot, it can be difficult. But it was difficult too in 1995 when I went back. Please don't let one recruiter discourage you. There is more than one way to skin a cat, with apologies to cat lovers.

Karen3500 · Nov 5, 2016

Thank you for your advice!

smartnurse1982 · Nov 5, 2016

You did not mention your degree.

Even though you might have experience,jobs nowadays are looking for degrees more than anything.

Most ADN and diploma Rn's are having a hard time getting jobs in acute care.

Karen3500 · Nov 5, 2016

Bachelor of Science in Nursing and one class away from Masters in Nursing. Thank you!

Buyer beware, BSN · Nov 6, 2016

Hello, I have a question about re-entering the nursing field after 3 years removed from hospital work. I've been a nurse for over 15 years, mostly in the ER. I took a job as a case manager at an insurance company for 3 years so I could have the flexibility to pick up my son for doctors appointments (he had health issues during this time). He is older and much better now. I've been trying to get back into an ER or any department for over 6 months now. The nurse recruiter I'm working with says that since I was out over 2 years, it will be impossible to get back into a hospital again. I find this hard to believe that my nursing career is essentially over. Is this true or is this the opinion of one recruiter? Thank you so much!

OP: Two-three years off the gig seems like a short time to be iced from the hospital thing; especially if you were applying to your former hospital; I obviously don't know the paticulars here but after asking around for you about the situation the consensus seems to revolve around you hooking with the dreaded "refresher course." To me, three years is not enough time for you to forget how to ride the bicycle, so to speak, but maybe the competitive nature of our blessed profession has temporarily designated you "persona non grata." At least for now.

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Nov 6, 2016

Why are you feeling the need to get back to hospital nursing?

Some people love hospital nursing, believe it or not...

Meanwhile, I plan to ride the wave away from direct patient care as long as possible to see where it takes me. I am glad there are nurses who enjoy the hospital and are willing to toil there day after day so I do not have to.