Don't like nursing at all, what can I do with my BSN?

Nurses New Nurse

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I've been an RN for 6 months working in acute care. After working for 6 months I'm dreadfully burnt out. Nursing is not what I thought it was. Nursing school just prepared us to do nursing tasks but it didn't show us the real world behind the scenes of nursing. Dealing with admits and discharges and orders upon orders and providers losing temper always stressed running from room to room having IV bags passing meds on time cleaning up a bed fast patient and falling behind providers yelling because they orders Stat labs an hour ago but I didn't see them because I was busy with another patient. I can't deal with that type of situation anymore and I'm just burnt. My family has seen a drastic change in my demeanor and have noticed I've been depressed and quiet and not who I used to be any more and frankly it's because of this job.

Not just that but I'm really just tired of the whole bedside / direct patient care. Techs never doing their part so I'm picking up all their tasks at the same time while they text on their phones in the utilities room.

I'm not really sure where to go now or what to do. I've had multiple panic attacks prior and during work due to the stress and responsibilities bestowed upon me. Nursing school never prepared us for this and I had no clue this is what nursing was so now I am regretting entering the field.

I'm in debt nearly 35k for school and Idk what else I can do with my BSN. I really want to go back to school and go into telecom or computer engineering where the level of responsibility is not as high and the stress level is at a minimum.

Any advice at all? I really been thinking about this for a few months now and I just don't like bed side/ direct patient care at all. Idk if I should try and find an outpatient position or something that doesn't involve doing bedside nursing care. Or if there is something else I can do with my BSN.

Thanks guys

Specializes in Critical Care and ED.
@ rock nurse

What are your daily tasks / responsibilities in informatics nursing I remember taking a class on it but can't recall exactly what the nurse does in that area.

I had to go to EPIC in Wisconsin three times to do classes and then take 3 exams. I learned how to build in the system. Most of day is spent building structured reporting, being in meetings and going to doctor's offices to review their needs and fix any problems. I was head hunted for my knowledge in cardiology so yes, it was required that I had some knowledge and experience and also a BSN.

Specializes in School Nursing, Hospice,Med-Surg.

Med-Surg wasn't for me, either. I loved the learning but it was stressful and often scary when I was newly out of school. I think I would view it differently now but I would still be scared if I stepped back into it today.

I found hospice (both inpatient and home hospice) to be a much more peaceful, calmer pace where I could focus on one patient at a time where patients weren't being rapidly admitted and discharged, sent off to surgery and slammed with new and changing orders constantly. Different doctors weren't constantly on the scene. I had to have a strong background to carry such responsibility in home hospice because I was working alone but it was a nice pace and I loved my work.

School nursing has also been nice. Most of the time it's the same stuff every day and I usually see the same things 95% of the time. School nurses do have to be prepared for the rare, scary unexpected things and know how to handle those pediatric emergencies, though. But it's definitely not the hectic pace of an acute floor. AND you must be pretty happy working alone and having no team to rely on.

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@ rock nurse

That actually sounds right up my alley because I'm a huge tech guy. Love working with computers. I've honestly never even seen a job opening here for that either haha. But as I've considered going back to school for computer engineering or telecoms. Nurse informatics seems to fit both worlds... interesting

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@ rock nurse

That actually sounds right up my alley because I'm a huge tech guy. Love working with computers. I've honestly never even seen a job opening here for that either haha. But as I've considered going back to school for computer engineering or telecoms. Nurse informatics seems to fit both worlds... interesting

Informatics require a Masters for the most part. In NY, anyway.

Is this about the tough learning curve or a genuine aversion to direct patient care? The learning curve isn't much different in any aspect of nursing, tough for a nurse bringing work experience, tougher even for a new nurse. Go the home health forum and first years are overwhelmed regardless of the nursing experience they bring, some saying they want to get back to acute care because of it.

Is this about the tough learning curve or a genuine aversion to direct patient care? The learning curve isn't much different in any aspect of nursing, tough for a nurse bringing work experience, tougher even for a new nurse. Go the home health forum and first years are overwhelmed regardless of the nursing experience they bring, some saying they want to get back to acute care because of it.

This is true! I need to check in there. I'm finally cleared and on my own!

Informatics require a Masters for the most part. In NY, anyway.

I'm not disagreeing - but you practically need a MSN in NY to wipe butt in many places. Methink you are one of the lucky ones, Farawyn

Try clinic nursing like at a primary clinic or cardiology clinic - Monday thur Friday, taking vitals, health history and answering phones.

I'm not disagreeing - but you practically need a MSN in NY to wipe butt in many places. Methink you are one of the lucky ones, Farawyn

No one ever asks for my creds when I am wiping butt. If they do they will be sorely disappointed.

Specializes in Critical Care and ED.
Informatics require a Masters for the most part. In NY, anyway.

Not in my experience. Very few of the nurses I work with in my department have a Master's and I hadn't actually started mine when I first took the job. They have never mentioned it as a requirement but they all know I'm in school to be an NP. I work in New England.

Nursing is not the problem; it is the field that you are in (acute care). One of the great things about nursing is that it has several fields to go into (for example, teaching, research, school nurse, CNL, etc.).

Six months of the first year was my lowest point. The newness has worn off, orientation is over, and everything is much harder than it is when you have the experience.

The type of nursing you are working in hires a lot of new grads because of job turnover. It is not just you, lots of people move on after that first year looking for something else.

Don't be too quick to quit nursing altogether; there are better jobs out there. With experience, nursing informatics is one. I used to work with this guy who worked informatics. The only complaint he had was about the long work hours. He quit and came to my unit, but his old employers lured him back with a good raise.

ICU might sound scary, but really it is a more controlled environment with fewer patients to focus on. ICU skills also open doors for a lot of desirable jobs like PACU and procedural jobs like cath lab, interventional radiology.

Take care of yourself and use the next few months to look around and plot your escape plan.

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