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

Rocknurse, MSN, APRN, NP · Nov 2, 2015

Try PACU nursing, OR, informatics or dialysis. I turned to those for similar reasons and enjoyed them immensely. I did mostly critical care which was incredibly stressful but I liked where I worked and I learned a lot. I'm in informatics now and am in NP school also.

Irish_Mist, BSN, RN · Nov 2, 2015

I wouldn't give up on nursing after only 6 months. Perhaps you're in a speciality that's just not your cup of tea. Have you considered floating to other departments?

lostrnugh · Nov 2, 2015

@ 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.

lostrnugh · Nov 2, 2015

@irish mist

Yes i talked to my unit manager awhile back and she set me up to float on med surg unit and same feelings I honestly just think the bedside/ direct patient care is not a fit for me at all. It's not specialized like neuro /stroke or anything its actually General acute care.

Hoosier_RN, MSN · Nov 2, 2015

Informatics in my neck of the woods requires many years of experience. Most of the away from the bedside jobs do. Just look around and apply for anything that interests you. But try to hang in there for that 1 year if you can, it will make you more marketable

Farawyn · Nov 2, 2015

Huh. I am "only" an ADN and I felt pretty prepared for what nursing really was in the transition from school- floors. Is there that much less clinical time now? We used to come in for report and stay the whole shift.

Yes, there is always a learning curve, etc., but what were you expecting, OP?

I felt like I "had it" after about a year, maybe 2. Give it some time. 6 months is not enough time.

DreamerMW · Nov 2, 2015

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

That sucks to feel that way after all that hard work in nursing school. Maybe you'd like OB better? You're usually focused on one patient if you're on L&D or just a few low-maintenance ones if you're in postpartum. I find that the stress level in the LDRP floor is significantly lighter than that of the med-surg floor. Once in a while you'll be involved in emergencies just to make sure that you don't get too relaxed :). I'm sure there are more areas in nursing that let you focus on fewer, less acute patients at a time that I can't think of right now, but I just wanted to throw the idea of OB at you.

lostrnugh · Nov 2, 2015

Its not the learning curve per - say it's the area I'm in. Bedside is not my cup of tea or maybe nursing in general just isn't for me. What I've seen, done, experienced while working I had not experienced when I was in nursing school. The stress level has nearly thrown me into SVT quite a few times. I hooked my self up to a robo nurse once during a panic attack I was at 157 hr this is not healthy for me at all. I normally run 80s. Not once have i ever had a panic attack before and now I get them frequently.

Like I also said my family has noticed a drastic change in my behavior after I started working as an RN.

Just not sure where to go at this point. Already discussed leaving nursing with my family and boy did the sh#t hit the fan but some of them did support my thoughts about it except my parents of course.

I've talked to a few coworkers and they told me I just need to find what's right for me, they said if I don't feel right where I am and don't feel comfortable I need to find another area. I just don't know where to go at this point.

lostrnugh · Nov 2, 2015

.

@ dreamer

I actually really loved L&D and mother baby when I was in nursing school. However I'm a male and I figure it would be pretty hard to get a L&D position and or mother baby position as a male. But yes I did think about OB when I was job hunting after I finished school because I really liked it.

What is LDRP ? Never heard of it.

xoemmylouox, ASN, RN · Nov 2, 2015

I would try another avenue of nursing - outpatient care, home care, hospice, etc. I wouldn't give up because you didn't like your first job 6 months in. If you would stick it out longer you might be able to teach at a local school, teach cpr, etc.

Been there,done that, ASN, RN · Nov 2, 2015

First of all, you need to take care of yourself. Depression and out of control heart rates need to be addressed.Talk to your physician and get some effective coping strategies. Use your EAP.

You must get control, as you must stick out the first year. After that ,many doors open for you.

There are a lot of threads here on AN that give you many ideas for positions away from the bedside.

P.S. Get the tech assistance you need. Write them up... each and everytime. Call supervision to catch them playing with their phones, etc. Last floor job I had.. caught using a PED led to immediate dismissal.