Home Health vs. Rehab to reach ultimate goal

MN-Nurse, ASN, RN · May 1, 2012

Hello I am a new associate RN. I have had two job offers. One is a home health and hospice while the other is a post surgery rehabilitation living center. My ultimate goal is to work in a hospital setting. Which job experience would better assist me in my goal?

The rehab center.

bill4745, RN · May 1, 2012

Rehab would be a better experience for you. Also, home health would not be a great place for a new nurse. I did it for a while; you are really on your own making some major decisions, such as whether or not someone needs to go to the ED, etc.

nurseprnRN, BSN, RN · May 1, 2012

home health always sounds so warm and fuzzy, but it's not the place for a new grad. go for the rehab...and you may find that rehabilitation nursing interests you more than you anticipate.

http://www.rehabnurse.org/

Meriwhen, ASN, BSN, MSN, RN · May 1, 2012

IMO, home health isn't the best place for a new grad to start off in, unless they have a few years of LVN experience under their belt. Yes, there are new grads that start off in home health and do just fine, so it is possible to be a success story. But the fact of the matter is that in home health, it's just you: no charge nurse to run to for advice or assistance, no MD around the corner who can order a stat med, no coworkers around to give you their opinion on whether a s/s is a sign of decompensation or nothing to worry about. You can call people, but essentially you need to make decisions on your own. If you worked as a LVN first, you have prior experience and a knowledge base to help you out... but a new grad RN may not have that.

I think that rehab would offer you a better chance of getting into a hospital down the road. Plus you will have more support as a new grad that you may get in home health (orientation and support mileages may vary depending on the agency you work for).

Best of luck whatever you decide!