Is there a job in nursing where I can do this?

[Lilac_Lily]

Hello I'm an LPN and fairly new to nursing and I'm considering going back to school to further my education. I'm just not sure if I should stick with nursing or go into a different field entirely.

What I really would like to do is educate people how to eat right, exercise right and live healthy naturally without a lot of medication. And I would like to help my clients find the right natural supplements.

I understand that there is a holistic nursing specialty and I was wondering if there are holistic nurse practitioners that do only do those things that I described above? And if there is any real need for them?

If you have any information, I'd really appreciate hearing from you!

[xoyw01]

Check the specialty forum, you will find info on holistic nursing there. Good luck.

[ICRN2008, BSN, RN]

You may want to look into a nutrition degree and/or becoming a registered dietitian.

I must caution you, however, that advising clients to stop taking their prescribed medications could land you in a whole lot of legal trouble...you must approach this carefully and make sure that you operate within your scope of practice.

[Jaguar Boy]

There are many areas of holistic health. Have you thought about training in:

Naturopathic Medicine

Osteopathy

Good luck!

[loriangel14, RN]

The term is naturopathic, not holistic. Holistic refers to a system of pt care that considers the physical, emotional, social, ecomonic and spiritual needs of the person. Naturopathy is a system of theraputics based on natural foods, light, warmth, massage, fresh air, regular exercise and the avoidance of medications.

[suzanne4, RN]

Instructing a patient to stop taking a medication requires prescriptive capabilities as a start. This is not something that a nurse can do, whether RN or LPN/LVN. It requires Advanced Practice standing with a BON.

Even dieticians cannot tell anyone to stop taking a medication, they would in conjunction with health-care providers to make recommendations, but anything other than that and they are not legally capable of doing so.

[llg, PhD, RN]

Another thing to consider is the likelihood of finding your "perfect job" soon after you graduate. In many areas of the country, new graduates are limited in their job opportunities until after they get some general experience working as a staff nurse in a hospital or long term care facility. If that more common type of job does not appeal to you, you may want look at other options besides nursing.