Ruptured disc, what's my next move

[CABG patch kid, BSN, RN]

Hello all; little background on me, I'm currently in my six year as a bedside nurse and have been struggling with medical problems this past year. Long story short I had knee surgery Oct 2013 and ruptured my L4-L5 late Feb (probably went back to work too soon after knee surgery and hurt my back as a result). I have been off work since I hurt my back 2 months ago and just got an MRI this week which shows disc extrusion with mild bilateral nerve root compression. My doctor is out of town for a week so I'm not even sure what the plan is at this point; I'm guessing he might want to refer me to a neurosurgeon for a consult and plan of care and the referral will take at least 2-3 more weeks. In the meantime, I am feeling better with PT and have made significant improvements but all of this has really made me question staying at my current position. I know I don't want surgery and will continue with conservative management, which certainly means being off work for awhile.

I started looking for a new job about one month after I hurt my back (not knowing at the time how severe the injury was or how long it will take to heal) and actually got a tentative offer in an outpatient GI lab. I am in the pre employment process right now and anticipating a pre employment physical next week or so. Now that I know my actual diagnosis, of course I will have to disclose this info and may not even pass the physical. I am thinking of just applying to case management jobs where there is NO chance of patient lifting; unfortunately this GI lab position has a small chance of transferring patients but they are mostly ambulatory; walk in and walk out.

My current job has approved my medical leave however they will not allow me to apply for any new position while I'm out (tons of case management positions are open right now and that's what I really want to do). It sucks because they expect me to go back to work unrestricted before I can apply for a more suitable job. I'd love to stay with my current hospital but they are making it difficult. I should have filed worker's comp when I first suspected my injury was work related but because my back spasmed two days after my last shift I wasn't sure if I could. Now employee health is telling me I can file if I want but my claim will be delayed and possibly denied and I may not see an MD for 2-3 months. Even then it will be a huge process before reclassifying me into another job. And that's why I said screw it and started looking elsewhere. I'm just really torn; I don't know if I should try to stay at my current hospital, which means going back to the bedside indefinitely until something else opens up or take a chance at a new job knowing that I have health issues and I don't want to risk reijury or calling in sick when I first start out. What to do?!!

I guess I'm just looking for some input and maybe other people's stories if you've been through something similar. Thanks for listening.