Would love realistic advice/alternatives for prospective BSN student with bad back

Nurses General Nursing

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Hello all,

I just wanted to reach out to some practicing nurses who are in non-hospital positions and might have some advice for someone looking with a bad back looking for future options. I have read on these threads limited advice for people with bad backs. Some of the alternative options to hospital work were psych wards, case management, nursing homes, in home care, etc...

If anybody is in any of those areas, or ones that I have not mentioned that might be relevant, I would love to hear a little bit more about my potential options. I really want to become a nurse and help people better or maintain their health. I do not have a science background, but it fascinates me, and I can't wait to begin classes.

I don't want a desk job or one that is cut off from patient contact. The direct means of working with each patient is one of the main reasons why I am attracted to the nursing field. My back could heal in the future, I just can't expect it to heal very quickly. It has been injured three years with relatively useless advice along the way from the gamut of medical professionals. I have come to terms with it, found myself to be my own best doctor (as well as the one I can best afford) and know that it will take a long time to heal, while I maintain my stretching, swimming, and walking. I know that it could not take the stress of general hospital work, from what I have heard of the myriad positions. I can walk and stay on my feet and be active all day. The grand irony is that I love physical work, and feel healthiest and strongest when physically active yet mindful of my actions. But, I would not be able to be lifting and moving and leaning and bending all shift long.

Can someone with a bad back realistically make it through nursing school safely even?

If any one can share their experiences in relation to schooling and job advice it would be greatly appreciated. I have narrowed down my schools, and am about to begin taking prerequisites for the next year and half. I just want to know if I will have options with a weaker back than most. I have two non-science degrees and love to learn, but am not eager to spend the next few years working toward something that will not allow me to put my knowledge to work.

I realize that I am a bit naive, but hope that there is some means to become a nurse, and not be constantly jeopardizing my own physical well being. Thank you so much for any advice shared...

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Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.

i have a bad back. i'm in the icu and have been for years. with retirement coming up soon, i'm torn between trying to stick it out or finding a desk job. as i write this, i'm flat on my back on top of a heating pad . . . .

how bad is your back? once you get through school, you'll have many of the opportunities you listed -- psych probably being the best opportunity for a new grad. but you have to get through school first. clinicals will involve lifting, bending, turning, tugging, carrying and all sorts of other things that will hurt. if you think you can do that 1 or 2 days a week for 8 hours (unless i'm mistaken about how much time students spend on the unit these days), go for it.

don't risk doing yourself more harm. but if it's just pain you're considering and you think you can handle it, go for it.

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Students are on my unit five days a week for 7 hour shifts. Their final placement often involves 12 hour shifts. Can you do this safely?

You have to be able to survive general hospital work to graduate from any nursing programme. Units will only accomodate you to a certain degree because part of the job requirement is the physical ability to perform the required duties. I know of one unit who had ONE nurse per shift that doesn't have a restriction of some kind on them, it's not a happy place to work.

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I strongly advise you consider a different career choice. I was a nurse for forty years, use proper body mechanic and still suffered several low back injuries, including a herniated disc. There are positions that do not require lifting but they require bedside nursing experience first. Obtaining your nursing education, while stress proper body mechanics, does not guarantee that you will not suffer an injury. And you all ready have a pre-existing back injury, setting you up for another. I suffered my first injury in 1976, low back strain. I suffered another one in 1981 and completely recovered. I finally herniated a disc in 1988. It took me all that time and three injuries to herniate a disc. Sorry but nursing is really not a good idea.

GrannyRN65

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Specializes in Med/Surg, Ortho, ASC.

"I don't want a desk job or one that is cut off from patient contact."

If you are able to figure out a way to accomplish clinicals, I think that you are unwise to automatically rule out desk jobs. Nursing is an intense career: there are only so many exceptions that you can realistically expect a position to accommodate.

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I don't know how many times I heard in nursing school, "Protect your back!" Having worked in the hospital while I was in school, I've met so many nurses who have been doing this job for 10+ years who complain of so many aches and pains. Once I start working, I don't really know how long I can do floor nursing. It beats your body up so badly even if you do everything ergonomically correct. Also, no offense but America is a country that is just getting fatter and fatter and most of the patients in the hospital are overweight or obese and it doesn't make things any on the back and joints. Anyway, I hope you find your perfect niche in nursing. The great thing is, you have a lot of areas of nursing to choose from and you can also go get an advanced degree in nursing and pursue NP or CNS or whatever. Good luck to you!

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Specializes in NICU/Subacute/MDS.

I do not have a bad back, but I work in NICU and my average patient is 2-4 pounds, plus the walking about is limited to a fairly short distance. Fairly easy on the back. In fact, when we have a 'big' eight-pounder the nurses all come by to marvel at how huge he/she is! LOL We forget that they come in those sizes.

As far as nursing school is concerned, you should be able to get by. You will have your other classmates to help you with turning patients. If your back trouble is completely debilitating (vs a 'bad back') I would address it with an instructor and see how it goes. Be choosy about who you talk to, though. Some instructors are not so flexible. I had one instructor who would go crazy if we sat down during our clinicals. You should have seen her face when a couple of students had the nerve to go into the nurse's lounge for a water break.

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I recently graduated and I also have a bad back. I'm a little worried about my future as I want to be a bedside nurse & nothing else, but I am going to do whatever it takes.

I didn't have problems with my back during clinicals, it became a problem when I started working as a tech, then an extern because I was doing the grunt work- a lot of bending and such. I don't think clinicals are as intense physically as it is when you're a working nurse... it's less hours, less patients & responsibilities, and for me, it was a lot of paperwork.

I think it's possible to get through school and clinicals with a bad back, it's another story if you are going to work on the floor during school or after. Obviously, I don't know what your back can handle, I think we have very different problems. It also depends on your nursing program- how many days & hours a week you'll have clinical and what's expected of you when you're at clinical. Accelerated and two-year programs require more time spent in the hospital. I was in a 3-year BSN program that only required 6-hour clinicals like twice a week.

The physical demands of nursing school aren't as intense as the physical demands of an actual nursing job/career. I think you can make it through school and once you're done you have options regarding the type of nursing that is right for you and your back. Good luck!

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Specializes in M/S, MICU, CVICU, SICU, ER, Trauma, NICU.

Please realize this is coming from a realistic POV.

You will have a hard time being a nurse (especially a new one) without being able to do what others do.

I suggest looking into another field.

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Specializes in M/S, MICU, CVICU, SICU, ER, Trauma, NICU.
I recently graduated and I also have a bad back. I'm a little worried about my future as I want to be a bedside nurse & nothing else, but I am going to do whatever it takes.

I didn't have problems with my back during clinicals, it became a problem when I started working as a tech, then an extern because I was doing the grunt work- a lot of bending and such. I don't think clinicals are as intense physically as it is when you're a working nurse... it's less hours, less patients & responsibilities, and for me, it was a lot of paperwork.

I think it's possible to get through school and clinicals with a bad back, it's another story if you are going to work on the floor during school or after. Obviously, I don't know what your back can handle, I think we have very different problems. It also depends on your nursing program- how many days & hours a week you'll have clinical and what's expected of you when you're at clinical. Accelerated and two-year programs require more time spent in the hospital. I was in a 3-year BSN program that only required 6-hour clinicals like twice a week.

The physical demands of nursing school aren't as intense as the physical demands of an actual nursing job/career. I think you can make it through school and once you're done you have options regarding the type of nursing that is right for you and your back. Good luck!

This isn't realistic.

The OP needs to see what it's like by following someone around fulltime.

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Specializes in M/S, MICU, CVICU, SICU, ER, Trauma, NICU.
I strongly advise you consider a different career choice. I was a nurse for forty years, use proper body mechanic and still suffered several low back injuries, including a herniated disc. There are positions that do not require lifting but they require bedside nursing experience first. Obtaining your nursing education, while stress proper body mechanics, does not guarantee that you will not suffer an injury. And you all ready have a pre-existing back injury, setting you up for another. I suffered my first injury in 1976, low back strain. I suffered another one in 1981 and completely recovered. I finally herniated a disc in 1988. It took me all that time and three injuries to herniate a disc. Sorry but nursing is really not a good idea.

GrannyRN65

This.

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Specializes in FNP.

Patients are getting fatter every day, 2 of our 4 beds have to be bariatric for gods sake. IIWY, I'd rethink my career choice.

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