Hospice admissions RNs - thoughts?

[Im a Pepper]

Hi all! -

I've been working in the ER for almost 2 years now, since I was a new grad. My experience with inpatient hospice and a family member was the reason I became a nurse in the first place and I always thought it was what I wanted to do. I finally decided that it could be time for a change so I applied to the well-known hospice here and they contacted me saying that they have per diem admissions positions available (I'd asked for full-time and ideally thought I wanted to work inpatient). To the hospice admissions RN's: what are your thoughts? Do you like doing this kind of work? What are the pros? What are the drawbacks? Do you find this type of work rewarding? Would you switch to inpatient if you could? I guess I'd never really thought of doing this so I'd like to hear from others who do. Thanks in advance!

[tewdles, RN]

Hospice Admission nurses generally see the patients and families once, for SOC. So beyond that visit there is no ongoing relationship. Some nurses find that a draw back, others see it as an advantage.

In my experience those jobs are generally 8-5 jobs that include weekend rotations. Many big hospices will provide admissions "afterhours" so there may be second shifts for admissions.

Admissions are generally very time consuming and very detail oriented with an abundance of documentation and duties that MUST be completed in a very timely manner.

Good luck.

[DLS_PMHNP, MSN, RN, NP]

A hospice admissions position, as tewdles stated above, requires a great deal of accuracy. When I do an admission, I am thinking in advance, of what this pt/family may need in the next 24-48 hours. I also think about their disease process, and and what sx may occur over the next 1-2 days. What equipment (DME) do they need? What medications? (IMPORTANT one)!, are the caregiver(s) able to provide adequate care in the home setting? I did not do admissions until I had some experience as an RN Case Manager. Which helped immensely.

Your ER experience that will serve you well with assessments, etc.

All the best-

Diane