How did you get out of bedside nursing?

abnormal_saline · Oct 17, 2018

Been there,done that said:
Please see my PM.

Thanks for the PM, it won't let me reply back yet. What is a day in the life like in your nursing job?

abnormal_saline · Oct 17, 2018

rearviewmirror said:
Go for utilization management or case management, especially for payor/insurance side; they offer lots of work-at-home opportunities; can you imagine waking up from bed, grab cup of coffee, kill about one hour and turning on your computer to work in your pajamas instead of being stuck in traffic to work? I plan on getting MBA or MHA then go up the ladder.
Also, I get paid way better than working at hospital; if I took a day shift, I will probably lose more than 13-15k a year. The only way to keep what I get paid is night shift and may even need over time here and there to keep up with what I make now.
I hated bedside nursing so much; the worst was all the politics and stupid presganey scores that made people think hospital was a hotel; I bet if patient killed a nurse because he didn't like a tuna casserole in his lunch tray, the administrator would find ways to blame the nurse to avoid litigation, and then reprimand food services for not foretelling that patient did not like tuna in his casserole.

Thanks so much. I will look into these nursing jobs as well. But is it hard to land these jobs with no experience? Do they train experienced floor nurses who want to transition into these jobs? A lot of the job requirements I see say they require at least 1 year of experience as utilization or case manager...how do I get my foot in?

abnormal_saline · Oct 17, 2018

AnnieOaklyRN said:
My job is still at the bedside, but I feel it is a lot less stressful then actually being the primary nurse. I do vascular access at a children's hospital (which I just started three weeks ago. I did vascular access on mainly adults before that). A LOT less stressful in my opinion then typical beside positions. We just go do our thing and leave, so if their is a difficult parent no biggie. You also get to move around still and you still care for patients and make a difference in their care! Also no heavy lifting, wiping behinds, or doing any of the real labor intensive stuff that comes with nursing
I do think I want to get back to the bedside at some point though, as I miss caring for the whole patient, and being able to do that without have to care for adults would be totally awesome.
Annie

Nice. I always envied the PICC line nurses and Dialysis nurses who just do their thing and leave. How did you get your training as a vascular access nurse? This also sounds appealing to me!

rearviewmirror, BSN, RN · Oct 17, 2018

abnormal_saline said:
Thanks so much. I will look into these nursing jobs as well. But is it hard to land these jobs with no experience? Do they train experienced floor nurses who want to transition into these jobs? A lot of the job requirements I see say they require at least 1 year of experience as utilization or case manager...how do I get my foot in?

Answer: apply apply apply, and then apply some more. If you have at minimum 2 years of bedside experience, preferably 3 to 5, then you can find these your/CM jobs on indeed or simplyhired or whatever and apply. Key is applying again and keep trying. I just got a hospital your job and I had at least 6-7 interviews before landing this one, and I probably applied to close to 50 likely more in last few months I had been looking. These opportunities as you can tell don't come easy especially if you are trying to step into it. Don't be afraid to get your feet wet at smaller third-party companies. You can get experience and then leave on your terms. Good luck!

Caitie, ADN, RN · Sep 23, 2019

I started at a hospital on a neuro/medsurg unit. After working for only 7 months I found a clinic job that focuses on hormone therapy & aesthetics. I'm so excited for this transition and I hope you find a job you love! Night shift is especially as hard-mentally and physically.

NLNM, BSN · Dec 12, 2019

Hello all! I've attempted to transition from bedside nursing to an outpatient, Ambulatory setting but had no luck within the past 15 months. Why is it very difficult to get a job within an outpatient office as an RN even when it's just an internal transfer? I currently work three 12+ hrs a week as a night-shift RN. I have 4 yrs of experience and I have received Med-surg certification (BSN, RN, RN-BC through ANCC if that makes a difference). So far, I've gone on a total of 37 interviews, 7 external (at other health facilities) and the rest internally. I've even reached out to HR to get assistance. I was never written up and was never on a disciplinary action plan. The advice I received from HR after being told that my presence and the way I answered the interview questions during the mock interview were professional, I was told to make sure that I make sure I stick to my experience as being my reasoning for wanting to transition which is what I've been doing all along among other things. The feedback that I would receive when I do receive feedback is that another candidate was selected due to me not having Ambulatory care despite having bedside care and yrs of customer service from my previous profession (banking). There were many times I've been asked to come back for a second interview, just to be told that they were looking for someone with Ambulatory experience. During my interviews when I would be given the opportunity to speak to the staff, a few of the RNs have shared with me was that anyone could learn how to be an Ambulatory RN through the orientation that's provided and that it would be no problem for a bedside nurse to learn due to already having experience but yet, I am still without an offer. Any advice/info can be given as to how I can transition over? I no longer want to be a bedside RN for many reasons and I feel like I'm at the end of my rope with nursing due to the bad experiences I've had since I became an RN.