I give up on waiting and I need a new plan

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Hi, I have given up for right now on nursing school and radiology school, so I need an idea for something that I can make a living doing? I've thought about medical coding and billing. Does anyone know anything about this profession? Do they make good or decent money? Is it easier to get a job with a degree in this or will a certificate be fine? I would like to have a job that I can do at home? Can you get business easily working from home? I just need to figure something out that I might enjoy and quit stressing about things. Does anyone have any ideas on other things that looks good for the future, but doesn't take forever to complete in school? Any advice or suggestions are greatly appreciated.

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Specializes in Telemetry, ER, SICU.

Is there a particular reason that you decided not to continue nursing school or radiology? I do not know much about medical billing or coding, but I am a nurse and my husband is a radiology technologist. I am 23 and he is 26, and we make a pretty decent living. You are young and I would suggest really thinking about what it is you want out of a career. Are you supporting a family, or just yourself. If it is just you, go ahead and experiment, but you don't want to waste too much time doing that, or put a lot of money into something and get nothing in return. To get something great you usually have to make some type of sacrifice and one of those is time. If you want a career where there is variety of opportunities and a decent income, nursing isn't a bad idea, plus, it doesn't require you to be in school forever. There are associate degree programs.

Hope this helps some.

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Specializes in OB, NP, Nurse Educator.

The school I teach at has had a medical coding program for many years - it was discontinued due to the fact that in the area we live coders are not used any longer. I often saw graduates of that program working in Walmart and the grocery store to supplement their income, and some could never get a job.

I would investigate this thoroughly before commiting to it.

Someone else may have a positive thought on the subject.

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When I got really burned out on nursing I looked into medical coding and billing. What I found was discouraging: most all never find jobs.

I also had a nurse friend who bought some equipment and tried to get into medical coding/billing and/or medical transcription. Couldn't find any work doing that, either, as many hospitals now offer this as a free service to doctors.

Your best bet, if you need to get a job quick, is to go through a one year long LPN program. If you don't want to do nursing now a surgical tech program will take 9-12 months. There is absolutely no shame in going to trade school, especially considering the number of college grads. either working at Wal-Mart or waiting tables. I wish I had gone to the vo-tech as soon as I got out of high school.

If you don't want to go to school right now you can start a house cleaning business. I was going to do this but I'm in no shape to start right now. You can charge a rate of $20 or so an hour (but do it by the job so the clients won't think you would be hanging around just to rack up hours). You will have to hustle but there are ways to earn a substantial amount of money without a certificate or degree.

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is there a particular reason that you decided not to continue nursing school or radiology? i do not know much about medical billing or coding, but i am a nurse and my husband is a radiology technologist. i am 23 and he is 26, and we make a pretty decent living. you are young and i would suggest really thinking about what it is you want out of a career. are you supporting a family, or just yourself. if it is just you, go ahead and experiment, but you don't want to waste too much time doing that, or put a lot of money into something and get nothing in return. to get something great you usually have to make some type of sacrifice and one of those is time. if you want a career where there is variety of opportunities and a decent income, nursing isn't a bad idea, plus, it doesn't require you to be in school forever. there are associate degree programs.

hope this helps some.

the reason that i have decided to do something else is because i have all of the pre-requisites completed for nursing and radiology, but the schools are really competitive in georgia and i cannot get in at this time. i do not know if i will ever get in, so i need to come up with something else to support myself. i am single, so i can go to school without any problems, but i just don't know what to get into that isn't competive, but has a good future.

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the reason that i have decided to do something else is because i have all of the pre-requisites completed for nursing and radiology, but the schools are really competitive in georgia and i cannot get in at this time. i do not know if i will ever get in, so i need to come up with something else to support myself. i am single, so i can go to school without any problems, but i just don't know what to get into that isn't competive, but has a good future.

how about lpn program? here in michigan, the average waiting list for rn program is 2 years, but there are no waiting list for lpn program. after you are done with lpn then you can do lpn to rn program. salary arent that good with coding and billing.

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My advice would be to look into a paramedic program at your local community college. You will get lots of hands on patient care experience, learn to deal with providing medical care in "less than ideal" conditions, and it will also enable you to do the Excelsior Paramedic to RN online nursing program. Just something to think about......

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Check out the Naval Reserve. As a Pharmacy Tech you would be eligible to become a Hospital Corpsman. (HM is the military equivalent of LPN.) They have a program for NPS sailors. http://www.navy.com/

Are you able to relocate? Widen your school search to other states. I wouldn't give up on getting in to nursing school.

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There are lots of other options in health care, if you are not set on being a nurse or rad tech. Lab tech, paramedic, RT, PT, OT, Dental tech or hygenist. Would you consider relocating for school? That might be an option.

I don't know much about rad school, are they general programs then you specialize once in the program into x-ray, CT, MRI, US and what not? Or does each specialty have it's own school?

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There are plenty of jobs available in hospitals. Why don't you get a job as a CNA or some kind of clerk until you can get in school.

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Thanks everyone for your replies. I have been going to college since 18 and I'm just anxious to do something that I like. I believe, after having my mind set on nursing for years, that I would rather be a rad tech. I am a pharmacy tech right now, in which I got my training from the army and spent 4 years of active duty, but I don't like it. I am going to continue to try and get into rad tech school next year, but I'm afraid that I'm just going to be rejected again and have my life put on hold. I can relocate since I have the GI Bill, it's just overwhelming sometimes to try and try and never get anywhere and there is just sooo much competition and I am not the brightest star out there.:o Anyway, I'm just venting a little bit now I think. If anyone knows of any school that is not so hard to get into then please let me know. I need a jump start. ;) Thanks

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I'm in a 14 mos. LPN program with plans to do my RN bridge (completly online) asap after passing boards. Here in FL the state covers EVERYTHING if you are in an approved LPN program. Soup to nuts - gas cards to tuition to uniforms!! The evening classes all have waitlists, the day classes are wide open. Once I figured out nursing is my calling, I couldn't imagine waiting or doing anything else. DON'T GIVE UP!

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