Is going straight from nursing school to nurse supervisor a good career choice?

[Theloving100]

An acquaintance of mine graduated from nursing school a couple years ago and straight out of nursing school she snagged a LTC supervisor job, stayed in that position for a year and recently got promoted to nurse manager. I was thinking that may be a good career path for me because I heard she makes pretty good money and I need all the money I can get, but is it a cop out? I want to be the best nurse I can be. Do you think going straight to a leadership role that doesn't give me direct contact with patients will jeopardize any chances of being a front line nurse, if I would chose a different nursing position in the future? I didn't want to ask her because I didn't want to insult her, so any thought or experiences on this would be nice. Thank you!

[akulahawkRN, ADN, RN, EMT-P]

I would have to say that leadership is a skill unto itself. One can be an amazing bedside nurse, or even an amazing charge/clinical coordinator nurse... but if you don't have the appropriate leadership skills, you typically won't do well in upper management. A School Principal, a Zoo Director, or Bank President really do not need to have worked in "front line" positions to excel at their jobs. They do, however, have to know what's possible, and who can provide the necessary skills for what is needed.

If I were a Zoo Director, I do not have to know how to feed Lions or have shoveled Elephant poop to know that I have to hire people with the proper qualifications to do those things, or to hire people that have the ability to directly supervise those people. They also have to ensure that the appropriate regulations are being followed.

[nurseprnRN, BSN, RN]

Whatever facility she's managing, I don't want my child or my spouse or my mother to be a patient there.

[Jensmom7, BSN, RN]

I once did wound care at a LTC: EVERY floor nurse (RN and LPN) had the title "Nurse Supervisor".

None of them were really in a management position.

Some facilities are like banks; everyone has a high fallutin' title than means absolutely zilch in the real world.

[nurseprnRN, BSN, RN]

I would have to say that leadership is a skill unto itself. One can be an amazing bedside nurse, or even an amazing charge/clinical coordinator nurse... but if you don't have the appropriate leadership skills, you typically won't do well in upper management. A School Principal, a Zoo Director, or Bank President really do not need to have worked in "front line" positions to excel at their jobs. They do, however, have to know what's possible, and who can provide the necessary skills for what is needed.

If I were a Zoo Director, I do not have to know how to feed Lions or have shoveled Elephant poop to know that I have to hire people with the proper qualifications to do those things, or to hire people that have the ability to directly supervise those people. They also have to ensure that the appropriate regulations are being followed.

Quite so. And how would you know how to evaluate them, either pre-hire or as they went along? How credible a leader would you be with them? What transferrable skills would you bring to the job ... as a new grad in the field? And finally, which was the original question: What kind of facility would hire you, who knew nothing about the field?

[Nurse Leigh]

*snicker* Way to make them feel special.

[nurseprnRN, BSN, RN]

I once did wound care at a LTC: EVERY floor nurse (RN and LPN) had the title "Nurse Supervisor".

None of them were really in a management position.

That's like the high school football team where every player is a "co-captain" for resume-boosting purposes for college apps. When they go for the interview with the college coach, he finds out really fast who really has leadership experience and ability. The third-string special teams blocker doesn't.

Or home nursing companies where every staff nurse is a "case manager." They are often shocked when they apply for a real case management job and have no clue of how to do it.

[Theloving100]

She is actually a nurse manager now. She's only been doing it a few months, so I guess I will see if her decision to dive directly into management was a wise choice.

[Nurse Leigh]

I would have to say that leadership is a skill unto itself. One can be an amazing bedside nurse, or even an amazing charge/clinical coordinator nurse... but if you don't have the appropriate leadership skills, you typically won't do well in upper management. A School Principal, a Zoo Director, or Bank President really do not need to have worked in "front line" positions to excel at their jobs. They do, however, have to know what's possible, and who can provide the necessary skills for what is needed.

If I were a Zoo Director, I do not have to know how to feed Lions or have shoveled Elephant poop to know that I have to hire people with the proper qualifications to do those things, or to hire people that have the ability to directly supervise those people. They also have to ensure that the appropriate regulations are being followed.

In those examples, wouldn't most of them have an educational background in business, finance, etcetera? I really think nursing is a field where what you learn doing patient care will always help, as you'll have a better idea of how things should run and which policies make sense and which should be tossed.

[llg, PhD, RN]

I once did wound care at a LTC: EVERY floor nurse (RN and LPN) had the title "Nurse Supervisor".

None of them were really in a management position.

Some facilities are like banks; everyone has a high fallutin' title than means absolutely zilch in the real world.

I'll bet that's the case here. The OP's friend was a staff nurse with a fancy title for a year, and then got promoted to Manager when the old one left.

[akulahawkRN, ADN, RN, EMT-P]

Quite so. And how would you know how to evaluate them, either pre-hire or as they went along? How credible a leader would you be with them? What transferrable skills would you bring to the job ... as a new grad in the field? And finally, which was the original question: What kind of facility would hire you, who knew nothing about the field?

Typically, people hired into leadership roles have demonstrated skills from previous positions that have provided a foundation for them. One typically isn't hired directly into an administrator role. I would be very wary of any place that hired me to work as a head administrator when my sole background is clinical...

If someone had gone up the ranks in a business and had learned to run a business before changing careers to become an RN, if I owned a facility and needed someone to run it, I'd hire that new grad because of their knowledge and skill acquired from the business world. It's not often that a 22 year old is given the keys to a business...

[Adele_Michal7, ASN, RN]

I once did wound care at a LTC: EVERY floor nurse (RN and LPN) had the title "Nurse Supervisor".

None of them were really in a management position.

Some facilities are like banks; everyone has a high fallutin' title than means absolutely zilch in the real world.

Lol, kind of like LTC's where every floor nurse is called a Charge Nurse! Haha!

[akulahawkRN, ADN, RN, EMT-P]

In those examples, wouldn't most of them have an educational background in business, finance, etcetera? I really think nursing is a field where what you learn doing patient care will always help, as you'll have a better idea of how things should run and which policies make sense and which should be tossed.

Yes. Such folks would have either a formal education in management or an OJT education in management and have demonstrated sufficient knowledge and skill. The better managers, even if they do NOT work a front line position, will check in with the front line staff and their supervisors to do exactly that... review of which policies need to be updated.