Is your schedule busy ?

I think that is kind of what private duty is.... babysitting for a medical needy kiddo. 

Thank you. 

Yes.  I think you have the option to pick up additional assignments or even change assignments if you're not feeling challenged, with pt's who have different diagnosis say cardiac issues.  You may have to do more frequent vitals give lasix and monitor differently. I think it all depends on where you want to take it, what you're ready for and the types of patients seen by your employer.

I know a few kids with medical needs that got nursing yeah its like babbysitting but getting a pt. with more needs like a trached one or something would be more simulating 

Private duty is a gentle way to re-enter nursing if you've been out for a while or have anxiety issues with acute care. Private duty is a place for older nurses to get off their feet. I've also seen younger nurses do private duty as a second job. It's a safe place for LPNs who don't want to deal with unsafe staffing shortages.

Private duty is all these things, but it's not the best place for ambitious R.N.s whose main goal is developing a large array of advanced skills.

Nmbeck said:

Private duty is a gentle way to re-enter nursing if you've been out for a while or have anxiety issues with acute care. Private duty is a place for older nurses to get off their feet. I've also seen younger nurses do private duty as a second job. It's a safe place for LPNs who don't want to deal with unsafe staffing shortages.

Private duty is all these things, but it's not the best place for ambitious R.N.s whose main goal is developing a large array of advanced skills.

I agree with much of what you say...but not everything.I think you'll quickly see what I don't agree with. ? I am an older (seriously older!!) nurse. For financial reasons, I re-entered nursing after many, many years of acute care - primarily ICU/ER areas. I thought PDN would be a cake walk.  It isn't.  Certainly it's nothing like the 12-hour ICU/ER or even med-surg shifts, but for my 8-hour shift I'm almost non-stop busy and on my feet.  Comatose, new trach/very oxygen dependent, lots and lots of secretions requiring frequent suctioning, feeding tube, too many meds, multiple pressure sores requiring daily dressing changes and wound vacs.  Family issues to deal with.  I'm responsible for ordering all supplies - wound/respiratory/feeding formulas, etc.  I feel like I've become a RT as well as a Central Supply Manager.  Almost daily  I'm texting/calling back and forth with several different doctors about tx's, meds, getting portable x-rays for suspected aspiration.  Also, there is much more critical thinking involved than I would have thought.  You stand there on your own.  Nobody to help/run things by, etc.

Now.  Would I go back to the hospital environment?  Not a chance.  I'd probably fall over after one shift.  But this job kicks my fanny most days.  My biggest saving grace and the reason I'll stay as long as I can stand up is because  I found a position with an amazingly supportive company and a DON who is available 24/7 and 100%  supportive of her staff. That alone is more than I ever had in any hospital. 

I didn't find anything disagreeable about your post. I was replying to a new grad who's wondering whether private duty is the way to develop skill or begin a nursing career. I don't recommend private duty for young, ambitious nurses. It does not provide the wide range of clinical experiences a new grad needs to build her practice.

Clearly you've proven my point that advanced skills are learned on the floor and then transferred to private duty.

I do recommend private duty for mature nurses like yourself, but also for lesser-skilled nurses in special circimstances, for whom the hospital environment is not a good fit.  I re-entered nursing after decades of being a homemaker. Private duty was a safe, low-pressure place to re-start practice.   As you said, the clinical manager is always there for me. Another example I know is a new grad who is an immigrant with a language barrier. She's  unwilling to navigate a hostile hospital environment. She is also a mom to a young child and a private business owner. It is not her goal to become a badass nurse, just have a second job. She is great at her nursing position and has been with her patient several years.

I assumed the new grad I was addressing here is hoping to become a badass like yourself. The best way to do that is like you did, starting on the floor, not in private duty, unless one is simply not a good fit for hospital nursing. 

There's a variety of patients with a variety of acuity levels in private duty.  A good agency is careful to match patients with the right nurses, and provide training.

Nmbeck said:

I didn't find anything disagreeable about your post. I was replying to a new grad who's wondering whether private duty is the way to develop skill or begin a nursing career. I don't recommend private duty for young, ambitious nurses. It does not provide the wide range of clinical experiences a new grad needs to build her practice.

Clearly you've proven my point that advanced skills are learned on the floor and then transferred to private duty.

I do recommend private duty for mature nurses like yourself, but also for lesser-skilled nurses in special circimstances, for whom the hospital environment is not a good fit.  I re-entered nursing after decades of being a homemaker. Private duty was a safe, low-pressure place to re-start practice.   As you said, the clinical manager is always there for me. Another example I know is a new grad who is an immigrant with a language barrier. She's  unwilling to navigate a hostile hospital environment. She is also a mom to a young child and a private business owner. It is not her goal to become a badass nurse, just have a second job. She is great at her nursing position and has been with her patient several years.

I assumed the new grad I was addressing here is hoping to become a badass like yourself. The best way to do that is like you did, starting on the floor, not in private duty, unless one is simply not a good fit for hospital nursing. 

There's a variety of patients with a variety of acuity levels in private duty.  A good agency is careful to match patients with the right nurses, and provide training.

Thanks you for responding. I wholeheartedly agree with you when you say you "don't recommend private duty for young, ambitious nurses. It does not provide the wide range of clinical experiences a new grad needs to build her practice."  That just came up where I work.  New LVN grad, 4 months experience, immigrant, and as gentle, sweet, kind, and well-meaning as anyone I've ever met.  But a failure in the home environment.  At this time.  Give her a couple of years of solid experience and she'll outshine all of us!  And that brings up another point I'm sure you'll agree on...it is so disheartening to see young/new nurses thrust into environments they aren't ready for and later see them walk out feeling like failures.  I speak from personal experience having been thrust into a management position at a major university that I was completely unprepared for from both the educational and experience basis.  Took me years to recover my self worth.

Anyway, moving on...When I said you'd see the difference in our opinions I was actually speaking "tongue in cheek" about the comment of older nurses getting off their feet.  Based on my "job description" you can probably see I'm on my feet a bunch!  

And this:  "There's a variety of patients with a variety of acuity levels in private duty.  A good agency is careful to match patients with the right nurses, and provide training."  In my area it is extremely difficult to find nurses with the experience to handle even mildly complex cases.  In the short time I've been doing this I've seen them come, seem like they'll be OK, and after a couple of shifts they simply disappear.  Ghosting, they call it.  It does seem there would be scores of older/can't take the hospital hustle/bustle nurses out there wanting to pick up 2-3 days a week.  That's been eye-opening to me.  

Anyway...this is my Saturday off to get done all the things I used to get done in an entire week before I "got broke" and went back to work.  So here I go...and again, thank you for your thoughtful and respectful reply.

Thanks for all the feedback. I agree it's not for nurses like me, but it's all that's available in my area as of now . I plan on relocating and  working in a hospital or LTC .