looking for reliable resources

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I have been trying to find ways to finish out the later yrs of my nursing career(50's-60's)

I'm 49. I have looked @ everything from HH to office nursing to triage nursing to hospice to starting your own business to teaching. The goal was to decrease the physical demands & stress inherent in floor nursing. I have worked acute care for 20 yrs,the last 10 part time (RN OCN). The answer that came back most often was to try

utilization review. I was trying to find something I could still do part time & maintain similar benifits & pay. Possibly a lateral transfere w/in the present organization for which I'm now employed. I have no formal training or knowledge in this area of health care. After some inquiries, the American Board of Quality Assurance & Utilization Review Physicians "abqaurp" was found to be the only org. that offers ANCC accredited courses for nurses & health care workers to get some backround in this field.I checked w/ ANCC & they verified acceditation. These courses are relatively expensive &. in attempting to determine or check the future job market for UR

I posted on another site. I got a response from a former RN who reports she was a medical fraud investigator & that she owned a medical cost containment corp. for 10 yrs. In her opinion health utilization review is a field in limbo because many insurance companies are doing flat rate/per diem hosp. stays. In her view managed care is changing the playing field"big time".She thinks the job market may be unstable for this

sort of work. I also checked job listings for my organization & there are no job openings for UR.I was hoping to transition to a job that would be more in line w/ what I thought would decrease the physical demands & stress. Since retirement savings play a big factor in how I'll negotiate preparation for a career change, I want to investigate what kind of return I'd be able to get for the large expense of getting certified in this area of health care. I am looking for reliable resources that can give a picture or forecast of what the future job market in UR would be. Any reliable information or site suggestions would be appreciated.

I'm 60. The nurses I have observed caught up in UR did not necessarily find it less stressful although it is less physically demanding. And as you mentioned, there is a big question about what the future holds. Personally, I think I would not want to invest the time and money unless there was a better indication of the prospects. Home Health is physically easier; there is a ton of paper work - more, believe it or not than working in house. However, you do have the option of spending more time with your patients. I love home health. There will always be a need for ostomy/wound care nurses. It is hard to keep up with all the new supplies, but seeing a wound heal is also very rewarding. And, as in home health, you have a lot of autonomy. If you enjoy that sort of thing, dollar for dollar, it may be a more rewarding investment. This is very subjective, as these are the things I am interested in. Bon chance!

Thank you for your feedback. It is definitely food for thought. I actually in the past had dismissed wound care but @ the present it does not seem like an unworkable

option. I am positive that because of the local thatI live in & from the war stories of some the nurses from HH who have come to work on the floor, that HH is not a viable option. I will not say more than that. Your feedback is timely because ABQAURP is sending an order package in the next few days. I am taking seriously your comment about the questionable investment of funds. As you well know, it that time of life where critical financial planning is a big part of everyday living. It is truly good to hear from you as I'm guessing that you have been through much of this already. The payment for the course would need to be in soon. And as you say there is no guarantee of decrease stress; no assurance of part time work and possibly an unstable job market in this particular area.

There was also Quality Assurance which was

a part of this package. But I spoke with

Jan Maronde who is in charge of the Healthcare Quality Certification Board & she

informed me that I would have to have at least 2 yrs experience in this area before I could ever consider a CPHQ certification. So

far it seems like I may want to think long & hard before I jump into the deep end of the

pool. Thank-you again & Happy Holidays to you

Originally posted by mustangsheba:

I'm 60. The nurses I have observed caught up in UR did not necessarily find it less stressful although it is less physically demanding. And as you mentioned, there is a big question about what the future holds. Personally, I think I would not want to invest the time and money unless there was a better indication of the prospects. Home Health is physically easier; there is a ton of paper work - more, believe it or not than working in house. However, you do have the option of spending more time with your patients. I love home health. There will always be a need for ostomy/wound care nurses. It is hard to keep up with all the new supplies, but seeing a wound heal is also very rewarding. And, as in home health, you have a lot of autonomy. If you enjoy that sort of thing, dollar for dollar, it may be a more rewarding investment. This is very subjective, as these are the things I am interested in. Bon chance!

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