Members are discussing the stress levels and compensation in various nursing specialties. Some members mention that nursing is a practical means to earn a living, while others share their experiences in different nursing roles such as hospice nursing, med/surg, and occupational health nursing. There is also mention of the importance of clinical experience, finding one's niche in nursing, and managing stress through coping mechanisms and self-care.
This is my first post here so bear with me. I am a current RN student and while my main focus right now is finishing the program I am nevertheless interested in finding out more about different specialties from nurses who have been there.
I have yet to decide on a nursing specialty for sure. To be honest money is a big motivator for me..but a post I read from forum member THE COMMUTER really struck me as exaclty how I feel. It stated id rather love my personal life and tolerate my job than tolerate my life and love my job. By this I mean im never going to enjoy work, I mostly enjoy traveling, exploring , cars..etc..(hence money motivated).
So begs the question...what nursing specialty out of the seemingly hundreds...would be very low stress on a daily basis and very good pay ( even if masters level as I have considered the NP route after RN school).
Any suggestions? ( I know im kinda asking for the best of both worlds here but im looking for things closest to what I seek). Thanks in advance everyone.
Not to be discouraging and I don't if it has been said already (I didn't read the subsequent posts); however, I have yet to hear of nursing specialty "with very low stress on a daily basis with good pay" without additional training or education. Also, I would argue that every nursing specialty, at times, will have levels of high stress. For instance, my friend is a licensed healthcare communicator. Her job requires no direct patient contact, but her job can be very tedious and her base salary is low compared to those who work in direct patient care. Also, she is concerned about the marketability of her skills and is really trying to get direct patient care experience. However, you might want to consider it. Home health is another possibility, but I wouldn't recommend it for a new nurse. Additional food for thought: You mentioned becoming a NP in your post; however, I would like to point out that most graduate nursing schools requires years of experience in specialties that aren't necessarily "low stress on a daily basis" as a prerequisite. Good luck to you with whatever you choose.
Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.
caffeinatednurse said:
I was thinking the same thing.
I could never be a correctional nurse.
I would have said that myself at one time. But a good friend of mine left the ICU for Corrections, and she loves it. The patients have to be respectful of the nurse or there are consequences. And there are none of those drunk/nasty/entitled visitors.
Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.
Bezoars said:
FWIW, I do NICU and love it. It's not always low stress but a lot of the time it is. Also, don't pay attention to the student-haters here. Cue the "NETY" threads.
I haven't seen any student haters on this thread, and yes, I HAVE read the whole thread.
Specializes in M/S, LTC, Corrections, PDN & drug rehab.
Aliens05 said:
Yikes...some kind of biting replies...i guess maybe low stress is too individualized of a description..i by no means meant easy or slack off job..i meant more of a job where ur not constantly worrying, getting yelled at, or worse haha. I guess ive worked with a lott of nurses in the last 5 years and every one of them hated the hospital setting (however i realize some people do love it and its not anyrhing I've counted out at all)
You're job is to save people's lives. So you should worry somewhat at work. If not, that makes me scared. Because no nurse is that confident. If they are, they're lying. You will get yelled at or reprimanded because you are new & people make mistakes.
PDN (working 1:1) I would not suggest for any new nurse. It's easy to get in but hard to get out. Some hiring managers will assume your skills will get stale. They might, because you are doing the same thing every day. Also, it depends on your patient. If it is not a complex case, you won't get to do much. Plus it helps to have experience to pull on when something does arise. Because you are in the patient's home, by yourself & with no backup.
One thing to remember Aliens05 is that you need basic strong nursing skills to do any job that will earn you a good salary. This is the most important advice my favorite nursing instructor gave me. Most, but not all specialty areas won't consider a new nurse because they have no practiced skills and/or they haven't mastered good organization. With that being said, I would encourage you to take a floor position & get a year or two experience under your belt. Then the specialty areas will look at you seriously & have confidence that you can perform basic skills, are capable of learning new ones & you will be a safe addition to their unit. I believe a basic understanding of the body & its complexity is the only way to practice safely. I started on a cardiac step-down unit & loved the heart so much I stayed for several years! In that time I cross trained to work in the critical care unit which qualified me to train & fill in the PACU dept. I then took a full-time position in the endoscopy dept for 2 years & I'm now in the OR. These experiences make me more valuable to my hospital & I am now able to right my own ticket. I've been nursing since 2009 & have made >$100k a year for the last 3 years. That's in the Dallas TX area. Not sure what you're aiming for $ wise but my life is comfortable. So what does all that mean for you? Be a strong all around nurse & don't put yourself into a mold that holds you hostage. Be flexible, learn the basics & then write your ticket to what you love. Good luck!
Specializes in M/S, LTC, Corrections, PDN & drug rehab.
Aliens05 said:
Thanks I rlly appreciate so many perspectives and everything.
I guess one reason for me specifically that low stress is important is that I have some health issues. I am a 30 year old guy but Ive been in the ER 3 times in the last year. Still not sure what the issue is. I think most of it is anxiety ( according to ER doctor) mixed with irregular heart beat and PVCs ( benign according to my cardiologist who told me its absolutely ok to max out my heart even with these issues).
Low stress is important personally for my own health. Thanks again for the replies.
I have epilepsy & bipolar disorder. I have worked in corrections, drug rehab, LTC & PDN. If you do not know how to manage your anxiety, you are setting yourself up for disaster. There are people with a whole slew of major health issues but they work just fine.
If you don't have your anxiety under control I would suggest seeing a psychiatrist & a therapist. Because no matter what job you choose, there will be stress. Not all jobs have the same stress, but they can be stressful.
Also, the starting pay for new grad RNs might not be that much or as much as your expecting. I live in Texas & my ex-best friend got a job as a nurse a few years ago. She was only making a $1 more an hour than me, as an LVN. Don't expect high wages for nothing.
One thing to remember Aliens05 is that you need basic strong nursing skills to do any job that will earn you a good salary. This is the most important advice my favorite nursing instructor gave me. Most, but not all specialty areas won't consider a new nurse because they have no practiced skills and/or they haven't mastered good organization. With that being said, I would encourage you to take a floor position & get a year or two experience under your belt. Then the specialty areas will look at you seriously & have confidence that you can perform basic skills, are capable of learning new ones & you will be a safe addition to their unit. I believe a basic understanding of the body & its complexity is the only way to practice safely. I started on a cardiac step-down unit & loved the heart so much I stayed for several years! In that time I cross trained to work in the critical care unit which qualified me to train & fill in the PACU dept. I then took a full-time position in the endoscopy dept for 2 years & I'm now in the OR. These experiences make me more valuable to my hospital & I am now able to right my own ticket. I've been nursing since 2009 & have made >$100k a year for the last 3 years. That's in the Dallas TX area. Not sure what you're aiming for $ wise but my life is comfortable. So what does all that mean for you? Be a strong all around nurse & don't put yourself into a mold that holds you hostage. Be flexible, learn the basics & then write your ticket to what you love. Good luck!
Chihuahua thanks for the reply! Thats an amazing salary ( for me im a medication aide so anything over 50 looks good to me ,closer to the 100 mark the better but obviously thats with a ton of experience of course as expected). Thanks for the details and advice.
I wouldn't even consider NP before working as a nurse. With the NP glut in my area, many places are demanding a minimum of 3-5 years of acute care before even considering hiring a nurse practitioner.
I work as both a NICU and a med-surg nurse I hear from both sides how one couldn't work in the other specialty. I find med-surg to be 1000x more stressful and physically demanding,and the adult patients behave much more poorly than the babies. I can lift a baby with one hand/arm while it can take five or six people to turn a 600-pound patient. I don't have to worry about babies sneaking off and shooting up street drugs, and their fists and feet can't hurt me (though some of them have really sharp nails!).
I find NICU to be much more rewarding (though occassionally heartbreaking) whereas in med-surg, I feel like a legalized drug dealer. After all, RN stands for refreshments and narcotics....right?
Guess i dont remember asking for any opinions on an easy job...low stress doesnt mean easy....your job could be the most physically demanding job in the entire world..but if you are strong and know what you are doing its gonna be low stress because you are not worried or freaking out...you know what it is...you know what to expect ..say for example a person who does roofing....being in the heat all day working a physically demanding job isnt easy at all..but the guys ive talked to dont think its stressful at all because they all know exaclty what they are doing.
It was my first post. Can i get a pass?
I'll give you a pass ?
That unicorn you mention........For me it was the OR. Nurses don't get to have any quota other than one to one - it is not possible to scrub or circulate two rooms at the same time. Patients are completely dependent for you to advocate for them, and you don't have to deal with any whining either, as they are under anesthesia for most of your contact with them. Additionally, you don't have to have the family to deal with, except for phone contact hourly during long cases. The surgeons can be a handful, but you can find work arounds for the really ugly ones, either with administrations help or not. Plus..... and here is the interesting bit most RN's don't know about........ OR nurses usually earn more than their floor counterparts. Is it stressful? Yes, it can be. If you don't know your stuff it can be hell on earth, as you are alone and cannot blame anyone else. However, once you get settled in and you are confident, you can ride that unicorn for a 12 hour shift and it can be all fun, flowers and rainbows.
Most big hospitals offer a Graduate Nurse Internship program, typically 6 months paid, some require a 2 year commitment, others don't. Please consider OR as a specialty. It is one of the most overlooked nursing specialties, and one of the most in demand.
The way you are handling this crowd shows me that you have what it takes too.
And in a union environment those less physical jobs are given to those nurses that have been injured or are pre-retirement, i.e. years of seniority to get them. agree that stress is very subjective. I worked critical care most of my career and found it way less stressful than working on a nursing unit. Guess I like to know what my patient is doing at all times
I worked trauma/Neuro ICU. I then took a Monday-Friday GI Lab job. Same pay. Almost NO stress at all for me.
However, the GI Lab nurses that had only long ago or never worked acute care where often stressed out. I could never quite figure that out. They only had one patient at a time. Of course, on the rare occasions things went south, they had no training or experience on how to handle things. If an endoscopy patient started doing poorly, most of the nurses would just step away and wait for the RRT team to arrive. I'd just jump in and take over. I had the knowledge and more importantly, the EXPERIENCE, to do so. Stress is relative. On a side note. How the hospital could pay the same rate to the GI Lab nurses as the Trauma/Neuro ICU nurses is beyond belief!!!! Comparatively speaking, the GI lab nurses do nothing!
I can lift a baby with one hand/arm while it can take five or six people to turn a 600-pound patient. I don't have to worry about babies sneaking off and shooting up street drugs, and their fists and feet can't hurt me (though some of them have really sharp nails!).
SaggieRN87, BSN
42 Posts
Not to be discouraging and I don't if it has been said already (I didn't read the subsequent posts); however, I have yet to hear of nursing specialty "with very low stress on a daily basis with good pay" without additional training or education. Also, I would argue that every nursing specialty, at times, will have levels of high stress. For instance, my friend is a licensed healthcare communicator. Her job requires no direct patient contact, but her job can be very tedious and her base salary is low compared to those who work in direct patient care. Also, she is concerned about the marketability of her skills and is really trying to get direct patient care experience. However, you might want to consider it. Home health is another possibility, but I wouldn't recommend it for a new nurse. Additional food for thought: You mentioned becoming a NP in your post; however, I would like to point out that most graduate nursing schools requires years of experience in specialties that aren't necessarily "low stress on a daily basis" as a prerequisite. Good luck to you with whatever you choose.