LTC ADON Vs Med Surg Job

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I have been a nurse for three years in a primary care clinic as a nurse manager. I really wanted to get a job that allowed me to practice more nursing skills than a clinic. I have been trying to get into Med surg since I graduated nursing school, but never got any call backs. About a month ago I got hired at a nursing home as a weekend supervisor and have began training to become the ADON. However, the "training" has been very vague and I am already being listed on documentation as the ADON even though I haven't officially been given that title which makes me really nervous. Also the DON, consistently leaves me out of important meetings and does not communicate with me. Sometimes I feel like am being used. I get paid $34 per hour which is awesome. The job is fairly easy and low stress. However there is a lot of liability with a supervisor/ ADON title and I am still not able to really practice my nursing skills. But just last week I finally got a call from the hospital for a Med Surg position. And I really want to take it, however I will have to take a huge pay cut and the job will be much more stressful. They only offered me $28 per hour. I can afford the pay cut, but money will be tight. I need advice on what to do. I really want to do hospital nursing, but will I be leaving a "once in a lifetime" job opportunity with the awesome pay. Or is the job I am currently working sound to good to be true? Is Med Surg the safer route? I just don't know what to do!

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Specializes in LTC, Education, Management, QAPI.

RNGarcia - you really need to sit down and decide what do you want to do. If you like the senior community and want to give what you have to offer to that clientele, you should go for it. If you really want to hone skills and get involved in clinical you can still get some good experience. I will share this with you, though- if you go the ADON route, it will be hell, but it will be rewarding IF and only IF you *want* it. I was a ADON, then DON, and now a regional nurse and I love it. Some people hate it, so it really comes down to what you think you will love as a job. Ignore the money!!!

As far as signing as the "ADON," i can say that 34/hour is a good wage for an ADON in my hometown (Tidewater, VA, US). It is not a reported position (your responsibility is not going to be tied to the building to state, so it's pretty safe). The problem, however, is that you have already identified an issue with communication. It may be that you are new, though...

Get some paper and do it the old way - PRO and CON for each, weigh them out, and decide what it is you WANT to do, not what people advise you to do. We can only tell you what we like.

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Curious which position you chose?

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