My husband wants to retire

Hello my husband is looking to retire. Nursing is all we both know plus we have an 11year old to support. He is extremely burnt after 45 years in the field. But what else could he do that is ou of the field. He is 68. Thanks!

[SarHat17, ASN, RN]

Is he looking to leave bedside/direct patient care nursing or just healthcare in general? There are so many non-direct patient care options that with his experience could be available to him. If he has any kind of career guidance/support options at his employer, I'd recommend connecting with them for information. I scheduled an appointment with one at my health system prior to making the change from inpatient bedside to outpatient clinic nursing, and it was really helpful to gather more information about my options.

For example, I currently have my ADN. I want to stay in my current health system, as I have a lot of time/retirement/etc invested here.

1. If I was to pursue a more advanced degree program, would it be worthwhile to get BSN vs MSN (since I would already be going back to school). There were, essentially, 3 MSN tracks open to me- Education, Leadership, Informatics- the only one I was interested in was Informatics and the only Quality-type positions that require that degree are few and far between in the current system at that time, so planning to get that specific degree and staying in this health system may not be a realistic goal.

2. If I move out of the inpatient side of things into an outpatient role, coming back to the inpatient side may be difficult, due to the focus on Magnet/BSN preference. So moving out of that position may "require" me to complete my BSN prior to being eligible to "come back."

She wasn't discouraging at all and it was really helpful; just helped lay out some options and information that I needed to consider with my available options at that time. She had information on all the different "positions" that I could consider in the health system, which helped me focus in on my priorities, etc, and make a decision.

Even if he is not planning to stay at his current employer, it may be helpful to have a conversation like this with someone like that as a more hypothetical, "What are my options" kind of information-gathering opportunity.

Best of luck to all of you!

[Been there,done that, ASN, RN]

He is 68 years old.Full retirement age.Let the guy rest get his SS and watch the 11 year old.

 

[Hoosier_RN, MSN]

Been there,done that said:

He is 68 years old.Full retirement age.Let the guy rest get his SS and watch the 11 year old.

 

Good Lord, I was thinking the same thing!

[Brandon.22]

At age 68 with 45 years in nursing, there's probably not a whole lot of companies willing to hire him outside of nursing or something healthcare related that will value that experience & knowledge. Negativity isn't my objective here, but realism is. It is hard for any nurse with a nursing heavy resume to make a career change-not to say it can't be done because it can-but it takes a lot of work, time, & dedication to that process. The process can be very time consuming and discouraging at times. Just a few suggestions (for anyone of any age) considering leaving nursing:

-Have a good (positive) answer for why he wants out of nursing & wants to continue working. Hiring managers are going to ask. Being burned out isn't a good one.

-To the best of his ability, he should identify his skills and make them transferrable specifically to the job(s) he applies for-every one. A resume used to get nursing jobs won't get him non-nursing jobs. In what ways can he offer value to the company? This can be time consuming, but without doing it, there won't be a legitimate chance that the resume makes it through ATS, HR, & into the hiring managers hands. 

-Is he willing/able to take a pay cut? Great experience as a nurse doesn't mean you're not a newbie in a new industry. Sometimes you have to take a few steps backwards in order to move forward in your new career.

-I would recommend getting in touch with an interview coach to brush up on skills & maybe look over the resume to provide helpful tips. Again, in my experience, the interview process for nursing jobs vs. non-nursing jobs are different, & if you're not prepared, that first interview will wake you up quick. 

These are just some of my experiences with a nursing history seeking professional jobs with an MBA. If he's looking for something low-key like a general retail job, the experience may be different.