Need a bit of career advice....

rninformatics, DNP, RN · Sep 16, 2008

Greetings Janet,

First let me say "Congratulations" on being offered this opportunity. I'm sure they could have offered this position to someone else but you were the one they chose to offer the opportunity to....... so CONGRATS even if you choose not to accept the position.

As far as what " the future is for informatics" - the sky is the limit. This specialty has a great deal of flexibility, future growth potential and with the right experience under your belt you can pretty much write your own ticket. I started out in Informatics/Healthcare IT/IS 10 years ago and my salary has more than doubled in that time. FYI I took a pay cut when I made the transition from clincial nursing to IT. I've also had roles where I was the system trainer, designed the training content, built the system, tested it, performed the upgrades and was also responsible for system trouble shooting and pc support - talk about wearing many hats!

Taking those initial roles that were rich in learning opportunities but not so great salary wise lead me to where I am now -I am blessed to make six figures! I've paid my dues - you may want to look at this opportunity being offered to you in that light. Can you live with the current salary being offered and renegotiate in a year?

Experience, what the market is looking for related to skill set and geographic location all factor into the equation. At one time I had my own consulting company, traveled 70-90%, put in 12-16 hrs/day and made even more than I make now. After awhile that lifestyle takes a toll.

So be aware this is a specialty that can pay well but the hours can also be long and the stress can be unbelievable. It all depends on what you want to do, what skills you can bring to the table and what opportunities are available. Skill sets/roles that are in high demand include those that are purely technical such as programming or systems design engineers; project management, analysts, those involved in system design and those with system build experience, implementation experience, etc.

Related to an advanced degree I'd suggest you not limit yourself to Nursing or Nursing Informatics but even consider a Masters in Healthcare or Medical Informatics - a broader specialty. Given the choices you've presented I myself would go for the MSN with a major in Informatics and get the post masters teaching certification. Are they offering tuition reimbursement? I once took a job because the benifits were excellent - 90% tuition reimbursement, 100% book allowance, I got the opportunity to be project lead for the EMR and CPOE implementations and reported directly to the CIO.......... but the salary was just okay.

One more thing, remember you can always go back to staff nursing if you don't like it. I still practice in home health nursing to keep my skills up.

Good Luck!

I have just received a job offer at the hospital I work at. It is a new role, one that combines staff development and nurse liason (aka informatics), so I would be involved with the design, implementation and teaching of the various programs used at our facility.
I haven't accepted the position as of yet because I am negotiating a higher salary - they only offered a 5% increase in my current base pay. Which essentially is the same pay I make now including shift differentials. I have been in a salaried position in the past as a manager and know how easy it is to work more then 40 hrs/wk. Besides this is supposed to be a promotion but if the pay is the same then it won't feel like much of one.
In addition, this will be a change in direction for me career wise - as I had been planning on going onto school for FNP, but this opportunity has presented itself and I am seriously considering it. What do you guys think the future is for informatics?
I will be required to get my MSN for this position. I have already applied to a local program who offers both MSN's in Education and Informatics. I wondered which one I should get? I could go for the informatics and then get a post masters teaching certificate. Thoughts from those of you who work in this field?

jlcole45 · Sep 16, 2008

Angela,

Thanks for you words of advice and wisdom. I heard back from them today and they are sticking with the original offer. Having been on the opposite side as manager I can understand. I told the recruiter that I needed to think about it and would get back to her. My husband's advice is to wait it out a few days and see what happens.

I do have a few other irons in the fire but no definite offers. My sister thinks I'm crazy not to just jump at the offer - but then again she is desperate to get away from the bedside, where I am not.

My career goals as of right now include carving out a niche for my self, autonomy, advancement out of the staff nurse role, and better money/benefits.

May I ask besides working in a hospital setting where else one could work with informatics/education degree and experience? I live in a small city and we do not want to move again - quality of life has become very important us. Though we are not that far away from larger cities such as Atlanta or Raleigh (4 hrs).

SuesquatchRN, BSN, RN · Sep 17, 2008

Well, I would personally not take going from hourly to salaried for a 5% increase, particularly if you will be involved on the actual systems end.

If it is mostly teaching and development I think it could be doable.

On the other hand, it's an incredible learning opportunity, and the future is bright. Some states are mandating that facilties move to EHR's and the demand will certainly outstrip the supply. And with experience, you can move to another hospital in the area.

If you can do the FNP program p/t or on-line and survive it you don't have to decide, today, on one over the other.

llg, PhD, RN · Sep 17, 2008

As far as the salary goes ... sometimes you have to accept a "lateral move" to get where you want to be in the long run. I took my current position without a pay increase at all even though it should have come with a raise. I accepted it because it was the type of work I wanted to be doing.

I was though, able to negotiate a few things for myself that I really wanted that did not cost the hospital any money. I wanted a flexible schedule, some autonomy in choosing the projects I worked on (and didn't work on), etc. Are there some things that you could get instead of more money that would appeal to you? For example, you might request some education that would be a benefit to you -- such as a guarantee that you could attend a national conference once per year paid for by the hospital -- or some extra tuition reimbursement for your Master's -- etc.

rninformatics, DNP, RN · Sep 17, 2008

You could work as the system admin. in a physician office, an outpt clinic, the corporate offices of a large home health agency or for a vendor as a trainer. I don't remember what city Meditech is headquartered in............I think its Alpharetta, Georgia?? Do an Internet search for HIS vendors and see if there are any located near you.

Angela,
May I ask besides working in a hospital setting where else one could work with informatics/education degree and experience? I live in a small city and we do not want to move again - quality of life has become very important us. Though we are not that far away from larger cities such as Atlanta or Raleigh (4 hrs).

jlcole45 · Sep 17, 2008

Thanks again everyone for all the suggestions. I have no IT experience so this opportunity is probably the best one. Unfortunately the department is in a state of up roar - hiring for a manager (new position) and hiring a new director. So things could be a bit crazy and chaotic for a while.

In addition, they are merging staff development (training end) and nurse liaison (project management, system planning & implementation, etc) into one position and this position is the test position. The new DON is requiring everyone in both departments to get their MSN's - so I suspect there will be several folks moving on.

One of the reasons I am being offered this position is because I am already in the process of working on my MSN - having made application to begin part time in January.

The upsides are, as previously mentioned, that could be a great learning experience, I like change and learning new things. I don't see this as my dream job, but as an opportunity for advancement and perhaps to find my niche. I actually love school so going back for my MSn is no problem for me.

The downsides are that I will have no patient contact and I will loose direct contact of what is going on related to healthcare - ie the latest and greatest of medical treatments.

Can you guys think of anything else I need to consider before accepting this position?

llg, PhD, RN · Sep 17, 2008

It sounds like the kind of job that will work well schedule-wise with going to school. That's a real advantage. Then, when you are done with school, you can move on to something else if you want to.

rninformatics, DNP, RN · Sep 17, 2008

The downsides are that I will have no patient contact and I will loose direct contact of what is going on related to healthcare - ie the latest and greatest of medical treatments.
Can you guys think of anything else I need to consider before accepting this position?

I'd say that you will have to work harder to stay abreast of "the lateest and greatest" in nursing and healthcare but you should not loose contact with nursing practice and healthcare all together. How do you think those clinicians who practice in PI, QA, Medical/Healthcare Law, Healthcare Case Management, UR, Management, Education (and others in non-hands on care roles) keep track of whats ongoing in health care? They take continueing education classes, read nursing journals/texts/articles and or practice part-time, etc.

Please see the top of the NI Forum section where I have posted interview questions. - There may be something there that helps you think about other factors that could effect your decision to accept this position. Good Luck!

jlcole45 · Sep 17, 2008

Please see the top if the NI Forum section where I have posted interview questions. - There may be something there that helps you think about other factors that could effect your decision to accept this position. Good Luck!

Angela,

I've already read it and your questions (at least the ones I could understand (ie computer lingo)- were helpful). I plan on calling the recruiter tomorrow and accepting the position. This definitely changes the course of things for me career wise but that 's OK, and I've always been a believer in things working out for the best.

SuesquatchRN, BSN, RN · Sep 18, 2008

If you can't get more money salaried try to negotiate that you are hourly and eligible for o/t. You will be putting in killer hours - I don't know how big a place it is, but that's a lot for one person's plate, particularly if the department is in upheaval.