Nursing Photographer? Also, NCLEX question

[Mesomorph]

Well, I just passed the NCLEX. All I got was a small letter from Pearson-Vue... No framable certificate? No card? No nothing? If that's all there is, then that's kind of lame for $300...

Taking the NCLEX was a deal I made with my parents. But, I have no desire to practice as a nurse, not even as a "backup" as many people have mentioned. I promised my parents I'd pass it so I took it and did.

Now I'm pursuing what I actually want to do (photography) professionally and am loving it. I was wondering if it were possible to combine my expertise... Do hospitals hire photographers on staff? I figured being an RN certainly wouldn't hurt my resume. I'd love to photo surgeries, wounds, babies (and for the babies that die, I figure parents would like GOOD photos to remember them by, not point-and-shoot, blurry, off-color, horrible photos by someone who can't even hold the camera steady). ... ever heard of or seen a hospital photographer? ...or do hospitals normally outsource temporarily for stuff like that?

Thanks :)

[APBT mom, LPN, RN]

You should get a certificate from the state with your license number on it. the ones from Fl look like business licenses and I heard that a few states have ones that are made like credit cards. As for the photographer I know that some facilities use them on L&D and peds. Your best bet would be to call the facilities that you're interested in and ask.

[~MIA~, ASN, RN]

When my hubby had surgery for skin cancer there was a staff photographer who took pics of him from head to toe, then 3 months later took more pics, etc. so I know some hospitals have photographers...maybe specialty hospitals. He was at MD Anderson in Houston, at the Skin Clinic.

[ohmeowzer RN, RN]

the hospital i work for, we do have a baby photographer for the new borns and the nurses take all the other pics of wounds ectra. with the ecomony these days i have never heard in my area every hiring a photographer for wounds and such.

good luck in all you do

[Mesomorph]

Hm... it seems babies/peds would be my strongest selling point. I'll focus on that as I try to find/create a position for myself.

Thanks! If anyone else has any input I'd love to hear it.

[scribblerpnp]

If you are interested in taking pictures of babies as part of post mortem care, there is an organization set up for free pics. . You could register as a volunteer for your local hospitals. Now I Lay Me Down is very reputable.

http://www.nowilaymedowntosleep.org

[Mesomorph]

If you are interested in taking pictures of babies as part of post mortem care, there is an organization set up for free pics. . You could register as a volunteer for your local hospitals. Now I Lay Me Down is very reputable.

www.nowilaymedowntosleep.org

That's a wonderful service. My hope is to find a paying job, but that's something that I might consider doing in the future as a volunteer, or something that, were I hired on staff at any given hospital, I'd be more than happy to do for parents of infants who didn't make it.

[Riseupandnurse]

Maybe publishers of clinical skills textbooks would have a use for you!

[ChristineN, BSN, RN]

What about being a Admissions nurse? They have no pt care, and it's their job to photograph any ulcers, wounds, or unusual findings for the chart.

[Mesomorph]

What about being a Admissions nurse? They have no pt care, and it's their job to photograph any ulcers, wounds, or unusual findings for the chart.

Yeah, but that would be a nursing job where photography is an asset. I want a photography job where nursing is an asset.

[Reno1978, BSN, RN]

You can frame your degree if you want something to show off your nursing education. What's the big deal about having something proving you passed NCLEX?

I can't imagine a photography position where nursing would be an asset. While many of the options presented here in this thread are hospital related, I see no reason why a photographer who isn't a RN couldn't perform the job. I sure didn't learn any photography technique in nursing school...

[Flightline, BSN, RN]

There is no such thing as a nurse photographer. Nursing is a profession that revolves around caring for patients. Photography is an art or craft that revolves around taking pictures. I won't belittle your choice of career, if being an artist is what you want to be, but unless you become a nurse, you have wasted two or more years of your life in school, and wasted your time studying for and taking the NCLEX. I assume your parents paid your way and it was a free ride, and the futility of that is on their heads, not yours.

Go be a photographer. Go be a good photographer. Journalism, weddings, whatever. Do what you love and must do, and do it well.