OK to start career in home health vs. Med/Surg?

[samdombek]

Hi, everyone! I'm a 46 y/o new ADRN grad, Jan 2006, passed NCLEX in March. I have just STARTED looking for a job now. Why the delay?? I DREAD the idea of having to start on an Med/Surg floor, which is where nearly all of my instructors have told us we should begin to learn skills/time mgmt, etc!! It is really home health nursing that was my inspiration (long story)for pursuing nursing as a second career late in my life. I'm no spring chicken, and I'm afraid I'm going to burn out real fast, physically and mentally, if I go the MS route. I've been reading the HH forum and it seems that there are similar MS skills that are done in the HH setting, which is encouraging . . .but on the other hand, if this isn't the case, I'm afraid I'll be pigeonholed into HH without the "REQUIRED" med/surg experience and I won't be marketable anywhere else--I will no longer be considered a "new grad" and won't be able to get into any new grad/preceptorship programs. Any advice on whether HH is an OK place to start for a new grad? I will be forever grateful for any suggestions and advice.

[mtngrl, ASN, RN]

It depends how good your technical skills are. Personally, home health sounds a bit scary for a new grad, since you will be alone. Unless you find an agency that hires new grads and lets you follow another nurse for a while. I would check with some agencies since most require a year experience. But you are right about med/surg draining you mentally and physically! I quit it after a month. Though now I am not very skilled clinically so my options are limited. If you do get a home health job I think it will give you good experience, since a lot on home health need IV's and such. So that is basically most of the skills you'd get in a hospital anyway.

[SharonH, RN]

I would absolutely NOT recommend home health for a new grad. You are working quite autonomously and HH requires excellent assessment skills as well as technical skill. If you do not want to start off in med-surg, you do not have to. In fact I recommend that you do not. But you do need to choose another area of acute care in which you will have a lot more support and other eyes and hands to help out as opposed to home health.

[peanuts75]

It can be done! I don't know where you live, but Visiting Nurse Service of NYC has a one year internship program that trains BSN grads in home health without any prior experience. Its been around for a number of years and sounds like a great, supportive program. Good luck to you!

Check out http://www.vnsny.org/.