Options for Nurses who HATE nursing.

Nurses General Nursing

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For nurses who have found unfortunately that they hate nursing and it is not for them but would like to stay in the health field. Have you all ever thought about returning to school for other rewarding, less stressful careers like Radiation Therapy, Sonography, Respiratory Therapist, Radiology tech. These positions pay the same as nursing and they 're less stressful have better hours and you're dealing in that one aspect unlike nursing which is so broad that you're running around the hospital doing many different things at once. It may require a litte extra schooling but you already have the prereqs done. I think it's worth looking into.:paw:

I'd say to try and make that RN education work for you. NP, CNS, and nursing ed are all available pathways, and seem to be spared from what we may "hate" about bedside nursing.

I tend to have a pretty short attention span, and am always thinking what I want to do "next". An MSN/NP is reasonably affordable, quick, and shouldn't require that drastic of a lifestyle change. May not lead to a huge income increase, but should be some bump in pay, along with a whole new set of professional and intellectual challenges. Might as well take advantage of the connections and accomplishments of being an RN.

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Just food for thought. . . I am pretty much in the same boat and I looked into the military. I am currently a travel nurse and I am getting tired of that. Spoke with a few military nurses and they love it. You can become an officer while techs are enlisted. I prefer the distinction of rank. Also for the younger nurses like myself, it is nice to know that I am working for a pension. Military nurses have a greater scope of practice, as well. Education is not only encouraged but required for rank. And payed for by Uncle Sam. Just something to think about before you decide on another career.

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Specializes in medical.

I know some nurses who work in outpatient oncology and they like it but you need to have some oncology/chemotherapy experience. Our nurse clinical specialist in the hospital loves her job and she told me that once you have master's degree, there are so many different new jobs for you out there. I think militaty nursing is not bad at all, either but I don't want to move every 2-3 yrs from one place to another. I plan to finish my bachelor degree and go from there.

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Specializes in behavioral health.

I just applied for the DNP program. I spent weeks researching doing something else. I also wanted to stay in healthcare and figured I'm halfway there to a better career =).

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Specializes in Med/Surg, Geriatrics.

There really is no need to change careers; there are many, many options within the field of nursing. I work a 9-5, M-F job as I have for most of my career. The jobs are out there for nurses who are interested.

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I see all the responses about there being many more nursing opportunities other than bedside. Please give me some examples? I am looking into getting a BSN because I'm interested in health care. But, being a bedside nurse doesn't interest me too much. What would be some other opportunities available to someone with a BSN?

Thank you.

Chris

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i really hate bedside nursing. i think i'd hate bedside nursing no matter which area i went to. my problem, however, is that i only have an adn in nursing with minimal experience. does anyone know of any desk-type jobs i could take with the qualifications that i have? any suggestions? the only reason i continue working is because of the good pay. there aren't many jobs (especially now) that pay $35 an hour and $40 an hour on the weekends. but, you definitely have to work for that money - it's not walk in the park!

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Specializes in LTC, Acute Care.

I don't hate nursing, but I am a medical transcriptionist. I have always been the good speller as long as I could remember and anal about getting details right. I wasn't the greatest bedside nurse (a bit impatient, IMO), but I could kick anybody's butt in the documentation aspect of the job and getting my orders exactly in every right spot. All that and my love for medical information really makes my daily job not a bore! I log on for work, but every single day is different. No one is breathing down my neck. I may not hear from anyone for weeks, provided I am working and doing what I'm supposed to do. This is good, but it can be somewhat isolating. In general, I pick my own hours to work, but not everywhere is like that.

However, it's extremely difficult to keep focued for the time needed to get my lines done, with allnurses.com a click away and all! There is a huge learning curve when learning new dictators in a new job or new account, and that all affects pay. I'm not paid hourly, and that is the norm for work-at-home transcriptionists. If I only make 10 lines in an hour (OUCH!), I get paid for 10 lines, which is less than a dollar.

A good transcriptionist with experience and her/his own accounts can make very good money. Otherwise, we make living wages. :)

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Specializes in Med/Surg, Geriatrics.
I see all the responses about there being many more nursing opportunities other than bedside. Please give me some examples? I am looking into getting a BSN because I'm interested in health care. But, being a bedside nurse doesn't interest me too much. What would be some other opportunities available to someone with a BSN?

Thank you.

Chris

clinical:

GI lab

cath lab

occupational/employee health

home health

infusion nursing

dialysis

corrections

non-clinical:

case management

disease management

appeals

risk management

infection control

disability/workman's comp

utilization review

clinical research

health education

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Specializes in LTC/SNF, Psychiatric, Pharmaceutical.

Another option: Blood/plasma collection centers. The nurse's job in these cases is to assess potential donors and keep the ones at highest risk for pathogens like HIV or Hepatitis B/C out of the donor pool. Also, managing donor reactions, though most of the milder ones can be handled just fine by the phlebs.

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Specializes in Management, Emergency, Psych, Med Surg.

You know, nursing is one of the most difficult jobs anyone can ever have. The responsibility is endless and the rapid changes in medicine make it a challenge to keep up. I have been doing nursing for 30 years in all types of nursing and at all management levels. You can go into another profession related to nursing or not but the one thing that will not change for you is the fact that you will have to deal with the public. No matter what we do in nursing, RT, PT, OT, Radiology, legal nursing, we still have to deal with sick people and their family members. In addition, you will have to deal with your coworkers. You can move to another facility but the only thing that really changes are the faces. You have the same personalities to deal with no matter where you go or what you do for a living. True, some places are easier to work in than others and have more up to date systems. But after all these years, the thing that I have learned the most is to try to make your own system better by working with it instead of against it. It is a pain in the you know what to change jobs. Always looking for something better. Most times, it is just not out there. :idea:

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I'm on the same boat. Thinking about the future and tired and burned out from nursing. Bedside nursing definitely can be difficult most of the time but as some have suggested maybe you should try adminstrative/non-clinical positions. I'm thinking about going back to school myself. Also I have been thinking about possible career change. Really have been thinking about becoming a pharmacist. From some research it looks like they make up to $90,000 a year. Still not sure what all it entails, but I will continue to research before making any decisions. So that possibly could be an option for you. I definetly know where your coming from, but I wish you the best of luck in whatever you may decide.:wink2:

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