Preparing to be hospice nurse

[tjarn]

Hi,

I'm interested in advice on becoming a hospice nurse. I have been an RN for 20 yrs, working in ICU/CCU and ER. I am ready for a change and have been interested in hospice for a long time. Any advice?

[doodlemom]

Hi,

I'm interested in advice on becoming a hospice nurse. I have been an RN for 20 yrs, working in ICU/CCU and ER. I am ready for a change and have been interested in hospice for a long time. Any advice?

I would look for a job at a long time established hospice. Be prepared for a salary cut - hospice nursing is not known to pay a lot compared to other areas of nursing. Ask lots of questions on the interview. Find out how much on call you have to take - as that seems to be a big burn out factor with a lot of hospice's. Ask how many patients is a case load, how far you have to drive, if they pay for mileage and how much. You may want to ask if you could go out with a case manager for a day to see what a day in the life is like.

Once you start working, give yourself time to adjust. It can take time before you are in the mode of letting things happen without feeling like you have to fix something.