Should I give up??

[SunnyRN76]

I have been a registered nurse for almost 5 years. I knew I wanted to pursue case management nursing as early as nursing school. I feel like I've made all the moves up to this point that would prepare me for case management. My most recent position is a patient care navigator. This position aligns quite closely with the case management positions I see available on the employment websites.

I have been applying to the "big boys" for several months, meaning the large insurance companies who hire telephonic case managers. I have tailored my resume to the job postings, made sure I applied to positions which I am well qualified for, and am getting nothing but rejections! I'm not even getting a 'pre-interview'!

The thing that I'm lacking is prior case management experience. Personally, that won't be a problem, as I'm a fast learner and enthusiastic about the field. I suppose if I were scanning resumes, I would choose the applicant with the case management experience over the one without.

The hospitals in my area seem to require well over five years experience, and I'm not there yet.

I guess my question, other than the pleasure of venting all of this out, is... does anyone have experience with the hiring process in case management? Should I give up, considering I do not have case management experience? How will I get it??

Thanks for listening and replying. I always look forward to the posts on this website!

[FreudianSlip]

Hi,

5 years as a nurse is not a lot of experience to bring to the table and that may be hurting your opportunities. Hopefully, most of those 5 years are in the same care area? Nurses who can parlay a large clinical knowledge base in to a case management role are especially desired for these positions. This is doubly true for telephonic positions that require more autonomy.

Two suggestions:

1) Know someone in the business who can recommend you (LinkedIn is helpful).

2) Utilize a local expansion opportunity; the Big Boys and smaller players frequently break in to new markets, where they will hire large amounts of staff to support the new business.

There are many, many opportunities in this field, but it definitely can be hard to get in to.

I hope that's helpful and best of luck!

[SunnyRN76]

FreudianSlip,

I guess you were my lucky star. FINALLY got a telephone interview that went very well and will be interviewing in person in two weeks! Thanks for your good wishes.