Speech therapy? Nursing?

HouTx, BSN, MSN, EdD · Apr 29, 2016

What are your biggest dissatisfiers? If you can identify them, you may it easier to narrow down your options. There are so many options for advancing your nursing career - including those that focus almost entirely on operational areas.

elkpark · Apr 29, 2016

Speech and language therapists do a lot more than what you see them doing in the hospital. Have you investigated SLP further than observing in the hospital?

learningnsgstudent · Apr 29, 2016

No. I've researched different avenues and what their various workload entails, but never in person. (I know in person is the only way to know for sure). I did like the school SLP avenue, but all I know is what I've researched really. I've worked with home health and hospital SLP's and I can honestly say that those 2 avenues seem boring to me. I'd rather be the nurse if I were to go in that direction.

learningnsgstudent · Apr 29, 2016

I know you've heard this all before. But I hate the bedside. And would love to get out. I've worked at 2 different hospitals now, both super great company wise and staff wise, and in 2 different specialties. But I still dread going to work. I've had rewarding moments and trust me, I've tried to make the most of it and see things from the bright side, but at the end of the day, I'm still not happy with where I am.

I've considered clinic nursing, but I'm starting to get the sense that patient care isn't what makes me happy. The whole idea of having someone depend on my final say of what's wrong with them really scares me.

I was beginning to consider a way I could get into marketing. I feel like that would be a better use of my skills. I really just want to be creative and interact on patients on a more healthy or preventative level. A job that allows me to still work with patients and/or a patient population that allows me to be interactive in a different way. Does that make sense?

SLPhosp · May 1, 2016

I came across this forum after thinking that I would like to get a nursing degree. I am a speech pathologist working in a hospital and frankly after working so many years in this field I find that it is limiting (don't get me wrong as I still like what I do for the most part). I don't work with pediatrics or in the educational realm so that limits me even more (and frankly don't want those specialities). I find that I am not able to apply for any management position unless it is ONLY in rehab and I have done that back in 2000 when it was good to do prior to reimbursement changes. Most places want a PT or OT anyway, heck even a PTA or COTA is preferred as people assume I don't know anything medical. Even though I am the one that does full chart reviews, see death and dying patients that can't swallow, I have worked in home health where I was the only one walking in due to a stroke and I have to do the full physical assessment (trained by a RN), reconcile medications, attend utilization review meeting etc. Still stuck as a speech pathologist forever due to not having RN or even LPN behind my name if I even want to get into case management or even a care coordinator position. I would go as high as you can as a nurse and go for NP not SLP as it is a long road to become a SLP and since you are a nurse already why change?. The one thing I do love about being a SLP is I do get to go to different floors of the hospital, avoid the "catty" nursing discussions...LOL, I diagnose and evaluate (where as RNs follow the physicians orders...I/o/w..nobody tells me to do anything really except my direct supervisor re: other hospital required things and rarely about my patients and even then I am basically autonomous - a lone ranger so to speak). I don't report to any nurse (unless I work for a home health agency) and even then they usually don't know what the heck I do anyway and usually don't refer patients to me the way they or physicians should (I can evaluate and diagnose cognitive disorders, speech, language - fluency, swallowing etc). Remember SLPs have our own medical and treatment billing codes that we input and bill for and SLPs are a different beast then nurses (RN/LPN) and even physical therapists (who don't diagnose). SLPs actually can put down our own diagnosis as healthcare providers and can bill and basically have our own clinic. Have not done that yet and like I said most physicians etc don't know how to refer which can be frustrating and therefore a small business like that would not survive unless you got into doing pediatrics...this will never change. Go for NP and even get your doctorate as the doors are opening even more for you nursing folks. SLPs are still stuck as we are too specialized and medical/nursing rules...not rehab. Good Luck:yes: