Stay at home Mom returning to nursing after 20 months off

westieluv · Jun 21, 2011

The times that I have seen jobs advertised in a physician's office setting, they have been either in the local paper or on the website of a large healthcare system that has medical office buildings affiliated with its hospitals.

As far as being ideal for a mom with young kids, everyone I have ever known who has worked in a doctor's office or community health setting has complained of low pay and long hours. "You can't go home until the last patient leaves" is a common complaint, and the patients have to come ahead of your family's needs.

What about working on a contingent basis in a hospital? That's what I'm doing right now and what I did when our kids were little. At least in my area, the hourly pay is significantly higher for contingent vs. full- or part-time, so you can work fewer hours for the same pay, and you can set your own schedule, to a certain extent. My contract states that I have to work a minimum of 32 hours in a six week pay period, with at least 16 of those hours worked on weekend shifts and only two holidays a year, which can be semi-important holidays like Memorial Day or the Fourth of July. You can't beat that kind of flexability when you have a family! Most hospitals depend heavily on their contingent nurses because they don't have to pay them benefits, so even at the higher hourly rate, the hospital still saves money in the long run, and the contingent nurses always seem to be able to work all the hours that they want to. It's been the perfect solution for me.

cupcakemum · Jun 24, 2011

Hi thanks for the reply.

"You can't go home until the last patient leaves" is a common complaint, and the patients have to come ahead of your family's needs.

This is very true. My last position in a Cardiology clinic within the hospital was very much like this. I blamed the late evenings on the fact that we were located in the hospital and often admitting pts striaght from our clinic to impatient floors. I wondered if it was true for outpatient doctor's offices as well.

Not sure I would consider working on a contingent basis (flex or float nursing as they call it here in Texas). I have had some experience with it ( and have worked with many flex nurses) and although I agree it gives great flexibility it also requires one to be on call in most circumstances and I do better with having a set regular schedule with predictable hours. I don't want any surprises in my work schedule. I also would not like being moved around to different floors. I have thought about this in the past and I'm pretty sure its not for me.

I appreciate your suggestion though, it's good to consider all options.

Can anyone offer insight into public health nursing or any community type nursing in relation to work hours for a mother of a young child?