Switching fields of nursing

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Hi everyone,

I’m really just wondering, if it is hard to get a job working in a hospital after only having experience as a home health nurse? I am graduating next month and I’m pretty much open to trying any field. I am interested in taking a job as a home health nurse but I don’t want to take the job and then later on not be able to get into a hospital If I change my mind. I’m also interested in psych nursing but I don’t want to limit myself and get too specific so early on. I don’t know what to do because I have a job offer as a home health nurse that has a great residency program. I guess I’m also wondering how hard is it to switch fields in nursing?

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Specializes in Critical Care; Cardiac; Professional Development.

You will have a much easier time going into specialties from acute care than the other way around. If you have the option of a job in a hospital that would be the wisest course of action. If you start out in home health, dialysis, psych etc you will be pretty specialized and it will be harder to cross over into acute care later. Not impossible. But much harder.

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Thanks so much for the word of advice. The reason why I am leaning more toward home health is because I want to eventual become an RN case manager and after doing extensive research, Ive noticed most case manager jobs want you to have some experience in home health nursing (since it is case management) so I feel like this would be a good opportunity. besides the fact that the residency program isa year long and they offer amazing benefits such as wound and ostomy certification, case management certification, tuition reimbursement and more. they also offer 6 free credits towards your masters degree at Rutgers university with paid text books, and the pay is really amazing. I am still applying for other positions, but I am dealing leaning more toward this opportunity. It seems to just fit me best.

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Specializes in Critical Care; Cardiac; Professional Development.

That sounds like a very well thought out plan. If this is what you want, don't second guess yourself.

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On 4/30/2019 at 2:34 PM, not.done.yet said:

You will have a much easier time going into specialties from acute care than the other way around. If you have the option of a job in a hospital that would be the wisest course of action. If you start out in home health, dialysis, psych etc you will be pretty specialized and it will be harder to cross over into acute care later. Not impossible. But much harder.

Yea, that is what happened to me, HHC nurse, case manager, team leader, admissions coordinator, etc, took me a BSN, then a MSN and 5 years to finally get an offer for a part-time inpatient rehab job in a hospital. Screwed up my career, now I am at the bottom again even with years and years of experience and being able to function autonomously as a RN.

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Wow, thank you for sharing this. Did you change your mind from wanted to be a nurse case manager to wanting to go back to bedside nursing in the rehab? Since you have such a strong background in case management why did you make the switch?

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50 minutes ago, NurseAN94 said:

Wow, thank you for sharing this. Did you change your mind from wanted to be a nurse case manager to wanting to go back to bedside nursing in the rehab? Since you have such a strong background in case management why did you make the switch?

The reason I left home care to go to the hospital is that I thought I would have a better chance of getting away from patient care. I tried for a case management job at two different hospitals and wasn't offered the job. This was the first hospital job I was offered and so I took it because I had to. I want to teach patients in the hospital setting. It probably will never happen because I don't have enough time left in my career to get there. I just don't have the knack for career management, I can do everything I am advised but it doesn't turn out well for me. What may take one nurse 3-4 years to accomplish takes me 20. It's probably over for me at this point. I enjoyed managing patient care, but it's not the same as case management in a hospital. What I did in HHC, at least part of it, was deciding what the patient needed to satisfy the needs and to get goals met, then decided how much of it and where to get it from. I orchestrated everything pretty much.

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Funny thing is, that in HHC I held much more responsibility and performed more skilled tasks, my scope was much broader than what I do now. Now, I just do things, tasks. I don't get to use my critical thinking, I don't get to do wound care, and a whole list of other things. I pass pills and take vitals basically. Very unfulfilling drudgery. Somehow, this is seen as a higher level of nursing by many people simply because it is a "hospital" job.

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I’m so sorry to hear this. I would completely hate to just feel like I’m passing meds and taking vitals. I think that I would go back to home health nursing if that was the case. You deserve to do something fulfilling for you. Please reconsider, I don’t want you to end your career this way.

I do feel like people hold hospital jobs to a higher standard and I really don’t even understand why. Every home health nurse that I’ve spoken to says the same thing, they learned so many skills they don’t even use in the hospital setting.

Have you tired case management for an insurance company? Aetna has great positions available where you can teach the client as well as advocate for them. Stay positive! I hope you find something that make should feel happy!

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I would work at a hospital first for a year or two then home health.

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