Teaching: Staff vs. Students

llg, PhD, RN · Jun 12, 2008

I've spent most of my career in nursing staff development roles ... but have also done some teaching at universities.

With a little experience and an MSN, you would probably make more money in a staff development role. However, that's assuming you would work full time. Without an MSN, the pay might not be as good ... but there is still a good chance that you would make more working for a large hospital.

Each job has its advantages and disadvantages. What I love about hospital staff development jobs is the flexibility I get in my schedule. I don't have to come to work so early in the morning. Most of my colleagues come in around 0800 and leave around 1630. I choose to come in around 0900 and then stay until 1730. I also like being "non-essential," which means I don't have to work holidays, weekends, nights, during hurricanes, etc. as only essential staff members are required for those times. I can come in late or leave early for doctor's appointments, etc. As long as I am here my required 40 hours/week (during the heart of the day most of the time), my boss doesn't mind the ocassional adjustment to my schedule.

I also prefer to teach experienced nurses than to teach absolute beginners. I find I get a little impatient with beginners who have no frame of reference or sense of what it is like to be an actual nurse. I find it more easy to establish a connection with my students when those students are also nurses. That's why as a university teacher, I prefer to work with the BSN completion students or graduate students.

I'm a little tired right now, so this may not be the best time to post. Hopefully, other people will add to this thread.

Also ... I highly recommend checking out a couple of the journals that relate to nursing staff development so that you can get a better sense of the roles and issues. You might try "The Journal for Nurses in Staff Development" or "Continuing Education in Nursing" for a start. You also might want to check out the National Nursing Staff Development Organzation website.

classicdame, MSN, EdD · Jun 13, 2008

I work as staff educator and adjunct to a local university. The hospital position pays better than local faculty earns (comparable degrees and education of course). I orient all clinical staff, create and provide programs as needed for every dept., develop annual competencies and education to meet OSHA, JCAHO and other requirements, arrange for instructors and other coordination of CPR, ACLS, PALS, etc. Lots of duties but I think it is all worthwhile. Also I like the hours - M-F only

HouTx, BSN, MSN, EdD · Jun 13, 2008

Brandie,

I am a 25+ yr nurse educator - all in 'non-academic' settings. But after reading the previous posts, I think I may have taken the wrong career 'turn' -- worked in the wong type of hospitals!

All of our organizations are 24X7. Clinical educators are expected to serve ALL staff, not just those who work days, M-F. We are expected to flex our hours as needed to provide support for nights, days - and weekenders also. We have shifted most didactic content to eLearning but there is still a lot of hands-on educational activity happening 'after hours'.

We (staff educators) are pretty much the only hospital-based nurses that have always been very vulnerable to job cuts. We are viewed as 'non revenue producing' departments and when the $ shrink, so do we. Our best protection is to clearly prove our value - :no: and we can never do that by being part of the '9-5' bunch.

That being said -- my salary has usually been (and continues to be) greater than my academic colleagues. I love working with nurses. Students would scare me to death! :eek:

llg, PhD, RN · Jun 13, 2008

Brandie,
I am a 25+ yr nurse educator - all in 'non-academic' settings. But after reading the previous posts, I think I may have taken the wrong career 'turn' -- worked in the wong type of hospitals!
All of our organizations are 24X7. Clinical educators are expected to serve ALL staff, not just those who work days, M-F. We are expected to flex our hours as needed to provide support for nights, days - and weekenders also. We have shifted most didactic content to eLearning but there is still a lot of hands-on educational activity happening 'after hours'.

I have worked in many different hospitals over the years and have also met the needs of people who work weekends, nights, etc. It's just that how and when I do that has been up to ME to plan and schedule. Yes, I have worked many nights to teach the night shift ... but I don't have to stay the whole shift to do that ... and I can schedule it in relation to my work schedule so that it makes sense for me.

For example, in one job that I had, I used to choose 1 or 2 Thursdays per month on which I would come in around noon and stay until around 3 am, teaching some classes for the evening and night shift staff. That would "count" as working both Thursday and Friday, giving me a weekend that was longer than usual. I would go home and sleep until noon on Friday and then start my 2.5 day weekend. I liked that. The point is that those times were things that I planned ahead of time. I wasn't scheduled to be there at night 50% of the time like a staff nurse was. It was an ocassional thing at a time of my own choosing.

In my current job, I'm not a unit-based educator. I work on hospital-wide prorams, self learning packets, major all-day programs, hospital orientation, etc. I don't do those smaller inservices at the unit level and so, don't have any reason to be here at night or on the weekends, holidays, weather emergencies, etc.

ceecel.dee, MSN, RN · Jun 16, 2008

I worked staff development in a rural hospital setting prior to college teaching. I think that the faculty position is much more stressful as it certainly requires more than nursing skills, and I always think of myself as a nurse first.