The best job ever (for now)

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Just wanted to share briefly about this job I kind of "fell into"

I'm a 32yo male and have been an RN for about 6 years. Most of my first 4 years as an RN I worked in various ICU and some ER settings. I only worked staff for my first year as an RN and I went strictly agency after that. Personally, I feel RN's are GROSSLY underpaid(maybe this is just cuz I'm male I dunno) so I've always gone to the highest bidder even if it meant a slightly less pleasing work environment.

I got into hemodialysis by starting at a chronic clinic. I paid my dues there. I was getting paid a paltry 19/hour for backbreaking work. On your feet all day for 13 hours being bossed around by noncompliant patients etc. I stayed for 11months (I told them I'd stay a year if they trained me which was close enuf)

I then got into acute dialysis which put me back into the ICU/acute settings. My first job in acute dialysis had a 4grand sign on bonus(for only a 9month commitment) and was paying me 24/hour. Not bad for day shift. We also had to take call 1 week/month which was paid at around 250/week extra for the call.

Then I found another acute dialysis program that paid per treatment instead of hourly. I'm working for a great company at a small hospital in a nice part of town. I don't have to answer to anyone except the occasional nephrologist. I don't have to deal with any hospital politics(our company is the dialysis contractor) I don't have a set time to be at work. I just try to get there early enough to get the treatments done that day. The compensation is superb. I average a flat rate of around 42/hour for my hours worked. I dont get overtime but who cares at those rates! I should make around 80-90k this year averaging about 45hrs/week. The only drawback is that I'm on call 24/7 for this hospital(i'm basically the only one) but I dont have kids so it works for me. They only call me unexpectedly maybe once a month so the call pay is basically like free money.

The only other drawback is the job is BORING! Watching an ICU patient for 3+ hours is not very stimulating! However, I know this is a small price to pay. I'm planning on going back to school for either practitioner or CRNA. This job would be perfect if I choose practioner(acute care) because the program has a lot of self study so I'd be able to keep this job until I graduated and study on the job. CRNA would probably neccessitate me quitting the job because of workload so I dont know. My conundrum is that this job is boring to me but there is no way I could make more money at any nursing job.

Anyway, I'm not sure of the point of this post except to share my thoughts and experiences. If anyone is looking for a change or a job that is good paying, low stress and allows for studying.. Acute dialysis is great!

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I worked in dialysis for three years .The last year was in acute dialysis and I have nothing but good memories. It was one of my favorite and most rewarding jobs. I would be told which cases I had the next day and could set my own schedual.True the ICU pts were boring sometimes, but watching someone feel better quickly was wonderful. I had pts that had been in crushing injuies and the dialysis would remove a lot of the toxins released. I liked the plasma foresis also, I saw a coulpe of people after they had ingested poisons. Mushrooms, ect.. I wouldn't mind going back some day

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Thanks for sharing Vortex about your interesting specialty....when we burn out of regular facility jobs we always appreciate hearing of options :)

I am really considering getting into this, but have a question for you..

Do you feel its necessary to learn chronic before one does acutes or can one learn OJT totally with acute cases?? I am an ICU nurse. I know I would NOT enjoy the chronic center work but WOULD enjoy HD in the ICU setting.

I see an ad in my local paper from Fresenius specifically looking for ICU nurses...I wonder what they have in mind but I'm asking you guys first...LOL!

Any thoughts or advice from those of you who do the job? Perhaps this should really be on the renal/dialysis thread I guess but I'm impulsively posting it here... :chuckle ...

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No, it is not neccessary to learn chronic. At the time I was hired into chronic, no dialysis companies were hiring directly into acutes so I had to go into chronic to learn. In fact, before the nursing shortage, many companies wouldnt hire dialysis nurses without "experience"

This is all changing. The last company I did acutes for hired 2 nurses that had no dialysis experience straight into acutes. They even hired 1 that had no prior dialysis or ICU experience. Its a great job monetarily but can have unexpected long days and nights if you are on call and things get busy. Most of the time its pretty nice. Hopefully, you'll be in a market that is really short of acute dialysis nurses and you can either get a sweet hourly rate + oncall or they will have a market that pays per treatment.

On an exceptionally good day, I have averaged over 50/hour!

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I'm taking my pre-reqs now for an ADN program, then I'll get my BSN and possibly go for CRNA or practitioner. I'm glad to see there's good diversity and opportunity for nurses out there. I just got a new job also. Not quite $45/Hr, actually more like $7.50/Hr. This new job is going to pay me to attend school for 8 weeks, when I get done I'll be a clinical associate, kinda like an aid from what I understand. Then I get a raise to a whoppen $10/Hr. Far cry from the $21.50 I used to make, but hey, you gotta start somewhere right. When I get done with this 8 week course I get to apply for which ever department I want to work in. My main concern is being able to work around my pre-nursing classes. Other than that I was thinking ER or ICU. What do you guys think? Where would be a good place to start?

Brandon

Looks like I'm starting nursing about the same time you did vortex

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Thanks Vortex, I appreciate all the good information and think I will call Fresenius today as it sounds like an excellent move for me at this point in my career. Do you have an opinion as to whether it is best to work for a physician's group or a dialysis provider like Fresenius? I also have a contact within a local nephrologist's personal group of dialysis nurses and am thinking of tracking her down too. :)

Hi Brandon and welcome to nursing.CNA duties are somewhat generic...if you know what dept you are interested in, apply there. Lots of guys like the high tech depts like ER and ICU...with all the bells and whistles and action. So...not a bad idea. I work now with a premed student in one of my ICU's and we have cross trained him to read monitors, draw blood, enter orders, help at the bedside etc.. He works weekends for us around his school schedule and does a little bit of everything...good experience for him and we're happy to have such a motivated young person helping us in ICU.Also worked with many prenursing students in the same capacity. Best wishes to you. :)

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