The problem with nursing

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Specializes in OB, Women’s health, Educator, Leadership.

I share some of the same concerns as was posted earlier by another poster. I check in here infrequently because of lack of post, and although I started checking this site with some enthusiasm that soon was replaced by dismay because of the lack of involvement and content posted.

I'm really surprised that a career such as nursing - so full with different options and talented and varied personalities - does not offer more support in having nurses become self-employed.

It is the problem with nursing - with all of the skills we have to offer, we still do not claim our independence and find a way to work outside of hospitals and agencies. We depend on doctors and jobs to tell us what to do with our lives and our careers. In most cases we can offer those same skills independent of MD's and corporate bodies.

Even when nurses do strike out on their own, our choices are often limited to starting some type of nursing agency, yes this is a step in the right direction, but we need more options in addition to health related companies. I know that you should use your expertise, but I would love to see that expanded to different areas.

I think this would improve the nursing field offering more choices, creating more jobs and opportunities and happier nurses.

I guess what I am saying is that I would love to see more nurses NOT afraid to think outside of the box. I believe we can.

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I totally agree! I wish there were more resources and/or self-employed nurses. I would love to brain-storm and come up with new ideas. I wish this Entrepreneur page on AllNurses was busier with more frequent posts.

I recently started my own business - I provide care management services to seniors and disabled adults throughout the county in which I live. I'm so excited to be independent and "my own boss".

What do you do?

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Specializes in Home Health.

The greatest obstacle is that Nurse billing for services is not accepted by insurance companies and medicare.

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Specializes in OB, Women’s health, Educator, Leadership.

Hi

My business doesn't involve nursing but focuses on another passion- teaching. I offer products and services that support young women develop and enhance their talents and strengths. I love it and may consider turning it into a nonprofit if successful.

Oh don't forget to visit the nursing in business website, forgot the name but google it. They have a lot of info on their site.

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Nurses Do Have Choices! We limit ourselves and get stuck in the mindset of being an employee as opposed to being a person who can start their own business, dictate their own hours and have autonomy, respect and independence. Nurses have so many choices. You could be a health writer and write your own column. You could be a script writer for movies or review scripts and scences to see if it's medically correct. There is the start your staffing agency route too but that is not the only route. Use your nursing knowledge and your passion for photography and be a medical photographer. Start a travel medicine clinic. Teach nursing skills to student nurses. Develop board games to help teach nursing. Invent a product you know will help all nurses. I saw a website where a nurse is a remote wound care consultant for areas that don't have access to great health care. Travel with patients to take care of them when they go to India to travel for medical tourism. Start a company that accompanies loved ones from one destination to another if they are not able to travel on their own. The list of opportunities is endless. And if you think they're not then check out the laryngospasms. They are a singing group of anesthetists. Nurses have choices and more than they know.

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Nurses have had opportunity to take over certain specialaties, but before anyone had thought to do that, other groups have taken it over.

School nurses- pediatric nurses, you have the opportunity to become independant contractors in the school system. In my area, Maxim, has taken over staffing school nurses in the local schools.

Health and Wellness- this is an area that was ripe for nurses to take charge of, but before any of us could do that, PTs, exercise physiologists, etc, took it over and obtained lucrative contracts from the Police Departments, Fire Departments, large companies, etc. They now have a monopoly in this.

Starting "Practice Groups", like doctors do. Discuss opening practic egroups while in nursing school. Doctors do it. I know of many residents and interns, who moved to the same areas after they finished their residencies, and opened up practice groups together in different specialties.

Incorporate, decide how to divvy up staffing, and self your services back to the hospitals, nursing homes, etc. Staff ERs, ICUs, speciatly areas, like PACU, just like doctors do.

The main problem is that self employment is not taught/introduced, in nursing schools. There is no time in ADN programs. OTs and PTs teach opening up businesses as part of their programs. They learn these skills in school. Nurses need to do this. But again, there is no time in ADN programs.

In my BSN program, they had nurses who had started businesses talk to the students about opening businesses after graduation. Laura Gasparis spoke at great lengths about nurses opening their own businesses. Teach CPR in the community. There are plenty of ideas out there.

Legal Nursing, Forensic Nursing, etc. Use your imagination.And when we become the speciaty staffing groups for hospitals, with contracts, and we are incorporated, we will not be pushed around like we are now.

Legal Nursing, Fornsic Nursing, etc. Use your imagination.

JMHO and my NY $0.02.

Lindarn, RN, BSN, CCRN

Somewhere in the PACNW

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Specializes in OB, Women’s health, Educator, Leadership.

:confused:Great Post and so true!

I remember years ago taking an independent class on herbal studies just before naturopathic medicine "came back" into popularity, and I raised my hand and asked What are we supposed to do with this certification when done and the instructor gave me this look and said "start your own business". The whole class looked at me like 'duh' I'm sure I was the only nurse. It never even occurred to me that this was an option. That's the sad part, we have all of these skills. Really any experienced nurse could rattle off a list of skills and yet it doesn't even occur to us that we could fly solo or band together.

I just had a friend replaced in her job as a childbirth educator - a role ripe for independent nursing, so why depend on the hospital?:confused:

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Specializes in CC, MS, ED, Clinical Research.

I'm late to the thread but the title of this one is so true. We want to be independent, but we want it within the walls of institutions. It's like those walls are roadblocks. I came across patients having a hard time getting disability after stroke. When I checked into it to see if I could help, I found some nurses stepping off into this area, and I referred patients to them. Within a year, lawyers were shoving them out of the way. Given a choice, the poorest of patients believed a lawyer would get a better deal than a nurse.

Another field taking off is the nurse managing the elderly patient that wants to stay independent in the home, but are still on their feet with minor health problems and family live out of state. I see this field as growing. There's a professional organization and certification and I hope nurses keep it, but I see this as a field nurses "could get booted out of" like the above example. Independents can run with this. Lindarn's post was so true, we've got to start talking this up in nursing schools.

Finally, nurses keep out-of-boundary jobs they run across to themselves. It's like the ole pot of gold--keep it hidden. We should be supporting one another. If nurses start leaving the bedside to be entrepreneurs, then you can bet they will do a lot more to keep them roped in. For those that want out--If nurses flood a field, we can own it. Let's start a thread of ideas. itsmediane listed some great ideas in her post. Let's keep them coming. I'm writing, but with publishing in flux like its being spun by a tornado, self-publishing my novel is looking better. If I go for it, I 'll document the process because I want to make it easier for another nurse coming up behind me. BTW, if anyone reading this has already made "the list of steps for self-publishing like a PRO, please mail me. I'm researching it, but I don't want to re-invent the wheel.

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I'm late to the thread but the title of this one is so true. We want to be independent, but we want it within the walls of institutions. It's like those walls are roadblocks. I came across patients having a hard time getting disability after stroke. When I checked into it to see if I could help, I found some nurses stepping off into this area, and I referred patients to them. Within a year, lawyers were shoving them out of the way. Given a choice, the poorest of patients believed a lawyer would get a better deal than a nurse.

Another field taking off is the nurse managing the elderly patient that wants to stay independent in the home, but are still on their feet with minor health problems and family live out of state. I see this field as growing. There's a professional organization and certification and I hope nurses keep it, but I see this as a field nurses "could get booted out of" like the above example. Independents can run with this. Lindarn's post was so true, we've got to start talking this up in nursing schools.

Finally, nurses keep out-of-boundary jobs they run across to themselves. It's like the ole pot of gold--keep it hidden. We should be supporting one another. If nurses start leaving the bedside to be entrepreneurs, then you can bet they will do a lot more to keep them roped in. For those that want out--If nurses flood a field, we can own it. Let's start a thread of ideas. itsmediane listed some great ideas in her post. Let's keep them coming. I'm writing, but with publishing in flux like its being spun by a tornado, self-publishing my novel is looking better. If I go for it, I 'll document the process because I want to make it easier for another nurse coming up behind me. BTW, if anyone reading this has already made "the list of steps for self-publishing like a PRO, please mail me. I'm researching it, but I don't want to re-invent the wheel.

I found this same thing in the 1980's, when the "health and fitness", craze, was all over the country. I minored in PT in college, with the thought of starting a business, going to businesses, doing blood pressure screenings, health fairs, etc. Only to find, as I got into the program, and began working in the field, I came to find out that exercise physiologists, PT, etc, had already taken over it, and got lucrative contracts with city and county fire departments, police departments, etc, to do treadmill testing, fitness testing, etc. There was no room left for a nurse to start a business.

These people also made more money than the average nurse, and could afford to purchase expensive equipment, hire doctors, pay for pricey insurance premiums, pay to rent prime real estate for these programs, etc. And nurses were cut out of the pie, because, other professions, that had business, entreuperneur training, experience, jumped at the chance to get in at the bottom of a luctritive career.

The same thing has happened with Legal Nurse Consulting. The "Amway" of legal nursing, has marketing the profession, almost out of existence. I have lost count how many attorneys have told me, point blank, that, "legal nurses are a dime a dozen".

There are probably other opportunities that have not been discovered by nurses, but I know that they are out there. I have some other ideas, I am mullling over. I will see what I come up with. What can I say? I still think that nurses in specialty areas, should incorporate, and sell their services back to the hospitals.

JMHO and my NY $0.02.

Lindarn, RN ,BSN,CCRN

Somewhere in the PACNW

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Specializes in CC, MS, ED, Clinical Research.

Lindarn,

Amen. I watched opportunities come and go, I never jumped because the money was always an issue. You need to sock away funding so you can handle the "pucker moments" of starting up your own business. There is comfort in a routine that pays you, but over time it will diminish the drive to opt out. To me health care is backwards, too much emphasis on dealing with disease etc after the fact instead of before.

Over the years I listened to pharmacists that got together and researched investing and they pooled what they found out. Made good money too. They had a rule too--they didn't let other co-workers in.

Some respiratory techs went out together and started a business and its still going.

I worked with nurses that did clinical research monitoring and many of them were independent contractors. They made good money but they travel a great deal and are up to their ears in paperwork, reports, and followups etc.

It's hard to go independent. Wonder if some lurkers might share their success stories?

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Specializes in Hospice / Ambulatory Clinic.

I was a entrepreneur before I was a nurse and yes it is frustrating to not have that potential outlet. Being an entrepreneur is more than just making money but being in control of your own destiny.

Although I make a difference to my patients I feel as if my job doesn't matter.

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Specializes in ICU/NICI/PICU/Pulmonary/GI.

I've read these posts with great interest.

I have decided last year that I will NOT work a 12 hour shift ever again unless it's for myself. I've also decided that I WON"T be muscled out of nursing because I do not have a BSN. So, I'm taking my ADN and 20+ years of experience to start a foot care nursing business with another RN friend. It's been an interesting process of learning as-we-go....but NOT overly daunting or horribly expensive to get started if you share the costs. We'll begin advertising in December with the hopes of enrolling our first clients January.

I'll let you know how it goes if you ae interested. Who knows, maybe it can morph into other things as well.

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