This field doesnt look promising

perseus29 · May 29, 2006

Finding jobs under informatics at the hospital sure, is almost nonexistant. Informatics seems to be the fancy term used in europe, and in universities to obtain a degree that combine healthcare and IT. However, mention that to anybody in an informatics project at a hospital, and most likely, they don't have any idea what informatics is. At least in the couple of hospitals that I work with, most of the people in the project wouldn't know it, and I've asked.

As far as finding jobs---go to any hospital, any doctor's office and just ask if they use an electronic medical records, and if they do, what system do they use. Then possibly try to find a job title with that name on it. Assuming a hospital uses Cerner's Millenium in the Emergency dept, then you might find a job title such as: Firstnet clinical system analyst, or maybe, Firstnet implementation analyst, or Firstnet Support Specialist. On a job board such as monster.com you could possibly do a search on the generic terms of implementation analyst (this would get you all types of applications though), clinical implementation analyst, clinical support specialist, informatics, clinical analyst, etc. Another way to find jobs is maybe look at the products of vendors such as EPIC, Cerner, meditech, Eclipsys, Mediware, etc, etc etc....go to their job section and look at the titles there. Then go to the hospital job listing and do a search there. However, if I were in your shoes, and I really wanted to get into the informatics field, I would call the IT dept of the hospital and find out what positions they have.

I have worked in different hospitals in the past, and when I was trying to find a job I realized that most jobs are not listed on the generic job listings at hospitals, but the easiest way to find out was to contact the manager/director of the it department and see what jobs they had, and what jobs they might need in the future.

As far as the field looking bleak----I fully disagree with you. When I got the current Job i have, I didn't sit behind my desk waiting for a streak of good luck to hit me to find a job. I spent 4 active months, updating my resume, networking with people, applying for jobs, interviewing, until I finally got the job. Had I sat on my desk waiting for good luck to show up, I most likely would still be waiting. Then again, my personality tends to follow the motto, if there is a will, there is a way, and I have a very strong will. And luck had nothign to do with that. :) As far as why bother with the IT stuff? Because I love what I do. Yes, I hated wiping butts too, but I liked interacting with my patients, as long as they were alert and oriented times 3! :) I also liked computer stuff, and I just happened to combine both fields, and I love the job. Sure there are bad days, and good days, but overall, I don't dread waking up to go to my job!

Cheers!

jmgrn65, RN · May 29, 2006

I think that Nursing Informatics is in it's infancy and is expanding, as long as there are computers in hospitals then there will be a need for NI, it is is just starting out slowly. My hospital started out with Just on NI a few years ago and now there are 4 of them.

CRNA is a higer paying job, difficult to get into, and you can't work while going through the program, that's what has stopped me. :twocents:

Jo Dirt · May 29, 2006

It sounds like you are wanting to get the big bucks and to get the big bucks easy (ie, little or no patient interaction/sweat labor).

CRNA's have cleaned their share of poop in their careers and even though they may not be *as* directly involved in patient care now they certainly work hard for their money and they have paid their dues.

If you don't like the dirty work you could go get an MBA and try to break into the corporate scene, though the market is saturated with MBA's. Maybe that would be more to your liking.

And as you have been bitten by the money bug and you can't see for the dollar signs in your eyes you probably can't believe this, but not everyone is in healthcare for the money. Even a minute number of doctors (I personally know a doctor who has an office way down a country road where he lives in an ultra plain house and runs his clinic out of an old concrete block outbuilding. His services are so cheap it couldn't be worth his time financially. $20 for office visit, perhaps a couple of more dollars if he draws a lab, and he mixes the meds up in the back of his office (gets meds donated from pharmacies that are almost expired or expired). My husband went to see him for a stomach virus. Got the visit plus lomotil for $22.50.

I am working to become a nurse practitioner because I genuinely like and want to help people.

As one very famous and successful actor put it, "I wish everyone could have all the wealth/fame/success they think they want so they can realize that's not the answer."

30andconfused · May 29, 2006

It sounds like you are wanting to get the big bucks and to get the big bucks easy (ie, little or no patient interaction/sweat labor).
CRNA's have cleaned their share of poop in their careers and even though they may not be *as* directly involved in patient care now they certainly work hard for their money and they have paid their dues.
If you don't like the dirty work you could go get an MBA and try to break into the corporate scene, though the market is saturated with MBA's. Maybe that would be more to your liking.
And as you have been bitten by the money bug and you can't see for the dollar signs in your eyes you probably can't believe this, but not everyone is in healthcare for the money. Even a minute number of doctors (I personally know a doctor who has an office way down a country road where he lives in an ultra plain house and runs his clinic out of an old concrete block outbuilding. His services are so cheap it couldn't be worth his time financially. $20 for office visit, perhaps a couple of more dollars if he draws a lab, and he mixes the meds up in the back of his office (gets meds donated from pharmacies that are almost expired or expired). My husband went to see him for a stomach virus. Got the visit plus lomotil for $22.50.
I am working to become a nurse practitioner because I genuinely like and want to help people.
As one very famous and successful actor put it, "I wish everyone could have all the wealth/fame/success they think they want so they can realize that's not the answer."

You make some excellent points. Yes, I'm in it for the money. Yes I want to just skip RN beside care and get to CRNA and the salary. I've paid my dues in IT and to start calling IT departments begging and hoping for a position is not my idea of a "step up". I need a field that hires what I'm busting my butt in school to learn. I dont think that's asking to much, nor do I think you're shallow for wanting top dollar for your skill. Please, if you only could see my car, you'd know I'm not a slave to material things. I'm thinking about my future and children.

Jo Dirt · May 30, 2006

You make some excellent points. Yes, I'm in it for the money. Yes I want to just skip RN beside care and get to CRNA and the salary. I've paid my dues in IT and to start calling IT departments begging and hoping for a position is not my idea of a "step up". I need a field that hires what I'm busting my butt in school to learn. I dont think that's asking to much, nor do I think you're shallow for wanting top dollar for your skill. Please, if you only could see my car, you'd know I'm not a slave to material things. I'm thinking about my future and children.

I want to take this opportunity to share some things I have learned about money. I'm not going to sit here and act like I am privy to some kind of spontaneous wisdom. I learned this by listening to and following what others have done; people who are very successful in life financially and have been there and gotten the t-shirt.

But first of all...

Hey, I will not knock a person wanting to make a better life for their children and themselves. If you live in New York, though, $80-100,000 is minimum for a middle-class lifestyle. My stepson (who happens to be my age...but that's another story) is an RN in Bethpage, NY (well, his license has been suspended for a year, but more about that later). A dump there sells for $500,000. The cost of living is ridiculous. Husband and me go up there once or twice a year to see his family (I know all about New Yorkers) and I can't believe what things sell for. My stepson lives his life in debt and that will not likely change as he makes $65K a year and the math just doesn't pan out. I know this may not be relevant but I'm on a roll (hehe) He was all about the money himself, for awhile. He was the assistant DON of a nursing home and his buddy was the DON. They opened a "staffing agency". Made quite a bit of money. He had a couple of rental houses in NY and Miami, FL...until he got caught. he and his buddy were taking unlicensed people off the street and putting them to work as RN's. Only since they werent't really RN's they didn't get the RN salary from the agency, but the agency was reimbursed for RN's. Needless to say, they both were thrown in the slammer for 5 months and ordered to pay over $300k each. He had to sell his rental houses and he and his new wife and children had to move in with his mother. He is working as some kind of non nurse supervisor for a HH company making 65K and trying to scrape up enough for a down payment on a dump for half a million. He let the root of all evil be his motivator and now he is paying the price. What's bad is that I don't think he learned anything from this experience.

And I see you are interested in real estate. Please tell me you are not participating in one of those midnight infomercial little or no money down operations. Being very close to someone who has been involved in real estate for a very long time (not my step son) (and who is very successful), I can tell you exactly what he says about those real estate schemes...you will be in bankruptcy court within a few years! This does not work! Furthermore, unless you are a carpenter/electrician/plumber and know the ins and outs of construction and can fix the fixer-uppers mostly yourself, you will not become wealthy buying fixer uppers and renting them out or selling them. And the best deal you will make in real estate is when you buy, and, if you buy carefully, you will likely look at 100 houses before finding one that *might* be worth looking into. It is a very tedious process.

Those midnight infomercials are not your key to wealth.

Don Lapre is not holding your key to wealth.

That said, I will not deny I would like to be wealthy one day, myself. Only I am not expecting to find significant wealth in nursing. Wealth alone will not solve your problems. You must have the character to manage your money or it will slip through your fingers before you know where it went. I am not what a lot of people would call wealthy but I am following a plan to become wealthy. Not a glamorous plan, not a quickie plan. It takes a lot of sacrifice on my part and it is hard. I do work my butt off. I can say this confidently, that the true key to becoming wealthy and financially independent is living on less than you make and not going into debt. You may laugh at how simple I am sounding but if you find yourself doing any differently than I am doing just try it my way for 90 days.

For the last couple of years, I have abided by this plan. I admit, I had "some" help on seeing I had a paid for house, but the thing is, it was mostly paid for because of perserverance.

1.) I don't do credit cards. At all. I know there are people who swear their lives are easier because they can charge on their card and pay the bill in full at the end of the month. For most people this would not work (and there are studies that prove you spend more when you use credits cards anyway) so it's best to avoid the temptation altogether. It is incredibly easy not to see yourself overspending when you use a credit card. I know, because I used to have one. Just don't play with snakes, you WILL get bitten!

2.)I don't go into debt. If I can't pay cash for something...I don't get it. This means I have done without a new boat, a new Sea-doo, or any other pricey toy.

3.)My house is very modest but it is safe, comfortable and PAID for.

4.)My cars are clunkers. They are also reliable, get me where I am going (just like a BMW would) and they are PAID for.

5.)My family eats out very little. It is Hamburger Helper and homemade pizzas, frequently.

6.)My kids don't have to always have brand new clothes. You can find really good buys on name brand clothes at yard sales, not the mall. Go to a mall and you are asking to pay too much. Once in awhile I indulge in the luxury of going to an outlet store like the Gap or Old Navy but I sure don't do it often because it is still expensive.

Over the last couple of years (with a few minor bobbles now and then) I have managed to get completely out of debt and I now use money I used to pay on debt to put into a savings account.

It is a slow process. Like the tortoise and the hare. I may not be pretty and fast, like that person in the BMW with the big motor boat in the yard and the big house and the new clothes. But while it is likely they are living in debt and beyond their means I'm truckling along at an even pace, slowly but surely on the road to financial freedom while they are probably (as statistics show) on a path of destruction with constant stress and worry about how to pay for all the junk they thought would make them happy or look good or impress others.

I hope this isn't so long that you don't read it but I wanted to say this.

BTW, after probation next week my salary will be around 62K. Pleasant surprise, that is a lot more than I originally thought I would be paid. And, I have an associate's degree in nursing. Tennessee has no income tax and a fairly low cost of living. That might be something to consider.