Tough Options

[imenid37]

Is anyone here Master's prepared and primarily at the bedside? My life is a bit chaotic. My elderly mom is in another state. I make the 300 mile trip weekly. My 15 month old car has more than 55K miles already. I am waiting to her if my state BON will license me as a CNS. I appealed their initial denial. There is no exam for my specialty, perinatal nursing. I had my hearing and I am waiting for a final decision. Honestly, I would love to get a DNP with a long term goal to teach. I feel like I am giving up if I go back to staff, but I also see some very compelling reasons to do just that.

The reality is ...My house is falling apart. My hubby gives much of our income to help our kids pay their college loans. I want to help them, but I want to do some home repairs and God forbid, even take a vacation. I work for a salary in a low paying facility. I love my boss, but am not loving some of our staff. My daughter who has an ADN and 7 years experience makes $2/hr more than me and my 29 years experience. If I went to a direct care position and achieved the top level on the clinical ladder, I would make over $10/hr more than my current wage, about $12 if I did night shift. Oh, what to do? It would mean working weekends, again...but three days vs five. Oh what to do? Will this be a career killer or a great relief. I miss direct care, but am not sure about doing it full time. I am applying for flex for now to try it out. Anyone out there have a similar experience?

[loriangel14, RN]

Why are your kids not paying their own loans off? They need to be responsible

[Dogen]

What is your career goal that more bedside experience would be an impediment versus a benefit? Could you get a job at a facility that pays better in order to be bringing in more income while you decide what to do about your CNS (if they deny you again)?

Purely on the issue of your current employer: I applaud your loyalty to your boss, but if they're not paying you what you're worth then you deserve a better job. You're not doing anyone any favors by working for too little money. Do what's best for you and let the hospital know that they're losing your wealth of experience because it's worth something and you value it more than they seem to.

[imenid37]

error see below

[imenid37]

Why are your kids not paying their own loans off? They need to be responsible

My husband is "helping" them by paying extra on the loans. They have big loans and I am ok to help, but not necessarily to the extent that he does. They are paying their own minimum monthly loan payments. I had no loan payments, but had other expenses and worked three jobs at a number of points in my life. I always liked what I was doing, so I was usually ok with it. I have encouraged my daughter who has a very large loan to get a second job. It is hard, I like my boss, as I said, but there is a lot of "unprofessional" behaviour among the frontline staff. This is a real downer for me. In the past, I loved the nurses I worked with. It seems to be the hospital's culture. We joined a larger organization, so I am somewhat hopeful for change. I only have 15 or 20 years left to work. I do not want to job hop, but I do not want to be in the poorhouse either.

[meanmaryjean, DNP, RN]

I was a bedside nurse with an MSN for a number of years while I worked on my DNP. In fact, our unit had 4 MSNs working at the bedside, and our resources team had many more.