Transition from home care to hospital ?

[havenrn]

I went right into home care nursing right out of nursing school. I have loved it for six years, however I have NO skills. Well I have done hundreds of admission assessments and field visits but I have never started an IV, worked with a ventilator, etc. I'm embarrassed to even admit it, the opportunity never came. I have learned numerous other skills (communication, documentation, working with families etc) Although I'm happy I feel I need to get some skills! I am scared to death and wonder if anyone will hire me with no skills. Does anyone have a similar situation? Advice? What area would be a good transition? I'd rather not be thrown in the trenches just yet. Is there any area where I can gain skills and have maybe a slower paced environment to ease into and learn?

[caliotter3]

Ask your employer to switch you to extended care cases from what you are currently doing. You will receive a certain amount of experience doing basics like vent care, trach care, resp treatments, enteral feedings, med administration, basic daily care, etc. This should tide you over until you are able to secure a job in a hospital med surg unit or in a long term care facility. Or you just might find that home health extended care provides enough experience for you.

[havenrn]

Thank you! I work for two different agencies and neither offer that kind of service. It's mostly PT, wounds, DM, CHF etc. However I think I will look into other agencies that do offer that kind of care. It's a struggle because I am truly happy with my job and feel I have my "niche" but I want and NEED more skills.

[caliotter3]

Yes, you are now pigeonholed into case manager RN roles at both of these agencies. You need to move to an agency where you can do patient care in extended care cases. Lots of RNs choose to do this instead of intermittent visits, case managing, or RN supervisor positions. However, you might find that the pay is less because home health extended care is usually at the LPN level and some employers pay at that rate without regard to whether an RN or an LPN are working on the case. I would suggest doing extended care for a while before you shock yourself by jumping into an acute care job, or long term care. Kind of like putting your toes in the water first. Good luck.