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I have been a nurse for almost 3 years and have not yet found my niche. I am 44 yrs old and have been an admin assistant for most my life. I've worked in dialysis, home health (visits and shifts) and 3 different LTC's with experience working every shift. I think I am just unhappy with my career. I've dreamt of being a nurse my whole life and now that I'm here, it's not what I thought it would be. I wanted to help people but it's not easy when you're overwhelmed in an LTC. Home health gives me more time to care for someone but I find it boring and I also feel accomplished. I miss working with computers, having report deadlines, feeling like I've made a difference when I'm driving home at night, etc. I would go back to being an admin assistant but I would take a major pay cut at this time and my bills would go unpaid. I don't like nursing anymore so going back to school to be an RN is out of the question. I know it will open more doors but I simply have no desire to continue in the nursing field. Maybe I should have stuck with what I knew and what I was happy with. Has anyone switched careers later in life?

Hello,

I worked in home health. I just got hired with an Assisted Living Facility and start Monday so we'll see how that goes. Being an LPN, we are restricted to what we can do. I do not plan on becoming an RN. I am sure an LPN cannot be a flight nurse and I'm not sure how I would feel being a first responder. As an LPN, I have worked in dialysis, home health, and skilled facilities. Other than assisted living and office clinics, I am running out of trying new things out.

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How long have you been a nurse Debbie? As a seasoned nurse, I know that we are often hired for positions that may say "RN" if we apply for the job. Nurses are in high demand and if a nurse is needed, we too will be hired... Don't be so negative, there are more opportunities for us than you think.

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On 5/7/2019 at 5:54 PM, shona5514 said:

I am an LPN with my CPC. Alot of healthcare insurance companies, will take either or and you can be a clinical nurse, coder, appeals nurse, claims auditor..etc...while working from home..After I passed NCLEX I never went to the floor, I stayed behind the scenes in these roles and will continue to. Great pay and laid back.

How do you get CPC? How long does it take to get that? I've never heard of that but sounds like it brings good job opportunities and u can work from home.

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On ‎5‎/‎4‎/‎2019 at 4:20 PM, meeks said:

I just turned 40 been an Lpn almost all of my adult life. I made an error and received discipline on my license. I’m looking to switch careers I’m ruined by it and can not get a job over an accident.

I can't say I don't blame you, meeks. It's things like having your license disciplined that can be the death of a nurses career. With all the crap we have to put up with just to do our jobs you would think we can get some sort of empathy from a bon. Yes, there are some nurses who've made egregious mistakes and poor choices in behavior that they should be disciplined... even then we deserve a chance to learn from our mistakes.

Good luck with whatever you do.

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Hey Debbie. You can try working as a nurse care coordinator with your state's Medicaid waiver program. You visit patients in their home and assess them for community services such as aide services, skilled nursing, home delivered meals, etc. You can also try working 1:1 as a school nurse with a special needs student or you can be the school nurse. You can work in hospice. You can work remotely as a clinical reviewer. Look into work from home positions for LPNs. You can work as a health advisor. There are many options!

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Thanks for the options! I've worked home health for years and also got a taste of hospice. Not interested in either. I have been working in Skilled Living for the past 2 months and I think I found my fit. It's still heavy with med passes but it's not as hectic as skilled nursing. I work in memory care so the job requires lots of patience but I am happy.

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On 6/5/2019 at 8:19 AM, lpn954 said:

How do you get CPC? How long does it take to get that? I've never heard of that but sounds like it brings good job opportunities and u can work from home.

The CPC is a Certified professional coder. All you need to do is pass the exam. You can study on your own and attempt it, or take a medical coding course through a community college, or online at AAPC.com, etc. Go to AAPC.com for more information. I obtained my medical coding certificate through my local community college online in 2016. However, I have not yet sat for the CPC-A, but am planning to attempt it in the near future. Just need to study more lol... I am an LPN as well.

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Awesome info, thank you! I work 4 days a week with 12-13 hr days each and one night shift. I'm exhausted. I need to work 4 days a week to pay my bills but I can do coding at home and drop the night shift at work ?

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4 minutes ago, LPNDebbie said:

Awesome info, thank you! I work 4 days a week with 12-13 hr days each and one night shift. I'm exhausted. I need to work 4 days a week to pay my bills but I can do coding at home and drop the night shift at work ?

If you have several years of bedside care nursing and obtain your CPC-A as a nurse, you have a great chance of being hired from home as a nurse coder with insurance companies, etc. A lot of insurance companies want nurses with floor experience and their CPC-A to do their billing & coding. I really hope to obtain my CPC-A this year as well! Good luck & best wishes ?

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