What's it like being an Immunization Public Health Nurse?

SiwanRN · Dec 15, 2017

I think I can say with confidence a public health nurse working in an immunizations clinic will likely never work nights outside of a public health emergency in which you are a responder. Like any clinic nursing position, much of what makes the job enjoyable will vary depending on your work environment; if your nursing team works well together or if there is some level of dysfunction to things, if the clinic overbooks or underbooks appointments, etc.

I don't work in immunizations full time, but when I do, I find it rewarding to help prevent vaccine-preventable diseases. There's also a lot of room for patient and parent education, and refining your counseling techniques to help a parent move from vaccine-resistant to vaccine-hesitant to pro-vaccine can be really enjoyable (if frustrating sometimes if they refuse to budge from vaccine-resistant). It is interesting because the immunization schedules are really very nuanced and if you have someone come in with wonky records, sorting out what they actually need to get (or what they can get, if they are medically-complex) can be a good challenge for you brain. You also have to stay on top of the most up to date recommendations from CDC and ACIP, especially if you are in a public health department that local doctors' offices may call with questions about vaccines. But it can also get boring doing the same thing day in and day out in a very specialized area of medicine, as generally there isn't a lot of variety unless your health department does off-site vaccine clinics at schools or community agencies and such.

As to whether there is room for career growth, that really does depend on where you work and if the agency is very flat (lots of entry level positions, few managers) vs tall (career ladder to move up, as is common in hospitals). But, immunizations are a core public health nursing skill, and will be avaluable asset to you wherever else you may take your public health career after.

Good luck, let us know if you apply!

Everline · Dec 16, 2017

Siwan said it well. I just want to make one comment. Please be aware that you will have to deal with children who, to put it lightly, don't want anything to do with getting an injection. I don't do immunizations but they are a part of the clinic where I work. On a near daily basis I hear children screaming as if for their lives. I think the immunization nurses get used to it after a while and learn how to work with a child who reacts this way so that they can give a safe injection. Just be prepared to have to deal with this at least sometimes.

SiwanRN · Dec 18, 2017

Yeah, at this point it doesn't bother me anymore. A kid can scream bloody murder in my face while I'm giving shots and it doesn't phase me. But on days when I have BSN students shadowing me or am training new public health nurses, it can definitely fluster them. I imagine it would be similar if you worked in the pediatrics floor of an inpatient unit and had to do something else similarly invasive - IVs or catheter placement or heel sticks or what have you. It's not fun to be screamed at or to know you are causing a child pain and fear, but you do what you can to minimize it as much as possible and remember that if you don't do the thing that is making them scream, they'll probably be worse off for it. I saw a case of HIB in an infant when I was in nursing school - I'd sure rather have a kid scream at me for a minute than make their family go through what the family of that patient did.

BScN · Feb 1, 2018

According to some PHNs I have talked to, all of the immunization nurses' in my public health unit's work day includes clinic and office work. The office work includes policy development, immunization promotion etc.