This question is mainly directed to nurses my age - 50's and up, but I would enjoy hearing from all ages. My reason for asking is because I am just starting my nursing career and I'm trying to realistically gauge how long my career will be. I have personally heard of a nurse 75 years old who still works in LTC full-time, and a 70 year-old who work per diem rather often. Also, I've met a 76 year-old nurse who retired from clinical teaching approximately two years ago.
Aside from health issues, what is reasonable to expect? Thanks in advance
This probably doesnt count as I am not yet a nurse (7.5 months left) but I am retiring from the Coast Guard in October 07 after 25 years (will be 42). Then I will start my nursing career. Hope to work nursing another 25 years or so and the I will eligible for social security if its still around!
Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.
i'm 50 now. in eight years or so, the child will be through with college and out on her own, so dh and i will sell the house, move aboard the boat and "semi-retire." we're both rns, and we plan to travel. we'll sail up to maine and take a travel assignment, and save half of what we make, then sail south until either we run out of money or we find someplace else we'd like to stay for awhile and take another travel assignment. hopefully, we'll be able to save enough to take 6 months off at a time and transit the panama canal, then sail/work up the west coast to alaska. by the time we've spent a year in alaska, we ought to be old enough to start collecting social security and can then consider circumnavigating the globe. we've been asked to teach nursing in kenya for a semester after the child is on her own, and at some point, we'll do that. maybe we'll like kenya so much we'll fly home for the boat and sail there and stay for awhile. maybe not. at any rate, we plan to cast off for good in eight years, although retirement will still be a ways away!
i'm 50 now. in eight years or so, the child will be through with college and out on her own, so dh and i will sell the house, move aboard the boat and "semi-retire." we're both rns, and we plan to travel. we'll sail up to maine and take a travel assignment, and save half of what we make, then sail south until either we run out of money or we find someplace else we'd like to stay for awhile and take another travel assignment. hopefully, we'll be able to save enough to take 6 months off at a time and transit the panama canal, then sail/work up the west coast to alaska. by the time we've spent a year in alaska, we ought to be old enough to start collecting social security and can then consider circumnavigating the globe. we've been asked to teach nursing in kenya for a semester after the child is on her own, and at some point, we'll do that. maybe we'll like kenya so much we'll fly home for the boat and sail there and stay for awhile. maybe not. at any rate, we plan to cast off for good in eight years, although retirement will still be a ways away!
Specializes in Gerontological, cardiac, med-surg, peds.
None of us knows what the future may hold, but I'm like Marla; don't think I'll ever retire. My job scenery may change, but I see myself working (hopefully something nursing-related) into my 80's. My mother was the same way - she was a special education teacher with the Cincinnati public schools. This system had mandatory retirement at age 70, so my mother had to stop teaching at this age. I remember her being very sad at being required to stop doing something she loved, while she was still very sharp mentally and healthy enough to continue.
I'm 26 and have been thinking a lot about planning for my financial future. A really good resource I've found is MSN money, which gives you helpful tips on how to invest. The best suggestion so far is to invest about $30/month into a Roth IRA account (which you can pull out tax free when you're ready to retire since the $$ you put in is after taxes). In 30 years, that money will grow to about $68,000 (certainly not enough to survive on in retirement, but a good starting point nonetheless).
And other people have mentioned 403b and 401k plans through the workplace - just make sure your employer does matching contributions. It's like free money! I've been throwing in about 3% of my (very small non-profit sized) paycheck for the past two years and I've turned about $1300 of my own money into over $3000. I will be fully vested after 5 years and all that money is mine to roll over to my next job (which will probably be my first nursing job).
My husband is very wary of us "giving our money to strangers" to invest - he keeps bringing up enron and how we'll be effed if some finance company decides to run off with our bucks. But I keep telling him that you're not going to get any sort of rate of return with a savings account and this is something we *have* to do if we want to retire at a reasonable age. We'll see who wins this war...
Lauren
Hi! I have been reading that all of you are planning on retiring when you are at least 55 years old. What kind of retirement benefits do hospitals give you? If you work their for so long do they give you anything for it? I am trying to plan for my future now!!:wink2: Thanks!! Kelly
I'm 26 and have been thinking a lot about planning for my financial future. ..........
Lauren
It sounds like you are on the right track, Lauren. I started saving for my retirement while still in my 20's and have grown a nice little nest egg that should give me a very comfortable retirement when the time comes. Keep up the good work! You won't regret it.
One suggestion I have for you and your husband is to increase your retirement contributions every time you get a raise. Devote at least a portion of that raise to your retirement savings so that you contribute a little more each year. For example .... If you are able to live on your current income, then you should be able to live on your current income plus 75% of your raise. Put the other 25% of your raise into your retirement accounts.
Don't just keep "upping your lifestyle" with each raise.
For most people, "the more they make, the more they spend." Dedicating a portion of each raise to your retirment funds helps prevent that from happening.
I have done that all my life and have "maxed out" the amount I contribute to my retirment plans -- both my 403B plan at work and my Roth IRA. For the past few years, I have put in the maximum that the government allows. It takes a huge bite out of my paycheck, but I don't really miss it because I never really had it. I simply upped my contribution a little with each raise -- seeing a little less of the raises in my take-home pay, but still seeing a bit of those raises in my take-home pay.
I'm 60 and going back to traveling. Not so much the money but more to get away from where I've been the last 10 years or so. Retire? Just when I can't do it anymore. I see me doddering down the halls using the medcart as a walker and turning up my hearing aide for breath sounds...grin.
If I can manage to keep my full-time job for the next 13 years I will retire at 55 and then volunteer some place. I live in Canada so I don't have to worry about paying for health insurance and my husband will keep his drug plan when he retires.
maybe we'll like kenya so much we'll fly home for the boat and sail there and stay for awhile. maybe not. at any rate, we plan to cast off for good in eight years, although retirement will still be a ways away!
ruby
my wife and i hope to be in africa, possibly zambia, in 2007. maybe we can meet up. how are you getting a nursing job there?
I am a 65 year old RN ,have been for 44 years. I retired Nov 2005 and went back to work the next day prn. Same hospital and unit I've worked on for past 20 years. I got the plauqe and a cake,no lunch! But do receive a retirement plus my full social securty. Our hospital has a 403b plan. I did not start saving with it until 1991 but it has added up to a good nest egg that I don't plan to start useing just yet. I am trying to keep my prn hours to 2 12 hr shifts a week, down from 3 or 4. Even tho I have aches and pains I don't have any physical problems working on the medical floor for a 12 shift. I want to keep up the prn as long as I can unltil the travel bug hits or something more fun turns up to do.
i retired from my first nursing job at age 52 years old. i worked for a hospital that provided tuition reimbursement (got my master's degree in nursing), matching funds in retirement fund, and full medical coverage for dh and myself for life. i have learned that they have changed the medical coverage benefit. i retired at a good time.
i was in staff development working full time. by end of the 5th day, i was exhausted and needed the two days off to recup and start all over again.
thank goodness for my msn. i was only retired for one month when i was called by the local community college to work as per diem instructor, which turned into full time sub and finally tenured faculty. i am 58 yrs old and i am now working on second retirement! i love teaching and am thankful that i can still contribute for the good of society -- helping students become rns.
not sure when i will retire from teaching. i'm enjoying this phase in my life very much. on one television program about "baby boomers" & retirement, many were still working well into their 70s. what i liked best about the program, keeping our minds mentally active keeps the dendrites growing! if that is the case, i may work ad infinitum!
llg, PhD, RN
13,469 Posts
Welcome aboard!
llg