Which nursing field gets the best job satisfaction?

suzanne4, RN · Apr 10, 2005

Satisfaction doesn't come from the unit, but which the nurse prefers. Everyone is different, so as nurses we are different. It also comes down to the actual facility...............Some are fabulous in one area and lousy in another.

That is what makes nursing so nice, there are many different areas to work. You probably will try several before you really find your niche, and there is nothing wrong with that.

studyingjenna · Apr 10, 2005

ooh i wanna see people's posts on this one! there must be an area where lots of nurses find satisfaction in..or there must be an area that you hear about the most from nurses or the nurse's friends, etc..i wanna know too!

Dixielee, BSN, RN · Apr 10, 2005

There is not going to be one answer for everyone. I have worked in a variety of nursing positions and they all had their pros and cons. I am working as a traveler in ER now, and that is suiting my needs just fine at this point in my life. When I had young children, I worked ICU in a nearby hospital that had a great Baylor plan. I worked 7p-7a either fri, sat or sunday. I had to choose 2 of the 3 and never had to work during the week. That worked great, then the kids got older. I worked PACU and home health so I could be home for them on week ends for ball games, etc,. and be home in the evening.

I worked with a nurse once who decided she really hated patient care, so she went to work for an insurance company dealing with computers all day, and loved it. It would make me crazy, but worked for her.

Nurses come in all sizes, shapes, colors and genders. There is enough variey to suit each of us. What works great now, may change with circumstances, so just find something you think you would enjoy and jump in. You will learn something everyday, no matter where you work.

studyingjenna · Apr 10, 2005

There is not going to be one answer for everyone. I have worked in a variety of nursing positions and they all had their pros and cons. I am working as a traveler in ER now, and that is suiting my needs just fine at this point in my life. When I had young children, I worked ICU in a nearby hospital that had a great Baylor plan. I worked 7p-7a either fri, sat or sunday. I had to choose 2 of the 3 and never had to work during the week. That worked great, then the kids got older. I worked PACU and home health so I could be home for them on week ends for ball games, etc,. and be home in the evening.
I worked with a nurse once who decided she really hated patient care, so she went to work for an insurance company dealing with computers all day, and loved it. It would make me crazy, but worked for her.
Nurses come in all sizes, shapes, colors and genders. There is enough variey to suit each of us. What works great now, may change with circumstances, so just find something you think you would enjoy and jump in. You will learn something everyday, no matter where you work.

she sent to work for an insurance company as in she quit nursing all together? what a waste of an educatioin :uhoh21:

TiffyRN, BSN, PhD · Apr 10, 2005

I worked in several med/surg and cardiac telemetry floors over the course of 10 years. One thing I observed. . . the flow of nurses getting into new specialties. It was not unusual for the floors I worked to get nurses coming from a variety of other semi-related specialties like oncolocy, LTC, surgery (floor nursing, not OR), neurology, orthopedics and so on. And plenty of our nurses would transfer out to try new fields, sometimes they would come back. One area they NEVER returned from was anything in the mother/baby area, be it L&D, postpartum, nursery or NICU. And we never had nurses from that area transfer to our area. I think that's significant.

I think there are a variety of reasons why this is true but they might be controversial so I'll just stick to the objective facts as I know them. Nurses who are exposed to regular adult med/surg type fields don't come back when they "cross the line" to mom/baby. Mom/baby nurses don't transfer (and stay) to regular adult med/surg type fields. At least not from my experience of 10 years and 6 hospitals.

Having said all that I agree that it's very individual and the job that one person would love would "kill" another nurse. I know nurses who are in love with L&D and I think I would rather clean elephant cages than that!

studyingjenna · Apr 10, 2005

I worked in several med/surg and cardiac telemetry floors over the course of 10 years. One thing I observed. . . the flow of nurses getting into new specialties. It was not unusual for the floors I worked to get nurses coming from a variety of other semi-related specialties like oncolocy, LTC, surgery (floor nursing, not OR), neurology, orthopedics and so on. And plenty of our nurses would transfer out to try new fields, sometimes they would come back. One area they NEVER returned from was anything in the mother/baby area, be it L&D, postpartum, nursery or NICU. And we never had nurses from that area transfer to our area. I think that's significant.
I think there are a variety of reasons why this is true but they might be controversial so I'll just stick to the objective facts as I know them. Nurses who are exposed to regular adult med/surg type fields don't come back when they "cross the line" to mom/baby. Mom/baby nurses don't transfer (and stay) to regular adult med/surg type fields. At least not from my experience of 10 years and 6 hospitals.
Having said all that I agree that it's very individual and the job that one person would love would "kill" another nurse. I know nurses who are in love with L&D and I think I would rather clean elephant cages than that!

really? what dont you like about L&D and WHAT IS L&D? :uhoh21:

PJMommy · Apr 10, 2005

I know nurses who are in love with L&D and I think I would rather clean elephant cages than that!

:rotfl: I hear ya'!

I agree with all the previous posts but would add one thing.... I once heard that hospice nurses experience the most job satisfaction. It stuck in my head because it would seem this field of nurses would be the most burnt-out group there is and I doubt I could be happy doing hospice. I don't know the source for that tidbit...so take it as you will.

ERNurse752, RN · Apr 10, 2005

she sent to work for an insurance company as in she quit nursing all together? what a waste of an educatioin :uhoh21:

I wouldn't necessarily call it that. Plenty of nurses work for insurance companies, and you need nursing knowledge for the job. As long as they're happy...better than doing a floor job job or something else you hate. :)

Tweety, BSN, RN · Apr 10, 2005

I recently read a study that the nurses that report the highest job satisfaction are in L&D and related areas. Least satisfied was med-surg.

Good luck in whatever you do.

Tweety, BSN, RN · Apr 10, 2005

I wouldn't necessarily call it that. Plenty of nurses work for insurance companies, and you need nursing knowledge for the job. As long as they're happy...better than doing a floor job job or something else you hate. :)

I just bumped into a nurse I worked for several years ago. She was wearing nice clothes, and was working for an insurance company. It takes a nurse to be able to read the charts, understand the diagnosis and the treatment plan, etc. She loves it. Doesn't touch a patient, but no pressure, no call bells, no diaper changes, sounds good to me. :chuckle

BETSRN · Apr 10, 2005

Hi Everyone!
I'm a nursing student in my very last semester. I am currently precepting in the DOU (step-down ICU). I get to see all of the critical patients. It is full-care where each RN is assigned three patients (there are only RNs on this unit). So, although they are all heavy patients, it is manageable with just three. Just a tidbit on me.....
Anyways, as an upcoming new grad RN, I would like to stay in nursing for a long time. I do have my preferences on departments to work in. However, I was really curious on which nursing field (med/surg, PEDS, OB, OR, ER, etc....) gets the best job satisfaction and why?
Thanks!!
joli

That question is impossible to answer because we ALL like different things! If you work in a good hospital with safe stsffing, etc., then you will be satisfied if you are in an area that you chose. Get my drift??