Which specialty - help

[jj16, BSN]

I started my career in 2020 as a second degree nurse. It was a bumpy start to say the least. I was on an IMCU/Stepdown in a level one trauma center. We lost 22 nurses in the 15 months that I worked there. I loved the critical thinking, the autonomy, the care, but the environment was unsustainable for me so I took a step away because I was afraid that I’d leave the profession altogether if I didn’t. I’ve now been at an outpatient ophthalmic surgery center for almost a year and while I love my boss, the hours, the team environment and my coworkers, I desperately miss the autonomy, and the critical thinking. I feel like I’m basically a CNA, which is fine if that’s what I wanted to do, but I’m not even close to working to the scope of my license and it bothers me. I know that I like educating my patients, I like a team environment, I like using my skills and I like having a somewhat stable schedule that works for my family (I have four kids). I have been looking into outpatient oncology, home care, IR and Cath lab (although I don’t think I have enough experience for the last two). Any other jobs that will allow me to critically think - have some autonomy and still offer good home/work balance in terms of hours?  I would love any advice!  

[MarkMyWords]

Have you thought of ER in a busy department?  Seems to me you would need quick decisions, critical thinking there. Or else a department that has patients with unusual diseases?  My 2 cents worth.