It seems when new grads are lamenting the difficulties of finding acute care (hospital) nursing jobs, the suggestion is to try SNFs or home health, that they might be more willing to hire a new grad.
To me, home health seems like a more difficult area of nursing, requiring more experience and strong assessment skills. Thus, wholly inappropriate for a new grad nurse. Am I wrong?
My husband is a manager for a home health hospice company, and he says they would never consider hiring a new grad. Likewise, I've been looking around for jobs outside of the hospital that offer more sane hours, and every home health agency I've applied to has not been interested in me, due to not having home health experience. Yet, they're a viable option for a new grad? Doesn't seem to make sense.
No, I really think you hit the nail on the head. Hospital nurses look down on home health nurses like it's not "real nursing." Well, I'm here to tell you that it is more real that anyone can imagine. The ivory tower of hospital nursing goes to hell in a handbasket real quick in the home. You don't know from assessment skills and problem solving 'til you've done home health. But, like everything else, you live and learn.
And BTW--I don't know of a dialysis unit anywhere that would hire a new grad. Absolutely terriblly, horribly uneffing safe for a new grad in any capacity. (Been there, done that, too.)
Title changed from, "Why is home health considered a "lesser" area of nursing," to "Why is home health considered and easier area of nursing, suitable for beginners?"
This is what the OP meant. She did not mean that home health nurses are "lesser" than other nurses. She meant that home health is not necessarily user-friendly to new grads with budding assessment skills.
Many nurses fail to realize that in the coming years as the population continues to age, traditional hospital nursing roles will diminish due to cutbacks. Home health, community health, hospice, LTC....that's where the bulk of the jobs are going to be.
I work in LTC, and let me tell you...one nurse for 30 people is no picnic. They are all high acuity...iVs, wound care, multiple meds...you name it. We have had nurses work PRN from acute care, and some of them can't handle it. Whatever your role is, it's all "real" nursing. But home health and LTC, when you have only yourself to rely on, I don't see how anyone could even think it's less than.
The OP was NOT calling home health a lesser specialty. She misnamed the thread and said this in her first post. The thread has now been renamed.
The OP agrees that home health is a highly challenging area and just wonders why people are so quick to refer new grads to a specialty that is so demanding.
Yes, there are openings in home health, but that's because it's a tough job and many nurses either burn out or get fed up with all of the paperwork and the other problems. The fact that there are holes in the staff does not mean home health is a good fit for most new grads.
I wasn't referring to the OP or anyone in particular, for that matter in my previous post. The perception definitely exists that non-hospital jobs are not "real nursing". I base this on conversations I have had with various people, in addition to many posts on this site.
I wasn't referring to the OP or anyone in particular, for that matter in my previous post. The perception definitely exists that non-hospital jobs are not "real nursing". I base this on conversations I have had with various people, in addition to many posts on this site.
I whole heartedly agree and wish that this thread had been left in the general forum for just that reason. Pretty much only home health nurses visit this forum (or those who are interviewing or interested), so the odds that hospital nurses would see this thread are now greatly diminished. Please consider replacing it into the general category.
Can we hear from some hospital nurses? I'd love to know what the common perception is. I remember a few years ago when my MIL landed in the ER. When the ER nurses found out that I'm also a nurse (thanks to DH), we got to talking about home health as a specialty. I was surprised at some of their questions. They had no idea that we draw blood, get urine specimens, do point-of-care testing, assessments, teaching, even call docs for orders. As far as they knew, I had a specific set of orders, much like a hospital nurse would, and gave meds, changed beds, etc. Boy were they surprised to hear about a typical day for me. I spoke to a fairly new grad recently who was under the impression that we provide 24-hour CNA-type care in the home. I was encouraging her to consider other fields and she said she couldn't do home health because she couldn't lift large, elderly people. I think anything outside of general hospital nursing is vastly misunderstood.
Back to the original question...I can not see how a new graduate could possiblely function safely in Home Health. I did a 6 month gig of HH after having been in ICU and PICU for 10 years, It wasn't an "easy" job by any means...I can't imagine a new grad having the assessment skills or the global thinking necessary to really function. I found it wasn't really for me and I went to inpatient Hospice which I LOVED, but HH for new grads, I don't think so.
klone, MSN, RN
14,857 Posts
I apologize for using "lesser" - as I edited in the first sentence, that is not what I was trying to convey, and wish I could have changed it.