Working in a doctor's office?

ivsandy · Jun 30, 2004

it is deffinitely a plus to not work overtime and weekends in most docs offices. you usually work days and mostly get out on time. there are so many salaries and each specialty has it's own duties for nurses. i personally work 3 days a week(part time),am paid by the shift, and perform the duties of : setting up and filling rooms ,bp's,fetal heart monitoring ,assisting on monor surgeries ,and prepping charts for coming days.i also chart,file,give injections,counsel and do anything else needed ie. answer the phone,pull charts or whatever needed. most all offices require computer skills and some offices require things such as blood draws,ekg's,or lab testing. so as you can see there is a wide range of things to do as an office nurse. i have been in an obgyn office for 39 years but i love it. good luck in your future decision.

angel337, MSN, RN · Jun 30, 2004

i worked in several clinics/offices before i became a nurse. i was a medical assistant and did a variety of peds, family practice, internal medicine, ob and oncology. the ob and oncology offices were the only oness that had RN's. the family practice and internal medicine had all medical assistants and one LPN. i think its ok for those that prefer 9-5 jobs but i like my 3 12's a week alot better. the nurses in the clinics say that they are paid about $6/hr less than the hospital, but if you can afford it and you don't want the fast pace of the hospital environment, its the perfect job.

IamRN · Jun 30, 2004

My only concern would be the loss of bedside nursing skills. Otherwise, this sounds like a very good opportunity.

mushberry · Jul 1, 2004

What is the turnover rate like in clinics? I would have thought actually that a clinic nurse would get paid more than a hospital nurse, but I'm only just learning about it. :) 3 12 hour shifts does sound nice...I'm not used to that...where I did all my rotations in nursing school, the schedule was 2 on, 2 off, 3 on, 2 off, 2 on, 3 off. You worked every second weekend, all the time. It actually kind of sucked, especially if you worked Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights, and then had to start Wednesday morning on days. You don't really get to recover. So 9-5 does sound appealing to me, but maybe that will change once I am in the hospital, but not only that, I like the idea of working in a clinic, especially if it's like what ivsandy described. It sounds pretty varied. :)

mushberry · Jul 1, 2004

What is the turnover rate like in clinics? I would have thought actually that a clinic nurse would get paid more than a hospital nurse, but I'm only just learning about it. :) 3 12 hour shifts does sound nice...I'm not used to that...where I did all my rotations in nursing school, the schedule was 2 on, 2 off, 3 on, 2 off, 2 on, 3 off. You worked every second weekend, all the time. It actually kind of sucked, especially if you worked Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights, and then had to start Wednesday morning on days. You don't really get to recover. So 9-5 does sound appealing to me, but maybe that will change once I am in the hospital, but not only that, I like the idea of working in a clinic, especially if it's like what ivsandy described. It sounds pretty varied. :)

Nurse Ratched, RN · Jul 1, 2004

I work in a fairly large clinic. Two doctors and 5 nurse practitioners are on my team. I handle their incoming and followup phone calls, make referrals, give lab results, do pt education, perform EKG's, give shots, and probably a bunch of other stuff that isn't coming to mind. My pay is comparable to the local hospital, without the off shifts or holidays. I took this job three years out of nursing school.

I remain part time/prn at the hospital just to keep up to date on more acute stuff.

Nurse Ratched, RN · Jul 1, 2004

I work in a fairly large clinic. Two doctors and 5 nurse practitioners are on my team. I handle their incoming and followup phone calls, make referrals, give lab results, do pt education, perform EKG's, give shots, and probably a bunch of other stuff that isn't coming to mind. My pay is comparable to the local hospital, without the off shifts or holidays. I took this job three years out of nursing school.

I remain part time/prn at the hospital just to keep up to date on more acute stuff.

julieK · Jul 2, 2004

But doesn't it bother you as professionals to be involved in clerical duties? I went into nursing because I didn't want to sit in an office from 9-5 for the rest of my life.

-Julie

julieK · Jul 2, 2004

But doesn't it bother you as professionals to be involved in clerical duties? I went into nursing because I didn't want to sit in an office from 9-5 for the rest of my life.

-Julie

cookingnurse · Jul 2, 2004

I worked in a hospital for 2 years, changed to home care for 10 1/2 years now do Oncology in an office. Home care requires many things of a nurse. Yes clerical because you are the one responsible for all the orders, recertifications, scheduling, etc. In the oncology office it is also clerical as you are on the phone with someone & have to pull the chart to see what has been going on with them and chart your conversation as well as the MD's response to the questions.

I lost money when I went to home care but was able to earn it back plus more. I lost money again when I went to oncology but only $.50 an hour. I make as much as the hospital nurses. Work only M-Th 8-4:30, F 8-12. No weekends, All holidays paid. Some of the nurses take the pager for call & get paid $100 per night & $400 per weekend & holiday. I think that sounds pretty good.

In the office I give chemo, IV iron, immunoglobulins, antibodics. Teach, teach, teach. assist with bone marrow biopsies, draw blood, give injections & telephone triage. I also have time to get to know the clients on a personal basis. That ultimately helps with their healing & trust in the MD & staff. I love it. :)

cookingnurse · Jul 2, 2004

I worked in a hospital for 2 years, changed to home care for 10 1/2 years now do Oncology in an office. Home care requires many things of a nurse. Yes clerical because you are the one responsible for all the orders, recertifications, scheduling, etc. In the oncology office it is also clerical as you are on the phone with someone & have to pull the chart to see what has been going on with them and chart your conversation as well as the MD's response to the questions.

I lost money when I went to home care but was able to earn it back plus more. I lost money again when I went to oncology but only $.50 an hour. I make as much as the hospital nurses. Work only M-Th 8-4:30, F 8-12. No weekends, All holidays paid. Some of the nurses take the pager for call & get paid $100 per night & $400 per weekend & holiday. I think that sounds pretty good.

In the office I give chemo, IV iron, immunoglobulins, antibodics. Teach, teach, teach. assist with bone marrow biopsies, draw blood, give injections & telephone triage. I also have time to get to know the clients on a personal basis. That ultimately helps with their healing & trust in the MD & staff. I love it. :)