Brad Said:

What are the reasons for choosing Nursing as a career?

We Answered:

nurisng is a field that you can grow outward from, cause the hospitals are getting bigger and more technology, and nursing is a field you will never get laid off from. my mom works for the state now, she started as a nurse aide back in the 70's, she makes really good money. its a field that will always be there.
unlike the fields today that are hard to come by or dont even exist anymore.

Marc Said:

I want to take nursing as second career?

We Answered:

You will need to do some research as to what is available in your area; but there are two general routes: one is to just go to the community college and get the associates RN; the second (if available to you) is to do the special bachelors nursing program for some one who already has a bachelors degree--this basically gets you into a core program. However, you more than likely will need to do some sort of science pre-reqs. Start by contacting a nursing program in your area.

Constance Said:

I am interested into going into nursing as a career.What way would i go about it?

We Answered:

I wouldn't waste time going for LPN. If you want to be a nurse, go the whole way and become an RN - we need you! You can be an RN with as little as an Associates Degree in Nursing from a community college. It's a two year program, but there are pre-requisite courses you'll need to complete ahead of time, which may take an additional year or so. All schools have different admissions requirements, but most will want college freshman level biology, chemistry, and anatomy & physiology at a minimum. Beware that admissions are competative at all schools across the country right now, and some people have to apply several times or be wait listed for a year or two before getting admitted. During this lag time you could complete additional general ed. (non nursing) courses which are required for your degree. In fact, you'd be better off getting as many of these courses out of the way ahead of time, so once you start the nursing core that's all you have to focus on.

You could also go straight for a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN), which is a regular 4 year degree (if full time). You take those pre-reqs and many gen. eds during the first two years, apply to the nursing program and declare your major during the second year, and start the nursing courses during the Junior year. This degree teaches all the fundementals of nursing that are covered in the ADN programs, but gives you additional professional knowledge in nursing research, public health, leadership / management, models of care and additional nursing theory. With this higher degree you are better able to advance into management / administrative positions in nursing, and you do need a bachelor's degree if you choose to go on to graduate school to earn a master's degree or higher.

You can always do the ADN first and complete the BSN later on, most employers these days will offer some amount of tuition reimbursement for you to do so.

You could become an LPN first, which is a year long program, then take a LPN to RN (ADN) bridge program which would be an additional year.

And to the person that said LPNs and RNs are essentially the same thing but RNs make more money - totally not true. If LPNs and RNs were the same thing there would be no need for the separate licenses. LPNs can do basic patient cares, take vital signs, do some skilled cares, pass medications. RNs are more heavily involved in care planning, education of the client, coordinating care through many agencies / professions / departments. RNs are more educated in physiology, disease pathology, interpreting labs and other diagnostics, etc. RNs are not "better" than LPNs. LPNs perform a great service. But RNs scope of practice is much more broad and theoretical compared to the task-oriented nature of LPN nursing.

Walter Said:

I'm looking into nursing as a career but I'm confused about the various programs. Can you help?

We Answered:

It was about a 6 week course for me (in Georgia) to get my CNA. Then your options are:

-LPN program (about 1 year)
-RN program (range from Associate Degree [2 years] to Bachelor Degree [4 years] to Master's Degree [6 years]

Starting off with the CNA is a good way to decide if Nursing is for you without investing a lot of time. Then if you enjoy it, you can apply to a nursing program. An associate degree nursing is a great way to begin working quickly. Then you can work as an RN while continuing your education to get your BSN and MSN.

Lester Said:

would you recommend Nursing as a career?

We Answered:

It will be worth in the end. It may be financially difficult for you now, but remember that when you finish the course you will easily find work as there is a shortage of nurses - not like many students who graduate with pointless degrees and then can't find a job!

Nursing can be a great career as it's rewarding, there's always work and you can easily find a job in a foreign country, if you're interested in travelling. Some types of nursing can be better than others - for example working in A&E might be exciting, but the downside is that you're open to abuse from drunks and you'll see some nasty injuries! Many people say that pediatric nursing is difficult because they don't like seeing children suffer.

One area that you might like to explore is palliative care (working with those who are terminally ill, i.e. in a hospice or something). Whilst it can be very tough mentally to deal with those who are terminally ill, you may find better working conditions - you'd probably only look after two patients per shift - and there is a shortage of nurses with palliative care training and experience. Plus you may work with patients over a long period of time and therefore have the opportunity to get to know them and their families better.

Catherine Said:

Non-hospital nursing as career?

We Answered:

It's almost always LVNs or LPNs that work in doctor's offices (not always but usually always). My thoughts are that they do this b/c of the scheduling. Here's the skinny: if you work in a hospital, you'll often work 12 hour shifts... and, depending on the area(s) in which you're employed (ie medical/surgical units, ICU, ED, rehab), you will spend the majority of time on your feet... pushing medications... hanging IV bags... monitoring intake/output... cleaning patients (yes, this you will do)... transcribing doctor's orders... and the list goes on.

In offices you'll have holidays and weekends off and you'll typically work 8-5. In a hospital setting, you'll likely work every other major holiday (unless you can change shifts with another person... but everyone wants to be home for the holidays.... so someone has to work!). Often you will not have good insurance.

In offices, you'll make a little more than minimum wage; I'm suspecting $15-16/hour if that's the going rate (more or less in different geographic areas). In a hospital setting, you could make up to $40/hour (again, geography matters); sometimes more if you work what's termed PRN, or "as needed." If you work PRN, you likely won't be offered insurance, which means you'll have to purchase it yourself (out of that $40/hour you get). If you're young and have no family obligations, I'd suggest the PRN role. But the hours can be limited in this capacity (b/c hospitals are loathe to pay $40/hour when they can pay another nurse $20/hour + benefits... they come out ahead).

I had a great experience as a nurse but I'd agree with what you've heard: that nurses are underpaid, overworked, etc. And this is real-world. Visit a hospital unit when you have the time... ask the nurses the pros/cons of their jobs.

I'm in medical sales now and I absolutely love it. However, if I could do it over again, I'd be a Nurse Practitioner or Nurse Anesthetist in a heartbeat. You'll attend school a little longer but the financial and professional rewards are more than enough.

Sorry for the lengthy reply!! Good luck!

Kathryn Said:

What is your opinion on nursing as a career option?

We Answered:

I have been a qualified RN for two years and initially I loved the job. I built up great rapport with my patients, enjoyed caring for their needs, liked the challenge of developing new skills and gaining knowledge and felt that I was making a worthwhile contribution to healthcare. I found the course stimulating and learnt so much, and it was good to put my knowlege into practice. There was nothing more satisfying than seeing someone come into hospital really sick, helping them through surgery and recovery, rehabilitating them and seeing them go home in one piece. It is a true priviledge to be able to help someone on that journey and assist them physically, mentally, spiritually and socially. However, as I spent more time in the job I realised that there was a lot of politics going on behind the scenes and that nursing simply isnt caring for patients. There is a lot of red tape and bureacracy, internal conflicts and tension. You may consider that this occurs in every job, however when you have peoples lives in your hands you need to be able to concentrate on them, not on the things going on behind the scenes. Hospitals are suffering from underfunding, corners are having to be cut, supplies can get short, equipment can be hard to come by, and if you can get machinery it usually doesnt work properly. Staffing can be dire and wards are running at dangerous levels, meaning you often have to do the work of two people. The drive to shorten hospital waiting lists creates more stress and work for the nursing staff and the push is on to discharge people, even if you dont consider them ready to go. The 'no blame' culture in nursing doesnt exist, you cannot make mistakes and there is no room for error. All documentation has to be exact and comprehensive and you have to watch your back constantly and cover yourself from a legal point. Hours are long and breaks are short and you spend a long time on your feet and you feel physically and emotionally exhausted at the end of the day. You have to deal with abuse from patients, family and co-workers. You have to deal with grief, tragedy and death and move on quickly with little in the way of support from the organisation. And you have to develop a spare pair of hands or else you will not be able to cope.

If I was to start again I would choose mental health nursing, more one to one nursing and less clinical care, more emotional and psychiatric. More of dealing with the inner soul than the outer body.

I apologise if I sound so negative but I feel very disappointed that I have spent 4 years of my life loving my student years, only to come to the realisation after 2 years of the real thing that it was not what I thought it was going to be. I suppose as a student you tend to look at nursing through rose tinted spectacles and you think you can change the world! Unfortunately, this is not the case and you should only enter nursing if you have broad shoulders, can take pressure every day without let up and are willing to walk around exhausted and with bags under your eyes! Good luck with your decision.