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Employment Opportunities in Health Care

HungryJoeHungryJoe
edited June 2012 in Everything Else
I really believe that there was a thread along these lines at some point in the past, but I can't find it, so I'm making this one.

After some of the shock and awe of the divorce has lifted, I'm coming to realize that i have pretty much no ties to this region of the country or this career. As for this region, I'm truly beginning to despise it. As for the career, it's a profession that has seen better days. It's very stagnant and has little satisfaction or reward.

So, I'm somewhat considering returning to school to get a BSN and shortly afterwards, get an MSN. The Bureau of Labor Statistics says that nurses and nurse practitioners are going to experience huge growth as a profession. Further, it would be great to have practical health care experience and skills just in case of a zombie apocalypse.

Does anyone have any personal experience with this sort of thing? Is it true that this is a growth area? Is the pay decent? Salary.com says that the average pay for nurse practitioners in NYC is about 110K. Do you think that's true or is it more likely to be false? Can a person live on that income in NYC?

What about other areas of health care?
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Comments

  • NuriNuri
    Nurses work HARD AS BALLS. I don't know if their pay situation has improved or is different in NY than it was in NC, but in general they are underpaid.

    I don't know about NPs specifically, but they often end up acting as doctors in practices where the docs are limited and lots of people are just there for small, routine stuff.
  • TheWhaleSharkTheWhaleShark
    RN's don't make a lot either - I think mid-40's is a typical starting salary, and mid-60's is where you wind up with experience. NP's are a different thing altogether, and as Nuri points out, they wind up acting like doctors.
  • HungryJoeHungryJoe
    I don't know about NPs specifically, but they often end up acting as doctors in practices where the docs are limited and lots of people are just there for small, routine stuff.
    Yes, that is exactly what I'd like to do.

    Also, I'm certainly not an expert, but there's a sort of a vague indication out there that nurses with BSNs are somewhat better off than nurses who simply have an RN.

    Of course, If I'm going to do this, I'm going the NP route, so it doesn't really affect me that much.

    HOWEVER - here's another thing: from what I hear and read, the work situation for nurses right now is such that even an RN can be full-time and really only be active three days a week. That leaves some room to have a small legal practice on the side. Or, a person might have a legal practice and pick up a few hours work at a hospital on weekends. Reading on the internet and talking to real nurses, I've found that this actually might be workable - that is, have your own firm, and if nothing is coming in that week, go to the hospital and work as a nurse for a shift or two.

    Further, I'm kind of thinking that, if a person got an MSN, they might make some side monies by being an expert witness, especially if they have legal experience.
    NP's are a different thing altogether, and as Nuri points out, they wind up acting like doctors.
    Exactly. I wouldn't even be considering this if being an NP was not an option.

  • WindUpBirdWindUpBird
    edited June 2012
    Nurses are overworked and underpaid; RNs are always covering for others due to chronic understaffing. NPs work hard as balls, pay more for their education, but make more due to their ability to give prescriptions and stuff. It could work to your benefit though, and you're 100% correct about expert witnessing; hell, I know doctors who make almost all of their annual income by being expert witnesses.

    Joe, consider looking into becoming a Physician's Assistant; PA salaries are in general quite high, and you only need two years of training. You'll have autonomy in seeing patients, with an MD signing off on your decisions. Surgical PA work is really neat; the same rules apply, but they'll put you on "clean-up" in the OR, doing stuff like sutures, prep, electrocautery, small excisions, stuff like that.
    Post edited by WindUpBird on
  • NuriNuri
    PAs would likely have more regular schedule demands, though... if the goal is to have flexibility for a legal practice on the side, that might not be the route to go.
  • muppetmuppet
    My wife is a BSN and started in the mid 50s for salary, but we're in the Northeast.

    I want my BSN very, very badly. I've done all of the pre-reqs, have a 3.9 GPA, and I've been told that my acceptance to a two year program for RN (I can bridge later) is virtually guaranteed, but we had a baby right in the middle of things and now there's barely a prayer of me finishing, so for now I'm stuck in IT. :P
  • HungryJoeHungryJoe
    edited June 2012
    Wait, you'd choose nursing over IT?

    WTF? I thought IT was supposed to be a great job.
    PAs would likely have more regular schedule demands, though... if the goal is to have flexibility for a legal practice on the side, that might not be the route to go.
    Flexibility is a goal, as well as the ability to diagnose illness and prescribe medicine. I mean, if you can do that in your job, it seems to me that the differences between you and a real, proper doctor would be slight.
    Post edited by HungryJoe on
  • LyddiLyddi
    My mom quit teaching while I was in high school and got a nursing degree. She was an RN for about 2 years and quit. I think she made in the 40s-50s in pay (in Georgia, for reference). I know she was always stressed and worked too hard, working those 3-4 12 hour days a week. Something really horrible happened though that made her finally quit. Dad and I don't know what exactly went on there, but if we bring up the medical field at all she starts crying and freaking out. She's been taking anti-anxiety meds ever since. From what I've heard (not just from her), doctors tend to treat their nurses like shit.

    Anyway, this is all I know about nursing. My mom is probably an extreme and was just not cut out for it. I'm sure if you have balls of steel you can get through it fine, or maybe get lucky and work at a hospital/whatever where they treat you okay. Its just not a field I understand anyone going in without having a passion for it. :-/
  • HungryJoeHungryJoe
    edited June 2012
    My mom quit teaching while I was in high school and got a nursing degree. She was an RN for about 2 years and quit. I think she made in the 40s-50s in pay (in Georgia, for reference). I know she was always stressed and worked too hard, working those 3-4 12 hour days a week. Something really horrible happened though that made her finally quit. Dad and I don't know what exactly went on there, but if we bring up the medical field at all she starts crying and freaking out. She's been taking anti-anxiety meds ever since. From what I've heard (not just from her), doctors tend to treat their nurses like shit.

    Anyway, this is all I know about nursing. My mom is probably an extreme and was just not cut out for it. I'm sure if you have balls of steel you can get through it fine, or maybe get lucky and work at a hospital/whatever where they treat you okay. Its just not a field I understand anyone going in without having a passion for it. :-/
    Well, you can say that about teaching as well - don't go into it unless you have a passion for it.

    If you think about it, many, many types of employment have their difficult, nasty sides. That's why they're called "jobs" instead of "fun".

    Please Lyddi, don't think I'm not sympathetic to your mom. I am, in fact, very sympathetic towards her. Part of the reason that I take anxiety meds now is the general crappiness, long hours, uncertain working conditions, mean people, and stress of the legal field, so I have a pretty good understanding of how she feels. My only point here is that, aside from Rym and Scott doing their particular jobs, it's hard for me to imagine any sort of stress-free employment.

    Seriously though - if there was some sort of natural disaster or zombie apocalypse, how many ways could you have a better chance of contributing something important to a group of survivors than if you have significant medical training and experience?
    Post edited by HungryJoe on
  • AprecheApreche
    Maybe try volunteering at a hospital to see how you feel about it first?
  • WindUpBirdWindUpBird
    From what I've heard (not just from her), doctors tend to treat their nurses like shit.
    Please don't generalize. My dad, my grandfathers, my aunt and uncle, and my close family friends all treat their nurses like family. I'm friends to this day with the son and daughter of one of my dad's Endo nurses, and I spent huge amounts of time at their house as a kid.

    Doctors work in high stress situations, and they do get angry at nurses sometimes. But, while some of them treat nurses like shit, the good ones don't.
  • HungryJoeHungryJoe
    edited June 2012
    Maybe try volunteering at a hospital to see how you feel about it first?
    Did that. The only thing I didn't like was running around and being on my feet all the time. Oh, and burn victims - I found that I can view limbs being amputated, people reaching into body cavities that are unpleasant to reach into and blood, guts, and shit (actual shit, mind you) spilled all over the place without any real bother, but burns really freak me out.

    Post edited by HungryJoe on
  • AprecheApreche
    Maybe try volunteering at a hospital to see how you feel about it first?
    Did that. The only thing I didn't like was running around and being on my feet all the time. Oh, and burn victims - I found that I can view limbs being amputated, people reaching into body cavities that are unpleasant to reach into and blood, guts, and shit (actual shit, mind you) spilled all over the place without any real bother, but burns really freak me out.

    Any one of those would make me bargle.
  • WindUpBirdWindUpBird
    Is it weird that the idea of being elbow-deep in torso every working day of my life is really appealing?

    Also, burns are the worst. The other wounds leave you with the same approximation of a person, only missing bits. Burns melt the features that make people appear human, and that's why burn units are so awful.
  • canine224canine224
    If would say if you become a physician assistant try finding somewhere outside hospital to work if you want a more flexible schedule. I know a few that work at urgent care centers part time and usually can pick their own hours or at least get the time they need off for other jobs.
  • HungryJoeHungryJoe
    edited October 2012
    Okay, I received my acceptance into the University of Kentucky's second-degree BSN program yesterday. I kinda had to scramble because in the acceptance letter, they said that we must complete a CNA course before December 12, 2012. They didn't say anything at all like that on their website. If they had, I could have done this a long time ago. Now, I've had to add a 3 hour course that begins tomorrow and lasts until December 11, so I now have 14 credits I'm taking this semester (Statistics, Medical Terminology, Phlebotomy, and now this CNA course) in addition to working. It's tiring, but it must be done.

    Surprisingly, I received my letter of acceptance to the Northern Kentucky University BSN program today. However, I'm going to stick with U.K. because I like Lexington, KY, U.K. is a marginally better undergrad school than NKU, but mostly their grad program is actually stellar.

    My plan is to stay at U.K. and get a DNP so that I can be a Nurse Practitioner. I just have to decide whether I want to go into psychiatry or primary care. I suppose if I went into primary care I would really be helping the value of my stock in case of a zombie apocalypse, so I'm kind of leaning that way now.

    Don't think that I'm totally giving up on law. It's just that being an attorney sux right now. However, the nursing stuff opens up new vistas - I could credibly go into lobbying, represent or oppose nurse's unions, or do nursing malpractice.

    For the moment, however, I'm gonna concentrate on just the healthcare and making myself knowledgeable enough about primary care so that I can be valuable during the zombie apocalypse.
    Post edited by HungryJoe on
  • muppetmuppet
    Congrats!

    I'm jealous. I had to abandon my BSN plans when my second was born. Maybe I'll pick it up again in a few years.
  • RochelleRochelle
    Good for you, Joe. Best of luck with the classes. They should be cake. Well Medical Terminology was easy when I took it.

    I'm currently looking into other avenues other than the healthcare industry. I actually may have an opportunity with the FAA. :3 We'll see how it goes.
  • ChurbaChurba
    Okay, I received my acceptance into the University of Kentucky's second-degree BSN program yesterday.
    HELL YES! I'm so happy for you man, I knew you could do it. Congratulations!

  • WindUpBirdWindUpBird
    BOSS. Knock 'em dead, man. Or, more appropriately, knock 'em alive, I suppose. ~_^
  • HungryJoeHungryJoe
    edited October 2012
    Okay, I received my acceptance into the University of Kentucky's second-degree BSN program yesterday.
    HELL YES! I'm so happy for you man, I knew you could do it. Congratulations!

    Thank you so much. I really appreciate it.
    Well Medical Terminology was easy when I took it.
    Yeah, it's actually not that hard, but it's interesting enough to not be boring.
    BOSS. Knock 'em dead, man. Or, more appropriately, knock 'em alive, I suppose. ~_^
    Thanks.

    Now, I also have to get used to being in a profession that is still overwhelmingly dominated by women. Sigh, I suppose I will find a way to adapt somehow . . .

    Post edited by HungryJoe on
  • WindUpBirdWindUpBird
    I know you asked me some questions a while back about Nurse Anesthetists. I looked into it, but the hospital I worked at doesn't have any on staff, so I'm still on the same level as you with regard to that.
  • SquadronROESquadronROE
    Holy crap. Joe. That is incredible, I'm quite happy for you. You're taking a quite positive step, and I really do wish you the absolute best. Although based on the interactions I've had with you on here, I have no doubt that you'll ace the coursework and manage to be a boon to whatever field you end up in.

    Personally, I'd lean towards psychiatry. But that's just me, I love picking apart people's psychoses.
  • muppetmuppet
    Nurse anesthetists are all over the place around here, and if you're not afraid of a fuckton of liability and responsibility and long hours, there's a lot of money in it.
  • HungryJoeHungryJoe

    Personally, I'd lean towards psychiatry. But that's just me, I love picking apart people's psychoses.
    Some people tell me that if you go into psych, you'll lose all your other nursing expertise. I honestly don't know why you'd care if you were happy in psych.

    I've heard many people say that male nurses can write their own ticket on a hospital psych ward.

  • muppetmuppet
    edited October 2012

    Personally, I'd lean towards psychiatry. But that's just me, I love picking apart people's psychoses.
    Some people tell me that if you go into psych, you'll lose all your other nursing expertise. I honestly don't know why you'd care if you were happy in psych.

    I've heard many people say that male nurses can write their own ticket on a hospital psych ward.

    Both are true, according to my wife, the psych nurse.

    The reason that you'd care about losing your med/surg skills is that your mobility is greatly restrained once you start to feel not competent in other nursing disciplines, and the chances of being burned out on psych regardless of how happy you are there are VERY, VERY high.
    Post edited by muppet on
  • SquadronROESquadronROE
    Honestly, I'd have to put a lot of thought into it though. I'd have to compare what a nurse's workload actually looked like, being a psych nurse versus a primary care. I'd have to consider salary, hours, growth potential, and even the client base. While psych sounds fun, I'd have to really consider if I have the stamina to deal with mentally ill people for years. I'd also have to consider what effect that would have on my world view and friendships.
  • muppetmuppet
    It's not just dealing with mentally ill people for years, but dealing with all of the social problems that surround mental illness, the for-profit model will grind your soul down if you're in any way socially or politically progressive, you start to see symptoms in your friends and family and it colors your discussions and relationships... it's a tough part of the industry for a long menu of reasons.
  • SquadronROESquadronROE
    It's not just dealing with mentally ill people for years, but dealing with all of the social problems that surround mental illness, the for-profit model will grind your soul down if you're in any way socially or politically progressive, you start to see symptoms in your friends and family and it colors your discussions and relationships... it's a tough part of the industry for a long menu of reasons.
    Yeah. It's all part of considering a new job. Changing careers is a tough decision, considering you spend the bulk of your waking hours in said job.
  • HungryJoeHungryJoe
    edited October 2012
    While psych sounds fun, I'd have to really consider if I have the stamina to deal with mentally ill people for years. I'd also have to consider what effect that would have on my world view and friendships.
    That's kind of why I think I could do it. This sort of thing is exactly what you deal with when you do a lot of criminal and divorce law. I'd feel right at home.

    The reason that you'd care about losing your med/surg skills is that your mobility is greatly restrained once you start to feel not competent in other nursing disciplines, and the chances of being burned out on psych regardless of how happy you are there are VERY, VERY high.
    But isn't mobility impaired by choosing ANY specialty (well, maybe not primary care)?

    Post edited by HungryJoe on
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