Nursing Options

It’s no secret – I’m in Nursing School (and clearly exhibiting the common signs and symptoms of a Nursing Student). After spending 8 years in the realm of social services – with an emphasis on drug and alcohol treatment, homelessness, and behavioral health – I got burned out and decided to pursue the one career I have always wanted – Nursing. So here I am in school, learning all kinds of interesting things, and putting it all to use during my clinical rotations. Nursing is one of those fields where the possibilities for specialty area and location are endless. One thing I am fast learning about myself is that I am not the Floor Nurse type i.e. Medical-Surgical Unit Nurse. I get bored easily if I am not challenged, I get bored easily with an instructor who is not up to par, I get bored easily and will finish my paperwork before the night is over.

This discovery has led to me deciding to pick a specialty area in Nursing. My ultimate goal is to become a Chief Nursing Officer/Director of Nursing (or what I now call the Olivia Pope of Nursing – It’s handled #BOOM) but on my way to the top I’d like to dabble in these areas:

Trauma/ER: if this doesn’t keep me busy, challenged and on my toes then I don’t know what will. Being that you don’t know what kind of emergency or trauma will come through the doors from one minute to the next you are always in action mode. From what I’ve been told by Trauma Nurses it’s quite an adrenaline rush. Bring it On!

ICU: Also known as Critical Care Nursing, yes they are on a floor but it’s nothing like Med-Surg or any other floor for that matter. The Patients are very sick, often times on life support, ventilators, and multiple running IVs. Codes are common so you must be prepared to react fast in order to stop a Patient from dying. This specialty is the bridge to becoming a CRNA for those who are interested.

Oncology: Cancer Patients will always have a special place in my heart. I lost my Godmother to Cancer in 2011 and since then I have always wanted to be the rock for a Patient and their family who is going through this horrible disease. Oncology is a specialty which requires certification to administer chemotherapy. There are hospitals specifically dedicated to Oncology which is good because that means the care is more focused and they are usually the best because that’s all they do.

CRNA: Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist. These are the Nurses who are certified to perform majority of the same duties as an Anesthesiologist. Today 9 times out of 10 when you have surgery the person who comes in to sedate and provide the anesthesia services for your procedure is a CRNA. It’s a very lucrative career, requires more intensive schooling but the benefits certainly outweigh the headaches of more schooling.

The Atlanta area is my first choice for relocation, however I am now more open to other locations – Virginia, Nevada, Missouri, Texas, back to California (San Diego) – and I am even considering finishing my Officer Training with the Air Force. Cost of living and education systems are definitely high determining factors as my goal is home ownership and I plan on becoming a Mother so my child’s education is top priority.