3 answers
pavea
Student
Memphis, Tennessee
1
Question
Asked
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Are any nursing jobs available where you dont have to save anyones life? if so what are the jobs and what do they deal with?
my name is Pavea Malay Whitfield, and im a 9th grader whos interested in nursing. #nursing
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3 answers
Estelle Archer
Gynecologist
1322
Answers
United States
Updated
Estelle’s Answer
Hi, Pavea,
There are plenty of jobs in nursing that do not require life and death care. For example, many nurses work in local women's clinics providing well care for young women. Nurses working in pediatricians' offices provide well care and vaccinations. Many nurses choose to work in administration. As you go into nursing, you will explore different areas of medicine that interest you. You might be surprised to find that you enjoy the excitement of the emergency room. Good luck to you.
There are plenty of jobs in nursing that do not require life and death care. For example, many nurses work in local women's clinics providing well care for young women. Nurses working in pediatricians' offices provide well care and vaccinations. Many nurses choose to work in administration. As you go into nursing, you will explore different areas of medicine that interest you. You might be surprised to find that you enjoy the excitement of the emergency room. Good luck to you.
Laurie Robbins, BSN, RN, CBCN
Registered Nurse, Clinical Educator
2
Answers
Dallas, Texas
Updated
Laurie’s Answer
Hi Pavea, while I'm not sure exactly what your interpretation of saving a life is, I can assure you that all nurses are trained to save lives. However, if you are speaking about the day-to-day work of nursing, there is an endless number of career opportunities for registered nurses.
My first job was in a medical and surgical unit in a hospital, where I learned "how to be a nurse". I personally think med/surg, ICU or ED are the areas that you learn the most clinical skills, learn about time management and prioritizing tasks. But not everyone takes that route. Some nurses go into the ambulatory (outpatient) setting right after nursing school. This is where you see patients in a clinic setting and then they go home after the appointment.
There is also research nursing, which is not direct patient care, but rather collecting data about the patient with regard to a clinical trial, though in some settings you may also administer the research drug to the patient. There is also nursing school faculty or clinical educator, like me, who help nurses get the training and education they need to care for patients.
Leadership roles, particularly nursing administration (Nurse Manager, Director of Nursing, Chief Nursing Officer) have no patient care responsibility, but you will use your vast nursing experience and knowledge to direct your decisions and policies. However, this is not something you can step into directly out of nursing school. You will need an advanced nursing degree or one in healthcare administration, leadership or at least a master's in nursing (any) and other leadership experience to get to this level.
Another option is medical/nurse writing, for blogs, journals, websites, books, and other nursing and medical publications. You will use your nursing knowledge, experience, and excellent writing skills to accept and complete jobs/orders or even work for yourself as a nurse entrepreneur!
The best suggestion I can give you is to do your research. Check out the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, looking at the various nursing jobs and what education and experience you need for them, look at the pay, and any description of the role, etc. This will give you a place to start. Google as much as you can and continue to ask questions on forums like this one until you find what you are looking for. More and more specialized roles are created for nurses every day. If you don't find something that interests you, find out what you need to do what you love and GO FOR IT!
I hope this was helpful. Best of luck to you!
My first job was in a medical and surgical unit in a hospital, where I learned "how to be a nurse". I personally think med/surg, ICU or ED are the areas that you learn the most clinical skills, learn about time management and prioritizing tasks. But not everyone takes that route. Some nurses go into the ambulatory (outpatient) setting right after nursing school. This is where you see patients in a clinic setting and then they go home after the appointment.
There is also research nursing, which is not direct patient care, but rather collecting data about the patient with regard to a clinical trial, though in some settings you may also administer the research drug to the patient. There is also nursing school faculty or clinical educator, like me, who help nurses get the training and education they need to care for patients.
Leadership roles, particularly nursing administration (Nurse Manager, Director of Nursing, Chief Nursing Officer) have no patient care responsibility, but you will use your vast nursing experience and knowledge to direct your decisions and policies. However, this is not something you can step into directly out of nursing school. You will need an advanced nursing degree or one in healthcare administration, leadership or at least a master's in nursing (any) and other leadership experience to get to this level.
Another option is medical/nurse writing, for blogs, journals, websites, books, and other nursing and medical publications. You will use your nursing knowledge, experience, and excellent writing skills to accept and complete jobs/orders or even work for yourself as a nurse entrepreneur!
The best suggestion I can give you is to do your research. Check out the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, looking at the various nursing jobs and what education and experience you need for them, look at the pay, and any description of the role, etc. This will give you a place to start. Google as much as you can and continue to ask questions on forums like this one until you find what you are looking for. More and more specialized roles are created for nurses every day. If you don't find something that interests you, find out what you need to do what you love and GO FOR IT!
I hope this was helpful. Best of luck to you!
Suzanne Swain Brint
Nursing
169
Answers
Santa Monica, California
Updated
Suzanne’s Answer
Hi Pavea,
This is Sue and I am a retired cancer nurse. I worked for over 35 years taking care of very ill patients and working on clinical trials to see if new treatments were safe and effective.
Simply stated: all registered nurses are trained on the basics of "saving lives" meaning we know how to administer CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation).
I believe you are asking if nurses, in all settings, routinely administer CPR. Is this correct? There are some settings where this may never happen, such as a nurse working in a podiatrist's office. But all registered nurses, no matter what setting, must always be prepared and stay trained on how to save lives.
There are some settings such as the emergency department, where live saving techniques are used each and every day. There are rare settings where this never happens. In order to practice as an RN, we must each year or so receive updated CPR training and pass a test in order to continue our practice.
The only settings I can think of where a nurse may not ever be confronted with saving lives is that of nurse educators working in colleges and universities or nurses that work in the sales industry with pharmaceutical companies. Some nurses become lawyers, and those settings would not require the nurse to routinely save lives. But even then, some of those nurses will have to continue to keep their CPR certifications current.
Does this help answer your question? Let me know if I can be of further help.
Best,
Sue, RN
This is Sue and I am a retired cancer nurse. I worked for over 35 years taking care of very ill patients and working on clinical trials to see if new treatments were safe and effective.
Simply stated: all registered nurses are trained on the basics of "saving lives" meaning we know how to administer CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation).
I believe you are asking if nurses, in all settings, routinely administer CPR. Is this correct? There are some settings where this may never happen, such as a nurse working in a podiatrist's office. But all registered nurses, no matter what setting, must always be prepared and stay trained on how to save lives.
There are some settings such as the emergency department, where live saving techniques are used each and every day. There are rare settings where this never happens. In order to practice as an RN, we must each year or so receive updated CPR training and pass a test in order to continue our practice.
The only settings I can think of where a nurse may not ever be confronted with saving lives is that of nurse educators working in colleges and universities or nurses that work in the sales industry with pharmaceutical companies. Some nurses become lawyers, and those settings would not require the nurse to routinely save lives. But even then, some of those nurses will have to continue to keep their CPR certifications current.
Does this help answer your question? Let me know if I can be of further help.
Best,
Sue, RN