Follow
The field of health care, specifically nursing, is always an area of need. There are many areas to get started, but the first big milestone is becoming a Registered Nurse, which means earning your Associates in Nursing. This opens up the door to many career options and the only way to determine what you’ll enjoy is to try them out. There are endless choices to get into the field, so we’ve narrowed it down to 10 of the best jobs you can get when an Associate’s in Nursing.
1. Cardiac Care Nurse
A cardiac care nurse focuses on patients with heart disease and heart conditions. As someone in this field, you would monitor and evaluate patterns related to the heart and would conduct health assessments related to them as well. This is a field with a great deal of focus on the patient and you would build strong relations with them. This field also allows for a diverse group of patients and various setting for care, according to Discover Nursing.
2. Case Management Nurse
Care Management nurses are in charge of the inpatient care setting. They may also assist patients with outpatient care via the phone. They interact with physicians to report on the condition of patients and their situation. Care management nurses are also organized folks who provide information to other vital components of the care system, such as other health care providers and other health professionals. They may also determine the best use of resources that meet the needs of the patient, while saving the patient and health organization money.
3. Holistic Nurse
A holistic nurse is someone who provides the same type of attention to patients needs, but in a non-traditional type of way. They use what is called alternative medicine as their primary means of care. They may also pair this with the more traditional western techniques, but the focus is on alternative measures, according to Discover Nursing. They also seek to address all areas of the patient’s health. Rather than just focusing on physical health, they seek to address mental, spiritual and emotional health, as wel
4. Managed Care Nurse
A managed care nurse are working with those who have government-funded healthcare as the majority or entirety of their payment method. To keep their costs low, managed care nurses teach these patients preventative care and encourage preventative measures, such as annual doctor visits and vaccinations. These Nurses also must coordinate with the patients insurance company to insure proper care and use of resources.
5. Nursing Quality Improvement
Since nurses are often the most familiar with their health organization, they have a unique opportunity to contribute to changes in the organization. This can mean a study in the working dynamic and morale of the place, as well as the quality of care for patients. They can find ways to better use resources to make all involved have a better experience.
6. Nursing Writer/Historian
This position in nursing is a more academic approach, paired with real working experience. Nurses in this field are able to write articles, documents, textbooks and other types of books about nursing and important people within the nursing community. They can have involvement in various areas of the writing process, whether that is the research, actual writing of documents, technical additions, education and training or even the editing and review of the text. As a departure from the typical nursing environment, these folks also have the opportunity to write for television or movies or be a consultant for those types of media.
7. Poison Information Specialist
A poison information specialist are able to inform others on how to properly avoid poison ingestion or how to handle poison ingestion after it has taken place. They would work from poison control centers or in emergency rooms. This can occur as in person training or over the phone counseling. They can also become licensed pharmacists or lead into other health care related fields.
8. Reproductive Nurse
Nurses in this field are responsible for teaching, counseling and coaching families or individuals through areas related to reproduction, such as fertility or conception. They also aid women going through reproduction. This field is intensely people focused and is geared toward individuals who are good at open communication among families and also one on one with individual patients.
9. Sub-Acute Care Nurse
A subacute care nurse, is a position that is directly involved with inpatient care. Their patients are those with high in home needs, with health care needs that exist at a level between acute and chronic. This allows the patient to limit their hospital stays or just to shorten the length of their stay, making for a more pleasant and more productive lifestyle for the patient.
10. Telephone Triage Nurse
Telephone triage nurses are also known as telehealth nursing professionals. Their job is just as it sounds, they assist patients over the phone by answering their questions related to their health and to help them determine what kind of needs they have related to their health. Telephone triage nurses learn how to ask specific questions to narrow down the needs of the patient over the phone and can assist the patient toward a more pleasant resolution. The alternative would be for them to come in to a clinic or emergency room, so this is certainly the better option. In the process, the telephone triage nurse also teaches the patient how to monitor and manage their symptoms so as to limit their need to seek professional help.
Related Resource: 10 Great Nursing Specializations with a BSN
There are many fields of health care to break into, and each is interesting in its own way. If you are pursing a nursing degree, you have chosen a fulfilling field that is also in demand and pays well. What you choose to do with your licensure and education is up to you and you have endless options in the field of nursing. In the end, you’ll get to help people through education, training, interaction and most importantly, through care.