Some Suggestions, please
 

I need to change jobs. Desperately. I have been in health care-8 years as an Xray tech and 10 years as a nurse. That's a looong time to be in the field. Probably longer than some of you have been alive, or in the work force. I realize-and have realized for the past 2-3 years that I need to switch completely. I am coming up with a blank on what to do. With a reume like mine I just am lost. Does anyone have any suggestions? My strong points are able to work with people (no matter how crazy) communication and organization. I am REALLY hoping to get some monies to return to school (don't laugh, but I want to be an English teacher in jr. or high school) but that will be years from now and the bills are due. What should I focus on??

How much money do you need to make a week to survive? How much to survive COMFORTABLY?

some staffing agencies have special divisions for healthcare jobs. they need recruiters to match up the right people with the right jobs. someone with your background should be able to look at a job order, and look at someone's resume and put something together. it is sales, but you need more people skills than closing skills. unless you want to use your connections to solicit job orders, then that is sales. depending on market can pay $60-80K year.

i was a headhunter at one point in time - it is a good gig. can pay anywhere from $30 -70K/year depending on skill and work ethic. Kelly Services has a medical staffing division if you want to look into that.

Are there any opportunities for you to teach other nurses in some capacity? Some program at a community college/vocational school?

Or perhaps even a program through a high school--my high school had a "medical intern" program that was like pre-pre-med, and the kids even got to do tours in various hospital departments once a week and learn basics like drawing blood.

I need about 500/week to make it.
I've only an associates degree (two of them) so teaching, right now, is out.
I never thought about the headhunting thing, and that sounds like it might be a go, but do they hire people without any sort of experience in that?

You'd be surprised... teaching high school is out without a bachelor's, but community colleges will sign on people without any degree at all as an "associate lecturer" as long as you have enough experience with the topic you want to teach.

You work in a hospital right now, right? Would moving to a private practice kind of setting at least help reduce the stress until you figured out what you wanted to do?

I did try private practice and I just can't do it--need to get out altogether. I just can't be a nurse anymore.

Community college would be fun, I think, especially if you want to teach!

brianna - headhunting doesn't necessarily require previous experience. i walked in off the street and got it. it is about people skills. you have all of the technical skills, you have people skills - you want to match people with jobs requiring technical skills.

it depends on your presentation, confidence, and if they have aneed. i received about 20% less than the experienced recruiters when i started, but raises are based on performance generally.

If I were you, I would contact a staffing agency and see where that took me. I'd see what's out there first, and work from there.

if you smoke marijuana, you will become an unmotivated, dysfunctional loser.

well, that was random

oh my god

I can't believe that posted. Oops. I must've hit tab and return too quickly.

I am watching a documentary about the history of the legalization of pot. There was a great quote (as you can see) and I wanted to write it ... I had the Cellar page open and the quickest thing was to write in this reply box. Heheh ... I can't wait to write about this movie.

I always thought if you smoked marijuana you went insane. (Reefer Madness--a movie I forgot to nominate for the Comedy tourney)

Most state Departments of Corrections are always looking for people with those qualifications. The pay and hours are usually pretty good, it's just the work environment that sucks.

Well, you were looking for suggestions... :rolleyes:

Well--I worked with crazy people up until a couple weeks ago. I used to work with those found NGRI, so a prison wouldn't be a huge leap. (Yes, it would!)
I'd never make it in a prison. I'm too gullible.

Did you learn enough about health insurance/medicare etc... to get a paper-work gig doing something like chart review?

Absolutely. I know a lot about that stuff...I handled disability claims for long and short term disability for 3,800 employees in a steel mill...

Ooh, yeah. Insurance reviewer is a good gig. Check to see if there are any mental health managed care providers near you. (I know there are some call centers for Magellan Behavioral Health in Ohio, I'm just not sure what cities they are near.) When I did a search on monster.com a while back there were a lot of that kind of jobs. They also often need RNs or LPNs for other insurance billing and coding kinds of jobs.

There's always prostitution. It's like marriage lite, same principle without the drudgery. ;)

at the professional level, they are called escorts or courtesans. they tend to make a ton of money. also tend to have some other issues in life. i've had a few as clients.

Medical Transcriptionist, work from home. Good money.
Medical Insurance Processer. Work from home. Better Money.
Medical Office Manager. Work in an office with bitchy pissy women, self absorbed doctors and sick, whiney and crying people. And their babies.

I know what I'd go for.

What? Courtesan? :)

Good ideas, all. I'm glad I asked here---put together, you Cellarites are a wonderful resource. I humbly thank everyone who has taken the time to think for me. My brain is, currently, so preoccupied with fear and "what if's" that it is hard for me to see beyond the problems of today. I just returned from a group discussion at my local book store of NICKEL AND DIMED-ON NOT GETTING BY IN AMERICA and to say I am feeling panicked would be an understatement.

LOL been there, done that.

No, I meant the Medical Insurance thingy at home. My best friend was going to do it, but she moved to Croatia instead. Ho.

have you ever thought of going back to college part time to get another degree? such as a buisness degree. there are plenty of jobs out there for people who have general degrees.

be a hairdresser. talk to people. learn about life.

Brianna, I have absolutely no idea WHAT to recommend that you do. But if you're serious about getting a teaching cert at some point, a lot of colleges & universities give free tuition to their employees. So you might make a point of looking at job postings from any of those in your area and see if any strike your fancy.

I don't know your situation at all Brianna, but try to see it all as opportunity rather than threat. I've made some pretty radical changes to my lifestyle in my past. They could all have been classified as either "brave" or "foolhardy". My conclusion is that beforehand there is no difference between the two. But with hindsight "brave" is when it worked out ok and "foolhardy" is when it didn't. But what the hell .... give it a go ...

Thanks, limey. You've no idea how I've needed to hear something like that--that others have taken the plunge and survived. Leaving nursing seems insane to a lot of people (like those waiting to get INto nursing, or those envious of the money earned--but that money is earned by working nights, in dangerous situations with inadequate staff, praying the whole time that nobody dies on your watch!) but I must leave. Either nursing goes, or I go. :eek:

BRIANNA-I just realized you're on a job search. I found a great place to start. You'll
like me and your job search.Contact me privately,we'll meet privately and discuss what you'll want from your research materials.I'll put you on-line somewhere reliable and meet with you periodically to narrow your search. No strings attached, just tell me what you want; I'll tell you what I need.
ANTHONYFRANKCHIRICO

Brianna, see my Post(ref. to your search) ANTHONY
 

BRIANNA, I offered you help. Did you see it?

OK, that's enough. (A two day ban folks)

:applause:

:thankyou:

Brianna, the qualities you stated you have would make you the perfect waitress. Yeah, the job kind of sucks, BUT you will make your $500 week and there are no life or death situations. It IS a big change, if that's what you're looking for...It's also flexible so if you want to go to school while you're doing it, that's easy if you can handle both... Bartending is pretty much the same thing.

I was a veterinary technician for almost two years, which is a lot like being a nurse. I had to administer medications, assist in surgeries, do dentistries, deal with weird owners, blood, poo, death, etc. I got totally burnt out and miserable. I went to work at a donut shop for a few months. I can't remember ever being happier. I felt like a huge weight was lifted off of me. I was so happy knowing that the worst mistake I could make was to screw up a cup of coffee, no death, blood, poo, etc... It really helped and I didn't feel any less "successful", I was happy! It helps to just take a beak and get a new look on life- just make sure you go back to school and don't let your break become your life! (kind of like what I'm doing right now)...

Brianna, have you ever considered that your friend who packed off to Croatia might have had the right idea? (although that part of the world might be a bit extreme for "finding yourself") Seriously, do some research into teaching in foreign countries. Right now Japan and Korea and even CHINA, where they are racing to prepare their ersatz "service industry" to handle the Olympics, are giving away huge bonuses and full housing, cars, and vacations to professional types who will contract to teach their field in English. Turkey and Latin American countries also are hiring women as governesses, and there are private schools in France and Germany who are advertising for nurses. You ought to seriously think about it, you could go abroad and live a completely new life for a year and come back with your pockets full of money and a fresh outlook.

Tonchi, I appreciate the good ideas. I've two teenage sons to consider though and I couldn't leave them and since I am divorced I am not free to pick up and move with them. If I was younger and childless though...I'd definitely go for it!
Oh, and I think you mean OnyxCougar about the Croatian friend. I'm flattered. :)

:Flush: so I guess you didn't like my idea...