Care Work vs Nursing WWYD?

[PayneIntheArse]

Hi,

I wonder if MN would help me think through a little dilemma, (especially, but not exclusively, nurses and those in the care profession.)

I work as a carer assistant, a role I thoroughly enjoy (with elderly, and life limited).

I took this job to help my application to do a nursing degree, I am currently studying an Access course. Nursing has been a lifelong dream, but I am not so sure now. I am enjoying the Access course but it is very difficult to sit down and get it done with all the other responsibilities I have running a home and kids. All being well, I hope to complete the course in the summer and apply to attend university in 2013.
I had planned on giving up care work in order to do the nursing degree.
However, I am now in a job which I enjoy, close to home (walking distance), the opportunity to train and move up exists, shift patterns that are not too difficult.

Should I abandon (maybe put on hold) my plans to do a nursing degree and continue with what I am doing currently?
Both roles will involve further study, NVQs with care work. Nursing would involve night shifts as part of the training and travelling at least 20 miles to the nearest hospital, (35 to the nearest university).
On the other hand, I wonder if I might get bored with care work in the longer term. Nursing seems to offer lots of opportunity to move into different areas (is that really the situation, or is it just like most profession where you get pigeon holed after a few years?)
My children are all at secondary but I feel the need to still be fairly close to home and available for them.
I work part time 3 days and would want to do the same once qualified as a nurse (is that realistic?)
WWYD?
TIA Payne

bump

You may get bored but at that point be more in a position to move on? Says she who hasn't yet moved on but is bored

Are you bored as a nurse or bored as a carer HJisoffwork?

I think that given the travel involved in getting to your nearest hospital, this will add to your working night/day shift and as you comment about the shifts, it may be best to stay as you are.
Consider how much time oyu will be adding to your day/night with the travel.

The shift work is by far the most difficult to keep up with PLUS squeeze in the uni work, plus have a family life....

I have been doing care work for nearly 3 years in 2 different settings (nursing home and community), and I have learnt so much, and am still learning, but I want to be able to learn more and take on more responsibility (and earn more!), and so I am starting my nursing training in Sept. this year.

Neither. I was doing care work & changed sectors(adults to children), worked as a TA for a while , now work for social services. All along I've said I'll train as a nurse/teacher/social worker and not got round to it.
So I don't advise that!

That sounds like a tough choice.

I love working as a nurse and have worked in completely different specialist areas over the past 20years with opportunities to study, travel and earn decent income.

I worry that after 3 or 4 years that I would get bored with care work.

I think that an Access course is valid for 5 years, does anyone know if that is true?

I think it depends whether you would be satisfied with that job long term. Nursing has many more progression opportunities than care work. Are you satisfied with the career you could have in care work as apposed to nursing?

In nursing you will also need to practice consistently as if you have a gap of more than 5 years you will have to do some retraining (once qualified). Might be something to think about too?

Personally I'd do nursing.

I think they ask for 'evidence of study in the last 5 years' in uni entry requirements.

I think that is true of access courses but there may be a bit of flexibility if you do work of level 3 or higher level in that time but I'm not sure.

I am planning on working from now until retirement but only part time 3 or 4 shifts max irrespective of whether caring or nursing.

My main worry is the demands of studying with shift work. So maybe mrsnesbitt has a point.

I am not a young girl who can bounce back from late nights and early mornings easily.

I'm not a young girl either, but I'm damn well going to do this course. Three years of hard work, but it'll be worth it. And not all your placements will be in a hospital, there's a big emphasis on community-based healthcare now

I returned to nursing recently after a gap for child care
I did work as an hca in a hospital before deciding that i really wanted to be a nurse gain , so did a Return to Practice course (6mos).

Best thing i ever did. I now work as a community nurse 3 days a week and absolutely love it.

I think you should do the nursing course, at least you'll not regret it.
There's always the Associate Practitioner role which is becoming more common , we have two on our community team . Similar to the old enrolled nurse but as yeet not registered , but I think that may change soon.

In my local NHS Trust when a cohort of newly qualified nurses graduates from the lcoal uni they get interviewed for a nursing job in general, not a specific job. Successful interviewees then get placed on a ward that more often than not is not somewhere they'd have chosen themselves. A few months ago I ran into a newly qualified nurse who'd done a placement on our ward as a student and she'd been sent to Oncology. She hated it, couldn't cope with so many of the patients dying, and said she goes home from work most nights in tears. She was desperately looking for another job but not having much luck as the Trust has financial difficulties and is recruiting as few new staff as possible. I'm a HCA and it's one of a number of things that has put me off training as an adult nurse - it seems that no, there aren't always loads of opportunities for nurses.

ggirl seems to have found herself a cushty position - maybe you'd be better off aiming for the community. There is a perception in nursing though that you have to pay your dues by working in a hospital for a couple of years before moving out into the community. I read an article in Nursing Times or somewhere that that is changing, because of the increased need for community nurses, but it's something to bear in mind.

I think you definitely need to get a bit of hospital experience before you make your mind up. Coz you don't want to give your job up you should enquire about doing some bank work as a HCA at your local hospital i.e. doing the odd shift at the weekend or on your days off to cover for a staff member off sick to get an idea of what's involved.

I generally work days and have only done one night shift - the actual shift was ok but I was tired for about three days afterwards! I think I would get quite depressed if I did nights regularly - it's just not for me.

If you like your job as a carer that makes you a special person, coz too often care of the elderly is an area nurses try to avoid working in. That makes me think quite possibly a career in care homes is for you and you should go down the NVQ Levels 2, 3 and 4 route. But I think you need more experience before you can make a decision.

Sorry, that should of course have been local uni.

Working as a carer is both rewarding and worthwhile. Career progression is however, more limited than within nursing.
If you're happy for the time being you could continue in your Access course and work towards your NVQ level 3 until you feel ready to undertake the course.
There is no problem with wanting to work part time when you qualify, I have taken 2 newly qualified RNs on in part times roles recently.

I have yrs of ward experience but we have a few nurses on our community team who have only ever worked on the community.

NQ need lots of support to start with as the autonomous nature of the role can be scary at times.

I could never go back to ward nursing now tbh.

I qualified as an adult nurse in January, and doing my training was the best decision I ever made.
BUT.
When I started my training my Dcs were 2 and 4, and I found it very difficult to juggle shifts and studying. Thankfully I have a lot of very supportive family and childcare is available at short notice. During University we were required to do an assignment or exam every term, plus work a 30 week on placement, with most wards assigning shifts with very little flexibility. Studying tended to be done when they were in bed, and even with plenty of time and preparation I spend many nights awake until 2 am doing my assignments.

Even now, I am so lucky to have been given a job in a highly specialised area, which i love, but the option to work part time, or only days, was not there. Some of my cohort have still yet to start jobs due to funding etc, and community jobs for newly qualified nurses in my local area are very hard to come by.

Even tho your children are older, do you still need to ferry them around? Because when i am on nights, i come in from work, take kids to school, sleep for no more than 4-5 hrs then have to pick up, do dinner etc until DP gets in. Then back to work. (we do 4-5 nights in a row and have no choice in the matter).

If you have enough support around you, and you want to do it, you can. But it's not easy.

(and age is irrelevant- one of my cohort was 49 when she qualified :-) )

Hey thanks for the posts, much food for thought.

I was mulling the whole thing over and think I will try and do the nursing course and perhaps look to work in a care home, pallativand/or community care in the longer term.

Thank you everyone

Payne