Want to give up Health Visiting

[ohcluttergotme]

Just looking for some advice.
I currently work as a Health Visitor (have been in post since April 2013)
I'm also qualified as Psychiatric Nurse, Children's Nurse and Nursery Nurse.
I'm due a baby in June and can't wait to have some time at home with new baby and 2 other children.

I'm not sure if I want to go back to Health Visiting. It's very challenging but also feel I'm so new to post and sure the job will become more manageable with time.

The area I work in is chronically short just now so demand on existing staff is huge which adds to stress of post, think this problem is same all over. I enjoy the work but just sometimes feel overwhelmed that I can't do all that is expressed of me.

I was thinking of trying to register as childminder in next few months and then advertise that I'm available part-time when baby is 6 months meaning I might be able to take full year off on Mat Leave.

I'm thinking if all goes well maybe I could give up Nursing career and work as Childminder. Everyone I speak to says this would be really stupid but I'm not sure. What do other people think?

Also wondering what other jobs are there that I could use my current skills and qualifications for but not as nurse in NHS?

Thanks for taking time to read

Just bumping thread to see if anyone out there as any advice.

Hi there! It sounds as if you're looking for an escape route because you're under so much pressure at work. That's fine, and sometimes we need something to push us into action, but please don't be precipitous. Out of the frying pan & into the fire???

First, I wonder whether you're doing everything you can to make your current working situation better? It sounds as if you're going to hang on until your maternity leave before you make any decisions, but you will be able to be more objective about Health Visiting if you go on maternity leave enjoying your job...
Have you shared your difficulties with your line manager? Conscientious workers are often the ones that struggle the most & can focus managers attention on areas where support is needed not just for you, but for your colleagues too. Also, sharing your struggles & feelings with other team members can help by giving you support from more experienced staff, or by making you realise you're not alone...I bet they would be horrified if you told them that you're contemplating a whole career change!

You sound as though you could benefit from talking through your options with a qualified & experienced Careers Adviser. The National Careers Service provides a free service for adults nationalcareersservice.direct.gov.uk/Pages/Home.aspx, or you could pay to see an adviser privately.

If you do decide that you want a career change, there are many options that you could consider as well as childminding. I would suggest that you reflect on what you want from a career, and look at the ways that nursing & health visiting meet those needs (or not). Try and get some priority order so that you can then measure up other potential careers against your needs/wants list.

There's no shortcut to making a decision as big as this, but starting with something can help....

I have just put a very similar post in the return to work section. I'm a paeds nurse with 15yrs experience, youngest dc starts school in sept and I think the time is coming when I need more from my job. Currently work part time on general paeds nurse at DGH. I enjoy it but mainly like it because it fits round the children. Ideally want something term time. School nursing maybe, although would love to be a teaching assistant, but the pay is not fab. Maybe we should start a child care business together?!

I was going to suggest term time school nursing. Part time too as a school nurse would be good.
I know where you are coming from. I am NHS and looking into a change. My children are a little older and both at school but things aren't right. I have 18 yrs (not nursing btw) service this year.

If you start childminding without returning to your health visitor job you will have to repay some of your maternity pay.

School nursing doesn't involve much nursing!

I was a school nurse for 18 months and had so little contact with children I went back to primary care. I don't know if it's the same for all areas but my job was mainly meetings, phone calls and child protection.

It's different when you work in a private school I think but in the state sector there are very few school nurses covering huge clusters of schools.