Signs That Leaving the Role of a Bedside Nurse for a Non-Bedside Nursing Job Might Be Right for You

When it comes to nursing, the majority of nurses work at the bedside in the hospital. It’s just what a “nurse job” stereotypically is. It is the classic definition.

Bedside nursing is an essential part of nursing. It involves helping the sickest patients, it requires immense critical-thinking skills, and bedside nurses save many lives.

Without bedside nurses, our world would look a whole lot different.

However, there may come a point in time when the thought of leaving the bedside starts growing. With the level of high-stress, intense work bedside nurses go through, this thought is only natural.

I will help you determine if leaving the bedside is right for YOU.

We are going to dig deep and focus on self-reflection and career reassessment to see what is best for your professional growth.

Common Reasons For Leaving Bedside Nursing

1. Burnout And Stress

The #1 reason nurses want to leave bedside nursing is due to burnout and stress. It is extremely easy to get burnt out as a bedside nurse.

There is a frequent overload of patients in the hospitals, and the demand reaches exponential levels at times.

The long hours enhance the burnout feelings, as well as the emotional toll of dealing with patients and their families.

The sad reality is that bedside nurses are much more likely to reach a burnout level than other types of nurses. It is just how the environment and workload are set up.

2. Physical Demands and Limitations

When you have 8+ patients you are managing at the same time, all different acuity levels and personalities, one’s own emotional, physical, and mental capacity gets drained.

Bedside nursing is very standard across the country, if not the world. It is shift work, different nurses do the same roles in a rotation.

This can often feel limiting, as the physical demands may not be worth the limitations in career growth and advancement.

3. The desire for a different type of patient interaction

Although the stereotype of a nurse is one who takes care of patients in the hospital, there are so many other types of patient interactions for nurses.

Curiosity can certainly be a reason nurses want to leave bedside nursing. There are roles with more verbal and less physical patient interaction or ones that are completely over the internet.

The desire to have less physical patient interaction can spark this interest, and it’s certainly worth entertaining if it feels right to you.

4. Lack of job satisfaction and career advancement opportunities

As I previously mentioned, bedside nursing can often feel limiting due to the shift work type environment, and lack of career growth opportunities.

There are certainly chances to climb the corporate ladder or make connections that can lead you into a new role in adjacent departments, but they are far and few.

Hardworking nurses also want to be rewarded for their efforts, but bonuses and raises are not common benefits at the bedside. The most common way to make more money as a bedside nurse is an overtime or shift differentials, which isn’t exactly rewarding good work.

Evaluate Your Situation

It’s time for a little self-reflection so you can really tell if leaving bedside nursing is the right move for you!

Assessing Your Physical And Emotional Well-Being

I want you to take a nice, hard look at your well-being. Ask yourself “How are you feeling?”

Focus on the first few thoughts that pop up in your head. If your physical and emotional well-being feels compromised due to your job, you already have a solid reason to leave bedside nursing.

At the heart of Nurse Bestie and what it stands for, your health is the most important thing in the world.

As a caregiver and healthcare professional, you must make sure you are taking care of yourself and your health at all times.

Assessing your physical and emotional well-being can be done by:

• asking friends or family for their perspective on you
• focusing on things you have been neglecting and how that makes you feel
• check if you have frequent pain anywhere
• reflect on stressful situations and how you reacted to them

Reflecting on your reasons for considering leaving bedside nursing

Did any of the previously mentioned reasons for leaving bedside nursing resonate with you? If you said yes, then break down those reasons a little more.

If one of your reasons was the desire for different patient interactions, start thinking about what kind of interaction you want!

This is going to help paint a clearer picture in your head of your end goal. You want to almost create the role you want in your head, and then start working backward.

Your reason could be you’re just sick and tired of bedside nursing, and you want to escape. It is still important to have a plan so you don’t end up in the same position again.

Considering alternative paths within the nursing profession

There are dozens of non-bedside nursing jobs out there, and it’s just a matter of researching and finding out what interests you!

The more you know and expose yourself to alternative roles, the more likely you are to confirm if leaving the bedside is the right move for you.

My blog post about alternative nursing roles can help you start researching! I bet you will surprise yourself and learn something new because non-bedside nursing is not often discussed in the healthcare world.

I definitely recommend doing extensive research on this, and something might just make that lightbulb go off in your head!

Seeking guidance from colleagues and mentors

One of the best ways to evaluate your situation is to seek guidance from trusted peers, especially in the workplace. Since these people work with you, they have the most accurate impression of you as a nurse.

So many colleagues and mentors also come from different backgrounds. They may have experience with the exact feeling you are going through and can share some words of wisdom.

Seeking guidance from others is a great way to get out of your own head and see things through a different lens.

Whenever I leave a helpful, advice-filled conversation, I usually feel empowered, motivated, and more clear-minded.

Making the Transition

Now that you have the information and tools to make your decision, let’s discuss making the transition.

Depending on which role you want to pursue, there may be different approaches you’ll need to take.

Continuing education and certification requirements

Certain non-bedside nursing roles required further education or certifications. Do your due diligence is preparing well for this change you are about to make.

You want to entire this phase of life with confidence and preparation. It will help with any fear or anxiety that will inevitably come with this transition.

I’m going to ask you to Google the crap out of the nursing role you are pursuing. Learn everything there is available because it’ll help you so much in the end.

Networking and job search strategies

In conjunction with meeting any potential requirements, you’ll want to network and learn about untraditional job search strategies.

Of course, you should still check out the major websites such as Indeed or Google Careers, but get creative with this part as well.

Join Facebook groups, ask if anyone knows of jobs in your field of interest, and send out personalized emails with your resume to local centers or clinics that may not be advertising an open position.

You want to cast a wide net, so tackle this from all angles! It’ll make your chances of success so much higher.

Preparing for the challenges and adjustments of a new career path

With anything new in nursing, you’ll face some challenges and adjustments. Entering a new career path means coming to terms that you won’t know everything. In fact, you may not know all that much at first.

Accepting this though is the first step in learning new things. Make sure you feel prepared for this reality and remind yourself that with time and hard work, you will adjust and thrive!

Final Thoughts…

Deciding if leaving bedside nursing is right for you is not done quickly. It’s important to look through all of the reasons you may want to leave, and evaluate how they are affecting your well-being.

Your current situation may not be one you want to be in, so take the time to reflect and reassess your career goals.

As a nurse, it is so important to make sure the work you put out aligns with your personal and professional fulfillment.

For further information, you can check out more talk about non-bedside nursing jobs to help with your research!