Nurses working on hospital floors typically log three to four twelve-hour shifts per week. Sometimes, these shifts are on weekends or evenings. Often, they are on holidays. Hospital patients don’t take a break from being sick which means the people taking care of them don’t get the chance to rest either.

It’s no wonder nursing has one of the highest career turnover rates in the country.

But there’s more to the profession than hospital floors and emergency rooms. Nurses everywhere make good, fulfilling livings by looking for alternatives to being floor nurses.

In this article, we take a look at school nursing and occupational health. We also examine what skills you will need before you can pivot into a new chapter in your nursing career. Read on to learn more about the many different ways you can earn a living as a nurse.

First, Are There Any Additional Certifications Required?

It depends on what career you are interested in pursuing. It also depends on where you live. Nurses in some states may be required to get a School Nurse Endorsement before they can begin working in a school setting. Assuming you have already passed the NCLEX and all of your other relevant school work, this endorsement will be completeable in a relatively short amount of time, and will not require you to re-enroll in college.

Because endorsements can be attained relatively quickly— usually following training sessions and some sort of certification exam, some employers will hire you contingent on your completion of said coursework.

In nursing, it’s always a good idea to find out what your local laws require the moment you decide you would like a career change. You may also do a little research on how much time you have to meet additional requirements. Sometimes, it will require a significant amount of front-end work. Other times, it’s something you will be able to get done in a few days.

Life as a School Nurse

If you grew up in a large enough public school system, you’ve probably had your share of run-ins with school nurses. While it may be difficult for an outsider to imagine how they keep busy all day, they actually have an important job— monitoring and maintaining the health of an entire school building.

Yes, they are the person who patches up playground scrapes and bruises. But they also determine when an illness is minor, and when it requires the student to go home. They are gatekeepers of a sort, working to make sure that the student gets the health attention they need, but also that the school as a whole is staying healthy.

If you’ve ever had to pick up your child on the suspicion of pink-eye, when in fact they just had allergies, you understand this unique and challenging responsibility. School nurses can’t risk getting many people sick just to keep one kid in the classroom.

The work is rewarding. As a school nurse you:

• Work routinely with school children: It is a unique and distinct honor to get to play a recurring role in the educational life of a school-aged child. As a school nurse, you will play a small but important part in ensuring that the children at your school enjoy a safe and rewarding educational experience. If you’ve ever wanted to become a household name, this is probably the fastest track to doing it.
• Play a critical role in public education: Education, like healthcare, is a vocation. You almost certainly are the type of person who wants to make a difference with their professional time. Working as a school nurse allows you to perform important healthcare responsibilities while also making a real difference in the educational system of your community.

It’s not easy work, but the hours are choice. School nurses work primarily during the school day. They are off nights, weekends, holidays, and summers, making it a great job for people who want to get away from the punishing hospital hours.

Occupational Health

Occupational health nurses work to ensure health and safety in the workplace. Occupational health nurses work in a wide range of settings and may be employed by hospitals, or directly by companies that experience a higher risk of injury.

Occupational health nurses may do everything from working with injured employees to ensure a swift recovery, to providing training and educational information that will help workers avoid injury in the first place.

As with many healthcare jobs, the educational requirements for becoming an occupational health nurse can vary significantly, depending on where you live. In all cases, you will need to be a registered nurse who has completed the NCLEX.

From there, however, it will depend at least somewhat on where you live. There are several optional occupational health-related certifications that many nurses choose to get. These include:

• Certified Occupational Health Nurse (COHN)
• Certified Occupational Health Nurse-Specialist (COHN-S)
• Certified Occupational Health Nurse – Safety (COHN-S)

Note that even when regional guidelines do not require a certificate or specialized endorsement, it can be helpful both in terms of getting work and in making yourself eligible for eventual promotions. Occupational nursing is much like many other career paths. The more you can market and leverage your skills, the more money you will make in the long run.

Just the Tip of the Iceberg

Keep in mind that there are many other alternatives to bedside nursing. Don’t be afraid to get creative and broad when leveraging your medical skills as you search for a new job. Some laser hair removal companies will hire only certified nurses.

Not how you want to use your degree? You could also be a home health nurse. A diabetes coach. A neonatal nurse. A nurse that works in a doctor’s office.

There are most likely dozens of different types of nursing jobs within driving distance of your house. You really are limited only by your imagination so start looking now for a career that you will find rewarding and enjoyable.