Dear Donna,
I am getting ready to retire in a few months. Although I no longer wish to work in a hospital, I may want to still keep my hand in in some way. Do you have any suggestions of things I might be able to do part time, particularly something with flexibility so I can travel when I want?
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Dear getting ready to retire,
Many nurses after they “retire” want to stay involved and connected in some way. After all, you’ve amassed a fantastic body of knowledge and experience. I always say there is no “off” button for that nurse vibe. Read “Is Retirement an Ending or New Beginning?”
After retirement from one area, some nurses find other employment, either full time or part time, usually something that is less stressful and less physically demanding. But other nurses use the time to do volunteer work either in a health setting or through a nursing professional association including mentoring new nurses.
Depending on what on your background and interests are, I would suggest that you contact your local public health department, hospice agency, blood bank, inner city clinic, senior center, adult day service center or any social service agency of interns (e.g. the Red Cross, American Heart Association, Diabetes Association etc.). Inquire about both paid and volunteer work depending on what you’re looking for.
You can also contact some nursing/healthcare employment agencies, those that do non-hospital bedside placement. They typically offer part time and temp work for nurses. This way you can work when you want and even work intermittently/seasonally if you’d like.
Whatever you do, I recommend that you stay active in your nursing professional associations (join if you are not a member of anything) such as the American Nurses Association (www.ana.org). This is a good way to maintain your ties to your profession, keep your network alive (you just never know what the future holds), and stay current on issues and trends. Many chapters of ANA even have subgroups and reduced dues for retired nurses.
Best Wishes,
Donna
© Donna Cardillo (DonnaCardillo.com). All rights reserved.
1 thought on “Retirement. Now What?”
Becoming a Travel Nurse can be one of the options for you because you will get an opportunity to visit and see places.There are places where you actually wanted to visit when you were employed, but your job duty never allowed you to spare time for a leisure trip. You will also have job flexibility, because Travel nursing assignments are for a short duration, few weeks to few months, and you are also free to take or refuse any assignment. You will have sufficient time for your family The earnings and benefits are also better than regular duty permanent or part time jobs.
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