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Dear Donna

Donna Cardillo, RN, well-known career guru and president of Cardillo & Associates, is a speaker, entrepreneur, humorist, and master of the career universe. She uses her expertise to help you polish your rough edges and shine in your career.

"Experience is not enough in today's fast-paced, competitive world," notes Cardillo. "You must look good, speak well, appear confident, have the ability to perform with increasing daily demands on your time, and through it all maintain a positive, upbeat attitude."

Cardillo brings more than 20 years of clinical, management, and business experience to her new role. She is the top-rated speaker at Nursing Spectrum Career Fairs and takes a down-to-earth approach to career advice. Cardillo has appeared on television and radio and written many articles on career and professional development topics. Most recently, Cardillo was a career consultant with monster.com, but she left that position to assume her exclusive Dear Donna! relationship with Nursing Spectrum/NurseWeek.

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I’d like to return to nursing, but I question my competence. Any suggestions?
Monday November 10, 2008
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Question:

Dear Donna,

I’m almost 60 years old, but I need to return to work. I have not done patient care since 1998 — and that was in home care with selected patients I felt I could competently handle. Most of my nursing career was part time, as I raised children and moved often because my husband was government worker. Now I am single and would love to have a patient job with benefits. I had about six years of part-time experience in psych and just feel I have almost zero medical nursing skills. I am not happy with the results of my choices over the years that have left me without the skills and knowledge I need to return to patient care. Of course, I have considered a refresher course. I attended a few classes at one local university, and they were so far ahead of me, I felt totally lost and more discouraged than ever. Frankly, I am not sure at my age if that is even a good idea that I try nursing again, but I need something. I want to serve others, but I also need to make a decent income. I do love caring for people, but I am concerned about competency.

Maggie



Dear Donna replies:

Dear Maggie,

It doesn’t sound like hospital nursing is right for you at this point for many reasons. Fortunately, you have many other options.

You might consider contacting a local blood bank or branch of the American Red Cross. They may provide training to do phlebotomy, or you can take an IV certification course on your own.

Contact some nursing agencies about doing nontraditional work. Some agencies only do hospital placement, but others have a variety of temp and part-time offerings, some with benefits.

Contact your local board of health to help with flu shots, health fairs, and more. Call some local assisted living facilities to do medication administration or other things with an ambulatory population.

Attend Nursing Spectrum/NurseWeek Career Fairs <http://events.nursingspectrum.com/expo> and speak with agencies and any nontraditional employers there. Go to professional association meetings (even as a guest). You have to get yourself out there. You never know where the spark, idea, inspiration, or opportunity will come from. And networking is a great way to find and get a job under any circumstances. Read “How to Get the Most Out of Attending a Career Fair” at http://www.dcardillo.com/articles/fair.html.

You also have to present yourself as confident and competent in interviews and networking. I’m not suggesting that you misrepresent yourself but you have to focus on your strengths, rather than your perceived short-comings. Speak in terms of what you can do, rather than what you can’t do. You also need to work on getting positive. Read Focus on the Positive http://www.dcardillo.com/articles/focus.html. Note: You don’t have to be confident to act confident.

I would encourage you to attend my Career Alternatives for Nurses® seminar where I talk about doing exams for insurance companies, life care planning, and many other things too involved to go into in this forum (but all appropriate for you). The program is also available in a home-study version <http://www.nurse.com/CE/CD6 or http://www.nurse.com/CE/DVD1>. Additionally, I suggest you read my latest book, The ULTIMATE Career Guide for Nurses: Practical Advice for Thriving at Every Stage of Your Career <http://www.nurse.com/ce/7250>. There is lots on self-marketing, networking, job finding, getting pumped up and positive, and more in the book.

My best wishes,
Donna



Donna Cardillo, RN, MA, well-known career guru, is Nursing Spectrum/NurseWeek’s “Dear Donna” and author of Your First Year as a Nurse: Making the Transition from Total Novice to Successful Professional and The ULTIMATE Career Guide for Nurses: Practical Advice for Thriving at Every Stage of Your Career. Information about the books is available at www.nurse.com/CE/7010 and www.nurse.com/CE/7250, respectively. To ask Donna your question, go to www.nurse.com/asktheexperts/deardonna. Find a “Dear Donna” seminar near you: Call (800) 866-0919 or visit http://events.nursingspectrum.com/Seminar.



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