Take Your Nursing Duties to the Skies – How and Why You May Want to Consider a Change in Your Nursing Career During Your 50s

There are plenty of careers out there that one could definitely argue are monotonous and rather boring day in and day out, especially if you’ve been in your career for years, if not decades. Typically, desk jobs are those that pop into mind first, but that doesn’t mean they are the only ones. In nursing, you may actually be starting to experience some of those feelings yourself, where it starts to feel like the same thing day in and day out, just with different patients. Now that you are in your 50s, that monotony may prove to be a bit too much and will have you re-thinking your career.

With that in mind, this could be the perfect time to take your nursing duties to the skies in the form of a commercial airline flight nurse. So, what is this type of nurse, what do they do, and why should you consider this option? Let’s examine it a little closer.

What is a Commercial Airline Flight Nurse?

When you think of caring for ill patients, it’s normal to think about a hospital or clinic type of setting, but that isn’t the only place people become ill and need medical assistance. What happens should someone become ill while traveling and now they need to make it home? This is when a commercial flight nurse jumps into action, keeping the patient safe, stable, and comfortable throughout the flight. That can mean here in the United States or overseas.

A flight nurse will work closely with flight coordinators, who are registered nurses themselves, in order to schedule a trip from start to finish. It’s then up to you to show up with a medical kit, medication, and any equipment needed by the patient. You’ll also need to arrange the ground transportation that gets the patient to the airport in the first place and the transportation on the other end when you arrive at your destination.

It will be up to you to understand the airline rules both here and abroad and work with any sort of international medical services in order to coordinate your patient’s care. There is a whole lot of thought, planning, and scheduling that goes into the job of a flight nurse, so it’s much more than just caring for your patient.

So Why Make the Switch?

The next logical question you may ask is, why make the switch over to the job of a commercial airline flight nurse? It’s just as stressful and busy, if not more so than working in a hospital setting, so it’s not like it will be slower-paced. Instead, the allure can be in the variety, challenge, and reward that this job offers. You’ll be traveling to different places, possibly even overseas, working with different healthcare systems, and you’ll be working with patients in an entirely different environment. It’s impossible to feel bored.

Then there are the rewards this kind of job can offer. Just think how great it will feel to safely bring home that sick patient and return them to their home city or town in order to get the care they need. It may also involve reuniting them with worried family and friends.

It gets you out of that hospital or clinic setting, which can start to wear on you both physically and mentally and give you on-the-job stress, and provides you with a different way to finish the last few years of your career.

The Cherry on Top of Your Career

So, before you make the assumption that you need to finish your career where it began, it may be worth looking into other options that still use all your same training and skills, but can provide you with the challenge and rewards you’re after.