Most likely, when you pictured yourself becoming a nurse, you saw yourself in scrubs, a stethoscope slung around your neck, zipping in and out of patient rooms in a busy hospital setting. But there’s so much more to nursing than bedside patient care! Whether you’ve recently logged the recommended one-year of Med/Surg in order to build up your clinical skills after graduation (and realized it’s not for you), or you’ve been at the bedside for many years, making a career shift within the RN umbrella is entirely possible. No matter the reason, if you’ve been sniffing around at new nursing opportunities, but aren't of the fine print, we’ve compiled a detailed list of non-hospital-based roles to tell you exactly what they’re all about, who can do them, and how to get started. 

If you value your autonomy…

Health Coach

What it is: Health and Wellness Coaches are oh-so-21st Century. Now that nurses are taking their self-care seriously, seeking coaches to help guide them to their best selves is very on-trend. If you have a knack for patient education, with a passion for holistic nursing, and the ability to be a self-starter, this could be the field for you. 

Who can do it: Nurses holding associate’s degrees can pursue this field, but better pay comes with a BSN; degrees and certificates in dietetics and nutrition are also helpful.

How to get started: A helpful resource for nurse health coaching can be found at The American Holistic Nurses Credentialing Corporation.  

Nurse Writer

What it is: If you yearn for a creative outlet that utilizes your nursing knowledge, plus have a  desire to set your own schedule, working as a nurse writer can check a lot of those boxes. While in the past, getting published required a background in writing, today’s nurse writer has the ability to seek opportunities tailored towards specific audiences—with no kind of formal training necessary. In other words, if you can deliver engaging content that audiences want, you’re in!

Who can do it: Typically some kind of nursing experience is a must, but an active license is not a prerequisite. Paired with the ability to work from home, this makes an excellent career choice for nurses on medical/maternity leave (present company included). 

How to get started: Have a favorite nursing blog, publication, or social media account? Sometimes it’s as easy as reaching out to find out more about their content creation team. Other ways to get started in medical writing are offered through freelance sites like fiverr.com  and upwork.com. 

If you stay up late binging true crime podcasts…

Legal Nurse Consultant

What it is: Legal nurse consultants offer their medical “translation” skills for law firms handling medically complex cases; most work as freelance agents, others find permanent positions with private law firms. 

Who can do it: Any nurse with an active nurse license, nursing degree, and who holds a legal nurse consultant certification.

How to get started: Head on over to the American Association of Legal Nurse Consultants to find out all things related to this field, including current job postings.

Forensic Nursing

What it is: A forensic nurse works in the field collecting evidence related to crimes. Working in tandem with law enforcement, coroners, and hospitals treating victims of crimes, this type of meticulous work is very detail-oriented.

Who can do it: This line of nursing requires an active nursing license in the state of practice, a degree in nursing, as well as speciality certification(s).  

How to get started: More information can be found at the American Forensic Nurse Association. 

If you feel called by your community…

Public Health Nursing

What it is: Talk about the right time and the right place—we need qualified public health nurses like never before. If you enjoy the community health aspect of nursing, or feel a calling to help underserved patients, this is a field you should take a hard look at. Running (ahem) vaccine clinics, organizing preventative healthcare fairs, and doing educational outreach are all examples of roles a public health nurse fills.

Who can do it: A valid RN license and a background in community service work is a plus. 

How to get started: For all things public health nursing-related, check out the Association of Public Health Nurses.

Nurse Case Manager

What it is: If you were thiiiiiiis close to going into social work instead of nursing, or if you find the discharge planning aspect of your current bedside role fulfilling, becoming a nurse case manager might be the career sweet spot for you. First and foremost, nurse case managers are warriors for patient advocacy. Roles are plentiful in a number of different contexts, including hospitals, home health agencies, and doctor’s offices. 

Who can do it: Any degreed nurse with a current and active nursing license can apply for case management positions. Generally, the demand exceeds the supply with these positions, so gaining on-the-job experience is realistic in this setting. 

How to get started: More information to get started in nurse case management can be found at the Case Management Society of America. 

If you’re constantly being made preceptor…

Nurse Educator

What it is: If the patient education aspect of nursing is your jam, or you enjoy mentoring new nurses, you would make an excellent nurse educator! Employed by nursing schools, nursing educators help to design curriculum and facilitate clinical experiences for their students. 

Who can do it: Typically, you’ll need a strong clinical background, a master’s (or doctoral) degree, and an active nursing license.

How to get started: For more information, check out the Professional Nurse Educator Group. 

Mental Health Nurse

What it is: Mental Health Nurses have one foot in bedside care and one foot in case management. Typical roles include working alongside psychologists and psychiatrists, in rehab centers and psych facilities—because our mental healthcare system is woefully inadequate, there is quite a bit of crossover with public health nursing roles as well serving underserved communities. 

Who can do it: Depending on the level of patient care, you may need a master’s or doctorate degree, as well as specialized courses, along with an active RN license to practice. 

How to get started: More info can be found at the American Psychiatric Nurses Association. 

If systematics interests you…

Informatics Nurse Specialist

What it is: Do you get excited every time you have to call for IT support? Ok, so maybe that’s a reach, and really, nursing informatics is so much more than fixing buggy system roll outs. The medical technology field is growing at a frantic pace, and informatics nurses are the ambassadors that act as liaisons between the tech and the people who will be using said tech. With AI, robotics, and virtual medicine developments, the opportunities to work in this field are endless. 

Who can do it: To be an informatics specialist, a background in IT is helpful, along with a nursing degree and license. In certain cases, you can learn as you go, but it may be prudent to take some courses in the type of information technology that interests you. 

How to get started: For information on certification types, head to American Nursing Informatics Association.

Occupational Health Nurse

What it is: An occupational health nurse works to develop health and safety programs for corporations. This type of nursing is highly specialized, so depending on what type of business is being run, the occupational health nurse would be responsible for determining what unique  employee health risks are present and how to mitigate them. 

Who can do it: Positions tend to go to nurses who hold master’s degrees in a nursing field, along with an active nursing license in the state of employment.

How to get started: More information can be found at the American Association of Occupational Health Nurses. 

The fact of the matter is that nurses are leaving the bedside more than ever before. We are committed to retaining the best and the brightest among us—if you feel your shine is starting to dull, we hope you found some inspiration in one of these roles that you might not have considered before. We need every one of you!