How I discovered career paths beyond the bedside (and how you can too)
This post was first published on my Medium blog—follow me there for the most up-to-date entries!
I’ve already described the day I realized I needed to pursue a non-clinical nursing role. At the time, I thought I’d have to completely switch to a career outside clinical nursing — maybe start over in an entirely unrelated field. But then, I began to realize I didn’t need to leave nursing entirely. Instead, I began to leverage the very skills I already had, applying them to new opportunities within the nursing field itself. It wasn’t an immediate switch, but I started to uncover ways to use my experience in fresh, exciting roles that I hadn’t even considered before.
Now, I want to help other nurses see those possibilities too. If you feel stuck, burned out, or unsure of what else you could do, you’re not alone. The truth is, you already have more leverage than you realize — you just need to recognize it and apply it in the right direction.
Here are some of the biggest career surprises I uncovered. Read on, and you’ll get some ideas for how you can do the same.
Writing and content creation
Writing and content creation offer exciting opportunities for nurses to expand their impact beyond the bedside. Whether it’s simplifying complex health concepts or creating engaging materials for a wide audience, these skills can open doors to diverse careers that make a difference in healthcare.
What I love to do: Writing has always come naturally to me. I love organizing my thoughts, expressing my insights, and making complex topics understandable.
My past experience: I wrote plenty of nursing notes and patient education materials, but it didn’t occur to me that I could write for a broader audience. At first, I was a column editor for a childbirth education magazine. Later, I wrote a health-related article for the popular Glamour magazine. In the mid-1990s, I wrote a book in my field. But it wasn’t until later that I realized I could write for lay organizations, write my own blog, or even do messaging for medical device companies.
Additional tie-in: Writing isn’t just about books. Nurses can write or contribute to policies, grants, corporate training manuals, and marketing content for healthcare organizations. These are careers outside clinical nursing we don’t often consider, yet they desperately need our expertise.
Are writing and content creation for you? If you enjoy teaching patients, explaining procedures, or breaking down complex medical concepts, then health writing, content creation, and corporate messaging could be perfect paths for you.
What were my first moves to get into these roles? Wait and see, I’ll describe later.
Education and training
Teaching has always been part of who I am, whether at the bedside, mentoring new nurses, or developing training programs. I used to think teaching meant academia or hospital in-services — until a production company asked me to critique their health-related video training series. That’s when I realized nurses can teach in so many ways beyond the classroom.
What I love to do: Teaching has always been a core part of who I am. I love seeing that “aha” moment when someone finally understands something.
My past experience: As a bedside nurse, I was constantly educating patients and training new staff. I knew I was good at it, but I thought teaching only meant working in academia or leading hospital in-services. It never occurred to me that a medical device company might hire me to develop training courses — but that’s exactly what happened.
Additional tie-in: Nurses don’t just have to teach students. Although I did hold faculty roles in three universities, I realized nurses can teach in other ways. We can develop continuing education courses, train other healthcare professionals, and even coach other nurses making career transitions.
Are education and training for you? If you enjoy mentoring, precepting, or patient education, there are opportunities in corporate training, instructional design, and online education that could be a great fit for a career outside clinical nursing.
Business, consulting, and entrepreneurship
I never set out to be a consultant, but companies kept coming to me with problems I knew how to solve. With experience in writing, education, and training, I found myself building a business without even realizing it. Many nurses have valuable expertise that companies need — they just don’t always see the possibilities beyond clinical work.
What I love to do: I love solving problems and doing strategic thinking. I’m a bit of a maverick, and I try to build things that make a difference.
My past experience: I never planned on running a business, but I found myself in consulting roles without even realizing it. I had experience in writing, education, and training, and companies started asking for my expertise. Over time, I built a small business and hired a team. I began working on projects in messaging, course development, and healthcare consulting.
Additional tie-in: One of my first gigs after leaving the hospital was working for a medical media company. They developed instructional videos for nurses and other healthcare professionals. They were expert at creating the visual effects, but they didn’t know much about imparting knowledge from one brain to the other.
Are business, consulting, and entrepreneurship for you? Many nurses have the expertise companies need but don’t recognize their value. Consulting, business ownership, and corporate healthcare strategy are all real possibilities for a career outside clinical nursing.
Policy, advocacy, and public health
As nurses, we experience firsthand the complexities of the healthcare system. What if you could use your expertise to influence the system on a larger scale? Policy, advocacy, and public health roles offer a chance to shape meaningful change — and here’s how I got involved.
What I love to do: Whether it pertains to healthcare, business operations, or knitting socks, I think about it in terms of the Donabedian model, aka SPO: structure, process, outcome. Policies and procedures provide structure, which is the foundation for effective processes and better outcomes. Hence, I’ve always been passionate about healthcare policies that actually work for both patients and providers.
My past experience: When I was at the hospital, I considered myself the Policy and Procedures Queen. But it took me years to realize I could be involved in national healthcare policy. Later, I worked with non-profit organizations to influence policy, shape public health initiatives, and advocate for meaningful change.
Additional tie-in: Nurses are often overlooked in policy discussions, yet we have the direct experience to shape decisions that impact the entire healthcare system.
Are policy, advocacy, and public health for you? If you’re frustrated by bureaucracy, outdated policies, or hospital leadership, then advocacy roles in public health, policy development, and healthcare legislation could be a rewarding career outside clinical nursing.
Media and public speaking
Nurses have expertise the world needs beyond the bedside. If you are a good communicator and enjoy making healthcare topics clear, opportunities in media and public speaking may be a perfect fit.
What I love to do: I enjoy engaging with people and sharing knowledge in a way that’s accessible to a broad audience.
My past experience: It never occurred to me that I could do podcasting — until I did it. I had also never considered being a TV medical contributor, but in hindsight, it makes perfect sense. Nurses are experts in their fields, and the media needs expert voices who can explain healthcare topics to the public.
Additional tie-in: Public speaking isn’t just about podcasts or TV. Nurses can become conference speakers, panelists, or even spokespersons for healthcare companies. I even served on a healthcare ethics committee for my church. Again, it’s about using your expertise and insights to create a career outside clinical nursing.
Are media and public speaking for you? If you love delivering high-quality information, there’s a place for you in media, broadcasting, or professional speaking engagements.
Technology and innovation
Full disclosure: I never considered myself to be techy. In fact, in some ways, I’m terrible at using technology. At the hospital, I would often duck into a linen closet to assemble a medical device to avoid looking dumb in front of the patient. But I had a very limited idea of what “tech” or “innovation” was.
What I love to do: I love problem-solving and improving systems that don’t work well.
My past experience: When I started consulting for a medical device company, I saw firsthand how nurses play a crucial role in product development, healthcare technology, and training. I also realized how much health tech companies need clinicians to improve their systems.
Additional tie-in: Nurses can work in telehealth, UX/UI design, or health informatics, shaping how technology integrates into patient care. Here’s another thing that might be considered innovative: I hired a physician to do medical illustrations for me. Her “day job” was being an internist, but her artistic skills were phenomenal! An artistic nurse could do that, too!
Are technology and innovation for you? If you enjoy problem-solving and efficiency, a role in healthcare innovation, product development, or telehealth might be a great fit for your career outside clinical nursing.
Final thoughts
I never “left” nursing — I expanded my definition of what nursing could be.
Every career shift I made was built on skills I already had, even if I didn’t recognize them at first. If you’re a nurse thinking about making a move, I encourage you to ask yourself four simple questions, based on the Ikiagi model:
- What do I love doing, in my current role or otherwise?
- What am I good at?
- What does the world need? Better policies? Better education?
- What are people willing to pay me for?
Then, there’s another question: Where have I already used my skills in ways I didn’t even realize were valuable?
Finding a career outside clinical nursing doesn’t mean abandoning your old skills and retraining in something else — it can mean pivoting with the skills you already have. You have leverage. You just need to recognize it and find the right place to use it.
This post was first published on my Medium blog—follow me there for the most up-to-date entries!