We’ve all heard of nurses that work in hospitals, doctor’s offices, etc. But what may not be so well known is that these are not the only avenues for those with a nursing degree. There are loads of patients and many areas where qualified nurses can find work. And if you think you’ve heard of every nursing job worth hearing, there might be some news below.

If still doubtful, check out these 10 unusual jobs you can get with a nursing degree. They include everything from advanced duties in the operating room to the legal aspects of medicine and other types of nursing jobs. [click to continue…]

The demand for live-in and home care nurses is on the rise. As the baby boomer generation gets older, the need for live-in and home care nurses is higher than ever before and family members are ready to pay to keep their loved ones in good care. Cultivating a clientele or landing one regular client can be difficult for a live-in or home care nurse, but these blogs and websites show you have to stand out from others and create a caring relationship that will make patients feel taken care of and safe in your hands.

Blogs and Sites for Live-In and Home Care Nurses

Live-in and home care nurses are always encountering new obstacles and dealing with concerned family members. There’s an art to being a live-in or home care nurse and these blogs and websites show you how to make the transition to working in someone’s home, while providing them with the stellar care they’re used to in a hospital or nursing home.

1. Family Care Giver Blog This is a must-read for care givers and live-in nurses. There’s nothing like getting help and support from fellow care givers. It is a stressful position and this blog provides you with other resources around the web to help your journey as a care giver.
2. The Caregiver’s Voice The independent voice for family and professional caregivers of adults with brain impairment or dementia caused by Alzheimer’s, stroke, related illness, or trauma. The Caregiver’s Voice brings hope and strength to caregivers through knowledge, support, and humor.
3. The Care Giver This blog is penned by a care giver caring for a 94 year old mother. The content can be heavy at times, but provides care giver with amazing support and stories from the front lines. For any live-in care giver or nurse dealing with an Alzheimer’s patient, this blog is packed with resources and information on the latest medical developments with the disease.
4. Hospice Foundation For care givers dealing with hospice patients, this site is an essential read. There’s information on being emotionally supportive for a family struggling with the idea of loss and how to consult patients so they make the most of the good times.
5. Care Diary This excellent blog speaks to care giver’s about safety precautions, mental health concerns and the importance of creating consistency in a patient’s life. Several professionals in the industry write posts regularly, which means you get multiple perspectives on care giver’s dealing with patients suffering from dementia or Alzheimer’s.
6. Care Givingly Yours This blog is written by a spouse care giver coping with MS. It’s a touching blog that shows fellow care giver’s how to keep up a patient’s spirit when the going gets tough. It also discusses keeping a cool head and your patience when the circumstances seem overwhelming.
7. Doris Social Worker Penned by a social worker, this site isn’t about care giving, but it is the blog of a compassionate woman who has made serving others her career. Care givers and live-in nurses can learn a lot from this social worker’s blog when it comes to having an open mind and big heart when dealing with those in need.
8. My Wife Has MS At this blog, a husband chronicles his family’s struggles coping with a wife with MS. For care givers dealing with MS patients, this blog is packed with new studies and recent developments on the disease.
9. Family Care Giver Alliance For family members turned care givers, this blog is helpful in showing you what to expect when becoming the rock for an ill person. It also discusses important topics like taking care of yourself when you’re constantly taking care of someone else.
10. Compassion and Choices This blog focuses on those who have loved ones living with a terminal illness. While care givers may not always be related to patients, it’s still difficult to see someone struggling with a deteriorating quality of life. This site offers tips on keeping up morale for friends and family members, while being respectful of the patient’s wishes.
11. New Old Age This NY Times blog focuses on caring for the elderly. For family members who may not be able to handle being a care giver, the site also talks about nursing homes and interviewing professional care givers and nurses to care for your loved one.
12. Musings of a Cranky Care Giver This husband works as a care giver to his ill wife. Recently this blog has been wrapped up because the blogger find he doesn’t have to sit down to hash out his thoughts as a care giver anymore. It shows family members serving as care givers that things eventually become manageable, no matter how hectic they seem at times.
13. A Place to Scream Whether you’re a family member or a professional care giver or nurse, constantly tending to a sick person can be overwhelming. There’s immense pressure and emotional stress when you’re dealing with a sick patient day after day. This husband of a woman suffering from MS shows you it’s OK to let off the steam every now and then.
14. Middle Age Mania This dedicated wife works as a care giver to her husband who has MS. It’s a personal blog that gives care giver’s and live-in nurses a taste of the nuances that paint every day when caring for a patient or loved one.

Job Sites for Live-In Nurses and Home Care Givers

Online job hunting is the way to go when you’re a live-in nurse or home care giver. You don’t want to wait for patients to come to you. Instead, learn the power of the Internet and social networking to put your name and face out there, so those searching for a home care giver can come to you.

15. Caregiver List This site discusses the trends happening in the care giver industry, including where jobs are surging. Search the job list area and check out why turnover happens for those working as a live-in nurse. Plus, read up on tips on how to keep your patients feeling genuinely cared for, regardless of their condition.
16. Long Term Care Locators At this site, home care givers can scope out the job scene by region and see what folks are looking for from a live-in nurse. There’s also job postings from long term care agencies, which take care of the liability that comes with being a freelance care giver (which can be dangerous in some cases).
17. Premier Home Care Services See what areas of expertise those searching for home care givers are looking for. This is a home care agency providing services in Canada, but their rundown of what clients are looking for in a home care giver will help you put together your resume and brush up on skills that will get you hired.
18. Care Giver Jobs Search this site to find care giver positions in your area. This is an excellent resource for care givers who already know the ropes and simply need a way to post their area of expertise and look at job openings convenient to your location.
19. Home Instead Care Giver This site is conducted by an agency that trains home care givers. Learn what’s required by home care givers in varying states and discusses resources for caring for the elderly and Alzheimer’s patients.
20. Senior Helpers This blog talks about being a care giver to the elderly. Learn what’s involved in caring for an elderly patient. It isn’t all about bed pans and medicine; it’s often about companionship and helping the patient make the most of their quality of life.
21. Care Those in need of a care giver come to this site to search who’s available. This site goes beyond job hunting for home care givers and live-in nurses and also discusses opportunities for working with disabled children.
22. Gris World Special Care This home care giver agency shows you how to get through the process of becoming a home care giver. It talks about working with the disabled, as well as elderly patients. This site focuses on non-medical care giving tips.
23. Care Giver Career For those looking to go out on their own as a home care giver or live-in nurse, this site is a must-read. It helps you access the job market and allows you to post your resume for free, allowing employers to reach out to you if they find you’re a good fit.
24. Care Giver Needed At this site you can post your resume, peruse care giver jobs and learn how to grow your home care giver business. For live-in nurses and care givers who operate on a freelance basis, a site like this is integral to covering your bases and ensuring you’re putting safety first.
25. BrightStar Care This site caters to both care givers and RNs, CNAs, LPV/LPN. BrightStar is an agency that matches qualified care givers with families in their area. At this site you’re able to search job listings and also send in your resume in case BrightStar has a family you’ll fit in with.

Message Boards and Forums for Live-In and Home Care Nurses

There’s nothing like chatting with other live-in and home care nurses to get an idea of what to expect once you’re exclusive to one or a few clients. Learn how to negotiate prices, how to conduct taxes and take care of liabilities from these nurses in-the-know.

26. Care Givers Home Forums Care givers at this site chat about caring for the elderly. For family members living with an elderly parent, this message board is helpful for learning how to make your home more accessible for an elderly person who isn’t able to get around as easily as they once did.
27. My Parkinsons Forum Nurses and care givers dealing with patients struggling with Parkinson’s will appreciate this message board. Members talk about the progress of their loved ones and there’s also a forum for caring for children with PD.
28. HealthBoards – Care Givers Forum This site is a mix of professionals and family members turned care givers. Here, care givers vent and share their experiences, making it a great place for interacting with other care givers struggling with emotional frustrations.
29. Strength for Caring Care givers discuss caring for Alzheimer’s and dementia patients, as well as keeping your spirits up during hard times. There’s also a forum for grieving, which is helpful since many care givers grow close to patients and must grieve the loss just like a family member.
30. Family Care Giving 101 Family care givers share their stories at this messageboard. This board talks about how to prepare yourself for the major responsibility of being a care giver, as well as what to do when you feel you’ve reached the end of your rope. It also talks about guilt, grieving and doing your best to keep your family member aware of their condition (when possible).
31. Empowering Caregivers This is arguably one of the most welcoming and knowledgeable online communities for care givers. It discusses everything from taking care of yourself in order to care effectively to how to explore alternative healing and spiritual inspiration with patients.
32. Heart and Stroke Patient Care Giver Forums This Canadian-based message board aims to provide readers with resources in British Columbia, but the thread are packed with information on how to prevent another heart attack from happening. The site is still developing, but worth stopping by for educating yourself on heart and stroke prevention.
33. Alzheimer’s Messageboards Register at this message board and you’ll have instant access to a plethora of information over working with Alzheimer’s patients. This forum delves into financial assistance, what family members can expect and how to have the patience to cope with an ill loved one.
34. On Top of Cancer Care Giver Care givers working with cancer patients will find this site helpful. It talks about how to recuperate from care giver’s burnout and tips for dealing with the anxieties and stress that come with being around a terminally ill patient.

Home care givers and live-in nurses can use the web as a tool to find new clients, land permanent positions with an agency or raise their business profile. It’s also imperative to read up on safety and liabilities when you’re working in someone’s home. For family members that become care givers due to a loved one falling ill, these blogs and websites will provide everything you need to know about the emotional responsibilities that come with the position. Whether you’re a live-in aide or nurse, it’s important to take care of yourself and get adequate rest so you can take care of your patient with ease.

Although demands for qualified nurses can be on the rise, it can be difficult to be matched up to the right position. Location of employment, type of nurse, type of employer desired, and more can all have different nurses working different jobs. And a read of the latest classified section of your local paper doesn’t cut it anymore these days. With the internet having an answer for just about everything, those with a Twitter account have cause to exhale.

Far more than just listening to the latest celebrity rant, Twitter can be used for everything from breaking news to connecting with a new job contact. To help in a career search, we have gathered the below top 25 Twitter feeds for finding nurse jobs. Whether just looking to see what’s out there to finding specialty jobs in your area, there is something for just about everyone. [click to continue…]

Twitter is a great social networking tool, but you also can use it for social advocacy. For instance, you can find health and wellness experts on Twitter who can help you find a path to a healthier lifestyle. Or, you can learn more about a specific disease and about the medicine or preventive care to treat or avoid that disease. This list of twenty cool uses for Twitter is a great tool for anyone who is interested in health care, and with each idea or disease, you’ll learn about several Twitter users who can help you learn more… [click to continue…]

If you are interested in becoming a Registered Nurse, one of the things you need to know is where you can go for information and for help. Thanks to technology, you can get access to pretty much any information you would like online. The Internet offers access to medical libraries and informational sites, as well as to case studies that can help you learn. It is also possible to find sample care plans online.

You can also meet other nurses and health care professionals online. Professional organizations and nursing social communities can be a great way to connect with others. You can get support, and you can ask questions of your peers. If you are looking for some helpful web resources, here are 50 to consider: [click to continue…]

Most nurses want to do their best to help patients. In many cases, nurses spend a great deal of time with patients, helping them with their treatment plans, treating their problems, and helping out if problems arise. Many nurses have experience and savvy that make them quite useful, no matter the situation.

However, it can still help to have the references you need right at your fingertips. Thanks to technology and the rise of the smart phone, this is possible. Blackberry devices can help you get access to just what you need to better care for your patients as a nurse. Here are 25 Blackberry apps that are designed to help health care professionals:
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If you want to live a healthy lifestyle through nutritious foods, you might learn how to eat correctly through blogs offered by registered dietitians (RDs), companies that specialize in nutrition and other professionals. Within the past two years, many nutritionists have come online to offer their advice and recipes through blogs, and we’ve garnered 25 up-and-coming nutrition blogs in this list. The bloggers listed below created their sites in or after March, 2009, and each blog is listed by month of creation within 2009 or 2010. [click to continue…]

Technology is making it increasingly easy to carry references around with us. Nurses are likely to find that they can use mobile devices and ereaders to keep up with the latest techniques and health news, as well as study and increase their knowledge. Being able to carry a medical library around with you is a great advantage for a nurse, since it provides you with a handy reference in a variety of situations. Student nurses can also benefit by being able to use ebooks as study aids when they have a few minutes, or when they are commuting to and from school. If you are looking for a way to improve your knowledge, and to find a quick reference when you need it, here are 50 great ebooks for nurses: [click to continue…]

The path to becoming a Registered Nurse doesn’t need to end with an RN degree. The RN can forge forward to gain new credentials, new focuses for research and the ability to gain influence and achievements through nursing education and beyond. The following top 10 most influential nursing professors are just a handful of representatives for the nursing education field. They influence students and their peers in their research focuses and achievements. As a student, you might seek out their knowledge by attending the schools where they teach or by reading about their work to learn more about your own nursing focus — which may include teaching. [click to continue…]

The rise of technology has allowed us to take charge of our own health care. You no longer have to be a nurse to know about your own health. Of course, you are better off when you work with a health care professional to keep track of your health, but you can be a more active participant than ever before.

Technology is providing ways to make knowledge more accessible, whether it’s your own health records, or new ways to monitor your vitals. In the end, this makes patient interaction with health care professionals more effective and more meaningful. There are plenty of companies eager to help you learn more about your own health. Here are 25 Health 2.0 companies ready to help you keep on top of your health:

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