One in five people in the US work from the comfort of their own home. They avoid any commute, enjoy the peaceful surroundings, are afforded more time to spend with their family, and in the end, can often be more productive than those working in a traditional office environment.
The typical nursing job is hospital, rehabilitation or extended care facility, clinic or medical office based. Most patients conjure up an image of a nurse in a crisp white uniform topped off by a starched cap or, more currently, in colorful scrubs.
Think again. Many nurses now work from home in a myriad of roles. They work for the betterment of healthcare and to make life easier for their patients. Here are a few work-at-home jobs in the nursing profession, which are becoming ever more popular in the healthcare industry.
Case Manager
A case manager helps their patients maintain good health. They develop the best care plan to answer the medical needs of each patient. This includes scheduling appointments with primary care physicians (PCPs) and specialists in a timely manner, arranging diagnostic tests, surgery and follow-up appointments. This role involves a great deal of telephone time.
Patient Advocate
Nurse advocates guide their patients through all facets of their medical care including treatment choices, general education and health insurance issues. Their role is to listen intently to the concerns of their patient and help them understand and problem-solve healthcare issues.
Blogger/Writer
This work-at-home nurse imparts researched knowledge on healthcare topics and personal wisdom on their readers. Writing a blog on a regular basis helps to build an audience who awaits the next installment. This is a self-employed job or one working as a contractor for a blog site. A nurse blogger enhances their knowledge through research while making some extra cash.
Health Insurance Company Nurse
Working from home for an insurance company can take on several different roles. Evaluating individual claim cases, medical coding for insurance payment purposes, clinical research about specific claims and insurance audits are a few of the diverse options in this healthcare field.
Medical Coding
Medical coding, specifically the ICD-10, determines coverage and payment for delivered healthcare. Correct coding is imperative to healthcare payment. A clinically experienced nurse can assign the correct codes in the specialized world of health informatics.
Telephone Triage or Telehealth
Telephone triage nurses work in physician offices, call centers, managed health insurance companies and other healthcare facilities. They guide patients over the telephone to determine the best plan of care and determine if an urgent or scheduled visit to the MD is needed. They also impart important medical information to the caller.
Legal Nurse Consultant
This nursing role involves being the liaison with lawyers, clients and physicians in a legal case. A legal nurse consultant analyses clinical and administrative nursing practice, healthcare facts and other issues related to a specific case. Legal nurse consultants also help to determine and secure expert witnesses in a case, as needed. This job requires a BSN or higher, at least five years of clinical experience and courses/certificate specializing in legal nurse consulting.
Sales or Marketing
Some nurses work from home as sales and marketing specialists representing different pharmaceutical and medical products. An outgoing, persuasive personality and strong knowledge of the product are needed to be successful in this field.
With some direct patient care experience and the credentials of a licensed RN, there are many work-at-home opportunities to be experienced, you just have to search a little to find them. It should not be too difficult because experts estimate that virtual nursing or work-at-home jobs will increase by 20% over the next ten years.
There are unique employment opportunities in the nursing field. Check out these two sites for more work-at-home and traditional healthcare opportunities: http://www.nursingjobs.org and http://www.hospitaljobsonline.com.
