Ambulatory nurses provide medical care to patients in their homes or at clinics. They work closely with physicians and provide care for patients with chronic conditions or end-of-life issues. The job requires flexibility and availability, but is desirable for experienced professionals looking for part-time work.
An outpatient nurse provides medical care to inpatients or inpatients. These nurses are usually affiliated with hospitals or doctors’ offices, but they spend most of their time doing home visits. They often work closely with the patients’ physicians, reporting on medical developments and helping strategize care plans.
In medicine, patients can be inpatient or outpatient. The term “inpatient” generally describes people who have been admitted to the hospital and are receiving round-the-clock care. An “outpatient” designation, on the other hand, refers to people who need medical care but receive that care through short daytime visits to hospitals or in their homes. Ambulatory nursing is a profession dedicated to providing ambulatory care wherever patients are.
Most ambulatory nurses work with people who have chronic conditions or who are experiencing end-of-life issues. These people often find it very difficult to travel to hospitals or clinics to receive care. An outpatient nurse arrives at the bedside of patients in these situations and administers medications, treats wounds, and monitors conditions. Depending on the circumstances, an ambulatory nurse may also do things like bathe patients, change their bedding, and help keep them comfortable.
Outpatient care is very flexible and is usually tailored to meet the patients’ specific needs and sufferings. Nurses may show up every day, for example, or once or twice a week. Much of this depends on the patient’s circumstances. People in palliative care are usually cared for by a palliative care team and may need an outside medical representative only occasionally or only when conditions worsen. A sick patient in a private home may require much more regular care.
Medical consultation and health planning are also a large part of the day-to-day work of the ambulatory nurse. Nurses are a component of a patient’s care team, in collaboration with physicians and other specialists. Of all the members of a care team, however, the nurse is usually the only person visiting outpatients in the field. Accurate reporting of both the patient’s condition and the procedures performed is essential for other team members to continue to make appropriate care decisions.
As far as nursing jobs go, outpatient care is generally one of the most desirable and demanding. The position is usually occupied by more experienced professionals, who have had a lot of time to improve their practice and knowledge. It could be a good way for nurses to reduce their hours to more part-time work, as a way to stay home with the family or make retirement easier.
Hours are typically much less flexible in the outpatient setting than in the hospital nursing career. An ambulatory nurse generally must be willing to travel to the patient’s side at any time, at any time of the day or night. This requires a certain level of flexibility and availability.
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