I've been in my management position for 20 years. I need a change, but I'm five years from retirement. Is it too late to return to patient care?

It's never too late. Determine your next move and plan to do it before your need for change affects your current job performance. But don't be hasty. If you've been at this job for 20 years, it must have some positive facets. Do you really need a complete career change, or just some tweaks to your current job? A vacation might help you decide.

Your job change will be easier if you research a specific nursing field. Interview friends in these fields to learn what duties and additional education are required. And review your retirement plans. Will they change as a result of a pay cut? Should you retire early from your current job instead, and work part-time at something else? Don't let that deter you from doing what you want—money isn't everything!

DONNA OJANEN THOMAS, RN, MSN, a member of the RN editorial board, is director of the emergency department and rapid treatment unit at Primary Children's Medical Center in Salt Lake City.

VALERIE G. A. GROSSMAN, RN, BSN, is Clinician III in diagnostic imaging at Rochester General Hospital in NY.