[Tom123]

Tony,

You are NOT to old to become a nurse. If you like caring for individuals who are ill; if you are compassionate, and not afraid to show that compassion; and if you like a nuturing role, then nursing is a good role for you.

I have been a nurse for 42 years. It has changed a lot since I started. You should not have any problem in obtaining a job, after graduation.

Wishing you the best.

[pawashrn]

here is my 2 cents.

1. your not to old, age does not equal maturity, you should have a truer perspective than a high school student entering N.S.
2. helping people is good, but cleaning poop, vomit,blood, trying to explain to a lay person that nothing else can be done,knowing that they have little ones at home, that's reality.
3.shut-up and listen. older students have a tendency to explain things that have happened in their life, remember, no one cares that you had appendectomy when you where 20. They just want to get through lecture and go back to bed. The younger ones have parties to go to or survive from.
4. Being 51 y.o. and having a 28 y.o physician insult you and you still have to take care his/her patient. ( You can always get them later, Nurses always win)
5.Go for it, because if you haven't already thought about all the do's and don'ts on your on. You wouldn't be in this forum seeking support.


See ya at graduation w/ your cane and hearing aid in hand

[Tom123]

Tony,

PAWASHRN, has given you something to think about. We do have to clean up the vomit, the incontinent patients, etc. However, that is part of the compassionate caring attitude that I spoke of in my first reply.

The comment about the physician, I have to disagree. If you obtain your BSN from an accrediated university -- I MEAN A GENERIC BSN -- then you will be in the ranks of the Professional Nurse. You will be the physician's colleague -- not a door mat. If you have the proper education, you are then equipped to communicate with the physician on his/her level. That requires you to have your BSN. I realize that this may insult those nurses with a Diploma or ADN. I am sorry. The criteria of a profession requires education in an institution of higher learning, offering a bachelor's degree in that profession.

Go for the Gold. We need more nurses, and we especially need more male nurses.

If I can be help, let me know. I have taught in a Collegate nursing
program, in both the undergraduate and graduate level.

Wishing you the best.

[Dad-2-3]

Originally Posted by Tom123

Tony,

PAWASHRN, has given you something to think about. We do have to clean up the vomit, the incontinent patients, etc. However, that is part of the compassionate caring attitude that I spoke of in my first reply.

The comment about the physician, I have to disagree. If you obtain your BSN from an accrediated university -- I MEAN A GENERIC BSN -- then you will be in the ranks of the Professional Nurse. You will be the physician's colleague -- not a door mat. If you have the proper education, you are then equipped to communicate with the physician on his/her level. That requires you to have your BSN. I realize that this may insult those nurses with a Diploma or ADN. I am sorry. The criteria of a profession requires education in an institution of higher learning, offering a bachelor's degree in that profession.

Go for the Gold. We need more nurses, and we especially need more male nurses.

If I can be help, let me know. I have taught in a Collegate nursing
program, in both the undergraduate and graduate level.

Wishing you the best.

First I would like to apologizs to the OP because this is a bit of a hijack, but I can't let this go. I first want to say that no offense was taken by me about the ADN VS BSN thing because I understand what you are saying. BSN obviously has more education and knowledge, but I have to disagree with the idea that unless you have a BSN you are a doormat for physicians or cannot communicate on their level. Heck I don't believe a PCA or CNA should be a doormat for a doc or nurse. I realize that often nurses get the brunt of a doc's wrath, sometimes deserved, sometimes not deserved, but the thought that unless you have a BSN you are not a colleague of the doc or unable to communicate on their level is pure baloney. I really can't believe that sort of thinking is even coming from a nurse.

Is the LPN, CNA or PCA a doormat for the RN because they only have a certification or a lesser degree??

Again, I apologize to the OP for the hijack.

I think that the OP should go for it also, whether it be LPN, ASN, or BSN!! Good luck!!

[RNdude123]

Congrats on an excellent career choice, Tony. Nursing will open all kinds of doors for you that you won't believe. Just ignore the naysayers and you will be fine. Most of my friends can't believe that my family can afford for my wife to stay home full time and still live comfortably. And we just moved into a big house in a nice neighborhood to boot! The opportunities are out there if you are open-minded enough to take them.

I'm a former IT guy that couldn't find work after being laid off. Going into nursing for me was ALL about job security, but it grew on me very quickly. The challenges are many, but I have no doubt you'll form relationships that will help you to weather them. Stick with it and you'll be glad you did.

[RNdude123]

Originally Posted by Tom123

If you obtain your BSN from an accrediated university -- I MEAN A GENERIC BSN -- then you will be in the ranks of the Professional Nurse. You will be the physician's colleague -- not a door mat. If you have the proper education, you are then equipped to communicate with the physician on his/her level. That requires you to have your BSN. I realize that this may insult those nurses with a Diploma or ADN. I am sorry.

I would agree about having a bachelor's degree in general, but clinical knowlege and experience are supremely more important than a few extra letters behind your title. Not once have I ever heard a doctor question a nurse's level of education.

And before you ask, yes, I do have my ASN. But I also have a BS from a former life. While I consider this education important, this has nothing to do with my ability to relate with the MD. Just as I'm sure you have seen ASN nurses who are unprofessional and unpolished, I have seen many BSN nurses exactly the same.

Sorry about the rant here as well.

[nursemike]

http://allnurses.com/forums/f283/ There is a forum devoted to discussions about ADN vs. BSN vs Diploma. It's a topic which can be (and has been) debated at length, but sometimes tends to generate more heat than light.

This thread would profit if we could avoid that briar patch.

[Tom123]

It is unfortunate that people make the wrong interpretation of a statement. Having been in Nursing for over 40 years, and having my PhD, I have seen physicians question a nurse's ability based on their educational level. One must remember that a physician has just completed a graduate degree. That physician has a Bachelor's degree, and then after 4-5 years of Med School, comes out with an MD.

Some leaders in nursing want to see the minimum requirement for entry into the profession at the Master's Level. Physical Therapy graduates now have a Master's degree upon graduation, because their program is 5-6 years in length. Nurses have to ask if they wish to stay at the same level that is required of other Health Care Professions. Currently, nursing is the only Health Care Profession that has 3 different levels of education, to qualify to sit for the State Board. I personally believe that this is the greatest problem we have in defending the concept that Nursing is a Profession and not a Vocation. Flexner in 1910 listed the criteria of a profession. His first criteria was an education in an institution of higher learning offering a minimum of a Bachelor's degree.

As for the CNA, the Patient Care Tech, etc. I would hope that nurses do not use them as a doormat. But regretfully, I have had to discipline nurses for just that. Some RNs and LPNs think that just because they are "nurses" they do not need to soil their hands in cleaning a patient who has been incontinent, etc. The CNA can be an extreme value to the nurse. Patients will tell them things that they do not tell the RN or LPN because they see us as authority figures. I have had CNAs come to me about conversations with patients that have been very valuable in helping me plan the patients' care.

What I trying to say to Tony, is that he will be better prepared to take on the role of RN if he has his Generic BSN. Through that education he will be "rounded." He will recieve a minimum of 2years of concentrated nursing courses, but also will receive a sound basis in Chemistry, Physics, Biology, Sociology, English, History, etc.

I want to see Tony become a RN. But I also want to see him receive the proper education.

I have also seen BSN, Diploma, and ADN nurses who are excellent. I have seen some LPNs that were better than some of my RNs. However, I must question how a woman or man can truly receive a proper education in nursing, when they only have approximately one year of nursing courses? How can a person obtain the proper amount of knowledge in Psychiatric Nursing, Maternal Child Nursing, and Pediatrics, when they only have 6 weeks to study these special areas of nursing.

Nursing Education should contain at least 3 semesters of Med/Surg, with the last semester being Advanced Med/Surg. It should also contain a semester of Peds, OB/GYN, and Psychiatry. Plus their should also be a semester devoted to Public Health Nursing, Community Health Nursing, and Leadership. There also needs to be courses in Professional Nursing -- what does it really mean, and what are you expected to do? A BSN program gives that individual an indepth knowledge of Pathophysiology. A nurse MUST know what is happening at the cellular level, and how a specific disease effects ALL other systems of the body. Technical skills do not make a nurse.

Tony, I want to see you become a nurse. Please research different nursing programs before you make a decision on which educational route you will pursue.

[nursemike]

Tony, I was 48 when I graduated nursing school, making me immediately an average-aged RN. It's good you say you're in good shape. Nursing School can be very demanding. Finding time to maintain your health isn't easy, but exercise, a proper diet, and adequate sleep are worth the effort. Or so I'm told. I seem to remember doing most of my eating and sleeping behind the wheel as I commuted between home, school, and clinicals.

I don't know how to know whether nursing is for you. An entry-level job, or volunteering, at a hospital could be a start. I worked as an orderly for 7 years before going to school, and several of my classmates got jobs as aides when they started school (the facility where I work hires a lot of nursing students, partly as a way of recruiting new nurses).

Personally, I love it. The first 6 mos. as a nurse can be rather brutal, and the first year is no picnic. But you learn a lot, and as far as I can tell, you never stop learning. I can't honestly say it's never boring, but you learn to cherish the occassional boring shift. Sometimes it feels like bailing out a lifeboat with a sieve, but on the whole it's useful and rewarding work. Working around a lot of women is a treat, too. I don't mean that in a lecherous way. Well, not just a lecherous way. I like the company of strong, independent, intelligent women, and most nurses are well equipped to stand on their own hind legs and think for themselves.

[Suesquatch]

I'm a female peeking in here, but - I was a month shy of 53 when I got licensed as an LPN. Will be 55 when I am licensed as an RN. Plan on going all the way to the MSN level.

Hey, you're gonna age anyway. Age doing something you like.