[K O'Malley]

Expect gross stuff on a daily basis--massive GI bleeds, BM of every color and consistency, tracheal and endotracheal suctioning. One time I bent over a COPD pt. to start an IV. He coughed and I felt something land in my hair. I was busy and forgot about it. Late that night at home I ran my fingers through my hair only to feel dried mucous. YECH!!

[MICU RN]

Please before you make the jump shadow with someone. If you are the type that wants to be in control and not get your hands dirty don't go into nursing!!!!!!! Figure out what you really want out of nursing. Unfortunately nursing requires you to do plenty of nurses aid work. And it can be very frustrating, for example I am currently working in a ICU, like most ICU's we don't have nurs. aids. Administration figures you should be grateful you just have two patients. So you get to do all the aid work plus the more technical work. And by the way with many critical patients who have critical abnormal lab values such as a high ammonia levels the treatment is a laxative that make them usually have plenty of diarrhea. Get the picture, you mentioned that you already had a four year degree, that means you already are trying to get into professional work that requires a college education. Therefore, you may be surprised with the stuff you have to put up with as a RN. Check it out, you may love it or like many you may be very disappointed in what the job discription expects of you. It is the only college type profession that I know of that has all the expections of a profession, you are held to a high standard, you have a lic. and plenty of responsibility. However, on the other hand as a bedside RN you have very little autonomy and are expected daily to perform nurses aid work, clerk work and act as a waiter for the patient and family members. I have been doing it for 4 1/2 years and if I don't go to CRNA school within the year or two I will be looking to get into a better profession. I personally am sick and tired of cleaning **** and waiting on doctors and patients. And by the way if you think it is just me, I spoke with a BSN student today who is grad. this sem. and she told me that at least 1/3 of her class plans on going back to school as soon as they can because they think nursing is such a poor profession compare to other professions that require a four year degree. Oh, and by the way did I mention that nursing school is extremely hard and stressful, by the time you finish you realize that you have worked your ass off and now being told that part of your job is to do aid work that requires absolutely no higher education. I can't believe some times that nursing put up with alll this crap, but I guess you have to look at where it started and realize it has come along way in trying to be perceived as a real profession. It just has a ways to go.

[2banurse]

I'm pretty much in the same boat as you. I'm only a class away from my AA in accounting and I'm thinking seriously of changing gears and applying for nursing. A major reason is that there is a wide variety of options for nursing. However, we will, of course, have to go through nursing school where we will be involved with the gross and messy things.

In some ways I am selfish or self-centered I guess, but I think that if I am sick in a hospital and producing much of this yuckiness, I'd want to have a nurse who doesn't look at me as a cause for their discomfort. I would feel embarrassed and only more ashamed. Which is ridiculous because patients rarely have any control when they are sick. I think if those of us that do feel intimidated by the mess, we need to put ourselves in our patient's situation.

[JenKatt]

If you want to interact with people, and use skills, try being a car salesman.... they use people skills and all that crud.. nurses use time honored elbow grease...
I was reading the above peost by a NICU RN and remembering all that lovely poop... It really does stink, and is impossible to get out, which is why in my NICU when ever we handles kids we wore cover gowns, I would have hated to ruin multiple pairs of white pants.. I've alrwady ruined multiple white shoes (why is it that Admin says we have to wear white shoes, when all most no bodily excretion is white????)
Nursing is hard. You cry with your patients. you fight with them. you fight for them. And sometimes at the end of the day you cry. Just because.
Last month I swore off nursing. i couldn't handle being a pawn for the docs, stepped on my admin and generally frustrated. The next day two nurses, myself being one of them, saved a patients life. No help from the primary doc, he was too busy. If a nurse hadn't been there, she would have died. The doc tried to get the two of us in trouble for what we did, but he got slammed to the wall (there is a God after all). The point is, I made a difference, not the doc... I think I'll hang around for awhile

[researchrabbit]

In some settings you won't encounter much gross stuff. I used to be terribly affected by "grossness", but after having children and pets, I can say that I overcame much of it. After awhile, some of it is even fascinating. That said, I know I cannot stomach the respiratory stuff.

[JenKatt]

I can do respiratory, but I have a hard time with some vomit and poop...

[SmilingBluEyes]

If it's wet and it ain't yours, you will see it...smell it...deal with it.......trust me. That's what shoe covers, gloves and gowns, goggles, etc. are for. I like MICU's suggestion to shadow a nurse.....perhaps shadow several in different areas.....really see what it is you are getting into before you jump in...I wish all prospective nurses good luck!

[RNpupil]

Its not as messy as you think I've seen bloody massacres, inside of patients chests, inside of vaginas, stomachs and open flesh and even had to dig out poop so far. Its no so bad once you know what to expect.

[ITSJUSTMEZOE]

Da** yall are grossing me out..... LOL
Whose up for pizza lol
Its horribly gross at times, and then there are days that is isnt, but those arent often. You will get to the point were nothing phases you unless its a new color or smell thats unfamilar to you and your co workers then you will carry it around until you find someone who recognizes it.
I love it the good the bad and the ugly.
Zoe

[amyrae76]

Wow! I guess gross stuff is just one part of the job I'll have to get used to, especially if I ever want to have kids! Honestly I'm more worried about that part of the job than getting through school and learning the stuff. I'm actually looking forward to that challenge -- am I crazy or what?