Give me some hope...Is ANYONE happy being a nurse??

[Rebekah1882]

I have T-20 days to make a HUGE decision. I am already in the radiography program and have been in my clinical rotations for 6 months however I have discovered that I am more interested in nursing and realized that there are many more opportunities. I want to make the jump but I am discouraged by many things I am reading here. I want to believe that these miseries are the minority but I need some feed back! If you still enjoy nursing please let me know!

[TU RN, DNP, CRNA]

Can you explain this to me? I don't have any nursing or CNA experience so I am not sure what this means.

I guess you're referencing what rrlpn said above about being treated like a CNA. CNAs perform the most basic set of skills in the nursing spectrum. That is, taking vitals, helping with ADLs (toileting, bathing, feeding), checking blood sugar, doing EKGs. If there's an abnormal value or problem of some sort, you tell the LPN or RN. You can get your CNA certification in a few months whereas to be an LPN you have to study for a few years (for RN it's even longer) and pass a nationwide licensure exam. You are expected to do more, and with that you have more accountability and responsibility to the patient. These include assessing the patient, performing certain invasive procedures, communicating with the physician, giving medications, and sometimes, cleaning up every single other hospital employee's failures. However it seems like many average people don't get these differences and basic needs DO have to be addressed, so anybody (CNA/LPN/RN) will do.

Depending on the acuity of patients you end up taking care of, the ratio of CNA stuff to RN stuff varies. For instance on a medsurg floor you're going to do less assessment, intervention, communication with MDs, and more teaching, meeting basic needs for a large number of patients (5-8 ). You need to be an excellent communicator with patients and families and time management is key. In an ICU your patients are very sick and require frequent assessment, close monitoring, and intervention. Often the doctor(s) is(are) right there or around the corner and you take care fewer patients (1-3). You still need to meet basic needs because many ICUs are staffed with only nurses (no CNAs) and your communication is more inter-professional (to the MD or respiratory therapist), but families are still present.

What you'll never know until you work as a CNA or nurse are limitations and struggles bestowed onto us by the hospitals business model and financial motives -- so I now leave you with a modified proverb "**** rolls downhill, and nursing is at the bottom."

[bsyrn, ASN, RN]

I wanted to be a nurse since I was 5 years old, I have never once regretted my decision. There are so many avenues you can take in nursing and while the job market is tough, there are jobs out there. So to answer your question....yes I do love being a nurse.

[Whoatemyburger]

Not me....I'm miserable being a nurse. From ocd crazy coworkers, to tons of insane work, to 12hour exhausting shifts...it sucks

That's sad find a better workplace ....

[Kipahni, RN]

TU RN- I like how you described the difference between ICU and Med/Surg.

I had a hard time relaying to my students and co-workers the difference. Both have different types of stresses. One is not harder then the other, so I would say it just depends on what kind of relationship do you want with your patient.