I'm a nurse...for animals? - Page 4

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    May 11, '12 by
    Blame it on my being tired-to-the-bone, but my opinion is that there are far too many other things to worry about than if a vet tech calls themselves a nurse.

    What I worry about:

    Did I give a complete report to the on-coming nurse?
    Did I remember to chart XYZ?
    Did I follow up on my pt's pre-op orders since I couldn't get a hold of the doc?
    Did I alert the resident to let him know that his case was moved up?
    Did I remember that I have a meeting at 1430? Do I have my notes?
    Does the surgeon know that my pt is a Jehovah's Witness and that her crit is in the toilet?
    Does my trauma pt have four units of PRBCs ordered and ready to go?
    Are the implants for my pt's total knee replacement in house? Or do I need to contact the rep?
    Do I have enough staff for this shift? Should I call in my prn nurses?
    Do I have an OR open for a trauma?
    Do I have instruments for the next lap chole?

    When the brown stuff hits the fan, the real question is who is there to help you get through it. I know this is off-topic, but as I stated, there are just too many other pressing matters that take up the rental space in my head. If a vet tech wants to call themselves a nurse, then so be it. I would be happy to have her take care of my little mutt.
    CompleteUnknown, pinkfluffybunny, QueenMangin, and 1 other like this.
  2. May 11, '12 by
    D
    Quote from PetsToPeople
    Before you decided to get on here with your rant you should have taken the time to actually research what a Veterinary Technician is, because I am one, and I assure you that I DO in fact hold an associated degree in Veterinary Technology, for which I worked my hind end off and is fact, has given me a huge advantage in my RN program. A Vet Tech is licensed/registered (term is different depending on the state) in their state of employment and are required to maintain and submit biennial continuing education hours to maintain that license. My line has always been "I'm a Vet Tech, like a people nurse, except I work with animals." This is the easiest explanation no matter who I am talking to, because whether you are a client who's pet I am working with, a CNA/LPN/RN, etc, a friend, or some stranger I just met, (and I know this from years and years of experience from dealing with this) when I tell you I am a Vet Tech NO ONE knows what I am talking about. They automatically think you are a Vet and that is all they can wrap their minds around...just as to every pt in a hospital you are either a nurse or a doctor and that is all they understand or care to know. This is the second topic to come up over the title RN, and I admit, I will be very proud of that title upon graduation, but really, it's started to look bad on RN's that we seem so insecure of our title and position in the medical community that this seems to get nurses so upset.
    When I say you vet techs don't have degrees in animal nursing, I mean that literally. Your degree title is veterinary technology, hence the name vet tech. I used my words selectively; vet tech title comes from veterinary technology degree. No less, no more than nurse, just different title. My degree is associate degree in nursing. Not human body healer, but nurse, as is implied by my degree.
  3. May 11, '12 by
    I guess here in Texas we are more strict. According to the Nurse Practice Act, “Nurse” means a person required to be licensed under this chapter to engage in professional (RN) or vocational nursing. This was accepted in 2003, and use of the generic title “nurse” was restricted to use by RNs and LVNs (LPN's) only.
    While I completely agree that vet techs do a lot of medical procedures, legally they could get in trouble by calling themselves nurses. Same goes for medical assistants who do it all the time.
    While I respect all professions for what they do, I am protective of my professional title.
    Guttercat, Juniper248, Annaiya, and 1 other like this.
  4. May 11, '12 by
    Quote from BelgianRN
    I fail to see what the harm is. This woman made small talk to you a person she met in a store. It's not like she pushed you away during CPR claiming she is a nurse and you are doing a bad job. Even though it's a protected title, nurse to me is still a very broad word and has multiple meanings (as other posters have expressed). It's not like she called herself an LPN, RN, *insert letter combination of choice here*. Of course she could still be an LPN, RN, ... that decided it was more fun/rewarding working with animals because they bark and don't worry about titles; but decided a casual meeting with a shoe shopping woman didn't warrant the explanation of her career choice.In my experience you have people wrongly using protected titles and it either leads to a hilarious situation or it ends up with them scorned or arrested. The foot massage therapist that tried to pass himself off as an orthopedic surgeon that had to ask me what a scapula was comes to mind. Or the chem professor stating he is a doctor and then gets confused as you bury them in lab values.Maybe I have a very light view to this matter since a nurse in Belgium is hardly ever referred to by using their official title (which would roughly translate to "skilled-nurse") but generally the term that translates to "little nurse-person" is used or they'll adress the nurse with "sister" or "brother". I'm so used to not being called by proper titles that reflect my education and skill level that I just respond to "brother". And having to share the term "little nurse-person" with everyone that ever held a washing cloth in their hands Just learn to let it go and only lash out when there is harm involved.
    Hahaha!! Little nurse person! I love it. Thanks for sharing.
    Fiona59 likes this.
  5. May 11, '12 by
    I'm ok with her referring to herself as a nurse. She is a nurse. If she said she was an RN, then I'd have a problem with it.
    OCNRN63, ALavallee, RN in training, and 2 others like this.
  6. May 11, '12 by
    I don't care what people call themselves. I could call myself an astronaut but that wouldn't make it so. There are serious problems in the world, and if I'm going spend a single moment worrying about something I can't control, it would be something that means more than a hill of beans.
    OCNRN63, CompleteUnknown, pinkfluffybunny, and 1 other like this.
  7. May 11, '12 by
    How about we start in on how students claim to be RNs or LPNs in training? They are student nurses who fail to realize that the "R" or "L" in their designation only comes upon completeion of their education and final certification exam.
    OCNRN63 likes this.
  8. May 12, '12 by
    I am with the I could care less group, I have enough going on in my life that bugs the pee out of me.
    Fiona59 and RN in training like this.
  9. May 12, '12 by
    Quote from BlueDevil,DNP
    I don't care what people call themselves. I could call myself an astronaut but that wouldn't make it so. There are serious problems in the world, and if I'm going spend a single moment worrying about something I can't control, it would be something that means more than a hill of beans.
    On some forum out there is an astronaut who read this and thought "dang it, now nurses are calling themselves astronauts! Do they know how much work I put in to use the title "astronaut!!" And he/she then went on allastronauts.com to rant.
    EmTheNewRN, ALavallee, RN in training, and 2 others like this.
  10. May 12, '12 by
    Veterinary nurse is the official term here in Australia and even if it wasn't, I wouldn't have a problem with it. The original post with the comment about the OP's notes on cardiac conditions seemed to be suggesting that a vet tech/vet nurse has less knowledge than an RN/LPN which is a bit condescending and I doubt it's true anyway. Imagine having to know your disease processes, common problems, interventions, usual medication dosages, reactions to anaesthesia, and a million other things, not just for one species, but for the cat, the dog, the horse, the cow, the guinea pig, the bird, the goat, the rabbit, the lizard, the bat, the kangaroo, yikes it never ends.

    This was a casual conversation in a shop.... I'm finding it hard to see the problem.
    Nurse Leigh, Fiona59, OCNRN63, and 2 others like this.