Nurse Impersonators

[NancyRN]

Am I the only one who resents the "nurse impersonators" who abound in the health care field?

Everyone who works at a doctor's office or in a hospital wears scrubs and seems to pass themselves off as a nurse. Of course, the hospital doesn't mind. Visitors and patients don't realize how few nurses are actually on the unit if the unit clerks, nursing assistants, housekeepers, and technicians are all wearing scrubs.

It seems harmless enough, this generic flowered jacketed scrub outfit, until you think of the harm it does to nurses' reputation as a whole. I just wonder what people think when they see two or three "nurses" ambling around the hallways or sitting at the nurses station while their family member waits for pain medication!

I have to think the doctor's offices are the worst. The doctors will actually refer to the medical assistant as "the nurse". I wonder if a doctor would appreciate an employee passing himself off as a doctor?

Last month I was in a doctor's waiting room with my son when a man came in holding his hand wrapped in a towel. He announced that he'd cut his hand and needed to see the doctor ( ok- dont ask me why he didn't go to the ER!) . The "nurse" told him to have a seat. The waiting room was crowded and it was obvious he was in for a very long wait. I saw the towel becoming saturated, and I couldn't help going over to him and telling him to hold his hand above heart level, apply pressure, try some deep breathing, etc. I told the "nurse" to let him go in and be seen, but she said, "He has to wait his turn, it wouldnt be fair to the patients who had appointments."

Driving home, my son asked, "Why didn't that nurse help that man?" I told him, "Because she's not a nurse!" But I wonder how many people in that waiting room went home with the story of the nurse who wouldnt help a bleeding man.

I know nurses don't want to go back to the days of wearing caps (even though I love my cap), but shouldn't we be more concerned about people in scrubs making us look bad? Shouldn't a nurse on duty be as easily recognizable as an EMT, a Firefighters, or a Police Officer?

[P_RN, ADN, RN]

You will do well emass. Stick around and let us know how it goes.

PS I have beaucoups of letters after my name, but I'm still just P the RN.

[Q.]

EMass-

It's nice to see your post clarified and I'm sure you will do well in school. I was actually happy to see your frustration with other Medical Assistants or whomever who steal your certification by misleading others as well. Then you can appreciate what nurses go through on a daily basis, especially in a clinic setting. You can also see the dangers that this poses to the public, and to the nursing profession which is struggling to stay alive.

I realize you feel the need to defend yourself, but please, try to understand that the post was not about you or about BASHING CMA's. I think you may have been a bit defensive because of incompetence that was discussed - granted, these are generalizations, but you would be amazed at the widespread impersonation that goes on. Take a look around you. This is a very, very, VERY important nursing issue and I want to reiterate that our frustrations WILL come out - and they are generalizations but sometimes, nurses need to vent too.

[mamabear]

Boy, does that gall me! I work psych, so it's a little different. ALL the male nurses are initially addressed as "doctor" by the patients and anybody else relatively new to the unit, and all females, be they lab techs, dietary, housekeeping, radiology or psych techs, are addressed as "nurse". You can imagine how this went over when we recently added a female shrink to the staff.

[SKM-NURSIEPOOH, BSN, RN]

How about this one:

I have a nephew whose mother and aunt are CNAs by profession. He seems to believe that they both are nurses; I'm not sure if they told him that or if he thinks it due to their uniforms. My nephew made this remark to me about five years ago, right after I graduated from LPN school. he was only six at the time. My question is: should I have set him straight about his mother & her sister? Or should I've just did what I done which was just to bite my tongue and let them correct him? He's twelve now: do you think I should ask him if he understands their profession or should I just leave it alone?

[pebbles, BSN, RN]

Originally posted by SKM-NURSIEPOOH

How about this one:

I have a nephew whose mother and aunt are CNAs by profession. He seems to believe that they both are nurses; I'm not sure if they told him that or if he thinks it due to their uniforms. My nephew made this remark to me about five years ago, right after I graduated from LPN school. he was only six at the time. My question is: should I have set him straight about his mother & her sister? Or should I've just did what I done which was just to bite my tongue and let them correct him? He's twelve now: do you think I should ask him if he understands their profession or should I just leave it alone?

If you can do it in such a way that you do not denigrate what his mother and aunt do, then by all means, educate him to the reality.... There are real reasons that assitants try to pass themselves off as nurses (pride, wanting respect, etc). You'll end up with some pretty bruised feelings if you aren't tactful. I'd be peeved if you said something about my mum that I perceived as disrespectul, true or not!

I think part of the reason assistants may be tempted to SAY that they are nurses is because the work thay do and the role they DO occupy isn't given any respect. I felt bad for the unit assistants when I was in university, because my instructors would devalue wahtever they told me, saying "oh, she's just an aide". Not having education and background knowlege doesn't make you "just" anything.

That doesn't justify people who actively try to pass themselves off as nurses whaen they aren't, or management practices that are deceptive. Just a comment on inter-professional work relations.

[SKM-NURSIEPOOH, BSN, RN]

Hi Pebbles,

The love that I have for my nephew is the main reason why I didn't set the record straight. I, in no way, would want to burst any bubbles nor would I want to embarrass his mother & aunt. So why should I care what he thinks; maybe it's a ego thing on my part. It's easy to blast the nurse impersonators on this post but perhaps people put them into their current situation. I know there are some who do it on purpose, but at the same time, there are those who are terribly embarrassed because people don't take what they do seriously or being valuable or important. Everyone wants to be that super hero for their kids.

[pebbles, BSN, RN]

I agree, skm-nursiepooh!

I think if we all treated each other with common professional respect, this would simply be an issue of management practices, and not a "fight" between those of us who have to work together, like it or not!

[biscuit_007]

I was hired away from a hospital, while i was still an LPN, by a local pediatrition, to work in his office. At this time i was stusying to be a Rn and working full time also. Imagine my surprise when i was introduced to my new supervisor, An MA. While she was very competent, I really did have a problem reporting to someone that was not in the legal chain of responsibilty. Not only was the MA the lead person in the practice but she was referred to as "my nurse" by the MD. When I left the Job, after about 4 months, I told the MD that i did have a problem working under someone that was less educated and experienced than i. The problem is that MA's are sometimes more academicaly prepared than LPN's.

Around here MA's have associate degrees while LPN's have diploma's from technical schools. Even with the "higher" educational level though, they are much less responsible for their own actions. I spoke to the Board of Nursing and was told that regardless of position we hold in the practice that i as the only nurse had the ultimate responsibilty for any and all nursing type care delivered while i was working there.

How Crappy is that???????

[jmg1]

I am a new nurse but I understand that frustration when others are called nurses and are never corrected.. I do think that scubs are comfortable and I enjoy being able to wear them.. now going back to all White? no thanks I think that should stay for students I hate white uniforms but I worked in a hospital that had different colors for each profession in the hospital and when the patient was admitted a sheet of paper was given to them explaining the color code of the hospital Green was for LPNs and RNs Fusha (pink) was for RTs and Purple was for the CNAs Dietary wore white shirts and black pants...... I think the system worked well this could be an option in other hospitals? who knows

One day all will be able to decipher nurses from CNAs I hope :)

[BeachNurse]

I think that some people are forgetting that, aside from a clinical setting, CMA's or NA's or MA's could not function in anything resembling a nurse's role. I am a clinical research coordinator, and there is no way that I can picture the MA who works in our affiliated clinic doing the type of work that I do. Try to imagine, for a moment, a nurse's aide functioning in the position as a research coordinator, nurse educator, or any type of nurse consultant... It just wouldn't happen. That is because our college education involves more than learning physical tasks. It is all about MENTAL tasks and critical thinking.

When I worked in a Peds Dr's office temping one summer, I overheard the MA introduce herself as a nurse. It really DID burn me up. Nursing impersonation IS illegal and should not be condoned or encouraged by the physicians.

[Flynnstone]

Originally posted by jmg1

I am a new nurse but I understand that frustration when others are called nurses and are never corrected.. I do think that scubs are comfortable and I enjoy being able to wear them.. now going back to all White? no thanks I think that should stay for students I hate white uniforms but I worked in a hospital that had different colors for each profession in the hospital and when the patient was admitted a sheet of paper was given to them explaining the color code of the hospital Green was for LPNs and RNs Fusha (pink) was for RTs and Purple was for the CNAs Dietary wore white shirts and black pants...... I think the system worked well this could be an option in other hospitals? who knows

One day all will be able to decipher nurses from CNAs I hope :)

That color coded system is great! When I started hospital nursing in '95 everyone from dietary, CNA's, LPN and RN wore white. The patients were always confused. Since then they have made some changes but they do not explain the uniform "code".

[Flynnstone]

Originally posted by NancyRN

I think the number one reason nurses have lost respect is the FAKE NURSES who give out bad information! I hear it all the time how "that nurse didn't know anything"...

I whole heartedly agree!!! However, even sadder than fake nurses giving out bad info is REAL NURSES giving out bad info. It happens. I have had the fortune and misfortune to work with some of the best and some of the worst of our profession. Prior to leaving my last position I was disheartend to be told by a colleague (RN) that she would not follow my nursing order because "the doctor didn't order it"!!!!!! (Not the reason I left)

Another problem that plagues us is that in the past, nurses were not ( I believe) taught to be independent practitioners. This was something that was stressed when I went to school in the early 90's. We have our own licenses to protect. We must use our own judgement. Just because "Doctor said" doesn't mean it is written in stone. There are still nurses out there who do not use their own judgement, they just follow orders. I have been accused of doctor bashing by those nurses but I'm not. Don't misunderstand me - please. I consider docs colleagues. We enhance each others work. They can't work the way I do and I can't work the way they do but together we can do a damn good job. I judge each person based on their performance, not their title. If you don't have my respect as a professional it is because you lost it, not because I didn't give it to you.

One last comment and then I'll shut up! The media portrayal of nurses has improved over the decades but it still needs ALOT to be desired. Three cheers to Johnson and Johnson!!!