What smells?? ER!

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doctors firing nurses??? :(

what the heck was on er tonight? carter gets to decide how much money to spend on security measures, and then is going to fire three senior nurses to pay for it??? when did docs have anything to do with the unit budget, and when did they start firing nurses?? tell me this is not normal practice at any hospital...please.

i have had it. i know they have a medical advisor- does this guy have delusions of grandeur? does he need a psych consult, or one of those metal charts upside the head? someone on this board suggested an episode from the nursing perspective- let the docs take the background for an hour. i love that idea.

let's start a revolution...i'm off to find a feedback link, and i expect all of you professionals out there to send in letters.

back in a minute.

Specializes in ER.

Hell, those weren't hormone shots- no way. I want to know what they were...maybe she has some deadly disease. It was a 10cc syringe so what would she use it for ? Of course on ER the size of the syringe may not relate to real life.

I think they could really do a good job on showing how the lack of nurses affects the ER, if they decided to. I did notice on the last episode some of the docs complaining about having to do nursing jobs- HA!

Maybe she has hepatitis C and is shooting her interferon at work? I knew a nurse who did that.

Specializes in Oncology/Haemetology/HIV.

With a 10 cc syringe?????????

Originally posted by caroladybelle

With a 10 cc syringe?????????

OMG no!! Didn't see THAT part.........:o Another example of ER's unrealism

Canoehead,

A big thumbs up for you. TV has a huge efect on those watching it. Even though people know in their minds that these shows are for entertainment purposes, there's a part of them that starts to believe that the things they're viewing on TV are true. As nurses we have to be careful about the way the public views the nursing profession. Now that Babyboomers are approaching retirement age the nursing shortage is expected to get worse. In order to recruit more applicants into the Nursing Profession we have to make sure the public views Nursing as a profession that is guided by its own licensing rules that are completely seperate from that of a physician. I have 15 years experience working as an ER/Trauma nurse and I too believe that the show "ER" could make some improvements in the way that they portray nurses. (even though their portrayal is greatly improved from that of shows in the past ----ugh!!!) Believe it or not, some members of the public still believe that people go into "Nursing" because they are not intelligent enough to get into Medical School or that they could not afford Med School--- so, they "settled" for Nursing instead. These myths need to be put to rest, so we do have to monitor the way Nursing is portrayed on TV.

Specializes in ER.

Thanks Mary Anne.

I think both professions have their idiots and their experts, and nursing is portrayed more as a following profession than as leaders. In actual fact we are often the advocates.

I remember in nursing school discussing how to get an order you wanted from a cranky MD, and one of the techniques suggested by our instructors was to let him think it was his idea. Sad that an approach like that was actually taught in nursing school.

Originally posted by canoehead

Thanks Mary Anne.

I think both professions have their idiots and their experts, and nursing is portrayed more as a following profession than as leaders. In actual fact we are often the advocates.

I remember in nursing school discussing how to get an order you wanted from a cranky MD, and one of the techniques suggested by our instructors was to let him think it was his idea. Sad that an approach like that was actually taught in nursing school.

It's funny you should mention that-because we were taught that,too(along with standing in the doc's presence and making HIM coffee).

I have a rule for the guys who work with me...no more"I'm sorry""I'm sorry to bother you,doctor""I'm sorry the lab isn't back yet"I mean,I'm all for being polite,but we shouldn't apologize for doing our jobs,and making the docs do theirs.

Hi everyone,

I just want to give everyone a different perspective. I am considering a medical field, and for a long time thinking of medical school. I was volunteering in free clinics and such, but didn't see too much of nurses there. I didn't even consider nursing at first. Why? You guessed it. I thought that all nurses did was follow doctor's orders. I thought doctors were more involved with the patient in making decisions, from the psychosocial aspect as well.

Now, I'm not from a medical family. I don't believe TV shows as a general rule, but I think a lot of subliminal influence happens. And of course what I was thinking was absolutely wrong. I did volunteer rotations in ICU, ER and Labor and Delivery and saw how much nurses were responsible for, how much decision making was necessary. The doctor was hardly ever around! And they sure didn't have time to do all of the things you see on TV shows (e.g. spending off hours pulling for a specific patient). It was the nurses who were primarily advocating for the patient.

I also realized that doctors don;t have complete autonomy. They are also playing their hospital's policy and having to work within insurance guidelines. They don't have say over who gets hired/fired (unless of course private practice).

Because of these experiences, I am reevaluating what role I want in the healthcare field. I feel lucky that I got a chance to see "real life" first. However, I am concerned that many others who would be considering this field might be swayed due to some of the negative stereotypes of nurses that are perpetuated. I think, actually, it can be equally harmful for potential medical students, because it portrays an incorrect view of what being a doctor is actually like, which can be a recipe for burnout down the road.

So I'll end this novel :) by saying that I am very glad that people are speaking out. Media is extremely pervasive, and regardless of whether I decide to pursue nursing I will always speak out when I see them so blatantly misrepresented.

Thanks for listening.

What did y'all think about last night's show?

Cheers for the nurse's sticking together. I thought Hallay (sp?) was great - she said something like doctors come and go, but the nurses are still here taking care of everyone. Isnt that the truth? It's about time they showed the nurses with some respect. although, the whole reason the ER is in turmoil is over sleeping with Luka.

Last night..was... ok.. forgive me but:rolleyes:...Romano,...cracks me up with his smart a$$ crude-to the point quips...notice he has a nack for carrying on a 2 way conversation with himself...And what did the petition say? That Luka treated the nurses unfairly and should sleep with all or resign? Ya think nurses could be portayed sticking together on something a little more important than .."rack revenge"? oh yeah.I forgot E.R. is just entertainment.;)

Can someone clue me in about what happened last night?

I had to work, and my satellite wasn't working right so couldn't even tape it... :(

Tv viewing will rot your brain

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