Survey: Would you encourage your child to become a nurse?

Absolutely! In fact my daughter and I are both in our second quarter of LPN classes. I wanted to go and asked her if she would like to go with me. We both love what we are doing at the moment, and I hope we continue to feel the same way in the future.

I have been a nurse since 1985. My children and step-children watched as I struggled through nursing school. I never would have believed that one of them would ever go through what I did but my youngest step-son completed his adn program and is now working in a city hospital. He said that I was his inspiration to go into nursing. So yes, encourage your children to become nurses. This can be done not by pushing, but by setting a good example.

No I wouldn't. They had virtually NO mom for 2-3 days at a time...for over 20 years. I'm sorry. They both have BA degrees in the arts.

P

I would never encourage a child to become a nurse. They deserve a working enviorment that is relatively safe from diseases such as HIV and Hep B & C. If they are good at what they do they deserve respect. They need a salery that will enable them to support a family as well as have a decent retirement. Most of all they don't need to always be caught between the pts. wishes, Dr's orders, and hospital/government rules.
Having worked as an R.N. for close to 25 years, I have been there done that. Thank God my children don't have to.

I would not discourage either my son or daughter from becoming a nurse, but I have not encouraged it either. They both know what I do and are proud that their mother is a nurse but they have also seen the down side just by living it all their lives. My daughter is 17 and my son is almost 16, they have seen how exhausted I am when I come home, they have missed me on holidays and many a school function that I couldn't attend.They have seen me work extra, and attend meetings to fight for better pay and working conditions to no avail. They see some of the physical problems I have from working in a hospital for 26yrs,constantly on my feet on hard floors, lifting pushing and pulling. My husband is a police officer and I woudn't encourage that either. They know how hard he works and since we both work shifts on some holidays they missed us both because we had to work. They are also proud of him too but I think over the years they have realized that there are better opportunities out there with much more regular hours that pay much more money. I would support any decisions that my children make in regard to their careers but I know that they decided a long time ago it wasn't going to be what we did and they decided that without any negative input from us. Sometimes when you live it you know you don't want it!

Don't have any kids yet, but I would encourage anyone who knows what nursing is and think they would enjoy it to go into the profession. The key is they should know what nursing is BEFORE commiting themselves.

I would not suggest it or encourage it, but if they came to me and told me it was what they wanted to do, then I wouls support them all the way. I am trying to steer them to business school. I figure, if they find something they like, they can start their own business at it!

This idea came from when my son was seven and I asked him what he wanted to be when he grew up and he said "a gas station man, and a fishing man!" OK, then you will OWN the gas station!! LOL! Kind of warmed my heart, since my dad wokred like a dog with his 3 gas stations. He did it all, and pumped gas too! My dad died before ever knowing my son.

Anyway, I have to say this about nursing. Not many other professions out there where you can work 24 hours on a weekend and be paid for 36, allowing you not only to make decent money, but to be home while your kids father (unless he is also a nurse!) is at work and vice versa (assuming he has a job with "normal" hours.) So, all in all, it served me well while raising my family. I think nursing would be most difficult for single parents, due to the rare opportunities for M-F jobs, and when found, they are usually low in pay. It is also hard to envision myself doing the back-breaking labor of nursing at age 60, let alone 72! I am plannign to go back to school for something, not sure what, new career or MSN, after I have put my kids thru college though.

My son is a senior in HS this year... and has the gift of helping kids with disabilities feel that they have none...would I encourage him to be a nurse? ABSOLUTELY! He has a level of caring that surpasses most teenaged boys. And...he's a jock!
I've been a nurse for 15 years, it enabled me to support our family, be a single parent, my second husband was able to stay home and raise our sons. I was able to work weekends and make excellent money, attend school during the week and earn a master's degree, become a PNP. I've changed my focus of nursing many times in my career...what other career offers the opportunity to do all that nursing does?
Yes, it can be hard work, but absolutely rewarding work. I worked straight nights for 11 years...I know all about no breaks, low staffing and everything else everyone complains about. But through it all, I've never for a moment regretted my choice, and am heartily recommending it to my son, and anyone else who shows an interest in health care.

No, my daughter decided when she was 3 y/o that she would never become a nurse--"the work is too hard, and mama is just too tired." Also , her daddy didn't help, because he thought my job was "sick", even though I was paid more than he was. However, my daughter volunteered at my hospital for 2 summers, and her opinion was reinforced; she stated "that's just too much work and responsibility for what you get paid, mama. I don't care how many lives you save, (I work cardiac surgery), and how good you feel when you send someone home after they get a transplant, you are too tired, and you don't have a life, and if you keep this up, you won't be able to enjoy you grandchildren. I am going to make more money than you, and not work weekends and holidays, and not work half as hard as you do, and not risk getting a back injury, or catch some disease, and I will be home for my children, and I hope that you retire early, so you can get to enjoy my children. She is now a senior in college, and, I have to admit, she enjoys life a lot more than I do, and a lot more than I did at her age when I was in college. She does not have to study as hard either, no biochemistry or immunology texts for her.