does age REALLY matter?

2bNurseNickStat · Aug 5, 2008

It's been my experience, in nursing school, that the older students perform way, way better, both academically and in clinicals, than the text-message-obsessed, no-attention span younger crowd. I'm 40, and I can assure you, my phone rings off the hook, every semester, with the kids calling me, looking to borrow my notes or to have me tutor them.
At the hospitals, the younger crowd is often the one that is sitting on their rump in the nurses station, trying to avoid that patient with the poopy diaper.
Finally, I think your post was silly, and very, very plainly shows that you have a lot of growing up to do.
By the way, maybe if those younger students had studied harder, and worked harder, and been smarter and better prepared, they'd have been accepted into nursing school.

I must stop posting on this thread I think. I must say Bortaz, I agree with you saying that many of the older students may perform better than younger (and also understand this is your experience), but again, I again say younger or older, age has absolutely nothing to do (in my experience) whether a person makes a good student or nurse.

As a long time tech and very soon to be RN I feel sorry for ANYONE who avoids the poopy diaper (though I never really see anyone running TOWARDS the poopy diaper:D), this is a basic need of the patient that regardless of age or type of the caregiver, needs to be addressed.

Anyway, this is my last post on this thread (as I feel quite passionately that we should be educational, supportive, nurturing, and tolerant of each other) and truly hope we all realize that age doesn't make a good student, nurse, or person. The person makes a good student, nurse, or...well, person!

Hope this all clears up and we can all get along and work together as nurses!!! Let's be there for each other in the same profession and lets be there for the patients!:)

GilaRRT · Aug 5, 2008

[Where do you get the impression I thought the OP was attacking anybody?]
I know that this question isn't directed at me but perhaps reading your earlier comments might answer your question:
you said: [However, I will say, you need to have some real experience and facts to back up your claims before spouting off.] :wink2:
And given the caustic comments you made to the OP, well it seemed like a response to someone who was attacking something....
You know i'm pretty disgusted at some of the comments made on this thread. This is a classic example of nurses eating their young. Yeah the OP should have written her question maybe a little better but she really wanted an answer to her question. Nurses should be setting a better example than this. Nursing students come in all shapes and sizes, some have less life experience and maturity than others. This does not given anyone the right to gang up on them and make equally stupid and immature comments in return.
I have had many nursing students ask 'silly questions' and I have never reacted like this to them because it's bullying behaviour.
I completely agree with NurseNickStat comments. This is a great place to clear up any misconceptions about nursing.

You can call it caustic all day long if you want; however, I beg to differ. I called it how I saw it, no personal attack. When you say old people getting accepted into nursing school is helping to exacerbate the nursing shortage because old people will leave nursing before their younger counterparts, you are dropping some pretty big bombs. The statement was simply incorrect and in fact, feeds into the old stereotype we often ignorantly assign to "older people." This IMHO is "spouting off."

I understand tolerance and all of that; however, we must also confront incorrect statements. The OP made a pretty bold statement and thus far has not provided any information to back up his/her claims.

bill4745, RN · Aug 5, 2008

Who's to say a 25 year old will graduate and remain a nurse for that long?

Excellent point. I'd love to know how many new grads leave the profession in the first five years after graduation.

MAISY, RN-ER, BSN, RN · Aug 5, 2008

Honest question from a younger student nurse....the same question my kids asked when I returned to school after being downsized out of technology management.

My immediate response is to get cranky, but I realize (due to old age and experience), the question is coming from someone who cannot understand that you live life, get older, and continue TO LIVE LIFE!

Nursing offers us all something different. I don't know how long I will be an active hospital nurse, but I will always be a nurse:nurse:. I am continuing my education to expand my horizons. I feel my path will be education, of both new nurses and the general public. There is more than one type of nurse....we all evolve....different does not mean bad.

So, does age really matter? Maybe...if you aren't organized. Truthfully, for those of us who have had other careers....most of us are used to hard work. It's just a different venue. Additionally, most older students have life responsibilities that regular college aged students have no clue about!

Currently precepting a young woman who I think is great, and graduated with my son from HS. Every day she is dragging, and can't believe all of us oldies are running around....I keep telling her she'll "toughen up"....no one regardless of age can walk into a physically and emotionally draining job without experience. Us oldies have plenty of that.:redbeathe

JMHO

Maisy

NightOwl0624 · Aug 5, 2008

O.k. I don't want to offend ANYONE out there, I just want to know what are the opinions of different people and maybe not feel so bad for thinking this way. I'm currently attending an ADN program and I'm so happy that I was accepted to nursing school. HOWEVER, I have to say, It really gets me thinking when I see the OLDER crowd, and what I mean with that is people who are OVER 50, who get into nursing school. Now, I have NOTHING against ACCOMPLISHING a life-long dream! I'm all for that, but... REALLY if you're over 50 years old, it takes 2 years to become an RN. How much longer can you work and before you retire?
And so my question is, do you think that person's spot would have been better off to a younger person who could aleast work MORE than 15 years in nursing before it's like, "oh, I can't no longer catch up with all the action?" I mean, we are in a nursing shortage, and we have enough nurses retiring as it is...to now have new nurses that won't really last that long in the field.
You can start biting my head off now!

I'm just curious --- do you think schools should be imposing age restrictions, or do you think that "older people" should take it upon themselves to step aside?

pinkynbd_99 · Aug 5, 2008

Ok, I am not offended by anyone's comment on this website, b/c when it comes down to it, none of you know me, you are just bashing me on one comment, which I knew was going to happen.

I just wanted feedback, you can say, from ACTUAL nursing students who DID go to school IN their 50s. B/c YES! I did make a comment without no facts, etc but THAT'S WHY I MADE THAT COMMENT! Because I wanted to know from these nurses exactly how much time they worked as nurses.

As far as the older nurses, Or how I like to call them "old-school" nurses, I have NOTHING agaisnt them! But you need to understand my difference between these nurses that have more than 30 years experience and those who are the same age but just been in the field for only 15 years. I VALUE nurses who have experience and most of all LIFE-LONG experience. I worked for 3 years with a school nurse who was 65 years old and had over 30 years experience, she taught me so many beautiful and basic things about nursing that I can't learn in nursing school. I UNDERSTAND THAT, like I said, I just wanted feedback from actual nurses who went to school in their 50s and get their input. IN NO WAY do I degrad them personally or think bad of them. call it immature, whatever! I had a question that was really getting to me and so I asked it! What better place than here?

RN1982 · Aug 5, 2008

I don't really understand what you are saying. Do you mean you value older nurses who have been in the field for say 30 years as opposed to older nurses who have been in the field for say 15 yearss?

I think I would value a nurse with 15 years experience as much as 30 years experience.

pinkynbd_99 · Aug 5, 2008

I'm just curious --- do you think schools should be imposing age restrictions, or do you think that "older people" should take it upon themselves to step aside?

I don't think any of these things should happen, contrary to what other comments here have said about me, I don't believe that. I like things the way they are now, If you made the grades and worked that hard, then YES you deserve that spot! To me it was more like I said in the first post, was it a "waste" of spot b/c (to me, I thought), they wouldn't work that long. of course,I do know that this can happen to anyone, even a YOUNGSTER!

But when you have been trying as long as I have to get into to nursing school and you can't make it (and yes, this can be b/c of my immaturity back then!) you start to hate those that DID make it in and so you do start thinking these things. But at the end I DID realize that I, just needed to BETTER my grades! LOL! Which I knew involved RETAKING all my sciences again, but if that made me more competitive and a BETTER nurse i thought, then I did.

pinkynbd_99 · Aug 5, 2008

I don't really understand what you are saying. Do you mean you value older nurses who have been in the field for say 30 years as opposed to older nurses who have been in the field for say 15 yearss?
I think I would value a nurse with 15 years experience as much as 30 years experience.

No I do, I think anyone with any more experience than me is a better help than not having anyone at all. I just wanted to explain to those that made comments that are "older" but have been nursing for more than 30 years, I wasn't talking about them, this is more towards those who ARE going to nursing school in their 50s. I don't degrad these student that are going into nursing school in their 50s, Like I said, I just wanted to know from THEM how much time they would work.

RN1982 · Aug 5, 2008

Well, that clears everything up.

cariboujenny · Aug 5, 2008

Yes I do agree with you that age does matter when regarding "staff" bedside nursing. I can only speak for myself. I am pushing 50 years old and I agree that traditional hospital "staff" nursing would be very difficult for me. In fact, I believe it is difficult for younger graduates. I have a mature friend that puts it wisely, "They will run your guts out!"

On the other hand, nursing is such a broad profession that more mature students can branch off into many different fields. I do not feel that I am wasting a nurse educators time or seat in a program because I only have 18 more years left to work. Wow, that is a long time in any job!

As a older student I am finishing my BSN for my own self satisfaction and enjoying it. However, bedside nursing is not for me.

Thank you for your posting. I sense that many other traditional students feel the same way about older students. It is an uncurrent that runs though a lot of nursing programs. Nurses need to work together and support one another. Well that is another topic. :wink2:

pinkynbd_99 · Aug 5, 2008

I just got this question when I asked myself this very question. After seeing my in-laws that they are in their late 60s and how it is for them to keep a job and get one b/c of their age and how employers really don't see they profit from them, (let's face it! it's a REALITY in this world, employers don't want retiring people), I thought to myself, I could probably work as a nurse until my late 60's and then do want I like, my hobbies, Like ceramics. But then it hit me, what about those that are going into nursing at such a late age like into their 50s, how long can you work before you're thought of as "non-productive"? I know this isn't other careers, this is nursing and experience counts, but physically how much can you tolerate? And I guess it's great if most of them go into education b/c we REALLY need these instructors, so in that way I guess it really works out.