Did ya catch the article in July AJN called "I'm No Angel" written by Margaret C. Belchers MSN, RN, CCRN ? Alot of follow-up opinions in this October issue as well. If you read it....what's your opinion?
She sure gets bashed for the article in follow-ups. I agree with her totally. I smile and cringe when I get called an angel. Sorry folks. I'd take solid, reality-based praise like "You are so competent" or "You are so smart" or "I trust my family member in your hands because you are so knowledgeable" over being an "angel" any day of the week. It is such an outdated notion. So Florence Nightengale-ish. We've come along way baby. It takes away from what we really are doing as nurses and what we are capable of, and how much responsibility we carry. Nice yes, caring yes, compassionate yes....but here on earth as a fellow HUMAN BEINGS....not magical angels. YUCK. EEK. SAPPY. This to me is not bad to feel this way. It is not a gruff, old, burnt-out nurse attitude. To me it is enriching thought and a foundation for a more pleasing and rewarding career platform for the future. We all need to work towards eliminating the Doctor=God and Nurse=Angel mentality built in to this profession. It is a dysfunctional illness that only serves to make us loosen our grasp on reality and to minimize our true worth. It makes for poor doc/nurse relationships. Our patients see us as pillow-fluffing angels of the past...as if the docs are in the hall 24/7 handling every ticking moment. And we, as nurses are OK with that? Feel good and valued about that? Public education....long overdue. But to get the right message out, we have to LIVE the part. EDUCATED NURSE. NOT ANGEL. I am a good nurse and that is what is necessary to do a good job. (Besides, wings and halos tend to get all tangled up in privacy curtains) Tell me i'm thoughtful, sweet, caring...just don't put me on the Angel pedestal.
Thanks for this hour of your life. I will step off of my soapbox now.
Whoever that was that said the thing about how as angels we're called to this job and therefore we do not need money or time off hit the nail right on the head for the main problem with this profession. Yeah, okay, it takes a slightly special (mental, maybe?) person to get pooped on and puked on for a living, deal with nasty, abusive doctors, short staffing, weird hours, etc. I'd be inclined to deify that person a little bit, myself, LOL. But the money and working conditions also have to be right, darn it. I read a stat not long ago about nurses that said the percentage of us still doing patient care at the end of our careers was - ready? 4%. That's a 96% burnout rate! Spooky, given the size of the Baby Boom generation, no?
It's a good article, and she makes excellent points. However, about the last thing in the world I'm worried about is being called an Angel. I would certainly not be offended if a patient said that about me.
:rotfl:
Mommy2Katiebaby
79 Posts
Whoever that was that said the thing about how as angels we're called to this job and therefore we do not need money or time off hit the nail right on the head for the main problem with this profession. Yeah, okay, it takes a slightly special (mental, maybe?) person to get pooped on and puked on for a living, deal with nasty, abusive doctors, short staffing, weird hours, etc. I'd be inclined to deify that person a little bit, myself, LOL. But the money and working conditions also have to be right, darn it. I read a stat not long ago about nurses that said the percentage of us still doing patient care at the end of our careers was - ready? 4%. That's a 96% burnout rate! Spooky, given the size of the Baby Boom generation, no?