Are there any nurses happy to be a nurse?

[frequentFLyER]

I am a first year nursing student and just started my real clinical in a nursing home. The nurses are LPNs. I was placed with one that was very helpful as far as teaching me the correct way to do things and giving me many opportunities to do them. However, she was very negative about the profession. I appreciate her insight but she said "don't stop here, work in administration," "your life goal wasn't to work weekends and miss your family's Christmas was it?", "RNs barely make more than me and you're putting yourself at this much risk for what, 40k?"

I've heard all this before but I think the accumulation of hearing so many people unhappy is starting to make me wonder if this is right. I'm fairly certain I will continue on to nurse practitioner or admin or something like that as I love school and am usually good at it. I just need to know, is anyone actually happy being a floor nurse for once? I know there are many negative things pulling you away from patient care but does the good outweigh the bad? Do you think that nurse felt that way because she was in a nursing home and maybe because she was LPN as I know they have a hard time defending their position?

[Guttercat, ASN, RN]

That is a difficult question to answer. It is like asking someone what it is like to be a parent.

Some people will have things easier than others. Some factors have to do with the situation you find yourself in, and some things involves your coping skills, expectations and ability to handle life.

A nurse who starts off working in a "troubled" department (high turnover, high disatisfaction, low standards of care) is going to struggle more than one who works direct patient care in a unit with good staffing, high morale and a focus on good patient care.

The nurse who gets into nursing with realistic expectations, an ability to manage stress and a positive outlook will do fine.

Excellent post.

[Farawyn]

Yes. I am a high school nurse right now. I miss the floors.

I miss the nursey stuff like injections and foleys and trach care and the horrible doctors and stressed families and OTHER NURSES.

I have worked in Med Surg, Home Care, With the DD population, Telemetry, Occupational Health, Women's Wellness and now School Nursing. And I have learned something new every single day.

There's a lot I don't like about nursing. But that's a different thread.

[SoldierNurse22, BSN, RN]

Don't think that administrative work in healthcare is any easier. I've been there. I'd do floor nursing over admin ANY DAY of the week!

[mmc51264, BSN, MSN, RN]

I am. I love my job. I drive 45 min each way, I volunteer for committees and overtime. This is a 3rd career for me and I wish I had done it sooner!! I am old, so the whole "grass is greener" thing-been there done that. I am lucky to be where I am and I appreciate it.

Is it perfect- far from it, but better than most.

We do come here to vent sometimes, but that doesn't mean we don't like our jobs :)

[kungpoopanda]

Best day of my career was when I got away from the bedside. I'm still not as far away from patient contact as I would like but it's an improvement. The problem of having to deal with nurses remains however.

[TheNurseyNurse]

Yeah, that type of negativity is a sign of problems elsewhere.

Being a nurse is Great!

[Tenebrae, BSN, RN]

Don't think that administrative work in healthcare is any easier. I've been there. I'd do floor nursing over admin ANY DAY of the week!

I agree, I hate admin. By a wierd bent I hate not having my admin done even more.

Nursing is what you choose to make of it. And I agree with others if you dont like the situation you are in, change it.

I've just been through this. Working as a district nurse. Love the work however have a manager who is doing my head in. Had been debating moving on however some management madness bought it to a head. I am starting in a LTC facility in a couple of weeks.

[Here.I.Stand, BSN, RN]

I love being a nurse!! I love it enough that I *could* be a stay-at-home mom w/ my five kids, but I choose to work part-time. :) I've been working holidays and weekends since I was 18 (as a CNA). My kids have never known anything different, my husband knew it going in, and my parents and sister have gotten used to it. We plan alternate days to celebrate if I'm working is all.

[firstinfamily, RN]

I am with MeanMaryJean. Bedside nursing seems to get a bad rap, yet that is where we make the most impact. I have tried management twice and felt very discouraged both times. Management is not all it is cracked up to be. They do not necessarily make more money, they tap out just like the bedside nurses do. Most of them have some type of "on call" that they have to do, that includes weekends. They do not get to feel like their job is done at the end of their day. I am returning to acute care after being out of the environment for 5 years. This is the longest I have been away from it and I am excited and grateful that I am returning. It may be a very chaotic environment but, it is where I seem to thrive. Whether it is the adrenalin rush I get from being there or the opportunities for challenging learning, I am not sure. I think being fulfilled in nursing depends on where you are working, what you have as professional goals, and how satisfied you are with what you are doing in your career. I will most likely be the old arthritic nurse at the bedside. I am even thinking of working on my Doctorate never really achieving what that may imply with my career. My educational goals are high and just because I am a bedside nurse does not mean I don't want to continue to improve myself. Wouldn't you want someone who is highly educated and has lots of experience taking care of you or your loved ones??

[PomMom65]

I love my job. When I was in school I encountered a nurse or two that told me how much they hated nursing. I think that is unprofessional. If you do not like what you do, get out.

[xoemmylouox, ASN, RN]

I don't love everything about my job, but I do enjoy what I do overall. I love working with the public, difficult or not. I wish my compensation was a bit better either in a reduction in cost of benefits or increase in pay. With Nursing there are so many different avenues. You can use your degree in just about any setting that you can think of. Right now there is an over abundance of nurses so things are a bit tough job-wise, but I keep hoping one of these days that will improve too.

[Nepenthe Sea]

I think it just depends on where you work and what you expect from your career. Anybody who goes into nursing thinking that they are going to make a lot of money is delusional. The money is decent, but you earn every penny, that's for sure. The area in which you work makes a huge difference. You may be in your dream area of nursing, but if there is no support and you can't trust your co-workers, then it will suck. Personally, I wanted to work with kids all along. It didn't work out for me that way, so I started out in adult ICU - hated life, wanted to go wait tables. Then I went to med-surg - hated life even more, wanted to do anything BUT nursing. I decided to stick it out until I could get my foot in the door of a pedi/NICU area. Finally got into PICU last year. There are nights that aren't that great but the difference between this nursing job and the others is like night and day. It makes SUCH a difference when you are in the area you want. Now I love being a nurse, and I love all the education and things that go with it.