Aspiring Nurse

[jkoulakani]

Hello! I'm currently 18 years old and I will be attending a 4 year university this fall. My major is microbiology, I picked that because the nursing major is SUPER impacted and I didn't want it to hamper my chances of being admitted. I know microbiology is a course you need to take for nursing so I hope, with the help of my counselor, I can transfer!

I've never been great at science or math (I enjoy writing and english much more), but I always like to push myself. Also the abundance of jobs and necessity for this profession is a plus! Im a people person and I enjoy taking care of others and impacting their lives. With that being said, I heard nursing can be extremely challenging and nurses like to "eat their young" when on the job. All of this makes me extremely reluctant but i still really wanna do it. I don't do too well with confrontation and it makes me anxious to hear nurses can be bullies. Any advice? Can anyone truly do it if they set their mind to it? And most importantly if I do pursue this I will be receiving a BSN, is the extra work for the BSN worth it?

Any comments would be helpful, thanks for your time :)

[Farawyn]

Well I guess "abundance of jobs" is the wrong phrase, i've just been told hospitals ALWAYS need nurses and nursing is a job of demand. However thats not the point of this, nobody really answered any of my questions, instead I feel a bit discouraged.

And truthfully, I do want to pursue this job because I like helping people but I'm also hoping for a profession where I can find a job soon after school and the program so I can pay off my student loans, I have an extremely supportive family but we are by no means well off and I know I need to take care of myself immediately after school. I also want to make a positive impact on people's lives and I know nurses have the opportunity to do that, the way you help a sick patient can really make long lasting effects on them. I know nursing can be very challenging and often nurses do A LOT more than people think. Doctors make the diagnosis but nurses really are those who do most if not all the treatment. I'm aware of the difficulties I just wanna get an idea of how the classes for this course are and whether the extra work for a BSN is worth it.

Hi, and you're welcome.

I thought your questions were answered.

Hospitals do always need nurses. That does not mean they hire nurses.

I would refer to the post above yours for better follow up.

Best of luck.

[Nurse Leigh]

Hi, and you're welcome.

I thought your questions were answered.

Hospitals do always need nurses. That does not mean they hire nurses.

I would refer to the post above yours for better follow up.

Best of luck.

Yeah, why is it in many other fields, when an employee leaves, you know another will be hired to fill that position - sometimes having the outgoing employee help train the newbie during their notice.

We give 2 or 4 weeks notice and when we leave, it's likely the position hasn't even been posted or approved.

[jkoulakani]

Well, while I eschew the phrase "nurses eat their young" (not the case!) a lot of what you read on that forum is correct. Nursing school can be very difficult for some people - it relies strongly on critical thinking and the ability to prioritize based on a huge amount of information you need to understand.

Think about the vast number of nursing programs that exist - now imagine them each graduating a new class two or even more times a year. That is an awful lot of nurses and hospitals and clinics and facilities are not able to absorb such a deluge so often.

Lots of places will post openings with no plan to actually fill the position - the staff already there just get more responsibility piled onto them. And the pay is kinda crummy in some areas of the country.

Shifts are long and breaks can be difficult to take. Documentation takes up so much time and patients, their visitors, and the providers often take out frustration on you. Everything ends up as the responsibility of the nurse. From meds taking a while to come up from pharmacy to food not being well received to a patient being angry they didn't get the medications they wanted.

Yes, it can sound discouraging, but that's because we don't want anyone going into this field with wild misconceptions.

Nursing can be very rewarding but it is rarely the feel good helping people job a lot of laypeople think it is.

Best of luck to you.

I'm sure you guys are just trying to provide me the harsh reality of it but can you give me some positive aspects of nursing? Cause right now I find it hard to believe ANYONE would be a nurse. Also, you said they need nurses but don't always hire them? why is that, because of lack of experience? If you have a BSN rather than just being an RN from a community college and program are you more likely to me hired, or is experience more valuable above all?

[Farawyn]

I'm sure you guys are just trying to provide me the harsh reality of it but can you give me some positive aspects of nursing? Cause right now I find it hard to believe ANYONE would be a nurse. Also, you said they need nurses but don't always hire them? why is that, because of lack of experience? If you have a BSN rather than just being an RN from a community college and program are you more likely to me hired, or is experience more valuable above all?

They don't want to hire nurses because they don't want to pay for nurses.

[JustBeachyNurse, LPN]

I'm sure you guys are just trying to provide me the harsh reality of it but can you give me some positive aspects of nursing? Cause right now I find it hard to believe ANYONE would be a nurse. Also, you said they need nurses but don't always hire them? why is that, because of lack of experience? If you have a BSN rather than just being an RN from a community college and program are you more likely to me hired, or is experience more valuable above all?

Management. Lack of reimbursement. Budget cuts are all reasons nurses are not replaced when they leave. Many facilities work with a deficit of nursing. Companies pushing unlicensed assistive personnel to step out of scope and complete nursing tasks but without the knowledge and assessment skills under the guise of cheap labor.

Nursing is science based. You need to be science literate You need a strong comprehension of anatomy & physiology, microbiology, pharmacology, statistics, biochemistry, pathophysiology and more. There are more than nursing skills there is knowledge and experience that guides nursing assessment and leads the path to nursing diagnosis and care plan. A nurse needs to know if a drug or treatment order is safe and appropriate for a patient and question the provider for clarification if needed.

A BSN is an RN there are multiple entries into professional nursing:

2 year associates degree (most often community college)

3-year hospital based diploma

4 year BSN

Then accelerated BSN for those with a BA/BS in another discipline or entry level master's degrees.

Experience and a clean license is most valuable as well as a positive professional reputation. BSN programs often have semester long capstone programs which gives the prospective nurse additional opportunities for exposure to nursing. But a skilled, knowledgable enthusiastic ASN RN could easily pass a new grad BSN RN for a job. It costs a lot of money to train and orient new nurses to the job.

I like to think like a nurse. I like the holistic care. I enjoy my speciality knowledge and enjoy increasing my knowledge, skills and competency on a regular basis. It's physically and emotionally draining at times

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

Can anyone truly do it if they set their mind to it?

I'd be flagrantly lying if I answered this question with a 'yes' response. Not everyone has the intellectual horsepower to complete college level coursework or earn a university degree. So no, not just anyone can do it.

For instance, my cousin Billie might have a burning passion to be a nurse. But no matter how intently she sets her mind on the goal, her IQ of 79 and lack of intellectual horsepower both serve as impediments.

As controversial as this seems, we were not created equally, nor do we process new information with equal speed and clarity. There will always be a number of people left behind due to this disparity.

[lindsayt05]

I'm not a nurse, but my aunt is and her advice to me was to work as a CNA first before applying to an RN program (which I'm doing. My class starts in May.) My mother in law is also a retired nurse and said the same. OP I would recommend getting your CNA over the summer at a community college or vocational school and try to get some firsthand experience before you decide. It sounds like you're unsure. If you don't like science, a microbiology major could make you miserable.

[Pangea Reunited, ASN, RN]

I'm sure you guys are just trying to provide me the harsh reality of it but can you give me some positive aspects of nursing? Cause right now I find it hard to believe ANYONE would be a nurse. Also, you said they need nurses but don't always hire them? why is that, because of lack of experience? If you have a BSN rather than just being an RN from a community college and program are you more likely to me hired, or is experience more valuable above all?

The big positive for me is that I function really well under enormous amounts of stress. When things aren't chaotic, I have a hard time motivating myself to do anything. I love to organize. I love to mediate. I like being creative with regard to problem solving. I'm also logical and not horribly idealistic. The harsh reality of healthcare as a business doesn't seem to affect me the same way that it affects many others. For me, nursing is pretty close to an ideal job although I still love to complain on occasion.

[jkoulakani]

I am officially closing this discussion and I no longer want to be a nurse, thanks for the input guys.

[jkoulakani]

I'd be flagrantly lying if I answered this question with a 'yes' response. Not everyone has the intellectual horsepower to complete college level coursework or earn a university degree. So no, not just anyone can do it.

For instance, my cousin Billie might have a burning passion to be a nurse. But no matter how intently she sets her mind on the goal, her IQ of 79 and lack of intellectual horsepower both serve as impediments.

As controversial as this seems, we were not created equally, nor do we process new information with equal speed and clarity. There will always be a number of people left behind due to this disparity.

This is extremely discouraging but I appreciate the honesty.

[CarryThatWeight, BSN]

I am officially closing this discussion and I no longer want to be a nurse, thanks for the input guys.

If you are so sensitive to be offended by this relatively gentle, straightforward info, you'll never make it as a nurse. Sorry to say. You asked for information, you got it. I'm not sure why you're so upset.

[Farawyn]

I am officially closing this discussion and I no longer want to be a nurse, thanks for the input guys.

You're welcome.