Is it just my idealistic view of what a nurse should be or does this bother other nurses? I have heard several times lately and have read articles of people who are going to nursing school, not because they want to be a nurse but because they want the paycheck and a stable job. My sister in law is one of these people. She said to me, " I really don't want to be a nurse but I figure that I can work as a nurse while I go back to school." I find that mentality very frustrating. I worked very hard to become a nurse. I worked as a nursing assistant before I became a nurse so I could make sure that I knew what I was getting myself into, I shadowed nurses when I was in high school. I really feel that this is what I was put on this earth to do and to hear people talk like this who have absolutely no concept of what they are getting themselves into and who have no respect for the profession just boils my blood. I feel like these people, who have no intention of staying in nursing for an extended period of time just make it harder for the nursing student who actually wants to make a career of nursing because they take up spaces on the wait list for getting into nursing school.
Maybe some of these people will be excellent nurses and will contribute well to the profession but I personally would not want a nurse to take care of me who only got into the field because they wanted a stable paycheck.
Don't you agree that to do well in nursing you have to have some desire to be here in the first place? These are people's health and lives that we are dealing with. This field isn't just about a paycheck!!!
I know I'm probably being naieve and idealistic when I say this but I really feel that nursing is a calling, not a JOB!!! I've been doing this type of work for going on 10 years now and I have felt that way about it from day 1.
What do you think? Does it bother you that people are getting into nursing who have no desire to actually be a nurse? Just wanting to hear other people's perspectives on the issue.
I think its possible that the comment you were responding to is just an example of someone who feels like behaving in a stubbornly contrary manner. Off topic, argumentative statements like that one are often made by individuals who are frustrated by the fact that they are unable to successfully debate a difference of opinion with people more eloquent than themselves. Perhaps its better not to waste your time responding.
I think you hit the nail squarely on the head right there.
I have about as much chance ignoring the bait as a hungry fish.
Heh, cue the "Jaws" music....
I think that anyone who goes into nursing for the paycheck will soon realize that they aren't paid enough.
JUST FOR FUN!!!!!!and wishful thinking:rolleyes:
figure $30/hour divided by 6 patients= $5/hr per patient
again figure:
$30/hour divided by 8 patients = 3.75/hr per patient
If you consider the minimum wage in canada at $8.50/hr. And, if we were paid that per patient(Which is how it should be sometimes)
Then if you have 8 patients we should be paid $68/hr.
I myself am making $1.25 cents an hour per patient where I work
(32 patients)
My babysitter makes more per child.
So true! This is actually one of very few things that makes me hesitant about working as a nurse full time and completely quitting my current job. I currently work in a salon as a stylist, and my rates are set up so that I make about twice that per hour. Seriously, there is something very wrong with the fact that people are willing to pay me more per hour to look after their hair than hospitals are willing to pay nurses to do far more important tasks. But, to tie this back to the original topic, this is just one more reason why nurses need to stop bashing people who are in it for the paycheck. 9 times out of 10, these are the people who push for higher wages which, over time, results in higher pay for nurses in general.
One of my friends said she wants to go to nursing school so she can pay for pharmacy school. I told her nursing doesn't really lead to a pharmacist career ...I mean it can but it would take way longer than just getting a job that doesn't require >2 years of schooling first that you ALSO have to pay for. Why pay for nursing school, too?
I have a few pages left to read. But I always wanted to be a nurse and finally reached that dream at 42. I am continuing on to be a RN because, yes, I have a family to take care of and would like to have some better things in life. BUT there is no way I could put up with the crap I put up with in nursing - no matter what the pay - if I didn't believe in what I was doing.
I know there are those that originally go into nursing for a paycheck. Some find they really like it and do a great job. Some find they don't and move on - or at least I hope they do. My mother became a nurse in the '60's because she had to work and that was the only way to get an education without money (hospital trained). She did not want to be a nurse and tried to talk me out of being a nurse. But she was a great nurse and cared about others. Of course she got out as soon as she could.
No I don't think its a great idea to go into nursing just for the paycheck, because I think many will be dissapointed. But I will not complain about those that do as long as they take good care of their patients. :)
Final thought:
We all have to make a living, so I think asking if you would be in nursing if it didn't pay was pretty unrealistic.
If someone REALLY isn't in it for the money, they can stop at PCT or CNA. They do the bulk of hands-on caring for patients anyway. I can't think of any reason for someone to go to school and advance to an RN unless it's for the money.
I heard of someone in my class who wanted to be a nurse becuase of the paycheque and the first thing that popped into my mind was "where the hell have they been? pay cheque? What the fudge? we get paid diddly!"
But as long as they're a good nurse and care for the pts then does it really matter? Maybe they'll end up loving it more then the few pennies they get to rub together.
Pepperlady
151 Posts
Your point is well taken