Ok, maybe Im just being petty, but the other day I went to see a patient whos neighbor was visiting..... we were having a nice conversation then the neighbor asked me "Where did you get your training ?"
I have seen the subject debated over different entry level degrees and such, but the word "training" just ticks me off. When I told him that I graduated from "XYZ University", his comment was "Oh you had to go to college?"
Why is it that people do not believe that nurses actually go to college?? I mean I can understand if the patient and his neighbor was 80+ yrs old, I know that years ago, nurses did not go to a university setting........ but these 2 men were in their early 40's!!!
What is the difference in nurses taking specialized classes in pharmacology, anatomy, chemistry, etc than a person who has a degree in computers taking specialized classes in programming or networking, etc.....
Those people are considered educated at a college level, but nurses are just trained
Is it just me, or do any of you see this too??????
But then I am only a lowly diploma RN....apparently trained , not 'educated' by some standards. So I guess I wouldn't understand.
I think I know where you are coming from, mattsmom. As I was reading, I was thinking to myself, "Is there something wrong with being educated somewhere else besides a university?" I don't know. I have never thought about the use of the word "training" vs "education" before so I'm not sure what response I might have about it. The gentelman seemed truly not to know that there is more than one way of becoming a nurse. I think a lot of people are in his shoes.
I do get the "oh, only an lpn?" thing a lot, though. That gets me irritated quick.:chuckle
i've heard elderly folks say "nurses training" before. i've had some ppl not know that nursing requires college. ive had my MIL ask if i was going to go on to become a "technician" (that was her exact word) after graduating nursing school. i am in RN program, but my own hubby asked if after i got my RN, if i wanted to be an LPN (he thought LPN was a higher degree).
i've met lots of ppl who dont really understand nursing education (and it is education whether its a diploma program or college program). i just try to explain it as best as i can. can't change minds without educating htem on teh truth
It bugs me that my history major roommates do nothing in school, and will graduate with a pretty bleak career future, but no one mistakes them for anything but college students.
:angryfire It bugs me that you would say that!! I have a B.A. in History, and I did a h&ll of a lot of reading and term-paper writing!!! I don't know if your roommates are lazy or stupid or what, but frankly I found the history classes I took FAR more challenging than the dopey, Mickey Mouse nursing classes I had to sit through.
I, too, am a 'lowly diploma graduate', but I certainly do not consider myself to be uneducated. I think we can [as courteously as possible] explain who we are and what we did to get there, and hope for the best.
I don't know how a lot of professions structure their educational preparation. A friend's son is studying Marine Engineering. What the heck is that, and can he get a job? My point is that just others are uninformed about our professions, I may be uninformed about other professions.
Well Kara, sorry to offend you, but these girls do nothing - they take maybe 12 or 13 hours a semester (none of which are actually history classes, I should add), and go to class for a few hours every other day. I've said before that nursing isn't any harder than any other major, and what I mean by my comment was that since they are majoring in history, everyone knows automatically that they're in college. If they were doing business or philosophy or something else it would make no difference. It's not that history is a dumb major (my smartest profs were for history - my nursing profs are a mess!) it's just that the dumb people I know are studying that at the moment. And no one mistakes them for buying their education from an infomercial.
As a nurse you are educated........ diploma, ADN, BSN, MSN, and LPN. I started my nursing career as an LPN. Also, there is nothing "lowly" about a diploma nurse. I have seen many diploma nurses I would rather have working with me than MSN prepared. I have also seen LPNs that I would rather work with.
Ok, maybe Im just being petty, but the other day I went to see a patient whos neighbor was visiting..... we were having a nice conversation then the neighbor asked me "Where did you get your training ?"
I have seen the subject debated over different entry level degrees and such, but the word "training" just ticks me off. When I told him that I graduated from "XYZ University", his comment was "Oh you had to go to college?"
Why is it that people do not believe that nurses actually go to college?? I mean I can understand if the patient and his neighbor was 80+ yrs old, I know that years ago, nurses did not go to a university setting........ but these 2 men were in their early 40's!!!
Specializes in Cardiothoracic Transplant Telemetry.
I just finished nursing school with my ADN. My sister, who made plans to fly out of town on the DAY of pinning, thus leaving me with no family for the ceremony couldn't understand why I was upset. She was afterall graduating at the same time, from the same school with a general ed associates that she is transfering with. She, a family member, cannot see the difference between taking enough credits for a degree and struggling through prereq's, sweating through a application process and then busting my a## for two years to accomplish a goal. Pinning was on Thursday, and she hasn't asked a single question about how it went when we have talked on the phone. So ofcourse she doesn't know that I was awarded the Leadership award by the faculty, one of only two awards that they hand out to every graduating class.
I mean this in a good natured way, but why didn't you tell him to do it himself? By the time the Doc gets done asking you, he could have already assisted his, not just your, patient. I find his thought process to be quite arrogant, and by "passing the buck" along to your tech, you are perpetuating and passing along his arrogance. Hierarchy and a chain of command exist in most work places, but I get the sneaking suspicion that this event was more of a "personal test" or "personal insult" than a vital order (otherwise he would have acted immediately). In these situations I personally stand up for myself. Unless the MD owns the business or hospital, he/she isn't your boss, and you can refuse anything they tell you if you feel you have a just reason, or patient harm may result. They, the MDs, are just more employees in the same organization. They don't sign your checks (if they don't own the business) and they can be disciplined like any other employee.
Very good answer!
I had to practice a little on what to say. It sounded a little awkward the first couple of times, but now it just flows right along.
True story:
I'm in the hallway charting and my tech is going around doing I&O's. I see that she's finishing up in Room 5 and is about ready to go to Room 6. A doc walks out of Room 6, comes up to me and says, "Umm, would you mind helping the patient in Room 6 with his urinal? I told him I didn't go to school all those years to assist him with that." (laugh)
So I smiled brightly, nodded, and said, "Why of course, doctor, I certainly will get right on that!"
He started to walk away, saying, "Good!" while I returned to my charting and called my tech's name and asked her to do it.
The doc turned around in shock and then burst out laughing. "Touche!" he said.
I grinned, pointed my finger and said, "Gotcha."
By continuing to chart, I was doing what I would normally be doing at that hour of the morning. I should clarify that if my tech wasn't available, I would have taken care of the patient, but a) the doc DID ask for it, and b) the tech was nearby and was also a nursing student, so she learned something too.
We have to change the perception of nursing from one of a bunch of old women cleaning poop and other jobs that are beneath a doctor's dignity to an image of highly trained health care workers who are the front line health care worker with advanced skills if we want the respect and dignity that we deserve. As long as the first perception dominates the public's image of nursing, we will continue to face this problem. Educate with kindness and diplomacy though no on likes a crabby nurse.
Well Kara, sorry to offend you, but these girls do nothing - they take maybe 12 or 13 hours a semester (none of which are actually history classes, I should add), and go to class for a few hours every other day. I've said before that nursing isn't any harder than any other major, and what I mean by my comment was that since they are majoring in history, everyone knows automatically that they're in college. If they were doing business or philosophy or something else it would make no difference. It's not that history is a dumb major (my smartest profs were for history - my nursing profs are a mess!) it's just that the dumb people I know are studying that at the moment. And no one mistakes them for buying their education from an infomercial.
Hm, sorry, didn't mean to jump on you about that. Not meaning to hijack, it's just that I've noticed lately that patients are asking if I'm the nurse who will be "waiting on" them. Whenever I hear this I'm tempted to ask them if they usually get their nursing care at Denny's, or what? OK, I'll be quiet now. :)
lisamc1RN, LPN
943 Posts
I think I know where you are coming from, mattsmom. As I was reading, I was thinking to myself, "Is there something wrong with being educated somewhere else besides a university?" I don't know. I have never thought about the use of the word "training" vs "education" before so I'm not sure what response I might have about it. The gentelman seemed truly not to know that there is more than one way of becoming a nurse. I think a lot of people are in his shoes.
I do get the "oh, only an lpn?" thing a lot, though. That gets me irritated quick.:chuckle