Do you ever feel like you aren't *really* a nurse?

[live2bRN]

Sometimes I don't feel like I'm a real nurse and also have some of those feelings of imposter syndrome and feel like I don't know enough and generally feel like some of the patients are doing *me* a favor by having me go to their house...

Any advice or ways to combat this or reframe my way of thinking?

Or maybe it's a feeling of being unappreciated in general...

Like sometimes we don't get credit for the things we do and or the things we have to put up with in some of the things we encounter with the patients' families or if they say, "she's JUST a nurse" and all that...

Please advise

[Libby1987]

I am not following you. Are you referring to intermittent visits where you're teaching people how to perform IV infusions, performing complicated wound care and assessing complex medical patients?

If a cardiac nurse is a real nurse on POD 3, then I'm still a real nurse on POD 4. Add that I'm out there on my own, extra point.

I've had ICU and ER nurses looking for something less stressful tell me that they can't believe how much I have to know.

Maybe you can make your assessments more comprehensive, advocate for your patient's and collaborate with multi disc and community resources, teach them something they don't know and can't just google, learn complex wound healing modalities..

[KelRN215, BSN, RN]

No, I really never do and I don't know why I would. I manage very complicated patients who wouldn't be at home if it weren't for the presence of nursing in the home.

[turtlebird]

I currently am a family medicine clinic nurse but will be starting as an RN Case Manager in home health next week. I've definitely felt like I don't know enough and sometimes I feel like the complicated cases are good (like the patient is doing me a favor by having this problem so I learn for next time). And I have absoultely had people not want to talk to me because I'm a nurse and even one patient yelled directly at me "You're just a f*****g nurse, I want to talk to the doctor now!".

I think nursing is always going to be a learning experience. Every patient is different in some way or another and I think there will always be something to take away from every interaction. The people who call us names or whisper behind our backs "oh she's just a nurse", they are just naive, don't take it personally. You know how much work and schooling you went through to get you where you are. Just brush it off your shoulder and hold your head high. Don't be afraid to ask questions. And hang in there!

[JustKeepSmiling, ADN, BSN, RN]

I know what you're talking about. When I'm bringing "that annoying visitor" their tenth cup of coffee.

[BabaLouRN]

You are not only a REAL nurse but a very firmly standed RN. It takes special skills to be out here in the field. There is no one down the hall that can help you, there is no one to hand you any supplies. You must be very independent and have very strong nursing skills. I think it takes at least 3 years of full time home health nursing before a home health nurse can call themselves "seasoned"