Does anyone love their job?

Nurses General Nursing

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I have heard so many stories about how hard nursing is and all there is to complain about, but does anyone enjoy their work? Please let's hear from someone who is glad they got into nursing and wouldn't change their choice for anything.

Hi there! I'm a CNA working in a nursing home and I love it. It's the best job I've ever had. I love taking care of the residents and making their days brighter by showing up and talking to them. They love my smiles, my scrub tops, my chats with them, and the way I take care of them. It can be hard at times, but I do my best. It's so hard; I get so attached to patients. They're like family to me. Their visitors appreciate the care I give to them and say I'm very devoted to my job and take pride in what I do.

It's so hard when we're short of cnas and I have a heavier workload and can't provide the best care for my patients. I have to rush and start putting some residents in before supper so I wouldn't be killing myself during pm care after dinner. I'm a float aide but the unit I mostly work on is hectic. It has patients who's nonstop on the light or screaming for the nurse and tab alarms go off like crazy. I have patients who love playing with the call light and it drives me so crazy that I feel like taking it away for good. (I don't.):stone

:uhoh21: We have a patient on the hectic unit who won't wear a brief despite being a heavy wetter. (She'll rip them off!) So she pees her pants so the aides have to change her pants on rounds. When I come in and she's dry, I put her on the toilet and run the water so she pees. When she has a bm in her wheelchair or bed, she'll smear it and throw it around. The aides call it digging. I always toilet her on first rounds and pm care; especially when she's on the MOM list (Milk of Magnesia).

I'm getting off the subject. I love my job, but it has its not so great moments. Right now, I'm taking a Patient Care Technician course at the community college. (I took my CNA course there as well and I have the same instructor again.) I had my first day of clinical today at the hospital and it was great. Hopefully it doesn't snow tomorrow so clinical isn't postponed. I'm thinking about enrolling in nursing school prereqs. I'm 23, single, and I don't have kids so I should go for it. :)

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I am still a relatively "new" nurse, having had my license for about 4 years. Nursing was my second career (had formerly been in EMS), and I was very excited about entering the field. I started off as a tech, then a nurse extern, etc, so my transition into being an RN was maybe a little easier for me than some others. I loved taking care of my patients, once I became comfortable in being a nurse! Then I got involved in one committee (which grew to more) and found that I was becoming burnt out very quickly! The politics and petty squabbling over practice drove me up the wall...it was like being in high school again! I am still to this day amazed at how nurses treat each other at times...I learned about the phrase "nurses eat their young" in nursing school first hand, and have, unfortunately, continued to see it more than I care to since then. I know change is necessary and that we must continually try to better ourselves and our care for our patients, but I decided that, for me, the politics were just too much.

Luckily, I was able to be honest enough with myself that I took a step back to doing "just" patient care, and have rediscovered my joy in nursing. To me, there is absolutely nothing more rewarding then to have your patient become stable or to just smile at you and say "thanks".

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I can honestly say I love my job! One thing I have found is that nursing offers you the opportunties to move up or to differnt units so that you can get the experiences you want for yourself. I not only work 3 days a week on my unit but have have signed up for a secondary position so that I can work an extra 2 days in other units so that I can continue to learn and grow.!!

Currently I work in Neonatal Intensive Care, Pediatric Intensive Care and Mother baby, Bone marrow :balloons:

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Started as a student nurse in 1975 after taking 2 years to decide on the most suitable career for me. After 30 years in a variety of roles in nursing - wards, critical care, management, informatics - am thoroughly enjoying clinical practice in a CCU. It is a most satisfying time in my life - knowing that you personally make a difference to someone's health and life is very rewarding.

The work environment - equipment, colleagues, technology, staffing - may not always be ideal, but it adds to the challenge to deliver a quality service to my patients. What I cannot control, I must accept and still achieve the best result for my patient. Other nurses are more skilled, or faster, or more capable - that is of no consequence for the satisfaction that I receive by doing the best that I can.

Smile, and be positive in outlook. We only have one life. Use it!

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Specializes in critical care: trauma/oncology/burns.

Hello All! New to this site and I am very grateful that AllNurses.com is out there...

Have been a critical care RN for 30 years: First 6 in Trauma/ICU, next 15 in Oncology Critical Care, last 9 in Hospice. Right now I am newly commissioned 1 Lt. with Army Nurse Corps. I think being a Nurse is "a calling". Not everyone should be a nurse especially those people who can only think about the paycheck at the end of their shift. I guess I am a dinosaur, but that is how I feel.

Would I do it all over again? You Betcha' [i would make sure I studied a bit harder and longer, smile, while I was in nursing school or a nursing program]

Thirty years of frustration, tears, some fears but always thankful for my co-workers support. And yeah, I still suggest nursing as a career choice for those people who are truly interested an not just blowing smoke up my......

Hope y'all have a healthy and blessed New Year :)

mary

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what is the starting salary of a nurse with an associate degree?

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Specializes in Tele, Infectious Disease, OHN.

I have gone from hating my job on a Telemetry unit with a six patient load (more on occasion) to loving my job as a Case Manager in Public Health. I was not unhappy with nursing per se, but I felt used, abused and downright incompetent at times on the floor. It is less money in PH but for me it is worth it. PLUS when you consider things like retirement, insurance and the fact we can actually TAKE our leave it has made me a much happier camper. I think the secret it to find what makes you tick and go for it.

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Specializes in Pediatrics.
Hello All! New to this site and I am very grateful that AllNurses.com is out there...

Have been a critical care RN for 30 years: First 6 in Trauma/ICU, next 15 in Oncology Critical Care, last 9 in Hospice. Right now I am newly commissioned 1 Lt. with Army Nurse Corps. I think being a Nurse is "a calling". Not everyone should be a nurse especially those people who can only think about the paycheck at the end of their shift. I guess I am a dinosaur, but that is how I feel.

Would I do it all over again? You Betcha' [i would make sure I studied a bit harder and longer, smile, while I was in nursing school or a nursing program]

Thirty years of frustration, tears, some fears but always thankful for my co-workers support. And yeah, I still suggest nursing as a career choice for those people who are truly interested an not just blowing smoke up my......

Hope y'all have a healthy and blessed New Year :)

mary

Welcome!!! wow, with all that varied experience I would bet you have some stories to tell that I'd love to hear. you sound like a neat very caring nurse. take care!!

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Not me.

I realized last night that my patients & I are stuck in some kind of wierd type of hell together. The patient's dilemma is much worse of course, but it's no picnic pulling crap out of someone's butt for an hour via dig stims...

***

Sorry for the crude attitude, just need to vent.

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Specializes in Rodeo Nursing (Neuro).
Not me.

I realized last night that my patients & I are stuck in some kind of wierd type of hell together. The patient's dilemma is much worse of course, but it's no picnic pulling crap out of someone's butt for an hour via dig stims...

***

Sorry for the crude attitude, just need to vent.

Actually, it can be very like a picnic, but you do have to be careful to remember which hand is holding the sandwich.

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I do love my job! I've been a nurse for 10 years (almost all on ICU) and I still take a deep breath when I walk into the hospital because I dig that smell!:chuckle

I do tend to complain some, but it's more a way of venting, than really being fed up and wanting to pack it all in.

As long as I can compassionately care about my pts. and be interested in what is happening on the job on a day to day basis, there is nothing that could make me regret picking this profession.

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Specializes in private duty, nursing home, corrections.

Ugh, no .. I feel working in nursing is equal to being in an abusive relationship. Been in nursing 28 years and am training to go into office work now. I haven't been this excited since I don't know when.

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