Entitled Nurses?

[SheriffLauren]

So I just started a new job and aside from this one thing that KEEPS happening every time I go to work and interact with nurses outside of my unit, I really like it.

But every day a nurse I haven't met before looks at my badge and makes this faceand says " WHY would you do THAT? What was your first choice? Well it's a good place to start your nursing career. Psych can be very hard."

EXCUSE YOU!

1: I'm not a new grad, 2: I worked this specialty before! (I went from Acute Adult Psych/alternating Gero-psych to now strictly Gero-psych) Obviously these people don't know that upon meeting me but now I'm getting pretty ticked off. The assumptions are one thing but the consistent putting down my choice? That's rude right? I've never experienced this sorry of behaviour before.

So what I want to know is has anyone else experienced this? With any specialty, just in general have you ever experienced nurses from other units looking down on you for where you chose to work?

[Pangea Reunited, ASN, RN]

You're very in tune with what other people think. Honestly, I hardly notice. And when they tell me directly, I hardly care. I even have trouble caring about things that do matter.

[roser13, ASN, RN]

Sometimes you have to work hard to take offense at a look or a suggestion of an attitude. I do my level best to not go down that path.

"But every day a nurse I haven't met before looks at my badge and makes this faceand says " WHY would you do THAT? What was your first choice? Well it's a good place to start your nursing career. Psych can be very hard."

And I can truly say that no one has ever questioned my choices in the workplace. I find it hard to believe that it happens to you on a daily basis.

[elkpark]

Yes, that's happened to me once in a while over my many years in psych. Who cares? It doesn't bother me. It reflects poorly on them, not on me.

[macawake, MSN]

So what I want to know is has anyone else experienced this?

I haven't. (But I don't work in psych).

If someone I just met asked me that question I would either simply ignore it and quickly forget about it or ask them (while looking something like this: ) what on earth compelled you to ask that question of someone you hardly know? OP, don't let it get to you. If you're happy about your choice of specialty that's all that should matter. What others think is of no consequence.

I think that it's strange that it keeps happening to you on a regular/frequent basis. I think that your coworkers are acting strangely. A friend of mine who is a psychiatric nurse will every once in a while get comments like "I could never do what you do", but she interprets that as meaning that the other nurse finds her specialty difficult, daunting or simply not for them, not that the other person is expressing disdain for what she does.

[Jensmom7, BSN, RN]

I just usually say something to the effect of "Well, that's why there are so many different specialties in Nursing. So you don't have to do anything you don't like or aren't interested in".

Then I smile, and keep on going...[emoji41]

ETA: Not Psych, but Hospice. We get our share of "I could NEVER do that!" Responses.

[whichone'spink, BSN, RN]

The only time I got questioned about my choice of specialty was when I had to shadow in ICU as part of my PACU orientation, because I went into the PACU without the ICU background. The nurse I was shadowing was puzzled that someone without ICU experience would be hired in PACU, because usually it's not the case. I was honestly surprised too when I first got hired. It doesn't matter. I've had my fair share of patients who needed vent support, pressor support, art line etc now. I can deal with unstable patients and manage to keep them up until I hand them off to an ICU nurse. Just don't ask me to put on a ROSE adaptor. I tried to once and made a huge mess. And frankly I think art lines inserted in the OR by the CRNA usually go bad 75% of the time, so I am happy when I get the order to discontinue it.