Have you ever been insulted for what you do?

[Mrs. SnowStormRN, RN]

Hello. Another post actually influenced me to start this thread. The OP was a psych nurse like myself and she actually posted something that was recently said to me. I was having a conversation with a nurse friend of mine (CCU nurse, I really admire her, she's a brillant nurse) we we're having "medical talk." In the midst of convo she says, "You actually do know real nurse stuff (laughs)." I just laughed and said, "I am a REAL NURSE, duuuuh." It's not the first time I've encountered this insinuation that us "psych nurses" aren't as smart as other nurses. Another "psych nurse" comment I hear often is, "Wow, you work in psych? You know eventually psych nurses end up crazy like their patients.":eek: I could go on and on about this. I feel each speciality requires a special person to do the job well, and you must have knowledge in different areas to perform most specialities, not just in your specific area. When I worked in MedSurg I encountered psych patients, so I needed some knowledge on mental illness. Now that I work in mental health, many of my clients have a range of other diseases that are not mental in origin, but physical, so I must be prepared to care for these things as well. I think people assume psych is really easy, but I know that many people couldn't handle this career (especially because my clients are off their medications because I work in research, so you can imagine some of the issues we deal with. The police know the nurses by name, due to high flight risks, attacks on themselves or others. We literally have to be trained in self defense.) Anyhow, I'm going towards left field here, LoL! Any others heard some insulting remarks, or misconcepcions about their particular speciality?

[bsveillon]

I get comments all time about being "Just" an LPN. I was told last week, "You should really consider become an R.N. because you're too good to be just and L.P.N."

I've nurses I've known for a long time, tell me, "I would have never guessed you're just an L.P.N. by the way you talk."

One R.N. actually questioned my scope to give injections. She swore up and down that only R.N.s could do that.

People must think we go to summer school before taking our NCLEX-PN exam.

Yeah, I know the feeling.

[NurseLoveJoy88, ASN, RN]

I get comments all time about being "Just" an LPN. I was told last week, "You should really consider become an R.N. because you're too good to be just and L.P.N."

I've nurses I've known for a long time, tell me, "I would have never guessed you're just an L.P.N. by the way you talk."

One R.N. actually questioned my scope to give injections. She swore up and down that only R.N.s could do that.

People must think we go to summer school before taking our NCLEX-PN exam.

Yeah, I know the feeling.

I know the feeling. A patient told me that once I become a RN I will be a real nurse.

I have had family members insult my intelligence or " lack there of " for being a LPN.

I think people are always going to pick on people no matter what. I'm already preparing myself for

"just" an ADN once I graduate in dec.

[dthfytr, ADN, LPN, RN, EMT-B, EMT-I]

Take it as a sign of immaturity. We all develop expertise in the area we work the most. No nursing position is less important than another. If any one nursing specialty (OB, OR, ER, Psych, Etc) became unavailable, the entire health care system would collapse. I encourage all nurses to be proud of what they do, to never use the phrase "just a nurse" and if somebody implies that you're position is any less vital than theirs, ask them to cover for you while you take a weeks vacation. If they don't immediately download in their pants, they will if they try to replace you.

[bsveillon]

I know the feeling. A patient told me that once I become a RN I will be a real nurse.

I have had family members insult my intelligence or " lack there of " for being a LPN.

I think people are always going to pick on people no matter what. I'm already preparing myself for

"just" an ADN once I graduate in dec.

Well, that's probably another thread, but I'll say it anyway. Non-nursing folks, including patients and family members, wouldn't have any opinions about different licenses if the industry wouldn't put out a certain image. I've trained many new R.N.s on many things, being nursing schools aren't what they used to be. That doesn't make me better than them, in my perception at least.

If we wouldn't spend so much time putting each other down, people would have at least a little more respect for us.

[dthfytr, ADN, LPN, RN, EMT-B, EMT-I]

Forgive me for forgetting, I've seen LPN's function at higher levels than RN's enough times to know that each nurse needs to be judged on their own merits, not title. Big oversight, sorry LPN's.

[Mrs. SnowStormRN, RN]

I get comments all time about being "Just" an LPN. I was told last week, "You should really consider become an R.N. because you're too good to be just and L.P.N."

I've nurses I've known for a long time, tell me, "I would have never guessed you're just an L.P.N. by the way you talk."

One R.N. actually questioned my scope to give injections. She swore up and down that only R.N.s could do that.

People must think we go to summer school before taking our NCLEX-PN exam.

Yeah, I know the feeling.

Yes, when I was a LPN I got this all the time as well. I even heard a tech tell a patient, "Oh she doesn't know she's just a LPN." How the h*ll you know what I don't know, let the patient ask me and if I don't know I'll tell him. The nerve of people.

[realnursealso/LPN, LPN]

"Have you ever been insulted for what you do?" Yes, right here on Allnurses, by uninformed nursing students and new grads. I am a real nurse, I have my own license that I work under, no LPN's are not being fazed out just because your hospital doesn't hire them now. Just to let you know, the same thing happened in the early 80's, and the tide turned. In public I just ignore the uninformed. I'm proud of my career and what I've accomplished. I've been a nurse for over 30 years now.

[llg, PhD, RN]

I get insulted here on Allnurses often -- because I have an advanced education and am in a leadership position. Many people here regularly insult those of us who have "climbed the career ladder" in nursing.

[kessadawn, BSN, RN]

Well, if you are destined to go crazy as a psych nurse, I will end up peeing my pants and sucking my thumb...I work peds.

:lol2:

[TheMoonisMyLantern, ADN, LPN, RN]

Always consider the source of such passive aggressive comments. Usually the same people that pick on psych nurses as being less intelligent are the ones that tell a depressed patient to "Just get over it." or tell their patient that's in for an attempted suicide "Next time use a 9mm instead of a bottle pills." (true story).

Many people have petty prejudices that are based off of ignorance and nothing more.

[JenniferSews]

I continually hear comments and see the eye rolling attitude. Especially from the local ER and the EMTs. Since we are "just LTC nurses." In reality I deal with 15 sub acute patients and some are very unstable, it's not ltc at all. The last time I personally sent someone out I took a lot of guff from the EMTs for calling 911. They ended up intubating the patient in the bus for the atypical abx reaction I told them I suspected. But a week later they are rolling their eyes at me again for sending someone else out. I also got an irate call once at 7am that the patient we sent out at 10pm was now soiled. Really? No chance that between 10pm and now the incontinent pt soiled themselves? It had to be that it was before they left the facility and we never bothered to clean them? If that is so, how are you just noticing it at 7am when they have been your patient for 9 hrs? It's frustrating, but I try and shrug it off. I know I am a smarter, more capable nurse than they would like to believe. For some reason they seem to prefer to believe we are less intelligent. I can't change their perception because they don't want to believe otherwise.