I Am Passionate About Nursing. Are You?

Being passionate about nursing is something I am not ashamed of, it can frighten some people but mostly it has been received well. I thrive on knowledge and I have never been afraid to challenge, I hate to be dismissed so I am like a dog after a bone. What I have found along the road is that the majority of people hate to be challenged, but we are not sheep we need to challenge because not everything is as clear cut as the upper management believe it should be. We should challenge stupidity in nursing, we have patients lives at our fingertips and if we don't challenge and stand up for what is right , then we are not only letting down our patients but we let down ourselves. Nurses Announcements Archive Article

I Am Passionate About Nursing. Are You?

I love my job! I guess I am one of the lucky ones in nursing these days but I actually feel I make a difference.

Since February I am no longer clinically based but I am an Educator for a big company who treats me well.

I travel a lot and that could be a problem for some people, It is never predictable and you change your path hourly, daily, weekly as situations arise.

I make my own schedule, being flexible is a key word in my life and I have to be prepared to drop everything and run should the state arrive at one of my units.

I have a large workload 15 facilities where I audit care, and plan staff education around what I find is substandard. I work with each staff member individually if they have needs that need a little bit more attention. The patients that indirectly benefit from whether I am successful or not number greater than 700.

I have been an RN for over 21 years, which sounds so long, yet it has flown by. I have been very fortunate in my career but that doesn't mean I have had it easy or that things have come along by chance. I have had a very structured career pathway and I set goals along the way, I always set long term goals of 5 years.

Each job I have had, I chose carefully, I never settled for a job just because I had to. I worked hard and I studied hard. Mistakes were something I never ever anticipated would happen, there were a few along the way but very few clinically, my mouth would get me into the most trouble! There were sacrifices along the way, mainly time. Sometimes getting where i want to work has taken years.

Being passionate about nursing is something I am not ashamed of, it can frighten some people but mostly it has been received well. I thrive on knowledge and I have never been afraid to challenge, I hate to be dismissed so I am like a dog after a bone. What I have found along the road is that the majority of people hate to be challenged, but we are not sheep we need to challenge because not everything is as clear cut as the upper management believe it should be.

We should challenge stupidity in nursing, we have patients lives at our fingertips and if we don't challenge and stand up for what is right , then we are not only letting down our patients but we let down ourselves.

Where is the passion in nursing?

Are we so down trodden these days that enthusiasm and passion is no longer recognized?

Of course everything is blamed on money, or Obama! Really we blame Obama he has the worst job in the world and everything is blamed on Obama care, it does not matter one iota who is in power in our country, the real power is behind the scenes, we never see them but I guarantee that the insurance companies in this country have a huge say!

We can make a difference in nursing, instead of moaning and complaining about how hard we have to work, we should focus on what we can change and not what we can't. Nursing historically has always been a hard job, with long strange unsociable working hours, if you read old threads from the beginning of allnurses.com you will see bemoaning of short staff and long hours and nasty managers. Plus Nursing was very poorly paid and it has only been in recent years that pay has improved.

How can we make a difference, embrace the challenges, enjoy the patients, teach the students/new RN's. Form relationships that can follow you through life, celebrate your successes, and learn from your mistakes. Mistakes happen, it is life; don't let them ruin your life or your career.

Identify when a task is beyond your skill mix, ask for help and don't take no for an answer.

Move on from a job if it is not the right one, we are always going have horrible days but they should be few and far between not the norm. If you are truly miserable in a job then it is going to reflect in your work and you will be more focused on how miserable you are rather than making sure your job performance is above average.

Negative attitudes are contagious, stay away from the naysayers and try not to be one. Gossiping is another contagious behavior we see at work; try not to get involved it will only drag you down. I know this is easier said than done because we all love a good gossip, but unless you saw or heard it don't assume it is true.

Have I always been able to do what I am advising, no I am human I do have a big mouth but I do try to practice what I preach. Have I always been happy in my job?

No, but I have always gone about my work with a smile on my face. It is amazing what a smile can do, it is more contagious than the naysayers and gossip!

RN with 26 years of experience many of those years spent in dialysis. I have worked in acute care, home, ICHD as a CN, FA, and currently a director.

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medpro10

16 Posts

Specializes in Operating Room.

I absolutely agree. When there's no passion-there's no purpose! Shame on the ones who's only in the profession for the paycheck. They are their because its what their parents wanted or it looks good, but really their miserable and wished they had followed their own dream. I personally think when your passionate in the work place nothing goes wrong intentionally or gets ignored(bad or good). A positive attitude and gossip free work place would be the ideal job for me. Just being able to enjoy each others company, helping out, and getting the job done(accurately) is enough for me. This post was very real in detail and gives you allot to think about.

sunnychris

28 Posts

Nursing prepares you for so much, if being at the bedside no longer brings joy or fulfillment move to another capacity. I love this post it reminds us all of why we started on this journey.

Specializes in Pediatrics, Emergency, Trauma.

:whoot: :whoot:

Game changer in the house!!! :up::up:

Carry that torch!!! Lol! :yes:

Great post! Nursing is and CAN be an empowering profession; it has been for me, and for you as well, OP! :)

Specializes in Medical-Surgical, Telemetry/ICU Stepdown.

You ladies have good luck eliminating gossip or snitching in a workplace full of women. Gossip is your life and your passion. That's what you spend most of the day doing-chatting, texting, posting on Facebook, Twitting.

In 18 months at my current job I've never been in my manager's office to snitch on coworkers and I don't get involved in gossip, but I'm a guy, so I guess I live in a different world.

Cute post but it's full of naivete and idealism that's out of touch with the reality in the workplace.

Dranger

1,871 Posts

You ladies have good luck eliminating gossip or snitching in a workplace full of women. Gossip is your life and your passion. That's what you spend most of the day doing-chatting, texting, posting on Facebook, Twitting.

In 18 months at my current job I've never been in my manager's office to snitch on coworkers and I don't get involved in gossip, but I'm a guy, so I guess I live in a different world.

Cute post but it's full of naivete and idealism that's out of touch with the reality in the workplace.

Haha calling a spade a spade, I like it.

Specializes in LTC, CPR instructor, First aid instructor..

I have always loved healthcare, and that includes being an EMT for 18 years, CPR and First Aid instructor, and a nurse.

Elite Nurse

4 Posts

I am passionate about nursing however, after 30 years as a clinical critical nurse I became very knowledgeable about nurses who cross from clinical to nursing administration. I found they are no longer loyal to nursing but loyal to the corporate structure, will do some of the most unethical things to prove their loyalty to corporate management, and are genuinely happy to be off the clinical grid. I am so

loyal to clinical nursing almost to a fault. I can no longer function as a clinical nurse due to the severe hypocritical nature of nursing

administration and the corporate structure. Once you get to know to much about it, it breaks your heart to know clinical nurses are at the mercy of the now called 'corporate w----s'. Ill be glad to discuss it with anyone. Nurses are seen as a liability to the hospital scene and for that reason are disrespected by much of the hospital administration including nursing administration. Clinical nurses cost the

hospitals a lot of money. Lets talk.

Nacki, MSN, NP

344 Posts

Specializes in Author/Business Coach.

Yes Elite Nurse, let's talk. I've always wondered why management doesn't seem to care about their own. Why is that?

hmds88

3 Posts

Can you further elaborate on how nurses are seen as a liability to the hospital and also the severe hypocritical nature of nursing administration and the corporate structure? PM me if you'd like. Thanks.