Seriously? What are they telling you in school?

[Simply Complicated]

Ok I know people are sick of hearing about the MA's calling themselves nurses threads, but I just need to vent for a minute here. Because I am irritated right now. I belong to another online forum (non nursing) that I have been a part of for like 3 years. One of the people I know posted a thread the other day, saying she knew there were a lot of people who work in the medical field, and she was just curious what they do.

2 people, 1 of who I know, both said they are MA's. Then commented that the only real thing separating them from RN's is the pay. Oh and the fact that they are not allowed to push narcotics. One commented that where she works they are even allowed to start IV's under the doctors license, so it really is just the pay that separates her.

I get that people think all nurses are are med pushing poop cleaners. But I would love to see an MA go work in the ICU, or manage 8 patients on a busy Med/Surg floor, or read the strips on a telemetry floor.

The thread is a few days old, and no longer active so I am not going to comment in it. Which is probably good, because I doubt I would have been very nice. OK end vent.

[vanburbian]

They don't even know what they don't know....

[Cat_RN, ASN, BSN, RN]

They just don't know what they don't know!

[Cat_RN, ASN, BSN, RN]

They don't even know what they don't know....

Wow we posted the same thing at the same time..

[turnforthenurse, MSN, NP]

Can MA's even give meds?

Unfortunately unless people have had the "hospital experience" (whether as a patient or family member) I feel they will always think of nurses as glorified pill pushers and butt wipers.

[Altra, BSN, RN]

It is my observation that, "I work in the medical field" is code for, "I am a (check one):

MA

registration clerk

medical records clerk

dietary host/ess

It is also my observation that the number of times someone interjects "I work in the medical field" into the conversation is inversely proportional to the amount of correct medical information they contribute to the conversation.

The shame is that these people have important jobs, but have some need to disguise them as something else, rather than recognize their own contribution to patient care.

[roser13, ASN, RN]

I attribute it to 2 primary influences:

1) The for-profit schools advertising that MA's are the up and coming future of the medical industry in order to lure students in. All in the name of the almighty $$.

2) The MD's who are hiring the MA's and allowing them to believe and act as if they are functioning as nurses. All in the name of the almighty $$.

[Simply Complicated]

Can MA's even give meds?

Unfortunately unless people have had the "hospital experience" (whether as a patient or family member) I feel they will always think of nurses as glorified pill pushers and butt wipers.

I didn't actually think they could. But who knows. Someone else actually asked them don't MA's just do like blood pressures and check people in? They got a little offended.

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

Can MA's even give meds?

Yes. They can do whatever the doctor that employs them permits them to do, as they are working under the physician's licensure. In addition, they do not have a defined scope of practice in most states. MAs give injections, immunizations, and other medications. Some MAs claim to have given IV meds under the direction of the doctor that employs them.

[KeepItRealRN, BSN, RN]

nurses are are med pushing poop cleaners.

There are times where I feel like I fall into this category, like a shift caring for a paient in the ICU on ECMO and every drip known to man kind who also happend to be GI bleeding. So yes every time this one stooled (which was non stop) it was a major project.

[Mom2boysRN]

I find that frightening.... thinking from now on I just might start asking people what their credentials are.

[Dixielee, BSN, RN]

In my ED quite a few of our nurses started off as techs. They will all tell you that when they were techs they thought they could do the RN's job easily, but now that they are RN's, they realize how wrong they were! Yes, techs, MA's etc can do many of the tasks that nurses do. What they don't realize is the responsibility that comes with the RN behind your name.

I recently had a tech tell me that she could do everything I do except give meds, and if I would give her my Pyxis ID, she could do that! Ahhhhhh, I sigh a lot and move on.

We have been fighting this battle for a long time. The MD's are beginning to see it a bit with the influx of PA's and FNP's. Most of our patients call them doc and most don't correct them. I don't care how many uniform changes we make, large name tags they give us with huge RN stamped across the bottom...if you are a male in scrubs, then you are a doctor, if you are female in scrubs, you are a nurse.