Published
I have am just concluded all my general ed, and am starting to focus on a major. Nursing holds much appeal for me, but I am interested in finding out - do the RNs do clean up work? I have been told that they generally do assessments, administer medication and act as patient advocates. I hope this question doesn't sound stupid - but I really would like to know what the different levels of responsibility are before I get too far into it. Any insight is appreciated.
Let's see have I cleaned up poop? My first job as a tech, I worked in a LTC facility for kids with disabilities. Between me and the 3 nurses i worked with, we did round the clock diaper changes on kids who's G-Tube feedings ran to high.
My first job out of nursing school I worked in the NICU/ Intermediate Nursery. Yep. I cleaned up lots and lots of poop. My favorite is the projectile poop from kids on Alimentum. Fun. Nice and green and slimey and smells like week old roadkill.
Now I work on a general floor, not med surg, a combo of EVERYTHING. Not much poop here. Lots of puke tho. On me often.
Yep. Nursing is a bodily fluid filled world. I wouldn't trade it for anything
jenkatt
Let's see have I cleaned up poop? My first job as a tech, I worked in a LTC facility for kids with disabilities. Between me and the 3 nurses i worked with, we did round the clock diaper changes on kids who's G-Tube feedings ran to high.
My first job out of nursing school I worked in the NICU/ Intermediate Nursery. Yep. I cleaned up lots and lots of poop. My favorite is the projectile poop from kids on Alimentum. Fun. Nice and green and slimey and smells like week old roadkill.
Now I work on a general floor, not med surg, a combo of EVERYTHING. Not much poop here. Lots of puke tho. On me often.
Yep. Nursing is a bodily fluid filled world. I wouldn't trade it for anything
jenkatt
Cleaning up the smelly stuff is just part of the job.
One word of advise, don't ever delegate a task that you would not be willing to do yourself if you did not have 100 other things to accomplish right at the moment. If you constanty delegate the dirty tasks just because you don't want to do them, it will be amazing how fast the CNA's will catch on to this and be unavailable when you suddenly need them.
Cleaning up the smelly stuff is just part of the job.
One word of advise, don't ever delegate a task that you would not be willing to do yourself if you did not have 100 other things to accomplish right at the moment. If you constanty delegate the dirty tasks just because you don't want to do them, it will be amazing how fast the CNA's will catch on to this and be unavailable when you suddenly need them.
canoehead, BSN, RN
6,909 Posts
Please see a previous posting "what freaks you out" (at least 3 pages long).
If you make it through the end of the post without heaving you've got what it takes to be a nurse.