It's been discussed here MANY times....how student nurses plan, often even before doing any of their nursing classes, to become CRNA's or NP's. It's SO very typical.
Labor Day weekend, I was up north with the fam. My mom's BF's grandson (who is about 8 years younger than me) is going in to nursing school. We were discussing career paths, and what does he say? You guessed it...he's going to be an anesthetist. "Or a NP," he adds a short while later. (so as to avoid the "messy" part of nursing....)
I didn't say a thing. Far be it for me to burst his bubble (and it's not like he can't do it, if he so chooses). He just seems to think it'll be one straight shot from start to finish. I tried to talk about needing experience, etc, before getting in to a Master's program...nope, he wasn't hearing it. I wanted to say, do you KNOW how many people think they are going to do that? Didn't say that either.
The whole conversation was such a cliche, after what I've read here, that I had to stifle a chuckle. Time will tell, I guess.
This thread is part of the problem with nursing, and why so many people claim that nurses are not supportive of each other. I see nothing wrong with entering the nursing profession with dreams of advancing on very early in one's career. News flash...if said person can make it happen, it only means that they are more driven than those who cannot. If someone wants to work bedside, then so be it and we love you all for doing it! This profession NEEDS to have a variety of people who want to work bedside, become supervisors, educators, and Nurse Practitioners. And I'm sorry, but everyone does not need to work bedside for decades before moving on to bigger and better things in their life.
Yes, I see value in working bedside before becoming an NP or CRNA, but it is okay to have the aspirations to do so before starting. I am one of those who entered nursing primarily to become an NP, and guess what...I'm doing it! I got into an Accelerated BSN program on my first try, had a job at a prestigeous hospital with around 500 applicants before I graduated, then less than 6 months later got a more desired position that had yet again aroun 500 applicants. I was immediately accepted into an MSN Program and hope to have my PNP in about 3 years part time. Yes, I work bedside and clean poop, but I don't want to do it for years and years to come, so I will move on with my education and look forward to giving orders in 3 years as opposed to taking them . While you guys are rolling your eyes, I'm moving on toward a career path I'm excited about! Why is it so hard to support people? There is nothing wrong with having aspirations to become an NP, just as there is nothing wrong with having aspirations to be a bedside nurse for 40 years, because there is enough room in this profession for ALL of us! We all don't get to be astronauts, though:lol2:
It's been discussed here MANY times....how student nurses plan, often even before doing any of their nursing classes, to become CRNA's or NP's. It's SO very typical.
Sure, everyone does that, but students are sort of railroaded into it.
Every student at some point has to answer the question, "What is your 5 year plan?"
No one is going to answer, "I want to work as a staff nurse for about two years, getting married about a year into it. Then I'm going to launch of string of pregnancies, taking 12 weeks off for each one and working about a 0.4 until the kids go to school. After that I hope to get a nice cushy 9-5 no-weekend clinic or outpatient surgery gig and ride that out as long as I have to."
No one gets to say that. They present you with the levels: ADN, BSN, Master's, Doctorate. You have to pick one of those paths to show people how smart and serious you are.
My preceptor is a staff nurse who just hit her 30th anniversary as a staff nurse. Her last kid is going to college and soon as that kid finishes she's going to retire with a full pension. She's had a great career and has raised a great family. But no one sits down in an interview and lays out her path as one they desire.
This thread is part of the problem with nursing, and why so many people claim that nurses are not supportive of each other. I see nothing wrong with entering the nursing profession with dreams of advancing on very early in one's career. News flash...if said person can make it happen, it only means that they are more driven than those who cannot. If someone wants to work bedside, then so be it and we love you all for doing it! This profession NEEDS to have a variety of people who want to work bedside, become supervisors, educators, and Nurse Practitioners. And I'm sorry, but everyone does not need to work bedside for decades before moving on to bigger and better things in their life.
Yes, I see value in working bedside before becoming an NP or CRNA, but it is okay to have the aspirations to do so before starting. I am one of those who entered nursing primarily to become an NP, and guess what...I'm doing it! I got into an Accelerated BSN program on my first try, had a job at a prestigeous hospital with around 500 applicants before I graduated, then less than 6 months later got a more desired position that had yet again aroun 500 applicants. I was immediately accepted into an MSN Program and hope to have my PNP in about 3 years part time. Yes, I work bedside and clean poop, but I don't want to do it for years and years to come, so I will move on with my education and look forward to giving orders in 3 years as opposed to taking them . While you guys are rolling your eyes, I'm moving on toward a career path I'm excited about! Why is it so hard to support people? There is nothing wrong with having aspirations to become an NP, just as there is nothing wrong with having aspirations to be a bedside nurse for 40 years, because there is enough room in this profession for ALL of us! We all don't get to be astronauts, though:lol2:
All I'll say is that you completely missed the point.
All I'll say is that you completely missed the point.
No, I don't think I did...you were bashing all the people who enter nursing school with aspirations of becoming an NP or CRNA right away. And I was simply pointing out that for some people with high motivation, it actually does work out that way! You stated you bite your tongue when you hear this. I'm presuming it is because you find their aspirations unrealistic. But you will never know, unless you keep in touch for the next 5 years to see if their dreams became reality.
Making fun of people's aspirations is pointless, and to tell them that it is unrealistic is actually a dig at bedside nursing...kinda like saying "Oh no, you will have to stay in the trenches for years before moving on." Well, what does that imply??? That bedside nursing is a low point and you have to "do your time". That attitiude is actually setting bedside nursing behind, not the aspiration of moving to a different sector of the profession.
No, I don't think I did...you were bashing all the people who enter nursing school with aspirations of becoming an NP or CRNA right away. And I was simply pointing out that for some people with high motivation, it actually does work out that way! You stated you bite your tongue when you hear this. I'm presuming it is because you find their aspirations unrealistic. But you will never know, unless you keep in touch for the next 5 years to see if their dreams became reality.
Making fun of people's aspirations is pointless, and to tell them that it is unrealistic is actually a dig at bedside nursing...kinda like saying "Oh no, you will have to stay in the trenches for years before moving on." Well, what does that imply??? That bedside nursing is a low point and you have to "do your time". That attitiude is actually setting bedside nursing behind, not the aspiration of moving to a different sector of the profession.
Yes, you did.
What I also said was I found it ironic based on what I've read here over the years....you haven't been here that long, so I don't think you know what I mean. I'm not fighting about it, I just don't care to explain it again. Not everyone is going to get it, and that is fine.
I'm not meaning any disrespect anyway, but I still don't see how your initial post wasn't negative. But also, who says we aren't entitled to negative and venting posts as well! LOL
At least these folks have a goal. I was very directionless when I was their age. I am happy when I meet anyone with a clear sense of where they want to go.
The only thing the OP might have done to help would have been to let the young man know that working ICU for a couple of years is required to get into CRNA school.
At least these folks have a goal. I was very directionless when I was their age. I am happy when I meet anyone with a clear sense of where they want to go.
The only thing the OP might have done to help would have been to let the young man know that working ICU for a couple of years is required to get into CRNA school.
Believe me, I did. He didn't care to hear it, so I didn't push it (he's....not the easiest to talk to...kind of stubborn, kind of a jerk). Did my best to (yes, nicely) explain how the process works. No dice.
never say never. i did my public health rotation junior year in part with a nurse practitioner in a free-standing pedi clinic, and it was fabulous. i decided there and then that was my chosen career path, and i would have done it, too, but for the fact that my then-husband got a job transfer to another city far away, and the only job i could get was in a postop recovery room. i got hooked on critical care there and never went back to peds.
i was in the last class at my college that was not required to take statistics; we were all sooooo sure we would all be staff nurses 4evah that we derided anyone with a mn or, god forbid, a phd or dnsc, so we were fine with that. fast-forward seven years, and i wanted to teach...and i had to have a master's for that, and i had to have had undergrad statistics for that. so i took it in night school. but i was still going to be a critical care nurse 4evah.
now i haven't set foot in an icu in 17 years except to visit a patient/family for case management or life care planning purposes. you really just don't know where life will take ya. but one thing i can say is that no education is ever wasted.
I want to become a CRNA. That's the reason I got my 2nd Bachelor degree and went through an extremely INTENSE 16 month Accelerated BSN program. I just started in the ICU in July. My goal is CRNA. If it does not work out for some reason, I can say that I still love being an RN. :)
You guys are ridiculous. So what if someone wants to further their career? You have no idea what the future holds for anyone, the condecending eyerolls are a little much, don't you think?
. While you guys are rolling your eyes, I'm moving on toward a career path I'm excited about! Why is it so hard to support people? There is nothing wrong with having aspirations to become an NP, just as there is nothing wrong with having aspirations to be a bedside nurse for 40 years, because there is enough room in this profession for ALL of us! We all don't get to be astronauts, though:lol2:
cindyloowho
143 Posts
This thread is part of the problem with nursing, and why so many people claim that nurses are not supportive of each other. I see nothing wrong with entering the nursing profession with dreams of advancing on very early in one's career. News flash...if said person can make it happen, it only means that they are more driven than those who cannot. If someone wants to work bedside, then so be it and we love you all for doing it! This profession NEEDS to have a variety of people who want to work bedside, become supervisors, educators, and Nurse Practitioners. And I'm sorry, but everyone does not need to work bedside for decades before moving on to bigger and better things in their life.
Yes, I see value in working bedside before becoming an NP or CRNA, but it is okay to have the aspirations to do so before starting. I am one of those who entered nursing primarily to become an NP, and guess what...I'm doing it! I got into an Accelerated BSN program on my first try, had a job at a prestigeous hospital with around 500 applicants before I graduated, then less than 6 months later got a more desired position that had yet again aroun 500 applicants. I was immediately accepted into an MSN Program and hope to have my PNP in about 3 years part time. Yes, I work bedside and clean poop, but I don't want to do it for years and years to come, so I will move on with my education and look forward to giving orders in 3 years as opposed to taking them
. While you guys are rolling your eyes, I'm moving on toward a career path I'm excited about! Why is it so hard to support people? There is nothing wrong with having aspirations to become an NP, just as there is nothing wrong with having aspirations to be a bedside nurse for 40 years, because there is enough room in this profession for ALL of us! We all don't get to be astronauts, though:lol2: