I'm currently getting my prerequisites done at a community college. It's my first year of college and I'm starting to reconsider majoring in nursing. I've always had a disliking to science for a long time however I'm fine with math. I don't want to work in an area that I won't be happy with for the rest of my life, you know?
So does nursing involve a lot of science?
In the everyday job, where are some times that you're going to have to involve science in your work?
Do I just get the science courses over with and just look forward to the hands-on experience?
LOL! One of my coworkers telephoned an attending physician to report a patient's chest pain. One of the new orders received was a stat EKG. She dutifully obtained the EKG and flagged the printout result so the doc could follow up in the morning during rounds (we had paper charts a few years ago).
The EKG was obtained at 10:00pm. The doctor rounded at 9:00am the next morning and went ballistic after seeing a classic ST elevation on the EKG that wasn't there at the time the patient had gotten admitted. Yes, the patient had an MI. Yes, the task-oriented nurse was more focused on completing the task at hand (read: the EKG) than bothering to clinically visualize the big picture.
Yes, the very same task-oriented nurse is still working at the very same hospital, and to this day, she cannot mentally assemble the discrete parts of the whole to come up with the big picture. Management promptly swept the occurrence under the rug because this nurse is "so pleasant," "excels at time management" and "always gets out on time."
Haha! I have worked with many of those creatures, a bizarre amalgam of automaton, company man and somewhere in there.....nurse. You are exactly correct. Some nurses DO abandon the SCIENCE and critical thinking of true nursing, in favor of following rules to a 'T,' being liked and never rocking the boat. You are absolutely right in that they always paint a pretty picture.....docs and patients love them...but underneath are patterns of questionable competency, incomplete charting and poor performance that Yes! Is often overlooked by management because she sure does answer the Joint Commission surveyors questions EXACTLY AS SCRIPTED and never racks up a minute of overtime. These creatures fly under the radar like the Wicked Witch of the West's monkeys, leaving a lot of detritus in their wake. I HATE them.
OP, another thing to consider is this. The science involved in nursing is very nuanced. Really excellent nurses who I idolize are able to do their job using a mixture of cold hard science, instinct & critical thinking developed by a deep understanding of that science, compassion, experience, humor, speed, and quiet humility. The BASE is the science. ALWAYS. You can't argue with it, you can't dress it up to look like something else. Every situation will ALWAYS boil down to the cold hard science. Really great clinicians, brilliant diagnosticians, and the best of the best have thought processes that use scientific thinking and knowledge as the foundation toall their actions.
Have you started any of your science pre-reqs? If you are just a few weeks into your first one, or haven't started yet, I'd say give it a chance. I remember sitting through the first couple of weeks of anatomy/physio (it was a warm up to my required science pre-reqs), and thinking there is NO WAY I can make it through this class. It was in that moment like you, that I doubted my dream of being a nurse. I made myself stick with the 6 week summer class and by the end I had fallen in love with science. I am now in physio and love science even more. My point, give it a chance to see what your dislike is all about. Maybe it all sounds so overwhelming, so you attribute that to not liking science. I have come to the conclusion that I've always loved science and somehow lost my passion, which I think is common in girls.
If you can't stomach it after giving it a true shot, I'd say reconsider your major, because I think pushing through pre-reqs will be incredibly challenging. So, to answer your question, yes, nursing is science. Everything beautifully builds on each other. For example, I just finished Anatomy, which focused mainly on structure, however now I am in Physiology which takes everything I learned about structure and goes into function by taking it all back to atoms and molecules.
If nursing is your dream, stick with your science course for 1 semester to see how you feel at the end. Good luck!
LOL! One of my coworkers telephoned an attending physician to report a patient's chest pain. One of the new orders received was a stat EKG. She dutifully obtained the EKG and flagged the printout result so the doc could follow up in the morning during rounds (we had paper charts a few years ago).
The EKG was obtained at 10:00pm. The doctor rounded at 9:00am the next morning and went ballistic after seeing a classic ST elevation on the EKG that wasn't there at the time the patient had gotten admitted. Yes, the patient had an MI. Yes, the task-oriented nurse was more focused on completing the task at hand (read: the EKG) than bothering to clinically visualize the big picture.
Yes, the very same task-oriented nurse is still working at the very same hospital, and to this day, she cannot mentally assemble the discrete parts of the whole to come up with the big picture. Management promptly swept the occurrence under the rug because this nurse is "so pleasant," "excels at time management" and "always gets out on time."
Do these types of people typically seem to really enjoy their jobs?
The fact is, you are going to have to learn to like science to be a nurse. I was terrible at science in high school. But that was a different time, and I was a different student. When I went back to school for nursing, I learned I loved science and I maybe should have paid better attention all those years ago!! I really don't think 16 year old girls and advanced physics go very well together, lol. But I aced all of my prereq science courses. I love to read about it and actually took some free online science courses over the summer. I had a very fascinating neurobiology class.
Science is the foundation for nursing. It just is. You have to have an indepth knowledge of the human body and how it works. You just do. You have to understand how different drugs work and how they affect the body. You need to know which is lipid soluable and which is water soluable. You need to know how loop diuretics work and why Potassium and Sodium are so important to the human body. You cannot be a nurse unless you understand this stuff plain and simple. There is so much more to nursing than handing someone their meds and cleaning them. You might just want to try an A&P class and see if you like it.
I just graduated from Nursing school and honestly THERE ARE ZERO JOBS. I went to the best school ranked in my state, got my bachelors degree, among many other qualifications and experience Ive had and cannot get a job anywhere to save my life. I would highly suggest looking into PA if you are interested in the medical field or choose something else. Just thought I would warn as a struggling new grad who has to still live at her parents 6 months after graduation
I just graduated from Nursing school and honestly THERE ARE ZERO JOBS. I went to the best school ranked in my state, got my bachelors degree, among many other qualifications and experience Ive had and cannot get a job anywhere to save my life. I would highly suggest looking into PA if you are interested in the medical field or choose something else. Just thought I would warn as a struggling new grad who has to still live at her patents after 6 months of graduation ?
I think becoming a PA who doesn't like science is an even worse idea than a science-hating nurse.
What do you want nursing to be if not applied science? What do you hope to accomplish?
If your response is the canned "I just want to help people", then there are tons of careers out there that are not based in science outside of the medical field. In nursing, you have to be able to interpret labs, know mechanism of action of medications, have a great knowledge of anatomy, understand PH balances, etc (endless list) in order to take care of patients. If you really dislike science you are not going to enjoy nursing and possibly be a danger to your patients.
The nurse who posted about a nurse who failed to catch an MI on an EKG is a prime example. Makes me fear for my own life if I am ever a patient with a nurse like that.
Patient care-and safety-is the primary function of a nurse and without scientific knowledge lives are compromised. If you really hate science, please choose to do something else.
Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.
Do these types of people typically seem to really enjoy their jobs?
I cannot seem to ascertain whether task-oriented members of nursing staff actually like their jobs. However, a common thread I've noticed is that they seem to accrue longevity on the job and stick around at the same workplace long after other nurses have moved onto better opportunities.
In other words, task-oriented nurses get comfortable at one place of employment and tend to fly under the radar as long as administration is willing to look the other way.
I cannot seem to ascertain whether task-oriented members of nursing staff actually like their jobs. However, a common thread I've noticed is that they seem to accrue longevity on the job and stick around at the same workplace long after other nurses have moved onto better opportunities.
In other words, task-oriented nurses get comfortable at one place of employment and tend to fly under the radar as long as administration is willing to look the other way.
Maybe they fit into the spectrum of people who have little need to actually enjoy their work? The worker bees who work because they need to work and that's life.
There are days when I wish I was that person. I can't imagine I'll ever have one job for any exciting length of time.
I just graduated from Nursing school and honestly THERE ARE ZERO JOBS. I went to the best school ranked in my state, got my bachelors degree, among many other qualifications and experience Ive had and cannot get a job anywhere to save my life. I would highly suggest looking into PA if you are interested in the medical field or choose something else. Just thought I would warn as a struggling new grad who has to still live at her parents 6 months after graduation
Courtney, I was just wondering what does your resume look like? How are your interview skills? I ask this because unless you are in CA or NY, I don't find your theory to hold water. CA is very impacted but just because someone can't find a job, doesn't mean it's the market's fault.
My response is going to go against the grain of the other replies, but you always have the option of becoming a task-oriented nurse who focuses on completing routine tasks (assessments, medication administration, charting, etc) without looking at the big scientific picture.
I work with several task-oriented nurses. They complete their tasks without much analysis. They get out on time. Patients generally like them. While they'll never work up to their full intellectual potentials, the task-oriented nurse is the one who maintains long term employment at healthcare facilities because management loves the fact that they clock out on time.
Medication administration involves pharmacological knowledge. Assessments involve physiological knowledge. Nurses also need some biochemical knowledge to comprehend the processes of nutrition, digestion, and so forth. We also need microbiological and epidemiological knowledge for infection control and preventive purposes.
However, there are many nurses who have long forgotten the science. In the real world of nursing they do just fine, although their coworkers are often left picking up the slack.
I would cringe in fear of ever having a nurse like that take care of me or a family member. These types are the ones who commit med errors because they've "forgotten the science" behind what they're doing, they just look at the med order and don't question the what-when-why-how behind it. Or fail to realize the subtle changes in their patient before they crash.
To the OP: if you hate science, why would you pick a profession that is a health science? If it's the care-giving that appeals to you, there are career paths other than nursing you can pursue.
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mclennan, BSN, RN
684 Posts
Haha! I have worked with many of those creatures, a bizarre amalgam of automaton, company man and somewhere in there.....nurse. You are exactly correct. Some nurses DO abandon the SCIENCE and critical thinking of true nursing, in favor of following rules to a 'T,' being liked and never rocking the boat. You are absolutely right in that they always paint a pretty picture.....docs and patients love them...but underneath are patterns of questionable competency, incomplete charting and poor performance that Yes! Is often overlooked by management because she sure does answer the Joint Commission surveyors questions EXACTLY AS SCRIPTED and never racks up a minute of overtime. These creatures fly under the radar like the Wicked Witch of the West's monkeys, leaving a lot of detritus in their wake. I HATE them.
OP, another thing to consider is this. The science involved in nursing is very nuanced. Really excellent nurses who I idolize are able to do their job using a mixture of cold hard science, instinct & critical thinking developed by a deep understanding of that science, compassion, experience, humor, speed, and quiet humility. The BASE is the science. ALWAYS. You can't argue with it, you can't dress it up to look like something else. Every situation will ALWAYS boil down to the cold hard science. Really great clinicians, brilliant diagnosticians, and the best of the best have thought processes that use scientific thinking and knowledge as the foundation toall their actions.