Higher Calling

[guest449786]

Why is it that nurses are informed from the beginning of their education and throughout their careers that nursing is a higher calling? Is this being taught to management and administrators as well? Rhetorical questions, as a male, in a female-dominated profession, and coming from the corporate world it is rather disingenuous and would never be tolerated in "male" dominated professions. I'm expected to take care of you or your family, and in return I get to work in sub-par environments with sub-par compensation. Why am I nothing more than a liability on the balance sheet?

[Julius Seizure]

My school emphasized this pretty heavily. It was enough that when professors would ask the students why they chose nursing, I felt like I had to lie and say something along the lines of it being a calling or ministry of sorts, rather than that I had an interest in science and health, and liked that it was a stable career field with a variety of opportunities.

[BrandonLPN, LPN]

We may not be as forward thinking here in the Northeast as the Midwest and just clinging to outdated ways of thinking. Yes, it was implied that nurses are called to the profession and therefore that in of itself was part of your compensation. You are comparing apples to oranges and from your perspective, having 10 months of education, the compensation may seem fair. I'm guessing you haven't been exposed to other fields and I definitely think your outlook would be the minority in the Philadelphia area. Good for you.

Well, excuse me for having my own opinion. I don't see anything in my original post that was offensive, and am at a loss as to why you got so riled up.

I still don't think nursing schools are teaching that nursing is a calling these days. They may have mentioned that it *used* to be considered a calling back in the day during the whole history of nursing spiel, but that's all I recall.

And I do think nurses are compensated well compared to many professions. I make 50k a year with my 10 month education, no overtime. I consider that fair. Maybe if you're making similar earnings with your 4 year education, you need to market yourself better.

[ixchel]

When my husband gets off on a tear like this (on whatever subject, morphing from one to the next in a way that gives me whiplash, and no, I have no reading disability, thankyouverymuch), I usually put down what I'm doing and say something like, "Is there some reason you want to pick a fight with me?" He usually reconsiders his overall attitude and thinks about what's really bothering him. Root cause analysis, you know.

Sometimes I tell my husband I don't feel like arguing and it makes him even more disagreeable.

[RNsRWe, ASN, RN]

Then, if you report, please do not further engage. It just adds fuel to the fire and everything keeps on keeping on, ya know?

I'm pretty good at defending myself, but ok, I promise that if I report on a thread, I won't further engage

How about everyone, including the OP, take a step back and chill a little with the discussion. Return with clearer heads.

Sound like a plan??

That would assume there is a discussion of merit underway to which anyone should return. But I respect your position, so....sure. :)

[ixchel]

OP, I was called to nursing. I remember it like yesterday.

I was running a brush through my knee-length hair, while cherubs danced with the squirrels outside my window. It would have been a perfect day, except the harp player wouldn't stop playing that Tom Jones song the kids are so into these days. What's it called? What's New Pussycat?

Anyway, this eerie glow appeared before me in the lawn, and a naked hedgehog appeared. He said to me, "yo baby, dig it." His voice was regal like a cross between Morgan Freeman and James Earl Jones, but also a bit gruff, like what's his name, who did the Aflak Duck voice.

Anywho, he says, "you can get your jingle jangle while the hurky jerky cools your hide." And suddenly, I knew what he meant. It was my destiny to become a nurse.

We all partied together on my lawn, while Brad Pitt designed my house.

I miss Brad. We used to chill on a mountainside. I haven't seen him since I started zyprexa and seroquel. He's one of those believers in "diet and exercise".

[nurseprnRN, BSN, RN]

I have been called to find the setting where you can ignore a poster. Awesome.

[RNsRWe, ASN, RN]

If you go back to my original post there wasn't an individual attacked and pointing out facts are not personal attacks. Why feel insulted that I pointed out that LPNs have 10 months education or an associate's degree is not the same education as a BSN?

With my most respectful, calm tones:

You told someone that he probably felt well-compensated because he didn't have much experience in other fields (your assumption), and had "only" 10 months' education...and finished with a "Good for you". You didn't state the incredibly obvious "an ADN isn't the same as a BSN".....you made a derogatory inference.

Do you not recognize that HOW something is stated has significant impact on whatever the message was? That insinuations, inferences of a negative nature is what put you in this situation in the first place? Perhaps you believe that claims of innocence are the same as actual innocence, but I would be one of many who would disagree with that claim. Telling someone who doesn't share your specifically-narrow viewpoint on your stated topic (that being "the Higher Calling philosophy is used to keep nurses underpaid) that she "probably has a reading disability"...really? That's an honest, innocent conclusion? Or something said to be rude? You DON'T see it as inflammatory?Your words were dismissive in nature, and that is what caused the reaction you got. If you cannot see that, there really IS nothing more to say. If you CAN see that....you'd see where apologies are most definitely owed.

Most of the comments do not address the original idea and are personal in nature. It's not much fun at work and definitely not my idea of fun at home. I'm giving up my short lived stint on Allnurses.com and hope you guys have fun. Peace.

Thank you, we will. Bye.

[amoLucia]

Dang! I didn't make any popcorn!

[RNsRWe, ASN, RN]

I have been called to find the setting where you can ignore a poster. Awesome.

I've thought about it, but I figure I like to see someone sneaking up to attack me rather than never see it coming.

[RNsRWe, ASN, RN]

Dang! I didn't make any popcorn!

I'll share my bite of jugular vein with you, if you like...?

[BrandonLPN, LPN]

If you go back to my original post there wasn't an individual attacked and pointing out facts are not personal attacks. Why feel insulted that I pointed out that LPNs have 10 months education or an associate's degree is not the same education as a BSN?

Oh, come on. You clearly made these comments to belittle those of us who don't meet your standards. You totally meant them as personal attacks. You were upset people didn't agree with your opinion, and so lashed out. And the "reading disability" comment you made toward someone else was really off the wall.

You may have been taught that nursing is a calling in your programs..... most of us chimed in to say it wasn't taught as such in ours. For some reason you took that as an attack.

You feel nurses aren't compensated fairly in relation to their education.... well, you're entitled to your opinion. Many of us disagree. What is a fact is that there are many, many majors out there that do not result in gainful employment. Many liberal art majors find that the job market is far too tight for whatever esoteric subject they majored in, and they wind up being para-professionals with four-year degrees making 14 bucks an hour. Social workers, teachers and librarians are all professions I can think of off the top of my head that have a much lower financial return for their tuition dollar.

No one said nurses are overpaid, but to imply nursing is among the most unfairly compensated professions around is just not true.

[ThePrincessBride, MSN, RN, NP]

From my personal experience, nurses are pushing for a more professional outlook. Nursing used to be regarded as "women's work" until that woman got married and had kids. Now, it is highly technical, skilled and involves a tremendous amount of critical thinking and knowledge.

To try to make it all about the "Nightingale calling" would be to undermine all the hard-work that people have put into professionalizing nursing.