ICU yuck

tigerlogic · Jun 10, 2012

There will always be lots of 'old people' as patients. Increasingly, even. If you don't like working with old people or have a really hard time with gross, you should think twice...

That said, I wouldn't want to work in ICU or LTC either (but not because of the elderlyness or the grossness). If your gut says nursing is a good choice, try another department. If not, maybe teaching is better for you. It's really great you're being honest with yourself and thinking hard before investing tons of money in nursing school.

Good luck!

313RN, BSN, RN · Jun 10, 2012

Hats off to the peds nurses out there.

I work in a neuro ICU in a trauma center and in another highly specialized unit and all the things that go with don't bother me in the least.

But not long ago I had to treat a sick kid who was about a month short of his third birthday.

After I assessed him and sent him back to his unit I had to go in my office, turn off the lights and blubber for a bit.

No thanks. I'm not tough enough to be a peds nurse.

Twinmom06, ASN, APN · Jun 10, 2012

In April I started as an aide in an ICU step down unit - it was ok and I do see the patients as someones mother/father etc...but much like yourself I didn't LOVE the job...I'm now in OB (which is what I really want to do) and I absolutely love it - weird demanding parents and all...

I think if you can get into the mindset that there are so many other facets of nursing, and age groups then your time spent in ICU will be a learning experience...

PeepnBiscuitsRN · Jun 10, 2012

I don't jump for joy either, but (to be blunt) at least you're getting paid to wipe butts- and if you work in peds, you'll be wiping butts too...and if you end up with a patient like my 17 month old (she's not a patient, she's just fine) you're going to be in for a wild time- flopping, rolling, grabbing poopy areas, "finger painting" and yanking the diaper right back off and handing it to you with a smile.

applewhitern, BSN, RN · Jun 10, 2012

I worked Pediatric ICU for over 6 years at a large teaching hospital. We did not have CNA's or "patient care techs" in that unit~only RN's and we did it all, including bathing the deceased and preparing them for the morgue. We took up to age 18. I don't know what you expected nursing to be. This is all part of it. I wonder why you didn't stay in teaching, since the pay and benefits would surely be better than that of the nursing assistant job. Also, someone mentioned "social work." You might not clean old people's butts as a social worker, but that is a very heartbreaking job.

missladyrn · Jun 10, 2012

Sound like you like the idea of nursing, but not the reality of it. What people think nurses do versus what we actually do. There is a big difference. I'd look a little deeper into other options of health careers.

sauconyrunner · Jun 10, 2012

Thanks for all the advise! Just to clarify: I handle all the things that go on in the ICU very well, but my responsibilities as a PCT (stocking, post-mortem care and taking bodies to the morgue, etc.) are what I don't like.

I do all those things as an RN.

The way your write, I instantly think, "No nursing is not for that person". BUt you seem to want to defend yourself, and say "I don't like this or that" Our ICU does not allow PCT's to work there. Guess who does all the stocking the post mortem care, the movign of bodies to the morgue, and indeed, all the wiping of poopy old behinds? The nurses.

Curious as to why you decided not to be a teacher?

Hay Nars, RN · Jun 10, 2012

"wiping old peoples asses to be blunt!"

-x-

sorry, this is probably not the right job for you then! maybe try a desk job or something. rns do everything that pcts do and more! maybe try going into a field that doesn't contain too many old people who need their ass cleaned (i.e. mom/baby, l&d, psych, clinic).

hmmm - good luck.

rita359 · Jun 10, 2012

Perhaps get into another area of nursing where patients are more stable and therefore less likely to die. ICU etc. a lot of patients not very stable anyway and just hanging on by a thread and prayer. In hospitals you can't completely get away from death but some areas have fewer than others.

Pneumothorax, BSN, RN · Jun 10, 2012

So I was interested in going back to school to pursue nursing...get my RN then maybe eventually my NP. I got a job as a Patient Care Tech at one of my local hospitals 2 months ago in the ICU. I am not a very big fan of this job. It is gross and depressing and I am dealing with death/dead bodies left and right. It is not at all what I want. It has actually discouraged me from nursing. I am so not into geriatrics or wiping old peoples asses to be blunt! I have always been interested in healthcare and the helping professions and especially children. My first degree was in teaching. Maybe this is just not the right setting for me? Maybe it is the duties of the Patient Care Tech that are disenchanting to me and not the duties of a nurse. Any advise? Should I try another setting before I make my decision? I know the settings and careers an RN can have are limitless, which is one thing keeping me interested.

Nurses deal with poop. Nurses deal w/ death. It's a fact. But u have to remember, these poopy dead ppl is someones mom dad sister w/e....

You had to know at some point that nurses wipe ass, they don't exactly hide that fact.

Being a tech is a dirty thankless job but it helps the RNs tremendously. & sometimes as an RN you have to get down and dirty. Ok, put on gloves and do ur job lol!

What ICU do u work in that people drop like flies? Maybe u should go work at a hospital w/ a higher survival rate, also maybe a diff ICU? Medical ICU is full of poopers ( in my experience) maybe try CV?

& since we're on the subject of death--try working in an ER, handling full arrests of 3 & 4 year olds THAT sucks!! But 'tis part of the job. I hated it but a little piece of me felt good knowing we tried our best to save them

kids die too, and that can be even more depressing. just saying.

Yup

I'm sorry but if you truly are incapable of seeing these tasks as anything but gross I'm afraid you will not be happy as a nurse. I'm not a big fan of cleaning up stool either but I'm a HUGE fan of having clean, comfortable patients. These "old people" are somebody's mother/father, sister/brother, aunt/uncle or friend. They are human beings not asses. If you can re-think it this way then you might find it more tolerable. If you cannot, and there's nothing wrong with that, then you definitely need to find another career goal.

This.

Anna Flaxis, BSN, RN · Jun 10, 2012

Agree with the others, OP who state that it may just be the setting you're working in. I'd also like to add that the role you're in has a lot to do with it as well. The PCT role is exactly as you describe, and it's true that bedside nurses also perform these tasks.

However, there are other options in nursing besides bedside nursing! There is patient education (Diabetic Educator, Cardiac Educator, etc.), there is case management, discharge planning, utilization review....

While I am glad for the experience I gained as a CNA, assisting patients with ADLs, changing briefs, doing peri-care, assisting with showering and bed baths, feeding, etc., those things are not the reason I went into nursing, and not the things about nursing that I enjoy. Does that mean I shouldn't be a nurse? Not at all! Maybe it means I shouldn't be a bedside nurse where those things will make up the bulk of my duties.

Working with people in my capacity as a CNA, I learned humility, the true meaning of being of service, and how to connect and establish rapport with people. Those things are at the foundation of what I do now, which is primarily education and support.

What I enjoy most about nursing is when I see the light bulb come on in a patient's eyes, where I know I've taught them something or helped them in some way. The thank you that you get is not the same as the thank you that you get from cleaning up an incontinent person, but it's no less meaningful and heartfelt.

So, even if you know for sure you don't want to become a bedside nurse, look into other options. It may be worth it to you. You might find you really like teaching patients about what to expect when they have open heart surgery, or how better to manage their diabetes, or what to expect as they recover from their MI, or how to manage their own IV infusions at home. Again, case management is also an option. There is no bedside care involved (depending on the setting), but you do spend a ton of time on the phone coordinating care, dealing with insurance issues, helping connect patients with appropriate resources, as well as face to face with patients and their families. Your people skills need to be strong.

And think of your job as a PCT in this way; it might not be your end goal, but you can use the experience to solidify those soft skills of connecting with people and gaining their trust. That is so important no matter what capacity in which you work with people.

Lastly, you might consider transferring to a different unit where patients aren't as incapacitated, or look into outpatient settings like clinics or ambulatory infusion or day surgery.

That Guy, BSN, RN, EMT-B · Jun 10, 2012

I'll go against the norm here. I hated being an aide. So much so that I said I would never be a nurse. Fast forward 7 years and here I am loving what I do. I think no one likes to do those things. It sucks. Anyone who says it doesn't is lying. What makes it ok for me is I don't just do that. I do so many other things in a shift that you know yeah it sucks but it's bearable. Knowing I'm helping in the end is what matters.

Every job you deal with ****. Ours is just more literal than others