I graduated from LPN school and took my NCLEX yesterday. Further down the road, I want to study for an RN. Nursing school is an expensive, hard journey which I am reconsidering due to all the negativity associated with the work environment where nurses are leaving the profession in droves.
I can understand the understaffing can be a problem but is it like this in almost every nursing specialty?
My goal is to work as an operating room RN. Would it still be understaffed?
Are there fields where I wouldn't have to deal with the massive understaffing yet still make great money?
I would really appreciate it if someone experienced can shed some light on what really goes on.
I think we have to accept the OP is 28. Graduating from a 4 year college took him quite some time. I guess grace for extended education time for memorization is in order.
I don't think making random assumptions about people you know nothing about will ever be accurate.
I think we have to accept the OP is 28. Graduating from a 4 year college took him quite some time. I guess grace for extended education time for memorization is in order.
I think we would have to accept that londonflo is a nurse, and not the doctor. Re-read the differences between the duties of a nurse and a doctor. You're getting way too ahead of yourself.
So youre saying you cant just memorize what to do in every scenario that pops up? Nurses are TOLD what to do when certain situations or symptoms arise. It is doctors or providers that apply their knowledge to the already gathered information from the nurse to really figure out what is going on. It is the doctors that decide on which treatment is suitable for that particular patient, the specific diagnostic tests that are necessary, possible diagnosis. This is something that relies more heavily on judgement rather than pure memorization. Don't confuse the job between of a doctor and a nurse.
This actually isn't quite the truth. You have to make decisions on the fly of whether to call a Dr and what to do in the meantime. And even if you work at a "teaching hospital" that has actual Dr's, I.e. residents, available many times the nurses know more than they do and have to help them make the right decisions in critical situations as they are literally learning on the job themselves!
That is one of the reasons the loss of experienced nurses is a true brain drain and will probably lead to more loss of life and bad outcomes, but most hospital executives don't care and only look at profit and the new grad costs a lot less than the experienced nurse that can save lives with their knowledge! Also the creation of MRT teams was to help save lives in the realization that many hospitals lacked experienced nurses (this before the mass nursing exodus since covid) and with so many new grads who wouldn't know what to do in an emergency these teams help save lives by intervening before a code and have established protocols with standing orders to get started instead of waiting for a Dr to call back.
I don't think making random assumptions about people you know nothing about will ever be accurate.
You stated you were 28.
brandy1017 said:
And even if you work at a "teaching hospital" that has actual Dr's, I.e. residents, available many times the nurses know more than they do and have to help them make the right decisions in critical situations as they are literally learning on the job themselves!
I attended a great workshop in communicating with physicians after hours. It was stated by the RN speaker and MD participants that when an RN calls an MD, the MD wants to hear the RN's solution. Instead the RN will just keep throwing more assessment data instead of providing a solution to the patient.
I attended a great workshop in communicating with physicians after hours. It was stated by the RN speaker and MD participants that when an RN calls an MD, the MD wants to hear the RN's solution. Instead the RN will just keep throwing more assessment data instead of providing a solution to the patient.
if you wanted recognition , you should've became a doctor or a CPA.
Nursing is not the field if you want to be recognized. It is not the field if you want the biggest respect.
I attended a great workshop in communicating with physicians after hours. It was stated by the RN speaker and MD participants that when an RN calls an MD, the MD wants to hear the RN's solution. Instead the RN will just keep throwing more assessment data instead of providing a solution to the patient.
londonflo said:
You stated you were 28.
I attended a great workshop in communicating with physicians after hours. It was stated by the RN speaker and MD participants that when an RN calls an MD, the MD wants to hear the RN's solution. Instead the RN will just keep throwing more assessment data instead of providing a solution to the patient.
That would be the SBAR format. The RN ends with the recommendation they expect. Sometimes, they get it... sometimes they don't.
I never became an RN to "be recognized" although I do think being respected as a person is important and comes with competent job performance -
Well what you've written shows otherwise. You've overstepped your role as a nurse into a doctor's role. You're obsessed about comparing difficulty of licensing exams of various fields (something that other people wouldn't even care about discussing). I'm gonna tell you right now that nursing really is not the most difficult license to obtain. If you want prestige, nursing is not it. And its futile to argue that you're going to command equally as much prestige and respect as a physician. Know your role.
This actually isn't quite the truth. You have to make decisions on the fly of whether to call a Dr and what to do in the meantime. And even if you work at a "teaching hospital" that has actual Dr's, I.e. residents, available many times the nurses know more than they do and have to help them make the right decisions in critical situations as they are literally learning on the job themselves!
That is one of the reasons the loss of experienced nurses is a true brain drain and will probably lead to more loss of life and bad outcomes, but most hospital executives don't care and only look at profit and the new grad costs a lot less than the experienced nurse that can save lives with their knowledge! Also the creation of MRT teams was to help save lives in the realization that many hospitals lacked experienced nurses (this before the mass nursing exodus since covid) and with so many new grads who wouldn't know what to do in an emergency these teams help save lives by intervening before a code and have established protocols with standing orders to get started instead of waiting for a Dr to call back.
Nurses are around the patients a lot more than the doctors. Thats why nurses seem to know more than doctors at times. But I can't say the same as for the "expertise" aspect.
I went on my first job interview at a nursing facility today. It just left a really bad taste in my mouth. It seems like it's very common for some nursing facilities to underpay or "low ball" hardworking, beyond stressed out nurses. They have plenty of money to provide hefty 10k sign on bonuses but lack the money to pay their nurses a decent wage. Maybe if you paid your nurses a bit more, you wouldn't need that sign on bonus. Its their sneaky way of ripping nurses off.
Nurses just don't seem to get any respect. It's very unlike the environment where I came from in accounting where people got paid for what they were worth. What you've said about experienced nurses quitting is also a huge factor on why I wouldn't stay in the field. When you have rookies 2 yrs in being as charge nurses, its not only risky for patients' lives but also our licenses. If anything goes wrong, we lose our livelihood. But there must be something terribly wrong if you're willing to put a rookie as a charge nurse. If a rookie is the charge nurse, then it is a clear sign that its a job nobody wants. Other than this, I've been hearing about a ton of bullying amongst nurses. Nurses are uncivil and cruel to each other.
I don't think nursing is the field that I want to be in for the rest of my life. I would do it for the job stability as a backup career until I can find something else. It's really sad people show absolutely no regard to such an essential role in healthcare.
I went on my first job interview at a nursing facility today. It just left a really bad taste in my mouth. It seems like it's very common for some nursing facilities to underpay or "low ball" hardworking, beyond stressed out nurses. They have plenty of money to provide hefty 10k sign on bonuses but lack the money to pay their nurses a decent wage. Maybe if you paid your nurses a bit more, you wouldn't need that sign on bonus. Its their sneaky way of ripping nurses off.
Nurses just don't seem to get any respect. It's very unlike the environment where I came from in accounting where people got paid for what they were worth. What you've said about experienced nurses quitting is also a huge factor on why I wouldn't stay in the field. When you have rookies 2 yrs in being as charge nurses, its not only risky for patients' lives but also our licenses. If anything goes wrong, we lose our livelihood. But there must be something terribly wrong if you're willing to put a rookie as a charge nurse. If a rookie is the charge nurse, then it is a clear sign that its a job nobody wants. Other than this, I've been hearing about a ton of bullying amongst nurses. Nurses are uncivil and cruel to each other.
I don't think nursing is the field that I want to be in for the rest of my life. I would do it for the job stability as a backup career until I can find something else. It's really sad people show absolutely no regard to such an essential role in healthcare.
Did you apply to a nursing home or a hospital? Someone on here said the pay for LPN's is better at nursing homes than the hospitals that are using them again. When I started as an RN in 93 we had LPN's and they worked under us as we had to do their IV's and had ultimate responsibility. But even back then hospitals were phasing out LPN's and by 95 I believe they did the same by me after an LPN put her hands up and walked away from a crashing patient. Then they were given the choice of working as CNA/techs or HUCS. I think they kept their pay as we were union, but I'm not sure. Many left at that point probably for clinics. Now even clinics have moved toward MA's away from RN's and LPN's. I'm sure there are some jobs available, but not as many as before.
As to the pay, HR has a wage grid for each role. Technically, it's possible to negotiate pay, but hard to do if you as a new grad have no relevant healthcare experience. Plus I would imagine since it is a female dominated position few women feel comfortable negotiating salary and it's a skill not taught in school. But there are books and info on the internet about how to do this and the best time to do it with each job change. But you are right, the bonus keeps the pay low, plus it ensures a captive recruit, who will stay for at least 2-3 years. A one time bonus may be enticing to people with bills, ie everyone, and those with student loans, but it is not the same as a better wage, especially over time if you stay.
Nurses are around the patients a lot more than the doctors. Thats why nurses seem to know more than doctors at times. But I can't say the same as for the "expertise" aspect.
That is true in the hospital nurses are there 24/7 and Dr's stop by for 5 minutes so we are their eyes and ears. Dr's have a lot more expertise and training, but residents are still learning just like new grad nurses so there is a learning curve and that is where experienced nurses can help them make the right decisions. Once the residents have experience they can become excellent hospitalists and intensivists if they choose to stay in the field.
I'm not implying that nurses know more than Dr's, just that we need to apply all the nursing and medical knowledge to take care of our patients and collaborate with the Dr's. It is more than memorization. You need to be able to assess the patient, understand his history, pathophysiology, meds, etc and then talk to the Dr about what is going on and what you think needs to be done. Most Dr's are OK and appreciate this. There were only two in my career that would be defiant and do the opposite of what the nurse would ask for and if it was an emergency I would find a work around, say another consult or there had been a couple times where a nursing supervisor transferred a patient to the ICU for their safety. Not sure if it would happen now. Of course, once you encounter such a Dr you learn what not to do for the patient's sake. Thankfully they are rare. Now on the other hand, I've had a Dr refuse what I asked but who would explain their rationale and thought process and that is different.
The Dr is trained to think of a differential diagnosis. So let's look at left shoulder pain, for example, there are like 5 different things it could be if I remember right. As a cardiac nurse we r/o the heart first. Of course you r/o muscle or shoulder strain. But it could also be heartburn, even pancreatitis, and did you know it can also be a sign of lung cancer! They do a history and physical and order appropriate labs and tests to figure out the cause.
I do have respect for Dr's and NP's and PA's. They have advanced medical training. I watched and listened to a nurse during her NP training and could really see the difference when she gave report and she became an excellent NP. Another ICU nurse I knew now works as an NP in critical care. Of course, many of my coworkers became NP's, especially in the last ten years as it became a more common career path.
nursingcand
82 Posts
I don't think making random assumptions about people you know nothing about will ever be accurate.