Is it okay that I hate LTC?

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Like, I loathe it...I find myself wanting to go hide every time I go to clinical For me, it's a combination of the depressing environment, the loss of dignity I witness everyday, being treated like a slave by some of the residents.

Other students seem to share how I feel and some loath it even more than me and say they had thought about quitting for a while but when I try to vent about it to my friends and family they look at me like I'm nuts and like I probably should even be in nursing if I don't' like being in a nursing home. I have had thoughts that I don't think I could work in one at all and that I don't know how the nurses can stand it...and that I would only do it to gain experience after nursing school...

My shcool is having trouble getting us any more clinical experience other than LTC. I spent 3 weeks in a family practice clinic, which I liked...whle other students have experienced med surg, peds, cardiac nursing, school nursing, etc..I feel like I"m getting gypt.

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I totally agree with you. I despise LTC. You are not alone on this.

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She's right - you are NOT alone. I cannot stand it and find it very, very challenging to go and it's only once a week. In March we start twice a week :(

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Specializes in Med/Surg, LTACH, LTC, Home Health.
Like, I loathe it...I find myself wanting to go hide every time I go to clinical For me, it's a combination of the depressing environment, the loss of dignity I witness everyday, being treated like a slave by some of the residents. Other students seem to share how I feel and some loath it even more than me and say they had thought about quitting for a while but when I try to vent about it to my friends and family they look at me like I'm nuts and like I probably should even be in nursing if I don't' like being in a nursing home. I have had thoughts that I don't think I could work in one at all and that I don't know how the nurses can stand it...and that I would only do it to gain experience after nursing school...My shcool is having trouble getting us any more clinical experience other than LTC. I spent 3 weeks in a family practice clinic, which I liked...whle other students have experienced med surg, peds, cardiac nursing, school nursing, etc..I feel like I"m getting gypt.
There's nothing wrong with hating that area of nursing. But don't you just love those residents as the people who are the reason we are here? They are our history. Without them, there would be no us, let alone us as nurses. I truly love them but I work med/surg because I couldn't stand by and watch the treatment that some of them received there even when I complained to administration. Try looking at them as the grandparents that they are instead of the mean-as-the-dickens old bats that some appear to be. If you could envision them in an environment other than a nursing home, it might help. Remember, the only way to keep from getting old is to die young. They need you. Heck. I'm gonna need you one day. Nurses have a habit of taking on the illnesses and conditions of those they cared for later on in life. Do what you can for them now because you WILL see them again when you least expect it.....might even be in your very own mirror one day. It'll be ok; YOU will be ok. I've loved every old person that I encountered, even the 88 year-old, 90-pound Paul Bunyon who doesn't realize I'm supposed to be the one kicking his behind instead of the other way around.
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Specializes in Med/Surg, LTACH, LTC, Home Health.

My nephew was one semester away from graduating from an RN program when he did his first nursing home clinical rotation. He quit school that day and hasn't looked back! He had a resident with relentless diarrhea. I laughed for 2 weeks about that!!!! I tried to talk him into staying in school but with me laughing so hard, he didn't take me seriously.LOL! He regrets it now....that was only3-4 years ago......but he won't get back into school.

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thanks guys. Don't get me wrong, I have residents I adore, I don't have a problem working with the elderly in general, I love the stories and the one thing I do like about LTC is the occasional moments I can make a confused, scared, crying older person feel better by just being there for them. They aren't all bad, mean, entitled...but the envioronemetn as a whole is what I hate.

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Specializes in Med/Surg, LTACH, LTC, Home Health.
thanks guys. Don't get me wrong, I have residents I adore, I don't have a problem working with the elderly in general, I love the stories and the one thing I do like about LTC is the occasional moments I can make a confused, scared, crying older person feel better by just being there for them. They aren't all bad, mean, entitled...but the envioronemetn as a whole is what I hate.
In that case, get your list together so that you can prioritize that other areas that you will hate as well. Then once you get your license, you can choose the lesser of ALL the evils. LOL! I hate working in the units because they generally have only 2 patients; I hate working med/surg because we have too MANY patients. I hate nursing because I can't do it from home. LOL! You'll find your area and when you do, it will feel like a warm blanket in winter.....so I'm told. This old nurse is still out in the cold. Lol!
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Every nurse (that I've met) has a specialty they don't like. LTC is yours, and that's okay.

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I'm currently a LTC CNA and I hate it. It doesn't affect the care I give, but before and after work, I dread going back. I, too, hate the hopelessness. I can only hear 'why don't I die?' so many times before it grates on my nerves. I'm looking forward to starting Nursing school (waiting to hear if I got in!) and hopefully getting work in a hospital. I prefer that environment.

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In western Pennsylvania, it would not be okay. What is your school telling you about employers and employment prospects? Here, we are bluntly told that LPNs will mostly work in LTC and nursing homes as team leaders. Hospital jobs are very rare now, and more hospitals are following the Magnet and Affordable HC mandates or is it recommendations that *all* nurses in hospitals will be registered nurses. And Magnet apparently requires all RNs to be BSRNs, to boot. Akron Children's Hospital recently eliminated all LPN positions.

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Fields! Which does make nursing all the better! LTC really isn't for everyone. I work over at an assisted living and must say that loss of dignity you feel is what most of a residents feel as well :\ which is some cause for the way they behave. It is hard to deal with it all especially as some reach the ends but the care is really what matters to them in the end :) rewarding? Yeaaaahhhh buddy.

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I wanted to add that not all ltc facilities are equal. As a cna my first job was in a ltc environment and after the first few weeks i started wondering if I had what it took to be cna or nurse. My second job was in a hospital and by the end of it I had given up on the nursing field but now my third job in ltcgher again is night and day different from the first one. this facility has much higher standards and it shows every where from the residents to the staff.

I guess my point is, while ltc may never be "your thing"don't judge all ltc by what you've seen so far...

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