It seems that some students are not a good fit for nursing.

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This post is just a bit of a rant so please take it with a grain of salt: I am finding MOST "pre-nursing" students I come across are not cut out for the gauntlet that is nursing school. It may be a maturity issue or an ignorance issue, I do not know. What I am seeing is a total lack of competition in my prerequs. I may just be an over competitive young man wanting to provide for his family, but I don't see anyone in my classes who is on another level kind of smart. Has anyone had this experience? I have a desire in my heart to know EVERYTHING so I am kind of constantly studying everything that has to do with nursing all the time, and I don't see anyone, really, that is knowledgeable at an elite level. It makes me sad because smart people motivate me to be better and I'm not getting any of that in my experience. please feel free to comment negatively or positively to this thread. I would love some feedback.

Thank you

This just gets better and better.

I blame Nurse Leigh.

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Specializes in Oncology (Prior: Ortho-Neuro, Metabolic Surgery).

To the few that are saying that classmates are not cut out for nursing because of _____:

Strange as it may seem, not everyone you meet will be just like you. There are a variety of personalities and qualities that make excellent nurses. Some will be bookish and intellectually competitive, while others will prefer a more real world approach. Some will be bubbly and enthusiastic, and others will be more sedate or practical. None of these qualities are incompatible with nursing. They are simply the natural variety of people.

Not all nurses are passionate about nursing, nor need they be. There are plenty of great nurses that chose nursing for the intellectual challenge, academic interest, money, steady job market (or the perception thereof), their talents, or because it was expected of them. It is only the last group that I would be concerned about. Hint: do a search on AllNurses for "Nursing as a Calling". Unless you are on the state board of nursing, a nursing school admissions officer, or a hiring manager for a healthcare facility, you really have no place to say who is cut out for nursing. Please stop dismissing your classmates' worth because they don't fit your arbitrary ideal of qualities of a nurse. This is neither helpful nor healthy for you or them. Self-efficacy is important to success in rigorous programs such as nursing. I sincerely hope you are not broadcasting your opinions of your classmates at school. You don't earn points by destroying other's sense of efficacy.

I am concerned about your expectations of patients' reactions to your passionate care. You are setting yourself up for disappointment when you realize that nursing isn't all fuzzy kittens and rainbows. The reality is nurses care for hurt and ill people who do not want to be hurt or ill. Patients will lash out at you because they are scared and hurting. They will not always appreciate what you do for them. You can be passionate about caring for them, but don't demand that they recognize what you do for them.

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Specializes in Telemetry.
I blame Nurse Leigh.

I accept responsibility. I will leave and go hang out with some nursing friends in person. My snarkasm tank needs time to refill, anyway. :D

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Specializes in Family Practice, Mental Health.
The point that you obviously missed was that IN MY OPINION, IN MY BELIEF, (I emphasized this many times but I will again) nurses should have passion for their job, they should CARE about the person they are supposed to CARE for. You can be both skilled and passionate, and through my education and personal experience it makes a huge difference having an indifferent nurse just doing their job vs. one with energy, love, and true caring. But as always, everyone will believe what they want. After all, it is probably just the money that provides the drive, and not the human putting their trust and health into the nurses' hands. So yes, I definitely believe myself that it would be amazing if all nurses were skilled, nurturing, and passionate. I can't change other people, but I can do this myself and perhaps others will see the major difference in patients and try it themselves. I know you don't believe me, but maybe you could research this yourself, the big difference in an assuring, nurturing nurse(or doctor) vs. one that is not this way and is just "doing their job skillfully."

*Holding up mirror*

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Specializes in Nephrology, Cardiology, ER, ICU.

Lets debate the topic, not the poster please

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Wow what was your line of work before going back to school? I would have expected a father who has work history to be far more humble, a team player and understanding that everyone comes from a different background and has different life issues to deal with. As a father you're lucky you have time to read so much. I'm a mother and one of my children has special needs , I'm also a domestic violence survivor and my marriage is in shreds - sometimes I get very sleepy in my A&P class after being up with kids in the night, I also missed an important Chem lecture recently because the school nurse called to tell me I had to pick up my son with a possible broken nose - I have midterms next week l, my house is a mess and I'm not feelInt great about anyone of it but I will give it my best shot for A's regardless of the chaos I deal with. Anyone of the students you look down on could have multiple issues - sure some are fresh out of school with lots ahead of them but I will say two of the girls I find most respectful and nice in my school are 18 and straight out of school.. There are some kids I find a little annoying but I check myself and remember that I was 18 before and it's good to get to know new people different to myself. Many people in school who are older hold jobs down to make it and some don't have thre privileged high. School experience or childhood I had but I see them working harder than I did at 18 and acting smarter. I don't think I can understand illness like I used to think I could because I know my A&P knowledge just isn't there for a full understanding yet - that said yes I do enjoy reading about health issues in the news and do so avidly out of pure interest

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So you--not a nurse, not even a nursing student--you, a PRE-nursing student, think you know who will make a good nurse?

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The point that you obviously missed was that IN MY OPINION, IN MY BELIEF, (I emphasized this many times but I will again) nurses should have passion for their job, they should CARE about the person they are supposed to CARE for. You can be both skilled and passionate, and through my education and personal experience it makes a huge difference having an indifferent nurse just doing their job vs. one with energy, love, and true caring. But as always, everyone will believe what they want. After all, it is probably just the money that provides the drive, and not the human putting their trust and health into the nurses' hands. So yes, I definitely believe myself that it would be amazing if all nurses were skilled, nurturing, and passionate. I can't change other people, but I can do this myself and perhaps others will see the major difference in patients and try it themselves. I know you don't believe me, but maybe you could research this yourself, the big difference in an assuring, nurturing nurse(or doctor) vs. one that is not this way and is just "doing their job skillfully."

Some people aren't open books. They don't voice any emotion or wear their hearts on their sleeves, especially in front of classmates. There are 3 classmates in my entire cohort that know note-worthy details about me. The rest of my class could think I'm a heartless b****--who knows? Different things drive us to do well. You may have an overwhelming passion for caring for people, your classmate may have a passion to provide a stable home for his/her kids and put food on the table. You never know.

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I'm sure I will help people more positively and skillfully than you ever did. And that's all that matters to me. I don't care about feeling warm and fuzzy myself, I want sick people to feel better in everyway.

In that way, I believe I am better. And 40 years from now you will be dead so I can't talk to you when I am seasoned, sorry.

Whoa...

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Whoa...

See? Compassion.

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A bleeding, caring heart who will passionately give you meds while berating you for disagreeing with her.

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I'm sure I will help people more positively and skillfully than you ever did. And that's all that matters to me. I don't care about feeling warm and fuzzy myself, I want sick people to feel better in everyway.

In that way, I believe I am better. And 40 years from now you will be dead so I can't talk to you when I am seasoned, sorry.

Wow. Just wow. You need to take your self righteous attitude down, waaaay down if you ever want to learn to actually be a nurse. How can you know you are better, if you've never seen any of these people work as a nurse?

I don't need a nurse brimming with positivity. I need a nurse who knows what she is doing, practices safely and according to evidence, and advocates for me. Those are my priorities. If my nurse also happens to be compassionate, that's flipping awesome. But not the most important factor.

If you are already considering yourself better than strangers on the Internet from a few posts. You have a long way to go.

Truthfully,

A Nursing Student.

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