This is my first time posting a thread. I was just wondering if anyone is or knows of a Jehovah's Witness nurse who works in a critical care unit. Also if you dont mind can you tell me at which hospital? The reason I am asking is that I am also one of Jehovah's Witnesses and I just passed my NCLEX. Yay I really want to work in the critical care unit, specifically the CCU. However, when I explained to the supervisor of the ICU/CCU about the issue with the blood transfusion, she said she couldnt hire me on to the critical care unit. Yes, this hospital is offering critical care positions to new grads. I was really devastated because i wanted to really work in the CCU. So I was wondering if it's the same for other hospitals. I explained to the supervisor that I am willing to care for the patient who is receiving the blood transfusion, but that I would need a second nurse(most likely the nurse who would be verifying the blood with me) to spike the blood and press the start button. I do understand why the critical care environment may not want to have a nurse who cannot initiate the blood transfusion. So I was just wondering if I do not have a chance at all in a critical care unit. For now I am orienting in the med-surg floor and I still have lingering feelings for the critical care unit.
I'd like to point out that this is a parenting problem, not a homeschooling problem. There are homeschoolers successfully pursuing degrees in colleges and universities all over this country and there have been for a couple decades.
My family was encouraged to home school me due the bad influences of school in the worldly population. Which my parents listen to, resulting in be becoming a high school drop that never completed the 9th grade. Five years ago I started college and now achieved my BSN, but anyone that has been in the religion for 3 generations knows many members play down the influence of the congregation.
My life has been greatly blessed since cutting all ties for the JW. I been with my wife for over 21 years, whom is my best friend. Growing up I never thought I could be as happy as I am now.
"Armageddon" was predicted in 1914, 1925, and 1976. After 1976 they decided to stop quoting specific years/dates….surely because if it's not documented it didn't happen ;-)
I really do think that attitude is localized, not a widespread ideal. I was a witness in Manhattan, Queens, and New Jersey burbs in both Spanish and English congregations and never encountered a family that was encouraged to homeschool nor was my family ever was. But I'm certainly not disagreeing about the influence the elders hold, and personally I could never go back to being a witness, although I still miss the plethora of friends that came with it.
As far as the actual issue at hand, at the end of the day it's the individual nurses decision and he/she should be forthcoming at the time of the interview so that everyone goes in with both eyes open.
Specializes in Nursing Education, CVICU, Float Pool.
I'm a JW who has been a CVICU nurse for almost 2 years, taking fresh hearts etc..... I've never had a problem. I've always worked with great and opened-mind teams as well. Jehovah's Witnesses value life very much. We believe we and all people deserve the best chance at life. Some witnesses may feel their conscience will not allow them to administer blood, some will. That's up to their conscience as this doesn't involve them personally taking blood products.
We get our decision not to take blood from various scriptural references in the bible, one being Acts 21:25.
As a nurses, we are ethically obligated to not endorse (or force) any particular treatments on patients. When a patient asks advice. We educate them on the potential risks and benefits, and we do this with recognition and acceptance of the patient, and their family's cultural or religious influences. We (referencing Jehovah's witnesses as a whole) also don't force our beliefs on other people.
If a witness is conflicted about the administration of blood products, it's best to evaluate the type of employment you seek in nursing, as most do in my experience.
I completely agree with everything that has been said. Why apply for a job that you know you will not be able to perform, and why should your coworkers have to do your job for you? If you are not capable to save a life because of your religion then.....why are you in nursing at all?. Nursing is about the patient,not your religion. I say find another career.
I disagree with you only Bc when you accept a position, you are expected to be able to preform those duties. While the right to practice your own religion is a constitutional right, it doesn't mean that your employer is forced to excuse you from certain duties because of of your religion, especially when that duty is within your scope of practice. I can't get out of working Sundays to go to church, because when I accepted my position, working Sundays was part of my job description (a little different, I know.) She has a right to her own religion, but it shouldn't interfere with patient care and its not like hanging blood was some big surprise for her that all the sudden her employer was forcing her to do. It's a part of nursing. What if I was a chef and not washing my hands ever was a part if my religion...would a restaurant hire them to serve food?
Is it a part of your religion to stop other's from getting blood transfusions? I don't see the moral dilemma, if you r cannot press the start button how that different from monitoring and pressing the stop? I understand that if you were a patient then you would not want the blood products for yourself or other members of your faith, but lets say a Catholic person had a blood transfusion and you were his/her nurse how does this conflict with your beliefs since you are not receiving said blood? I am trying to understand your rational by why you cannot administer blood to someone who is not of your faith?
I don't see what the big deal is myself. I mean considering blood always has to be verified by two nurses, anyway. I'm not a Jehovah's Witness. I'm an agnostic, so I have no dog in this fight, but come on!
The point is that CICU is possibly the very worst choice for a nurse who won't hang blood. In my CICU it was not uncommon for a patient to crash suddenly post op and require in excess of over 30 units of blood in a very short space of time, and the room was so busy there were upwards of 5 or 6 people in there at a time. The patient ended up 2:1. If I was the helper I would be miffed if I had to hang all the units of blood when it wasn't my patient. As the main nurse I liked to be responsible for keeping track of that and making sure things were working. Often the patient was so sick that you're literally multi tasking...hanging blood withone hand and multiple pressors with the other. I wouldn't have time to be asking someone else to do piecemeal tasks. You have to work as a team and if one person is rapidly performing a task, the other nurse will hang the blood and vice versa. No one is standing around not doing anything just waiting to help you. You have to be in it 100% because your patient's life depends on it. You're better off choosing another specialty.
Honestly I don't see this as a big issue, there are many nurses who can't lift or can't do XYZ for one reason or another. I don't see why some of you are against her due to her religious belief.
If I were you I would not disclose this information until after you are hired. Wait until you are hired then tell them about your beliefs. I know this may seem unprofessional but you are not legally entitled to disclose your religious beliefs to them. It is no different than a girl we hired 3 months ago who was pregnant when we hired her, but she didn't tell us and now she will be going on leave here in a just a few months so not only do we have to hold her position, but now we are right back to being short again.
I would rather work with a nurse who could't hang blood once in a while than a nurse who cant lift their patient or worse is out on leave for the next few months. Also some ICU's in smaller hospitals might be better off. Or try the VA
Honestly I don't see this as a big issue, there are many nurses who can't lift or can't do XYZ for one reason or another. I don't see why some of you are against her due to her religious belief.
If I were you I would not disclose this information until after you are hired. Wait until you are hired then tell them about your beliefs. I know this may seem unprofessional but you are not legally entitled to disclose your religious beliefs to them. It is no different than a girl we hired 3 months ago who was pregnant when we hired her, but she didn't tell us and now she will be going on leave here in a just a few months so not only do we have to hold her position, but now we are right back to being short again.
I would rather work with a nurse who could't hang blood once in a while than a nurse who cant lift their patient or worse is out on leave for the next few months. Also some ICU's in smaller hospitals might be better off. Or try the VA
The problem with that is that it's not actually a religious belief. There is no JW doctrine against administering blood, only receiving blood, and the JW church has actually come out and specifically stated that administering blood is not against their rules, refusing to administer blood would be considered a personal choice, not a religious belief.
Many of you say you wouldn't have a problem spiking and hanging the products for someone else. I think that also in theory, but as an oncology nurse, having to hang chemo for non-chemo certified nurses can be a TREMENDOUS burden. The checking process for blood and chemo are nearly identical at my facility, and it can be very difficult to manage chemo administration for another nurse while you're trying to manage your own patients needs. Also, where I work, if you administer, you are responsible for monitoring. If I hang a bag of platelets for a nurse who is drowning, monitoring vitals for reactions and adverse events is on ME. Same goes for chemo, blood, plasma, drugs, etc. So in theory I would totally help out the OP, but in reality I totally wouldn't. As I'm not going to do all of the monitoring associated with the blood products they won't/can't give.
I really want to work in the critical care unit, specifically the CCU. However, when I explained to the supervisor of the ICU/CCU about the issue with the blood transfusion, she said she couldnt hire me on to the critical care unit. Yes, this hospital is offering critical care positions to new grads. I was really devastated because i wanted to really work in the CCU. 
So I was wondering if it's the same for other hospitals. I explained to the supervisor that I am willing to care for the patient who is receiving the blood transfusion, but that I would need a second nurse(most likely the nurse who would be verifying the blood with me) to spike the blood and press the start button. I do understand why the critical care environment may not want to have a nurse who cannot initiate the blood transfusion. So I was just wondering if I do not have a chance at all in a critical care unit. For now I am orienting in the med-surg floor and I still have lingering feelings for the critical care unit. 
eroc
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As to my BSN.
Thanks for pointing out my JW parents.