So as I was dozing in the rocking chair with my 13 month old who was lazily nursing/sleeping I recalled a conversation I had with a teacher at the school I was at for my Public Health Clinical back in early December. The school nurse wanted me to talk to her because I was still relatively fresh out of school and into the industry and already back to complete my BSN.
Well, this teacher was a lady who looked to be in her late 50's early 60's, and she wanted to know about her daughter in law who wanted to go back to school to be an RN. This daughter in law had a BS in something already, I think marketing or something like that. So she was asking me about what I did on a typical night, and what nursing school entailed. I was explaining that her DIL would be wise to start CNA training so she was ready after she completed the prereq's she would need. She wanted to know what good training to be a CNA would do. I explained that it's basic nursing skills- vitals, personal cares etc. The school nurse I was with piped up "you know...butt wiping". I laughed and said "yeah that's true, you do do some of that".
That's when I lost all respect for this teacher. She got this sour look on her face, and said "oh, but she won't have to do any of that will she? I mean that's what the aides are for, she's going to be more busy doing other things, right? She won't have to wipe people...the aides do that."
To which the school nurse and I looked at each other... school nurse smiled and said something to the effect of having to wipe more butts than she could count when she worked in ICU. I basically said "yea well, sometimes...especially at night the PCA is doing something else, like wrestling/hog tying a raving dementia patient who is trying to gouge another nurse's eye out." What I was really thinking is "gee, no way, we nurses don't sink to that level, just like you teachers don't sink to the level of teaching these kids to spell...they have auto-correct, to do that for them...right?"
OY! If DIL is anything like MIL and she decides to go to school, I'm keeping an eye on this forum for a post that might sound something like "so my mom in law told me i don't have 2 wipe butts when im a real nurse because the aides get to do that im doing importaint things lolz!!"
Either AllNurses.com represents a disproportionately large segment of RNs who are NOT displeased to wipe poo but in my experience... it's probably half-half between RNs who don't mind and those who have a superiority complex
Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.
Either AllNurses.com represents a disproportionately large segment of RNs who are NOT displeased to wipe poo but in my experience... it's probably half-half between RNs who don't mind and those who have a superiority complex
Don't get me wrong. I do not enjoy the sight or smell of poop.
However, I still say that I would much rather wipe a poopy butt than deal with menacing family members, rude doctors, tattletale coworkers, or clueless managers. Although fecal matter is not pleasant, many things in healthcare are far worse than poop.
OTOH should "people's initial reaction" have the apostrophe? I try, but really hate some of our English grammar rules and spelling! Apostrophes indicating possession seem to be such big stumbling blocks!
yes, because the "reaction" belongs to the "people". If people were not already plural, and an "s" had to be added onto the noun to make it plural, the apostophe would go to the right of the "s".
I find it much easier to clean a browned backside, than a scalp wound that has bled and dried into a hardhat helmet of blood. Getting that softened and out of the hair to see what wounds are under there is a far sight more challenging! Less odiferous though
It's certainly right up there on my least favorite things to do list. The other tasks/events ranked similarly involve severe pain or risk of death for me or the patient. I'm glad most of my patients don't have problems with that during their relatively brief stay with me, but when they do it's my job to take care of the poop ASAP. And I do it with a pleasant disposition (it's sure not the patient's fault--everybody poops), though the entire time I'm trying not to vomit if it's of average or worse odor.
For whatever reason I'm just really bad with smells. Same goes for dealing with my cat box.
Honestly, I would rather have someone look down on the poopy part of our job and at least appreciate there's more to what we do than that than to have someone think that's ALL we do.
I used to get that from patients whenever they asked me why i was going to school for....I took no offense when she said something like ohh you will be an RN right? not just an aide.....I would say yes mam!, but I enjoy helping CNAs because without their help I wouldn't be able to do the things that you familiarize RNs to do (ie meds, ivs, teaching etc). I take no shame into cleaning someone up.....the sole foundation of nursing is about CARING...if I cared, then I would not mind cleaning them just like I would do my mom. I'm very grateful for aides bc they are very important...just like we are important to the doctors. If there wasn't any aides or nurses to help care for patients....the doctors would have to care for patient's basic needs. We are ALL VERY IMPORTANT...no matter what the task entails.
I didn't know this post would yield so many responses! I know the initial reaction to having to wipe a butt is sometimes "yuck" but I think it was more the lady's arrogance about it. More akin to the post about the new RN thinking she was going to be in charge. I think the DIL had asked the MIL to talk to the school nurse about her options (because this particular school nurse knew all the teachers really well) and the school nurse thought I'd be better suited to answer. I was going to actually go on to tell her to tell her daughter in law to skip nursing entirely because there will be no job waiting for her.
Maybe I'm immune to the idea of wiping tushies because I had only a 6-9 month break of my son being 100% potty trained before my daughter was born. And I'm still wiping, and her diapers are worse sometimes...I come home from work in the morning and she's in her crib rolling around and standing up, and plopping down, and I swear there's a greenish-yellow haze in our room...the smell that comes out of that little baby....then the little bugger flops around and then breaks free and runs away...
I went into nursing knowing nothing about the "true" profession. I expected to use my knowledge, give meds, make people comfortable, give some treatments, but I was in shock in my the beginning of my first semester of nursing school when I realized how much butt-wiping I really would be doing. I seriously had no idea. My I have had a very weak stomach from in the beginning and had actually considered quitting, I am glad i didn't. And yes, I now have a stomach of steal and wiped more butt in the ICU than I ever could have imagined.
My point being, yeah, it is a little ignorant. But someone who doesn't know much about nursing really simply doesn't know about all the dirty work involved. If you have never been in the hospital, don't have any family members or friends who are nurses, you probably don't know. It it is a shock and a little "gross" when you first find out.
Cut her a little slack. You have to view it from the outside a little. It's not complete ignorance, just unawareness..
why is it, do you think, that when such a large proportion of the general population hears, "nurse," their first thought is "bedpan"? i see it all the time in the popular press.
i actually sometimes went days in the icu with nary a bedpan in sight and bigger fish to fry, as it were. but do people ever ask about that?
THat is a common reaction from people not in healthcare. Many people are disgusted at the thought of wiping another person's butt and other stuff we do. I don't think there is anything wrong with their feelings. I don't look down on any legal ways to obtain money even if I don't think I could ever do it and the thought of doing in disgusts me, I have the right to those feelings just like some people have the right to think what my job entails is disgusting. so be it. I wish we had more aides because there are MORE important things I should be doing many times instead of taking up 30mins to clean a patient. Important things like meds and assessing my other patients not sitting at the nurses' station on facebook. I DO NOT mean cleaning some one is not important it is but often it is not the priority and my other tasks can not be delegated. I hope this isn't misinterpreted.
she thought she'd be in charge? on the first day? lol that is hillarious.
Vespertinas
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Either AllNurses.com represents a disproportionately large segment of RNs who are NOT displeased to wipe poo but in my experience... it's probably half-half between RNs who don't mind and those who have a superiority complex