why do many MAs and CNAs call themselves nurses?

[murseforever]

As I was taking care of a pt, she mentions she's also a nurse. I asked what her specialty is and where she works at. She says she works at a clinic as an MA. In my head, in what universe is an MA a nurse?!

[murseforever]

I hope you called her out on it!.

I wish I did but I didn't want to create conflict as she was a patient of mine. My main priority was her health, not her profession. However, that didn't stop me from thinking over and over how screwed up the public's view is of nurses. So many misconceptions.

[Jensmom7, BSN, RN]

you all take yourselves way too seriously

I worked my butt off for my BSN, passed Boards on the first try (back in the Stone Age when it was 5 books over 2 days, paper and pencil and wait 6 weeks to get the results via snail mail), have been an RN for 36 years...I don't take myself very seriously at all. But damn Skippy I take my PROFESSION seriously.

[Tenebrae, BSN, RN]

Whatever, talk about petty?!? Grow up. This is the internet, not English class. How old are you women?...I pray none of you EVER have to take care of me. I've never seen such childish behavior coming from a bunch of so-called professionals.

This deserves a Godwins award.

[Tenebrae, BSN, RN]

Then again, I guess it's easy to behave that way when you're hiding behind a computer screen.

Pot, have you met kettle?

As for hiding behind a computer screen, I'm just as judgmental, cranky and ****** in real life as I am on here.

I wont say anything here that I wont say to your face. However given that you are an anonymous stranger on an internet message board, thats unlikely to happen any time soon

[Spidey's mom, ADN, BSN, RN]

I came VERY late to this party.

Me too! Kind of an entertaining way to spend my lunch hour.

Although to be honest, I may have posted in the very beginning. Hard to remember.

I get called "Doctor" all the time at the elementary schools where I am the school nurse.

Of course, I correct the kiddos . . . . "I'm Nurse Spidey's Mom".

The MA's here in our community were all CNA's first. My niece is one and she never calls herself a nurse.

I also correct folks if they call themselves a nurse and are not a nurse. I do it nicely though.

Kind of amazing that THIS subject would be controversial.

[OCNRN63, RN]

Me too! Kind of an entertaining way to spend my lunch hour.

Although to be honest, I may have posted in the very beginning. Hard to remember.

I get called "Doctor" all the time at the elementary schools where I am the school nurse.

Of course, I correct the kiddos . . . . "I'm Nurse Spidey's Mom".

The MA's here in our community were all CNA's first. My niece is one and she never calls herself a nurse.

I also correct folks if they call themselves a nurse and are not a nurse. I do it nicely though.

Kind of amazing that THIS subject would be controversial.

You know how it is...some people worship at the Church of Our Lady of the Perpetually Offended.

[la_chica_suerte85, BSN, RN]

Whatever, talk about petty?!? Grow up. This is the internet, not English class. How old are you women?...I pray none of you EVER have to take care of me. I've never seen such childish behavior coming from a bunch of so-called professionals.

This is a paradoxical statement. First, you're pointing out that someone correcting an error requires that person grow up because it's only the internet. For whatever reason, it being the internet means that the rules of English are less important. Then, you say the behavior exhibited on a message board ON THE INTERNET is childish (and in turn making the statement that people who frequent this internet establishment are somehow less professional IN THE REAL WORLD).

So which part of this counts? Is it that people spending leisure time on the internet should grow up because they're professionals or that it's childish to point out someone's language mishaps because, hey, it's only the internet. Is the issue serious or not serious? I don't get it.

[audreysmagic, RN]

This honestly is not normal job inflation ... This is completely delusional... I'd feel uncomfortable around someone that unstable. Yikes!

Funny story. I used to work with a mental health tech that was, quite frankly, a jerkface. I hated him and I don't hate many people. He treated the patients like dirt and was always trying to take on job responsibilities that were the nurse's department. I reported him a lot, actually, but he was good as gold when administration was on the unit. He had SO many inflated job stories, about previous jobs that someone even with an RN couldn't have probably held, much less a tech. So one day, I get an agency nurse who walks in, looks at him, and tells me either he's leaving the unit tonight or she is, because she knows that guy and will not work with him. She called her agency and we never saw him again. Turns out she knew him from when she worked in prison...and he was in jail for forging an LPN license. (Also fun - later, a friend of mine was showing off pics from his drag show and same guy is in a few pictures with him. And I'm like "you know that guy?" and he tells me he used to but the guy went to jail (apparently again) for forging medical documents...

[Natkat, BSN, MSN, RN]

I would guess for the same reason people lie about how much money they make, being friends with a celebrity, how much alcohol they can drink, member size, how they told that person off, etc. Insecurity.

[Natkat, BSN, MSN, RN]

It is also pretentious to say you are in "medical school." Nursing school, MA school, etc., is not medical school. Medical school is for doctors; nursing school is for nurses.

I sometimes run into people who, when they find out I'm a nurse, say something like "I'm going to nursing school".

Translation - I'm thinking about probably logging on to the school's web site and looking at some classes I might take. Maybe.

Or on a good day they are taking a prereg.

[dec2007]

probably the same reason many nurses like to think of themselves as doctors.

I honestly have never heard a nurse try to pass themselves off as a physician.

[SororAKS, ADN, RN]

It's illegal. Maybe they would understand that clearly.