Need Honest Opinion -- Would You Recommend Nursing?

[djc1981]

I've had an alarming amount of working RNs trying to persuade me from becoming a nurse. At first I just brushed it off as a fluke - thinking they were either new, burnt out, etc. But they seem to be from all walks of life. They all say that I'm "too smart" for nursing and that if I can do it, do something else. They say the lack of support, respect, from the public, administration isn't worth any monetary rewards and that it quickly gets old and the understaffed hours are long. They also said that while the pay is nice in the beginning compared to some college majors, the salary cap is reached quite quickly and that if I pursued a MBA ( my other option), the opportunites and potential salary rewards after working a while are higher. If someone came to you and asked your honest opinion, would you recommend a person to go into nursing?

[WantAccel.BSN, BSN, RN]

If you were my friend, and being a nurse was not a life-long dream for you, I probably would not encourage you to go to nursing school.

And this is why:

Healthcare has become a money-driven field. Costs are cut where it matters most~the floor, where the patients are. Patients are more acutely ill, with co-morbidities. They are also more obese (upwards of 500-600 pounds) leading to more staff injuries and more care needed for those patients. Yet the patient=nurse ratio stays the same. It is impossible to take care of eight very ill patients who each require a great deal of care, chart everything required on the computer and do a good job of it. Throw in some Rapid Responses, a Code Blue or a problem family and your shift can go down the tubes quickly. If you are required to be the charge nurse with a team, it is even harder.

Now imagine doing this knowing that NO ONE is backing you up. Not your floor manager, the Chief Nursing Officer and the CEO. Do this knowing that it will not be changing anytime soon, and may get worse. That in order to get everything done, your 12-hour shift will stretch to 14 or even 16 hours, and you will be expected back to do it again in less than 12 hours. And then again in another 12 hours.

Imagine how you will feel: Disheartened? Exhausted? Mentally, emotionally, physically drained? Welcome to floor nursing!

Thank you. I appreciate your honest feedback. I was wondering if you could tell me if they require you to clock out when your shift has technically ended, or if you get paid for the extra time you are staying. I think the former would probably be illegal, but companies have certainly gotten away with doing worse to their employees....

I also wanted to ask something else: if you could go back in time and select a different field, what would it be? I feel like America, overall, is very much controlled by the bottom line almost anywhere you could possibly work. I think the working conditions also aren't great in many fields, just in different ways. Just curious if you think you could point to another career that others might consider as an alternative to nursing. Again, thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts.

[HoosierMale]

And then me, I spent over 40K and seven years of my life and can't get a job anywhere because of my age! RN BSN

[Bugaloo]

Thank you. I appreciate your honest feedback. I was wondering if you could tell me if they require you to clock out when your shift has technically ended, or if you get paid for the extra time you are staying. I think the former would probably be illegal, but companies have certainly gotten away with doing worse to their employees....

I also wanted to ask something else: if you could go back in time and select a different field, what would it be? I feel like America, overall, is very much controlled by the bottom line almost anywhere you could possibly work. I think the working conditions also aren't great in many fields, just in different ways. Just curious if you think you could point to another career that others might consider as an alternative to nursing. Again, thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts.

No, You would get paid for that, but after a while it gets old! On my days off, I write (I have always written short stories and articles-some have been published), maintain a blog, and mess with web design. I also take lots of nature photos and make them into cards and jewelry. I am also starting to get into other types of paper and jewelry crafts. I would love to have a more creative type of career~something in the arts, something where only your imagination holds you back.

If I had it to do ALL over again, I would choose a career involving animals, the arts or journalism. Nothing at all in the medical field.

[nursemike, ASN, RN]

When I was getting ready to start nursing school, several of the nurses I worked with advised me to go into "computers" instead. This was at a time when outsourcing was still a pretty new idea, at least to the general public.

Computer science was not a complete unknown to me. Long ago, I wrote a couple of programs (very small ones) in Fortran, on punch cards. I was in high school, taking an introductory course at the University, and I thought it was kinda neat. Also wrote a couple on my own in BASIC that were very basic. A couple of friends have had good careers in programming/systems, but I knew early on it wasn't the field for me, and right now one of my stressors as a nurse is that we are converting to computer charting. So far, our software isn't looking very nurse-friendly. My present, comfortable level of computer literacy is posting on allnurses.com (and I haven't bothered to learn a lot of this site's features) and surfing for Media. (Well, more accurately, entertainment, but that includes a little bit of soft-core Media, along with other, equally useless pursuits.)

I sort of stumbled into healthcare, but liked it, and nursing seemed the logical step in career advancement. Toyed with Phys. Therapy for a bit, but I don't have enough drill sergeant in me. As a nurse, I've thought Rad Tech and Resp. Therapy don't look like bad options.

My entry job in healthcare was not free of some of the same stresses as nursing, but there was much less responsibility. Also paid a lot less, though. I often joke about going back to it, but I am joking. It's nice not to live strictly from paycheck to paycheck, and to be able to save up for some nice toys. I enjoy photography, and I've bought some nice equipment since becoming a nurse. Plus, I have a fair amount of time off to play with them. And, for all the frustration, it's rewarding, at times, to be right in the thick of things, using my brain at full capacity for something important.

I believe there are two (at least) kinds of stress. When you are busting your butt to stay on top of things, going all-out and seeing good results, that's good stress. But when you're doing all you can and still falling behind, or not seeing good results, that stress takes a lot out of you. And if you perceive the obstacles as unnecessary, or even flatly wrong, that can get downright depressing.

My Dad says he has known compulsive gamblers who hated to win, because then they had to quit playing. I think most people will quit if they never win, but an occassional jackpot will keep them coming back even when they know they will lose more than they win, overall. I disagreed pretty strongly with a thread awhile back with the premise that nursing is an addiction, but I have to admit it has some parallels with compulsive gambling. To apply the analogy to my previous post, I feel like I usually break even, trading my time and energy for a paycheck. Some nights I get lucky and win big, and once in awhile I lose my shirt, but on the whole the odds seem better than blackjack.

I imagine there are other fields, away from healthcare, where I could make a living and be happy. I really enjoyed being a carpenter, until I reached an age where being warm and dry and getting a steady check became important to me. But, off hand, nothing really grabs me. Within healthcare, I sometimes think I might really like home health. I live in a fairly rural area and can picture myself trading my Ford Escape for a Hummer H3T, or at least a Jeep Liberty, to get up in the hollows and see my patients. Might actually look into that, someday, but for now, three nights a week in a hospital isn't that bad.

[Sandwitch883RN]

I've been a nure for 3 years now and for all of those posters that said...follow your dreams.....fine, follow them. Then you hit reality. What your dream of nursing is doesn't mean that will be the reality of what nursing is when you start working. It's easy to say as a student or prospective nurse..follow your dream..but the actual reality sure hasnt been what my dream was. Thats not to say that I dont think there are good points about nursing. I love meeting families, taking care of them, being part of their experience. I'm a labor and delivery nurse. That part rocks. What I dont love is a physician making a call that goes against what I am trying to advocate for my pt on their behalf.Or a physician or advanced practioner who doesnt think I know jack because i'm a lowly nurse. Or having to work with coworkers who are selfrightoues, know it all bullies. Or managment that doesnt give a rip what goes on in the unit. It's easy as a student or even orientee because you arent the one responsible when the Sh*t hits the fan. There are rewards in nursing, but sometimes they seem small compared to the negative aspects. I equate the nursing experience to that of becoming a new parent. You have a mental idea of how it will be to have a new baby, and what you think you will do when the baby arrives. Then the baby gets there and reality hits. The responsibility of being up all night, sleep deprived, ear infections, sick days, constant giving of yourself for another person. Thats not to say its not worth the sacrifice...just that its alot of hard work!! However, there are somedays nursing doesnt seem worth the sacrifice! We were talking at work about what other job we would have if we didnt have to worry about how much pay we needed. I would work at the Harley store to get a discount on parts and accesories!