NEVER "Just a Nurse"

[twright4806]

There has been quite a bit of media attention recently regarding nurses and their role in healthcare. The comments made at the Miss America pageant this fall were touching and poignant. It is sad to think that society and so many of us in the nursing profession think of us as ‘just a nurse.” We are anything and everything but just a nurse. In the hospital we are the first in the room, last in the room, and are also in the room hundreds of times in the middle. It is our eyes, ears, knowledge, skills, and hearts that save lives. It is likely a nurse that recognizes a change in condition and alerts the doctor. It is a nurse that carries out life saving treatments, administers life saving medications, and performs life saving resuscitation. Doctors are an invaluable part of the medical team, but the nursing staff supports them. We are the ones carrying out the doctor's orders. Without our skills, knowledge, and expertise patients would not receive the specialized care they need for their specific ailment. Nurses have long been known for their big hearts, their compassion, and their love. We do have all of these but do not mistake us for Hallmark cards. We are a gritty, smart, talented, educated, strong, autonomous, skilled force. We are never just a nurse”; however it is likely a nurse just might save your life.