Nurses that “only do it for the money”

[AFJ32780]

What is your thought on nurses who only join the profession for financial gains?

[brownbook]

I can't believe this post has so many responses......my husband kind of pushed me into nursing...kicking and screaming.... (long story). I enjoyed the class work, hated clinicals because I was scared to death.

I have never been told anything along the lines of I must be so wonderful, caring and kind to go into the nursing profession..(outside of the occasional appreciative patient). I have never asked, or overheard any co-workers talk about, why they became a nurse outside of the occasional...my kids started school...I looked for something to do and the ADN be a nurse route looked interesting and appealing.

[AFJ32780, MSN, RN, NP]

3 minutes ago, brownbook said:

I can't believe this post has so many responses......my husband kind of pushed me into nursing...kicking and screaming.... (long story). I enjoyed the class work, hated clinicals because I was scared to death.

I have never been told anything along the lines of I must be so wonderful, caring and kind to go into the nursing profession..(outside of the occasional appreciative patient). I have never asked, or overheard any co-workers talk about, why they became a nurse outside of the occasional...my kids started school...I looked for something to do and the ADN be a nurse route looked interesting and appealing.

Yup! There are many paths to nursing. Everyone has a different story.

[Daisy4RN]

Personally I became a nurse for both reasons. It was a second career for me and I wanted one in which I could help others as well as make good money. I don't see a problem either way as long as you are doing a good job.

[brandy1017, ASN, RN]

On 4/1/2019 at 5:55 PM, AFJ32780 said:

Umm Excuse me? Lol

Neither.

Far from delusional and way past the honeymoon stage.

when I said perfect I meant that to me it pays well and the job itself is perfect FOR ME. Yes, it’s hard work but it can always be worse. Just grateful I have a decent paycheck and health insurance. Of course, as nurses we can always get more money but....

Thanks.

I'm just really sick of the corporate destruction of nursing. Also nursing is a calling as an excuse to work for less, put up with unsafe staffing and rude, sometimes violent patients etc.

Nursing has never been easy for me, but to see the total corporate destruction of my hospital and the realization that this is the case in many hospitals across the country makes me so angry. Can you imagine people flying on an airplane where they didn't have pilots scheduled, but still were booking flights and they would just wing it by mandating a pilot to 16 hours or whatever with no sleep. But this is tolerated in nursing. Many days we have less than half the necessary nurses scheduled day after day, but surgeries, procedures and admissions are still booked as if we were fully staffed. They mandate daily, work short, and cajole, coerce and try to guilt trip nurses to pick up extra, but don't hire more staff, make excuses when called on it. But told travelers or agency are not in the budget. Totally amoral POS corp sociopaths running things into the ground. It's time there was a national safe patient staffing ratio, no excuses, no bs!

[AFJ32780, MSN, RN, NP]

1 minute ago, brandy1017 said:

I'm just really sick of the corporate destruction of nursing. Also nursing is a calling as an excuse to work for less, put up with unsafe staffing and rude, sometimes violent patients etc.

Nursing has never been easy for me, but to see the total corporate destruction of my hospital and the realization that this is the case in many hospitals across the country makes me so angry. Can you imagine people flying on an airplane where they didn't have pilots scheduled, but still were booking flights and they would just wing it by mandating a pilot to 16 hours or whatever with no sleep. But this is tolerated in nursing. Many days we have less than half the necessary nurses scheduled day after day, but surgeries, procedures and admissions are still booked as if we were fully staffed. They mandate daily, work short, and cajole, coerce and try to guilt trip nurses to pick up extra, but don't hire more staff, make excuses when called on it. But told travelers or agency are not in the budget. Totally amoral POS running things into the ground. It's time there was a national safe patient staffing ratio, no excuses, no bs!

Yup!!! Completely agree 100%

[twinsmom788]

On 3/29/2019 at 11:26 PM, Davey Do said:

Yeah. As long as they do their job, I don't give a flying fruit basket what motivates them.

Those who go into nursing because it's just a job are usually easier to deal with than the bleeding hearts are anyway.

Love the term " flying fruit basket". I was a 70s era bleeding heart who went into nursing (unfortunately) . I very quickly changed my outlook on life after about 6 months and changed to another unit because I wanted the holidays off.

That was back in the day when we worked 7 12s and had 7 off. That should have been enough for me to go back to college and get another degree in a totally different field. Silly me, I waited another 10 years to get a Masters in another area.

[neuron]

On 3/30/2019 at 2:42 AM, TriciaJ said:

What do we think of firefighters who are only in it for the money?

Are nurses supposed to be inherently different? Do we somehow have different DNA from everyone else?

On 3/30/2019 at 6:55 AM, AFJ32780 said:

I think that nursing should be something someone wants to do. If they solely do it for the money, that’s ok too as long as they do their work and do it with the patient in mind.

Ultimately, nursing is a job. Period. But it’s a job with human lives as the main source of work so compassion from all nurses, regardless whether it’s a “calling” or a “paycheck”, is greatly needed.

Patients can only get what is paid for, not by them but by the CEO's and MBA's who run the hospital/facility. Workloads are already set before we arrive for our shifts. I.V.'s and blood sugars have to be done first before we start being the 'waitress' that the CEO's and MBA's desire.

[neuron]

5 hours ago, brandy1017 said:

I'm just really sick of the corporate destruction of nursing. Also nursing is a calling as an excuse to work for less, put up with unsafe staffing and rude, sometimes violent patients etc.

Nursing has never been easy for me, but to see the total corporate destruction of my hospital and the realization that this is the case in many hospitals across the country makes me so angry. Can you imagine people flying on an airplane where they didn't have pilots scheduled, but still were booking flights and they would just wing it by mandating a pilot to 16 hours or whatever with no sleep. But this is tolerated in nursing. Many days we have less than half the necessary nurses scheduled day after day, but surgeries, procedures and admissions are still booked as if we were fully staffed. They mandate daily, work short, and cajole, coerce and try to guilt trip nurses to pick up extra, but don't hire more staff, make excuses when called on it. But told travelers or agency are not in the budget. Totally amoral POS corp sociopaths running things into the ground. It's time there was a national safe patient staffing ratio, no excuses, no bs!

Yep, like booking a hotel to full capacity.

[catsmeow1972, BSN, RN]

4 hours ago, fibroblast said:

Yep, like booking a hotel to full capacity.

Yep, only in a hotel the guests don’t die if the room service menu is scant or the housekeeper is out of towels and little soaps.

I like to think that I am a helpful, flexible part of my team but where to you draw the line between helpful/flexible and doormat? Staying a little late to finish out the last case on your roster and closing out your room? Helpful. Being expected to return at 6am after leaving at 2am from 20 hours on call and doing it- doormat.

My needle goes to doormat too many times, I pick up my toys and go elsewhere. I love what I do and I am proud of what I am able to do for others. I don’t expect effusive thank yous, but I have played the martyr for too long and worked too hard to not value my time. Submitting to the begging and guilt tripping of the ‘higher ups” only devalues my time. If the need is truly THAT bad, let them get thier *** in there.

Ive learned the hard way, excuse the cliche, If I don’t take care of myself, I can’t be there to take care of anyone else (and my personal addition-I’m not a very happy camper anyway.)

[guest52816]

4 hours ago, catsmeow1972 said:

Yep, only in a hotel the guests don’t die if the room service menu is scant or the housekeeper is out of towels and little soaps.

I like to think that I am a helpful, flexible part of my team but where to you draw the line between helpful/flexible and doormat? Staying a little late to finish out the last case on your roster and closing out your room? Helpful. Being expected to return at 6am after leaving at 2am from 20 hours on call and doing it- doormat.

My needle goes to doormat too many times, I pick up my toys and go elsewhere. I love what I do and I am proud of what I am able to do for others. I don’t expect effusive thank yous, but I have played the martyr for too long and worked too hard to not value my time. Submitting to the begging and guilt tripping of the ‘higher ups” only devalues my time. If the need is truly THAT bad, let them get thier *** in there.

Ive learned the hard way, excuse the cliche, If I don’t take care of myself, I can’t be there to take care of anyone else (and my personal addition-I’m not a very happy camper anyway.)

I never work extra shifts, unless I specifically want the extra $$$ for myself.

It is my belief, that my facility has the staffing that the higher echelon wants, and part of their staffing plan includes leaning on current staff to pick up the slack, instead of hiring more nurses.

My time off is precious. My life is precious.

Remember when flying, how the attendants instruct parents to put on their oxygen first, then help their children?

You must take care of your needs, before you can help the next person.

I agree. Enough of the doormat mentality, and nursing as a calling.

[kbrn2002, ADN, RN]

While I do think it's important to at least be interested in a career for more than just the money before dedicating a lot of time and money into the education required to get there the paycheck and the opportunities for employment alone are a pretty good reason to go into nursing.

As a nurse jobs are available everywhere. There's not a single geographic area in the world that I can think of where there are no nurses employed in any capacity. So there is some job security inherent in the field. Compare that to relatively high paying jobs like mining, manufacturing, working in the oil fields etc. If the mine stops producing, the oil stops flowing, the job moves overseas or there is less demand for your product you are out of a high paying job. Look to the Iron Range in my neighboring state of MN for evidence of entire communities struggling financially for proof of the damage that mining as a career choice can cause a family or look to any community where a manufacturing plant was the primary employer until the plant was shuttered leaving their townspeople with no means of financial support.

That being said those that seek to enter nursing only because it's a calling worry me, mostly for their sake. Just read some threads in the student forum and you are bound to run into some started by a student that is failing miserably or who somehow graduated and can't pass the NCLEX despite multiple attempts...but nursing is their calling! You have no idea how many times I've wanted to respond telling them how much a rude awakening they are in for if they actually manage to become a nurse some day.

[Forest2]

Someone once told me years ago, I think you act like you are only here for the paycheck. I said, well, I wouldn't be here if there weren't one and I don't think anyone else would be either. LOL. I work hard, I am diligent in my duties, I see that people are taken care of, I do my part of the team, I come to work, I come on time and don't call in, I am professional and treat people with respect. NO, I don't wear my heart on my sleeve. That is for people who "dream" of being nurses since the age of 3. I am more pragmatic. I became a nurse for practical reasons.

I don't care why people become nurses, I really don't care.