We had this huge discussion at work today, and i thought i'd get your opinions.
The statement was this: "We have to many people becoming nurses for the money. Its not like it used to be, where a nurse chose to be a nurse because they liked helping people. Its all about the money,."
We were talking about the increased patient complaints, and an older nurse stated the above and thats the reason for increased patient complaints.
I've been sitting back and reading the opinions of the posters on this thread for the past two days and now I'm ready to put in my two cents. I've always wanted to be in the medical field because I knew I would have job security, make good money and be able to help people. However, I never imagined that I'd ever wind up being a nurse. Now that I am one, I know that nursing is where I belong and part of who I am. And being a nurse still allows me to have good job security, make good money and be able to help people. For some of us, nursing is not just about the money or that it was our "calling"... for some of us, we didn't realize nursing was our calling until later. Does that make me a bad person because I didn't initially want to be a nurse just to be a nurse? I hope not.
Nursing is hard, as we all know, so it's not fair to say that some people are primarily in it for the money. Maybe those nurses who do complain a lot about the money are only complaining because nurses should be compensated more for having such a tough job. As other posters have said, if someone is only in it for the money, there are far better and easier ways to make it.
I have to agree that lots of students coming up, don't give a darn about the residents and are in it for the pay check. I over heard one say, if I have to work this unit again I'll go elsewhere. It's too hard. Noteworthy, this is a nursing home setting with no subacute residents and ratio is 30:1, passing meds only. Treatments and orders are done by a Charge nurse. L a z y !!!! Never seen such a bunch coming up. When I get ill, I'll treat myself first when I see what's out there. Granted there are few and far between coming up that are caring. I think the standards have been lowered so more people will apply. Lots of my peers have left the profession and gone into other areas because they are so disgusted with how things are. Caddie
1.) Attila (Etzel) was a charismatic visionary, if you were a Hun.
2.) The people I went to school with covered a broad spectrum. There were young women who had "always wanted to be a nurse," older folks, like me, working on a second career, and a few looking for a place in nursing that didn't entail any icky stuff. The vast majority--including the latter--were caring, compassionate people.
I'm hard pressed to think of any job done well that doesn't help somebody. When I was a carpenter, I helped people by fixing or improving their homes competently and affordably. I once had an IRS agent sit down with me and spend her time going over my return which saved me a substantial penalty over a minor error--that was a huge help, to me!
When I was in school, I carpooled with two of the nicest, most caring people I've known, and one of our regular conversations was what we would buy with our first nursing paycheck. Both had given up jobs that paid about as well as nursing, but all of us were very much looking forward to not being broke.
Several of my classmates were already LPNs, and several others, like me, had jobs in healthcare prior to deciding to go to nursing school. We were already caring for people, and wanted--among other things--to make a decent living at it. (In my own case, and probably others, I had gone about as far as I could in my job, so nursing opens up new challenges and opportunities, which may be as important as the pay differential).
I can't speak to what others have seen, but I think I graduated with a fine bunch of future nurses. Not always quite sure how I slipped through, though...
I agree that there are a lot of people going into nursing now because of the money. It's not just new nurses, but nurses who haven't worked in awhile also. I don't think these nurses should be there if they are all about the money because there is something that is going to be missing from the care they give to the patients. Nursing is not the easiest profession in the world and if your heart isn't in it, if you don't want to be there to help people you shouldn't be there.
I didn't realize until after I got in the nursing program how much security/money there is in nursing compared to other fields. I wanted to do two things: help people and have a flexible schedule to raise my child. The money just turns out to be a bonus.
You wouldn't stay in nursing just for the $. It is really grueling, esp. med/surg or nursing home. That being said, I truly believe that we as nurses are a very valuable asset to our society.We deserve a good salary. We are highly educated and I don't mean just in terms of what degree you have. It is the special skills and continuing education and updating of our skills that make us so valuable. Show me a nurse who doesn't want to learn and I will show you a former nurse. I think that's what's so exciting. Over the years, I have come to realize the HUGE responsibilty we have and I will gladly take ample compensation for that!
I totally agree. I work in a hospital where we have lots of nursing students come through. All they talk about is how much they are going to be making. To be completely honest, there are only a handful of them that I would want taking care of me or any of my family. I graduated eleven years ago, and our instructors were VERY strict. If they didn't feel we would be safe practioners, it didn't matter how smart the person was, they could bar us from taking boards. I don't remember once thinking about how much I would be making (even though the first job I had after graduating, I didn't even make twice as much as I had as a CNA). It was about "where can I go and make a difference in someone's life "(for the better of the person, not my bank account).
I just graduated...and I have to admit...I like the money...you can be excited about making more money and still be a caring individual...I want to help people too...I was an aide for 7 years, and I enjoyed what I did, but come on...if you have the brains to go through school and struggle financially to do it...you have to be excited to earn that money...I just got my first RN check today...it was not a full check, and I earned more than I did in two checks before as an aide...my point is...I love helping people as well, or I wouldn't have been an aide for 7 years, but finacially I was getting nowhere, and lets face it, I have got bills and two kids to put through college in 4 years...the money is NICE!
THERE ARE DEFINITELY NURSES WHO SHOULDN'T BE NURSES. THOSE ARE THE ONES WHO DON'T MAKE IT VERY LONG. SOMETIMES, I WISH THAT THEY HAD SOME SORT OF EXAM THAT WOULD WEED OUT THE PEOPLE WHO SHOULDN'T JOIN THE PROFESSION
We had this huge discussion at work today, and i thought i'd get your opinions.
The statement was this: "We have to many people becoming nurses for the money. Its not like it used to be, where a nurse chose to be a nurse because they liked helping people. Its all about the money,."
We were talking about the increased patient complaints, and an older nurse stated the above and thats the reason for increased patient complaints.
Every time this topic comes up we get a battle between the "nursing is a calling and all about the warm fuzzies" versus the "I am an educated professional and I want a well-paying job."
To me, the bottom line is - if nursing paid minimum wage, would you still do it? I am pretty sure that there are some out there who truly would. There are even more who would CLAIM that they would. Would I? - NO WAY. Not this nurse.
Not because I am a bad nurse or I don't care, but because *I* have needs and wants too and I want to be able to afford/accommodate them. I need flexible scheduling. I enjoy having the option of working agency, per diem, or even as a travel nurse. I enjoy having the option of leaving anything that even resembles my job to do something completely different, yet still remaining in the same profession. To me, flexibility is one of nursing's biggest selling points.
We all have our own reasons for choosing ANY career, but I am growing very weary of the nursier than thous who feel they must look down their noses upon anyone whose motivation for entering nursing differs from their own.
We had this huge discussion at work today, and i thought i'd get your opinions.
The statement was this: "We have to many people becoming nurses for the money. Its not like it used to be, where a nurse chose to be a nurse because they liked helping people. Its all about the money,."
We were talking about the increased patient complaints, and an older nurse stated the above and thats the reason for increased patient complaints.
So, what do you think.
I agree I have been a nurse for 20 years and I see it evey day
People from all walks of life in every occupation possible choose to work in areas that fit their lifestyle best -- whether that choice was decided upon for monetary and benefit reasons or solely based on reasons of helping humanity.
Doing things for the money only just isn't enough for me, but I'm only a fraction of the world's total population of opinions, and everyone is entitled to their opinion. Judging one another for choices we made or make in life only makes us more critical as a person than we naturally are anyway.
Hospitals today don't really care if you like your job or not. They want a warm body that works faster than the speed of lightening, and knows how to be the best brownnoser possible. Where they used to care if a nurse had a heart, I've learned in the past two years that they could care less if I had a heart as long as I jumped when they said jump, and cater to the patients and visitors like a slave.
As for working for the money? Unless you work a volunteer job, everyone works for "the money"..............just not enough in many occupations to make a living on today that's all. :)
Specializes in Trauma acute surgery, surgical ICU, PACU.
I have seen nurses who should not be nurses. NOT because of their "motivation" to go into the field. But because of their lack of compassion and lack of empathy and ability to understand what a pt or family is going through. Or lack of ability to understand why we change our "routine" depending on pt condition.
The nurse who was rough during a dressing change and then when the pt cried out, snapped "I gave you morphine!" is the same nurse who is rude to family members, and who has a lot of difficulty in understanding prioritization and safety. (ie she will come on shift, spend an hour getting her notes organised and then proceed to get meds ready without checking on the pt's first. If the pt who is fresh post-op is in the last room down the hall, he gets checked on last.)
I think it's inappropriate to say that because someone was motivated by money or job security, that they should not be a nurse. Someone can have that motivation, and still be a good nurse. But yes, there are people working in the field who should not be.
baby&mommynurse
222 Posts
I've been sitting back and reading the opinions of the posters on this thread for the past two days and now I'm ready to put in my two cents. I've always wanted to be in the medical field because I knew I would have job security, make good money and be able to help people. However, I never imagined that I'd ever wind up being a nurse. Now that I am one, I know that nursing is where I belong and part of who I am. And being a nurse still allows me to have good job security, make good money and be able to help people. For some of us, nursing is not just about the money or that it was our "calling"... for some of us, we didn't realize nursing was our calling until later. Does that make me a bad person because I didn't initially want to be a nurse just to be a nurse? I hope not.
Nursing is hard, as we all know, so it's not fair to say that some people are primarily in it for the money. Maybe those nurses who do complain a lot about the money are only complaining because nurses should be compensated more for having such a tough job. As other posters have said, if someone is only in it for the money, there are far better and easier ways to make it.