Nursing homes' bad reputation

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Hello. I just started my first RN job (I am a new grad) in a nursing home/rehab center and I am very grateful for this opportunity. I didn't wait too long (around 1.5 - 2 months) for a hospital to call because I was afraid I would be waiting for months like many others so I took the first job I was offered. Although I am very excited to finally be a working RN, I am getting a little irritated because I've been getting negative responses and "disgusted" looks from nearly every person I've told that I work in a nursing home. Once again today, someone just said to me "A nursing home? Ugh, why would you want to work there...." :rolleyes:

I'm so excited to finally be working, but just feel like I don't want to tell anyone now because then they will ask where I work... and I don't want to see their response! lol.

Has this happened to any of you and how do you feel about it? I personally have no problem with working at a nursing home. I very much enjoy the geriatric population and they need nurses too! What's bothering me now is I feel that people are downgrading me, just based on facial expressions and responses I've gotten. I know that other's opinions do not matter, but I am curious how other nurses have ever dealt with this... Thanks. :nurse:

Specializes in Gerontological Nursing, Acute Rehab.
i am currently working in a rehab/nursing home as a house supervisor at night. before i worked in a hospital for several years trauma/medsurg and pcu. after couple years i burned out and wanted a more quite less stressful job.

i can compare long term and hospital from my own experience and i can tell you that people do not have respect for nursing home nurses for a reason. there are no skills there. when i worked in a hospital i considered myself a healthcare professional, when i came to nursing home i did not feel that way. there is a world of difference between a good pcu nurse and a good nursing home nurse, so if you want an easy job that does not require skills work in a nursing home, but if you want skills knowledge and self satisfaction hospital is the only way imo. especially if you plan on advancing to a np,pa crna etc. that is why after 2 years in nursing home i went and got a prn job in a hospital and now i experience these two different worlds on a daily basis. i personally enjoy this change, and have no problem working in a nursing home, but i would not work in a nursing home only.

attitudes like this is the number one reason why nursing will never move forward as a profession.

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Specializes in Med/Surg, Geriatric, Hospice.
i am currently working in a rehab/nursing home as a house supervisor at night. before i worked in a hospital for several years trauma/medsurg and pcu. after couple years i burned out and wanted a more quite less stressful job.

i can compare long term and hospital from my own experience and i can tell you that people do not have respect for nursing home nurses for a reason. there are no skills there. when i worked in a hospital i considered myself a healthcare professional, when i came to nursing home i did not feel that way. there is a world of difference between a good pcu nurse and a good nursing home nurse, so if you want an easy job that does not require skills work in a nursing home, but if you want skills knowledge and self satisfaction hospital is the only way imo. especially if you plan on advancing to a np,pa crna etc. that is why after 2 years in nursing home i went and got a prn job in a hospital and now i experience these two different worlds on a daily basis. i personally enjoy this change, and have no problem working in a nursing home, but i would not work in a nursing home only.

i learned tons from my patients at a rehab. we get a diversity of diagnoses and i wanted to know about each condition, med, treatment... i took just as much pride in my job and patient care as i did if i had been in a hospital.

sorry to hear you didn't gain any skills or knowledge from your work there. if you are doing your job correctly, you have to be learning something.. that's all i am going to say. (of course, a hospital is a better environment to get more specialized skills. i won't refute that).

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Specializes in Med/Surg, Geriatric, Hospice.

People look down NH/rehabs because our culture simply does not value the elderly. It's not right, but that's how it is.

Nursing homes and rehabs are also chronically understaffed. BIG problem all over the country.

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I always tell people who look down on LTC, that I am so glad to be helping those at the end stages of life, It humbles me! ( not that all LTC residents are older) -- just like a L and D nurse helps to bring new life into the world, I feel blessed to help make the end stages a better experience to many. I am always learning from my residents!! We are all getting older, and the need is so great for great nurses in LTC, keep your head up high, and be honored!

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I'm in school, but will likely end up starting out in LTC, at the facility where I work as a CNA. I also hear from other students "OMG-I could *not* work in a nursing home-old people scare me". Well, who do you think ends up in the hospital? Only the young healthy attractive people? My friend who is a ICU nurse tells me that many of her patients are elderly. It's good to know how to work with them. I do see LTC as a bit of a "starting out" place-mostly because the pay is less, and I have heard that you learn and use a greater variety of skills in a hospital. But as a LPN, I can work as a charge nurse in the nursing home. What a great place to get some managerial experience... This is what I have heard from the nurses I work with... a great place to start out (and continue at, if you like it), but that to advance or change up your skill set, you may need to go somewhere else.

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Assessment skills (esp the demented elderly that cannot tell you anything), assessing and determining what is wrong without having all the fancy equiptment and other personel aval that an acute care center would have, IV starts, blood draws, IV care (midlines, PICCs, central lines, femoral lines) TPN, multiple antibiotics, dosage caculations, wound care, catheter insertions, wound vacs, complex wound care, surgical drains, feeding tubes including NGs and insertion of NG tubes, trach care, surgical wound care including pin care, diabetic teaching, cardiac rehabe teaching, ortho teaching, excellent time mamagement and delegations skills, management and leadership skills and one of the most important skills...Being able to talk to people and interact with them on a day to day basis.

Geesh...the list can go on in my LTC center. Sometimes I have all of these type of pts at the same time and then add in the regular LTC resident too......

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Specializes in Med/Surg, LTC/Geriatric.
i am currently working in a rehab/nursing home as a house supervisor at night. before i worked in a hospital for several years trauma/medsurg and pcu. after couple years i burned out and wanted a more quite less stressful job.

i can compare long term and hospital from my own experience and i can tell you that people do not have respect for nursing home nurses for a reason. there are no skills there. when i worked in a hospital i considered myself a healthcare professional, when i came to nursing home i did not feel that way. there is a world of difference between a good pcu nurse and a good nursing home nurse, so if you want an easy job that does not require skills work in a nursing home, but if you want skills knowledge and self satisfaction hospital is the only way imo. especially if you plan on advancing to a np,pa crna etc. that is why after 2 years in nursing home i went and got a prn job in a hospital and now i experience these two different worlds on a daily basis. i personally enjoy this change, and have no problem working in a nursing home, but i would not work in a nursing home only.

seriously? seriously????

you are telling me that i have no self satisfaction from my ltc facility job??? :mad:

i get my job satisfaction from knowing i took good care of my residents. brightening their day with a hug and a smile. remembering to ask them about their grandchildren. bringing them their favourite tea. not all job satisfaction has to do with doing the best iv start or saving a pt in a code blue. if your parent/grandparent ended up in ltc, would you not want good, skilled and caring nurses looking after them?

this has got to be the most inaccurate post i have ever seen! do you honestly think that thorough assessment isn't a skill if you are so sure that ltc requires no skills?

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Specializes in Critical Care.
i am currently working in a rehab/nursing home as a house supervisor at night. before i worked in a hospital for several years trauma/medsurg and pcu. after couple years i burned out and wanted a more quite less stressful job.

i can compare long term and hospital from my own experience and i can tell you that people do not have respect for nursing home nurses for a reason. there are no skills there. when i worked in a hospital i considered myself a healthcare professional, when i came to nursing home i did not feel that way. there is a world of difference between a good pcu nurse and a good nursing home nurse, so if you want an easy job that does not require skills work in a nursing home, but if you want skills knowledge and self satisfaction hospital is the only way imo. especially if you plan on advancing to a np,pa crna etc. that is why after 2 years in nursing home i went and got a prn job in a hospital and now i experience these two different worlds on a daily basis. i personally enjoy this change, and have no problem working in a nursing home, but i would not work in a nursing home only.

i guess that depends on what you consider "skills". time management, prioritization, interpersonal (with patients and other staff) are actually higher level than other skills such as sticking something artificial in any given orifice.

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Specializes in LTC, home health, critical care, pulmonary nursing.

I experience that all the time. From doctors telling me "You're too smart to work in a nursing home," to other nurses smugly telling me I'll lose my skills. I work in a SNF because I want to. I love it. To be good at it, you have to be smart. I don't have RTs, phlebotomists, etc. My residents have me. Your assessment skills have to be top notch. You have to be okay with arguing with doctors who don't even know who the patient is and are mad that you bothered them with a nursing home patient. Residents in LTC are sicker than they used to be. It's not at all uncommon to have 5 or 6 residents that would otherwise be hospitalized, in addition to the other 26 residents. Your time management skills have to develop really fast. Your documentation has to be impeccable. But there's nothing like the bond you have with someone you've taken care of for 5 years, as well as the bond with their family. These people are precious, and they deserve excellent care.

You're a good nurse if you know your stuff, work hard and fight for your patient. No matter what your specialty is.

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Specializes in Med/Surg, Geriatric, Hospice.
I experience that all the time. From doctors telling me "You're too smart to work in a nursing home," to other nurses smugly telling me I'll lose my skills. I work in a SNF because I want to. I love it. To be good at it, you have to be smart. I don't have RTs, phlebotomists, etc. My residents have me. Your assessment skills have to be top notch. You have to be okay with arguing with doctors who don't even know who the patient is and are mad that you bothered them with a nursing home patient. Residents in LTC are sicker than they used to be. It's not at all uncommon to have 5 or 6 residents that would otherwise be hospitalized, in addition to the other 26 residents. Your time management skills have to develop really fast. Your documentation has to be impeccable. But there's nothing like the bond you have with someone you've taken care of for 5 years, as well as the bond with their family. These people are precious, and they deserve excellent care.

You're a good nurse if you know your stuff, work hard and fight for your patient. No matter what your specialty is.

Yes!!

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Specializes in LTC, assisted living, med-surg, psych.

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Specializes in LTC.
i am currently working in a rehab/nursing home as a house supervisor at night. before i worked in a hospital for several years trauma/medsurg and pcu. after couple years i burned out and wanted a more quite less stressful job.

i can compare long term and hospital from my own experience and i can tell you that people do not have respect for nursing home nurses for a reason. there are no skills there. when i worked in a hospital i considered myself a healthcare professional, when i came to nursing home i did not feel that way. there is a world of difference between a good pcu nurse and a good nursing home nurse, so if you want an easy job that does not require skills work in a nursing home, but if you want skills knowledge and self satisfaction hospital is the only way imo. especially if you plan on advancing to a np,pa crna etc. that is why after 2 years in nursing home i went and got a prn job in a hospital and now i experience these two different worlds on a daily basis. i personally enjoy this change, and have no problem working in a nursing home, but i would not work in a nursing home only.

skills i have used in my 7 1/2 months in ltc.

1. wound care

2. foley insertion and maintenance

3. specimen collection(i/e straight cath)

4. medication administration

5. patient teaching

6. g-tube feedings

7. therapeutic communication

8. trach suctioning

9. trach care and suctioning.

10. blood sugar/fingersticks

11. assessments

12. nebulizer treatments

13. oxygen use

14. direct patient care when necessary

15. colostomy care

16. time management

17. documentation

18. post-mortem care

ltc isn't just sitting around and it is by no means easy!!!!!!!!!. skills and knowledge are necessary for fuction in ltc and i have acquired them from it without working in a hospital. us ltc nurses run around like chickens trying to get everything done. we have a patient load 2x, 3x, 4x maybe even 5x a med-surg nurse in a hospital might have.

this is not an easy job and it does require skills. maybe you need to spend more time at the nursing home to see this.

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