Red. Pink. Purple. Green. Yellow. Many of these shades I had already seen in my clinicals. Whether it was from vomit, blood, or the precarious hospital lunches, I always came across some primary's shade. However, I was continuously bereft of my own color. Black. Why didn't I see anyone like me?
It was like I was a needle cap placed among a sea of cotton balls. It just seemed...off. Is it even possible? Where is my version of Florence Nightingale?
Perhaps I should get connected and join
Association of black nurses
Black nurses society
Black nurses r us
Nurses who are black,inc.
You're black? And a nurse? Join us!
Maybe this was my ticket to finally feel like I 'm among the ranks of professional individuals, to belong even if it is dangerously close to the sidelines. As a nursing student, I always felt like I had to prove myself to my patients and my instructors. Even though I come from the fabulous city of Chicago, the majority of black nurses work for the county and therefore I was never in contact with them to be inspired, to feel safe, to find a reason to keep going.
But I did.
It was arduous, daunting, and exciting all at the same time, but I steered clear of anything that was a dead giveaway for an excuse. Since I come from a society that is seeping with self-doubt and a "crabs in a bucket" mentality, it wasn't a pretty journey; that's what made it perfect. It feels so rewarding to have little girls run up to me and say that they want to be a nurse now that they've seen someone actually come through the woodwork. It's like I give them hope for something that typically seems so unattainable. They have yet to experience true hardships and challenges, but hopefully I've shown them that it's all worth it in the end. They just need the passion to overcome any obstacle.
But you know what I realized?
It's not about being black and therefore feeling so accomplished about the day's work. It's about being a human being and a nurse. It's about recognizing your own potential before you begin concentrating on the color of your skin.
We don't need...
Association of black nurses
Black nurses society
Black nurses r us
Nurses who are black inc.
You're black? And a nurse? Join us!
... To tell us that we're important. We can only find confidence within ourselves. We have already made great strides towards becoming whatever we want to be and our future looks even brighter.
Maybe it's best for us all to figuratively remove the rods and cones from our eyes and become colorblind. A white nurse is a black nurse is a Hispanic nurse is a Filipino nurse is a Chinese nurse is an Indian nurse. I plan on doing so just to show people how beneficial it is.
Yes, we may be outnumbered as nurses when it comes to statistics, but I choose to think of us as diamonds; rare and hard to come by!
Be human. Be beautiful. But most of all, be...lieve.
Bravo. That is the whole point. My patients are not black, white or any other color. They are people. Until every race can stop demanding to be noticed as different, how can they expect to be treated the same? If white people had white nurse's groups or any other groups it would be seen as racist. Why would it not be racist to have black groups? It is time to let go of these old notions and just be people. We are people. We are nurses. We have to set an example for others by refusing to allow race to be anything other than a demographic statistic.
Bravo. That is the whole point. My patients are not black, white or any other color. They are people. Until every race can stop demanding to be noticed as different, how can they expect to be treated the same? If white people had white nurse's groups or any other groups it would be seen as racist. Why would it not be racist to have black groups? It is time to let go of these old notions and just be people. We are people. We are nurses. We have to set an example for others by refusing to allow race to be anything other than a demographic statistic.
You took the words right out of my mouth. A "white nurse" union would not go over well at all! We are all nurses and that is the group who should stick together and conquer, not divide.
Specializes in Dialysis, Long-term care, Med-Surg.
This is a wonderful article. I live in Oklahoma, and there are not alot of black nurses in my area. I'm an LPN working on my RN and I have about two other blacks in the class with me. I try to encourage young ladies in my family, church and community to consider becoming a nurse because nursing is a great profession. I enjoy working in a diverse environment, but in reality most of the time I'm the only black nurse, but I enjoy most nurses as long as they are professional and have a good attitude. ❤️
I am a black student nurse of north carolina and I have never really paid any attention to the color of a nurse, primarily all nurses I have worked with were black and they gave me alot of encouragement, although getting through school i am not with those nurses anymore i have another job and these nurse are white and they do a hell of a job showing me and letting me do as much as possible. Great story, color dosen't matter!
I just wish we would all quit bringing up the differences and move forward. Lets not keep playing an old record. We are all people and all deserve the same care etc. Lets quit going on and on about what we know is true. We have a black president for Gods sakes. We are all equal. I am short, but I won't be writing letters about how I see no or very few short, or male nurses. To continue the talk breeds continued predjudice, IMO. Take this energy and love someone, maybe a predjudiced person. Quit joining groups that seperate. Love you all. Fly
So many organizations out there to divide us.....I believe all nurses should unite, regardless of color or any other difference, because it's our profession and our common pursuits in that profession.
Hello to "Nursing Me Black" I am pleased to meet your acquaintance. I am A female of African American heritage who happens to hold a BSN in nursing. I can not express to you the hard ship that I have been through over the years as a nurse. I have been forced to resign my first year as a RN due to being taught by other nurses all the wrong ways of doing clinical procedures. I have had another facility suspend me for being a patient advocate which is what I was taught to do. I have had a facility try to steal my license from me intentionally by having one of their staff members steal narcotics from my med cart prior to me coming on shift. I have a pending legal matter with this particular facility. Overall, I have had a lack of acceptance period in the years of nursing and had to work harder at it and prove myself qualified for the job by my knowledge base and job performance. I just find that when they see the RN status I am not liked because I went to school a little longer than most. Why... I say to myself the hatred? Not only that, as you stated earlier you look around and you find yourself a minority. The truth is I have seen this to be the case. I have even tried to research where are African American Nurses residing in America and whether they are content or not? I found that most minority nurses are predominantly in southern states. I said that may be my next move. More than anything I believe nurses in general should be unionized because there are so many avenues that an employer can use to let you go in this field of work. Dont you agree?
Secretsy, I know you posted this to the OP, but wanted to make a point to you. I am not of AA descent, but wanted to state that I have felt the way you describe - it's a tough world: the world of nursing. It could be many things ie; working with women, manipulation, gossip, drama, etc. I worked in the south where I was one of few white nurses working with black nurses and was not accepted. I didn't understand what the issue was and for the life of me couldn't do anything to change their perception of me. Whatever it was rooted in, it was grotesque. It was ignorant and it was obvious I was not going to change it. I moved from that floor and went to the ER where the staff color changed, but the attitudes didn't. So therein might be the issue. Nursing is a rough world. I try to think of it as elementary school - stay away from the mean ones, play nice, and avoid the gossip. Good luck to you.
Hello Nursing Me Black......I am a black nurse and have been one for 35yrs. Nursing is hard and racism makes it harder. The last hospital I worked at went to mandatory color coding for staff..nurses could wear blue or white. Supposedly this was for the patient's to be able to recognize who was who. I can't tell you how many times I was asked " are you the lab, respiratory, dietary even environmental" and these were not the patients, they were other nurses. I had to ask them what color do I have on, duh. There are some "white" people who do not want to think that you could possibly be on their level and the majority of these people couldn't nurse their way out of a wet paper bag. Especially those that have never worked anywhere but in one hopsital. I have skills on top of skills, but I have ALWAYS had to prove myself. So, don't become color blind look at nursing with all eyes open- after all it's the patients that count and when someone is REALLY sick they don't care what color YOU are, all they want is for you to make them feel better. I can count on one hand the times that I have been rejected by a patient because I was black. We are here in full force and have always been here, we were nurses to the master and his family during slavery. Nursing is a rewarding profession and I would'nt be anything else!:heartbeat
I am sorry you have encountered such ignorance in your nursing career. I wanted to share with you, that even though I can't walk in your shoes, I did have a AA child tell her mom that she didn't want the "white devil" nurse to take care of her. I had no idea what that was - it was explained to me, that in the south, this is common for white people to be called this - I have light eyes - as though I should apologize for this. I was pretty angry that there could be this kind of ignorance being taught to offspring. Really? In this day and age? I'm glad I moved out of the south.
I am a caucasian nurse - I couldn't IMAGINE belonging to a caucasian nursing organization! I belong to the ENA, because of my interest in emergency nursing. I also have curly hair - should I belong to a curly haired nursing organization? To celebrate my difference from others and to feel OK about myself? Heck no. That is just insanity. It is all superficial. You can feel pride in who you are and where you come from, but that alienates others and it is quite unprofessional and not "culturally sensitive" of other nurses.
Nascar nurse, ASN, RN
2,218 Posts
Perfect! Absolutely perfect. Thank you