Nursing is a passion?

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I am aware of this being a touchy topic on AN, but my school has a nursing information session and within the session they state that nursing is more than just a steady income, it is a passion. You need to be passionate and able to set aside your problems to help somebody in "what could be the worst day of their life." Thoughts?

Well, I certainly like it. I would choose it again as a career.

I like other nurses. I've never lacked work.

My passion? No.

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I have compassion for patients, but I would not say that I have a passion for nursing.

Disclaimer: I'm still a nursing student.

I agree completely. I don't think I'd ever act rude to a patient despite how bad some has treated me. But there are more multiple facets in nursing that made me not passionate about it. A nurse actually mistreated me because she claimed she did not see that I have passion in nursing just because I cried when she yelled at me in front of my patient. In some ways I do agree you need to have passion in order to stick with nursing as a career but there are other motivations why people stick to it and are valid as well. If society ran on passion alone there would be plenty of jobs left unfilled.

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The word "passion" for me is off-putting. It implies a level of irrational emotionality that I can't relate to. It implies an unrealistic standard that most paid employment cannot fulfill. Not every day is going to be a good one. I suspect passion can flame out to burnout quickly without some grounding.

Satisfaction is a better word. In general I am satisfied with nursing.

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Specializes in Underserved Populations; ER.

Oh, the p-word.... I wonder if the OP's instructor is 'passionate' about her own work, or if this instructor is employing this over-used buzzword because that was what she was taught to say herself. Part of the whole socialization into the role stuff. I'm sure she means well.Apologies for for the cynical rant - but there is a heaving sea of passion out there on Linked-in, and every random stranger who cold-call emails me, wanting my help with something academic ( non-nursing ), is also so, so passionate about [fill in the blank]. Yuck.

I make an exception for EDNurses's experiences - that kind of intense, high stakes, hellacious experience (and the bonding that goes with it) - which I have nothing but respect and admiration for. Thank you for taking care of our troops.

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I don't think passionate is a dirty word. Like my example, a veterinarian might be passionate about their work with animals, even if they don't like the billing and obnoxious pet owner aspects of it. Does that sound emotionally irrational?

A veterinarian no doubt must be competent first. But are they out there if they also happen to love what they do?

Did they have to love animals and working with them to be successful as a veterinarian? No, not by the reasoning here.

Does it make sense to be passionate/compelled/inspired about the work before taking out 200K in student loans to make less than most RN working even longer hours, taking call in and trudging out to someone's barn at 2 am in soggy freezing weather?

Wouldn't you advise your own kid or best friend that they ought to love the work before they go to vet school and embark on such a career because if they're only into for the measley money and competence that it may not get them out of bed when the phone rings again?

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Specializes in ORTHO, PCU, ED.
I offer a different perspective- I feel bad for those who have not been able to feel 100% fulfillment, commitment, and satisfaction in nursing. When I deployed to Afghanistan, and I took care of wounded troops, sometimes risking my own safety, it was almost a sense of nirvana in a complete hell on earth. To this day, I forever chase that sense of fulfillment and purpose- I come close somedays as an ER nurse, but not like I did during the time period at war. I made a difference, a visible difference, in the lives of those men and women. Their seance of thankfulness and appreciation was also a huge part of the purpose I felt.

I have a coworker who also was deployed in Afghanistan as a nurse. He's got some UNREAL stories. It was hell for sure. Thank you for serving our country!!!

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I offer a different perspective- I feel bad for those who have not been able to feel 100% fulfillment, commitment, and satisfaction in nursing. When I deployed to Afghanistan, and I took care of wounded troops, sometimes risking my own safety, it was almost a sense of nirvana in a complete hell on earth. To this day, I forever chase that sense of fulfillment and purpose- I come close somedays as an ER nurse, but not like I did during the time period at war. I made a difference, a visible difference, in the lives of those men and women. Their seance of thankfulness and appreciation was also a huge part of the purpose I felt.

Thank you for your service EDNurse.

I believe that you can have a passion for what you do and for what it can provide.

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Specializes in PICU.

I truly enjoy my job as a nurse. I am dedicated to the job and where I work. I also have many other things that I have a passion for: travel, skiing, hiking, running, biking, travel, travel. My job supports these activities. I do have a "passion" for nursing in the sense that I like the opportunities it offers. Nursing has such a wide range of emotions on a daily basis, frustration, elation, sadness, joy. It is interesting how much impact a person can have. However just because you have a "passion" for something does not mean that you are competent and effective. Just because one may say "I have a passion for nursing" does not automatically make one a good nurse. And equally, because someone is a good nurse may not have a "passion" for nursing, rather they enjoy the benefits of their job.

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Specializes in Pharmaceutical Research, Operating Room.

Gonna echo what so many others have said - nursing is not a passion for me, and it is not a calling for me either. It is simply a well paying job that allows me the flexibility and financial means to pursue my real passions and interests.

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martyr mary/martin, I am not.

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I'm still a nursing student. There are a lot of people on my course who are incredibly passionate and very engaged with nursing, but I'm not one of them. Sometimes I feel uncomfortable saying that it is just a profession to me as it almost feels like people judge you for it. Nursing is quite a low paid profession here in the UK, so it frustrates me when people use passionate and vocation to describe nursing, that's what keeps wages stagnant and working conditions unbearable.

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I'm still a nursing student. There are a lot of people on my course who are incredibly passionate and very engaged with nursing, but I'm not one of them. Sometimes I feel uncomfortable saying that it is just a profession to me as it almost feels like people judge you for it. Nursing is quite a low paid profession here in the UK, so it frustrates me when people use passionate and vocation to describe nursing, that's what keeps wages stagnant and working conditions unbearable.

I disagree. I think what keep wages and working conditions what they are (in the U.S. anyway) are too many going to/graduating nursing school and too many having painted themselves into a financial corner so that they cannot afford to walk.

Main other words, you're indirectly contributing to the problem. (theoretically if you were in the U.S.)

There is nothing about my passion for what I do that has done anything to contribute to the problem. I'm strong, assertive and can most definitely leave a bad situation.

FWIW I wasn't "called" but I did develop a passion for it and have thrived in nursing.

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