petite nurses out there?

Nurses General Nursing

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Hi

I am 5 feet tall and weigh about 96 pounds. Am I fit to be a nurse? Would my size make me less likely to be hired? Do nurses do lots of lifting and transferring people around?

Thanks.

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Specializes in Community, OB, Nursery.

Moved to general nursing discussion.

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Specializes in Emergency Room.

i work with plenty of petite nurses and they do just fine. as long as you use proper lifting technique and have help with a really large patient you should be able to avoid injury to your back.

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Specializes in NICU.
Hi

I am 5 feet tall and weigh about 96 pounds. Am I fit to be a nurse? Would my size make me less likely to be hired? Do nurses do lots of lifting and transferring people around?

Thanks.

Some nurses do. Some don't. I do lots of lifting and transferring patients in my regular unit, but the biggest has been about 14 pounds. :)

Sure you're "fit to be a nurse." There are SO many opportunities in nursing that there's really a great situation for everyone.

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Specializes in LTC, Subacute Rehab.

My preceptor was 4'11"; granted, most of the patients were ambulatory.

As a CNA, I've worked with so many Filipina aides who made 5'3" me feel like a tower. They do the job very well.

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I am 5'2" 120# and work med/surg. The med cart is hard to push at times due to my height not weight. I have not encountered anything I couldn't lift with proper body mechanics. You will do just fine. If you need to transfer patients you will most always have help or a lifting device. If you have to do a wound dressing change on a bed bound patient you can always ask someone for help (Nurse or Tech). That is with any situation unless you work home health, where you are on your own.

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Everyone in my dept is 5'4" & under, except for one "giant" who is 5'10" :-) Fortunately, there is no 'height requirement' to be a nurse! I have never weighed over 110 lbs and have been doing this for 20+ yrs and I have never felt restricted in any way-- other than the occ. step stool to reach something high. (this is where our tall nurse comes in handy!!)

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I'm 5'1" but after having 3 kids weigh a bit more than 96 lbs ;) and I do just fine on a med/surg floor. :)

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I'm 5'2 and 120lbs. I use proper body mechanics and go to the gym so that I can lift my patients. I am doing fine. Remember to ask for help (and that goes with everybody-not only for us hot sexy petites!):specs:

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i am 4'11" and one of the phillapino nurses is shorter than me.. the only problem i have is when people tighten the iv pole and put is 6 feet high then i sometimes have to stand on tippie toes but i always manage somehow or another

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Specializes in med-surg, teaching, cardiac, priv. duty.

I do private duty nursing, and awhile back I oriented a nurse to a pediatric vent case. She was a VERY experienced, qualified RN of many years with an ICU background. She was very petite - less than 5 feet tall. So she did just fine as a RN!

However, it turned out she could not work this pediatric home care case because the child was in a regular bed and not a hospital bed. She was literally killing her back due to her height and not being able to adjust the bed height. (The bed height worked for those of an average height - say 5'2" to 5'6" or so...) The family refused to get a hospital bed. In fact, the mere mention of a hospital bed sent the mom into absolute hysterics. I'm not exaggerating. A lot of "family dynamic" and psycho-social issues in private duty...

Too bad this family refused to get a hospital bed, because they missed out on having a very qualified RN to care for their daughter. And they are hard to find!!

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I'm 5'1 and, well, weigh more than you! However, I sympathize and can tell you NO, you won't have any problems getting hired because of your size. Once you ARE hired, of course like everyone else has said, take good care of your back. Never lift someone by yourself, regardless. Even for turning and repositioning patients that you think you can do yourself -- it only takes seconds to do those things most times and if you're helpful to other people they are bound to return the favor.

In the ED, I often have to grab a couple extra folks to help me move pts from the ambulance carts to ER beds/carts. At my height, I refuse to try to lift a patient at "boob-level" -- if the stretcher the EMTs have doesn't lower to a safe height for me to lift, I will stand at the head or foot of the bed and help out that way but I won't hurt myself to get someone transferred. You just have to be firm and ask for help always!!

Good luck!

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