i'll probably get flamed to the moon and back for this but..

[elijahvegas]

does anyone else get tired of hearing (from other SNAs/hopefuls/vets) what we nurses are "suppose" to be like ?

i read through thread after thread of how if you're not "compassionate to the core" and "really into nursing" and all this other stuff, you won't do well in the program or as a nurse in general.

is it really that big of a deal that some use the profession as a fallback option, or as a way to get by while trying to pursue something they'd really wanna be doing, without having to work something that provides just above minimum wage to make ends meet ?

i often hear people being scolded because their "heart" isn't in nursing, and for taking a seat away from others who "really" want to be there. Are any of us less deserving because we went through the same prereqs as everyone else but were competitive enough to actually secure a seat ? Is this something i should apologize for ? Should we be barred from applying simply because we have different prospects for the horizon ? Say med school ? or a field outside of healthcare altogether ?

Is it wrong to consider this profession a job ? one in which i will do my best to do well as i would with any other endeavor ? I go in with an attitude to make sure all of my duties are done, everyone is accounted for, and everything is the way it should be from the time i arrive until the time i clock out. Does it make me a bad nurse that i don't cry with a patient when they're going through a hard time ? Please dont take this as an implication as me directing negative or rude comments towards the patient. I'm attentive, and consoling, but i'd rather not have my emotions tie me up in knots to the point where i start to make clinical errors, which in the end is truly the most important thing to me.

Don't mind me, just my Tuesday morning rant for the day. I'm curious to see who else feels like this. I know im the minority but i can't be the only one

[elijahvegas, ASN, RN, EMT-P]

A well made bed (one that a nickel could bounce off) is better for the patient in many ways and NONE of us are above doing what we can to make our patient:

a) more comfortable

b) better rested

c) at less risk of a skin tear or bedsore

I think that is your own self perception and need to feel good about yourself as a whiz with the IV....careful there, one tiny error with a flow rate can spell disaster for your patient.

a lot of things can spell disaster for my patient. in fact, the very things that you named if not maintained properly can spell disaster for my patient. so its not just me wanting to "feel like a whiz", its just the things that i have more interest in. needles, meds, invasive procedures, and the physiology behind it all--these are the things that got me interested in the medical field. i dont find the other stuff that this profession entails demeaning, pointless, or beneath me in any way, theyre just simply things that im less interested in. i dont see myself appreciating a "well made bed" the way some others would. that doesn't mean ill skip over it or that i wont take the time to do it correctly. i take pride in everything i do when its done right. id just take..more pride in the aspects of medicine that really gets my motor running, if that makes any sense at all.

[jadelpn, LPN, EMT-B]

haven't been ignoring anyone just been busy ^^ i didnt expect this post to get so explosive lol

im still currently certified as a paramedic, but i took a hiatus from work to give nursing school my full effort.

Nursing was always my career path after some thought. I had no healthcare exp so i didnt really know what to expect, which led to me try out EMT school. but it was so..basic and lackluster that i advanced to medic school. there i learned a handful of skillsets that in a hospital setting pretty much docs are only allowed to do (well technically speaking, docs are the only ones that are allowed to do anything without anyone elses discretion, another minor peeve of mine) but out on the field.

with medic school, the objective was always clear and cut to me. i knew what my aim was, and i knew how to get there. see the symptom, treat the symptom. nursing is a whole new way of looking at a patient, one that im still trying to adjust to, and one that reorganizes everything that formerly was a priority to me. im still struggling to make it make sense. thats somewhat where this post extends from. im constantly feeling like the bad nurse because im more preoccupied with treating the patient rather than babying the patient.

i just didnt realize the drastic difference in each of these medical professions. and i dont mean paramedicine vs nursing, i mean everything as a whole; from cnas all the way up to RNs and all the guys in between. I always figured it was all centered around medicine. We do what we can for the patient obviously, but our primary goal is to treat em. but im looked at as less of a nurse because id rather push meds and titrate drips than to make a bed ?

This is interesting--nursing (even as an LPN) is a great deal more than one extreme to the other--it is not all titrating/OR making a bed.

I just took an interesting refresher (as I am also an EMT as well as an LPN) and was astounded at the attitude of paramedics who are teaching courses to become or remain multi-level EMT's seem to be that they are "medical clinicians" and the air of "we are one step away from an MD". That the "ER nurses" don't seem to know as much as a Medic. I was more than taken aback by the teaching and the terms used to describe--a Medic's "medical practice". So with this being said, I can absolutely see why someone who is a Medic would find a great deal of nursing skills/duties less than compelling. A number choose to become PA's for this exact reason.

One can not 100% be certain that one will attain an ER position as an RN. Otherwise, it is quite an eye opening experience when one is exposed to the basic nursing skills--bed baths, helping someone to the toilet, and the like.

However, if a Medic goes through a course of study, are told by instuctors that they are "medical professionals" and "clinicians" and that they are higher on the food chain than nurses, well, then I can see how a Medic would think that they are in fact being "dumbed down" by wanting to pursue nursing.

[jr2915sn]

I am an RN that came into Nursing because I believed it to be my passion and wanted to make it a career; thankfully I still think Nursing is the profession for me and thoroughly enjoy what I do (not necessarily enjoying where I currently work; but that's a different story). I will be honest to say that careless, heartless, and rude nurses irk me but I am no one to judge the reasoning for a person going into Nursing. If nursing is your stepping stone, that's fine...(i personally would have probably gotten a job that's less stressful and demanding...but that's me). If working as a nurse to feed your family or as a stepping stone, kudos to you, as long as you're a safe nurse that's all that matters!

I don't think anyone should judge a person's decision or reasoning. If you're happy, be happy! Besides, everyone has an opinion!

[elijahvegas, ASN, RN, EMT-P]

This is interesting--nursing (even as an LPN) is a great deal more than one extreme to the other--it is not all titrating/OR making a bed.

I just took an interesting refresher (as I am also an EMT as well as an LPN) and was astounded at the attitude of paramedics who are teaching courses to become or remain multi-level EMT's seem to be that they are "medical clinicians" and the air of "we are one step away from an MD". That the "ER nurses" don't seem to know as much as a Medic. I was more than taken aback by the teaching and the terms used to describe--a Medic's "medical practice". So with this being said, I can absolutely see why someone who is a Medic would find a great deal of nursing skills/duties less than compelling. A number choose to become PA's for this exact reason.

One can not 100% be certain that one will attain an ER position as an RN. Otherwise, it is quite an eye opening experience when one is exposed to the basic nursing skills--bed baths, helping someone to the toilet, and the like.

However, if a Medic goes through a course of study, are told by instuctors that they are "medical professionals" and "clinicians" and that they are higher on the food chain than nurses, well, then I can see how a Medic would think that they are in fact being "dumbed down" by wanting to pursue nursing.

I don't think any one profession is better/smarter or anything-er more than the other. I've always said they're 2 different beasts. And I hate the animosity between nurses and ems. I know medics often have a God complex when it comes to medicine that Invites scorn from the other half, but it's ridiculous how hostile they are toward each other. In class I always catch an instructors remark or 2 that tends to inadvertently but openly puts fault on ems when a patient is being transported in. And I hear medics go on and on about nurses and hospital staff.

if I ever sound like I'm placing a higher regard towards ems than nurses I don't mean to. The fact of the matter is that ems was the first type of medical experience that I've received, and it made sense to me. This was how I always perceived medicine. I didn't know they were such different worlds until I began nursing and saw how the other half lives so to speak. There's much more to a patient than the things we ems look at, and these things make a little less sense to me. Doesn't mean I hate nurses or nursing. I just don't see the picture the way "natural born and bred" nurses do. If I ever make remarks about the 2, it's simply a comparison because all I've got are these 2 things to compare.

Some take the idea of being a doctors extension too far. They think that the protocols written by our medical director means we have he same knowledge base as an md. I'm not nearly to the point of delusion where I could find that to be

true. But the skillset we use in the field does carry a certain amount of weight and responsibility that require us to use a high degree of critical thinking and observational skills pretty much on the fly.

But with that said, I can't wait to finish my schooling. Hopefully I'll get the big picture and be able to properly assess the 2 objectively

Yuck this is so far from my op

[cjdmomma]

I would just like to say one thing. As a new grad, the direction this post has traveled makes me very sad. I graduated at the top of my class, and apparently that is just not good enough for some of you. I thought my program was hard. I guess I am not as smart as I thought I was, since my ADN program was watered down, and all. I already feel like I am not good enough and I don't know enough as a new new nurse, but now apparently I was poorly educated, too.

That's all.

[PMFB-RN, RN]

I just took an interesting refresher (as I am also an EMT as well as an LPN) and was astounded at the attitude of paramedics who are teaching courses to become or remain multi-level EMT's seem to be that they are "medical clinicians" and the air of "we are one step away from an MD". That the "ER nurses" don't seem to know as much as a Medic.

Hmm, our transport service, and every other one I know of, both ground and air run with a medic / RN team. Our duties are pretty interchangeable most of the time. However the RN is the team leader and ultimately responsible for everything that happens. It is the RN who makes the call when the patient is stable enough to be put on the rig or helicopter, it is the RN who is responsible and has to explain when things don't go well.

[msn10]

I graduated at the top of my class, and apparently that is just not good enough for some of you.

That is plenty good for us and congratulations on your accomplishment. We are not talking about driven men and women like you, we are talking about the ones who are in school and are happy with the minimum and then graduate only to find a paycheck, not a profession. You don't have to love nursing to be a decent nurse, but you have to admit there were students in your program that did not pull their weight, were always asking everyone else the answers, and God forbid they were a lab partner of yours.

I am saying that I find it sad that these students don't put 100% into school and then the night before an exam they "Got so wasted last night" or "OMG, like I stayed up and watched Teen Moms last night and did you hear what happened…" Then they argue with you that the test wasn't fair because you didn't give them all the answers on the PP slides.

And as the OP even admits, when you do get someone in your class who has been out in the field, 5 times out of 10 they feel that most of what we teach is "fluff" and they already know what they need to. Incivility happens in every field and with every type of student, but it is sad that it is so prevalent in nursing since we are suppose to be a pretty caring group.

[Nacki, MSN, NP]

Commuter, you're my sister from another Mister!

I'm a creative type who doesn't seem to have a "heart" for anything either. I love going to school to learn, but I do secretly wish I could win the lottery and never have to work again.

I work and pretend to have my heart in it as well. Apparently it works because i get rave reviews from patients and families. If they only knew the truth...

[BuckyBadgerRN, ASN, RN]

You may find that PDN gets paid the lowest where you are, but I make $10 per hour LESS doing what I am now than when I was private duty. You definately don't speak for all circumstances!!

Well,I'm not sure what to say.

My heart is in Private Duty Nursing,yet many nurses(even on Allnurses) tell me "You need to work in another specialty)

Why? Because some nurses think my skills aren't fresh,or that I don't know how to be a "real nurse".

My heart is in Pdn,so that's all that really matters.

For what its worth,we get paid the lowest.

[BuckyBadgerRN, ASN, RN]

Has anyone pointed a finger and said the things you're feeling after "seeing the direction this thread has taken"? I sure haven't. Be proud of your top of the class status----no one here is taking that away from you!

I would just like to say one thing. As a new grad, the direction this post has traveled makes me very sad. I graduated at the top of my class, and apparently that is just not good enough for some of you. I thought my program was hard. I guess I am not as smart as I thought I was, since my ADN program was watered down, and all. I already feel like I am not good enough and I don't know enough as a new new nurse, but now apparently I was poorly educated, too.

That's all.

[OCNRN63, RN]

But not surprising. Attitudes such as this have existed in nursing and even today.

This forum even has a separate section for "Men" so issues like being labeled as feminine, weak, homosexual or giving up the macho EMT identity can be discussed without the women folk's opinion.

​Yet the men are free to chime in on any topic. I pay the separate forum no mind; if there's something there that interests me, I'll respond.

[Guest757854]

Interesting comment. I think a big problem right now with too many students (Not all) in any program in school is the lack of student accountability. I am amazed at the number of students who want to be spoon fed. Like you Esme12 and PMFB-RN, I went to school when we had to read the whole book and not just expect our teacher to come up with a Power Point that provided all the answers. I think part of the watering down process is a direct result of catering to the students who do the minimum when we should be only admitting students who are serious. Even in the most competitive university we have in town (we have 10 nursing schools in a 50 mile radius) the students aren't as serious as I think they should be.

I too ama firm believer in this. Schools are watering things down. ALOT