aspentree13

Anyone ever think that what the nursing profession really needs is a union???

If you could go back to before you started nursing would you still have chosen to be a nurse? And if not what would you have choosen to do instead?

The problem isn't about knowing my own self worth, its in feeling I am respected in my job. I would feel a problem would be if I felt something to be the case, and when I brought this forward to the Dr., he would just ignore me, jeopardizing patient well being. I sometimes am torn with just becoming a Dr., but the years neccessary just seem like such a commitment.

I am thinking about pursuing a career as a nurse. I am currently a CNA and sometimes feel that I am looked down on. I feel this is the biggest downfall of my job. So as a nurse do you feel as if doctors look down on you, and treat you as if you don't know anything, or do you work as equals.

I think what needs clarification is that in order to get your MSN you need to have a BSN first, though there are schools that offer an accelerated program to get your BSN and then your MSN.

I think the majority of nurses agree that it is all there duties to do basic patient care. But what I see a lot of times is nurses seeming put out, or unavailable when it comes to helping to do ADL's. And I notice the class structure at work probably more acutely being a CNA, that there are jobs nurses due and jobs CNAs do.

I'm a nursing assistant and when I first started class I was really worried about the "yuckies" I was afraid I couldn't cut it. But I soon got used to it and now I can handle almost any yuck. What I think about is if I don't clean this person up what am I going to let them sit in it, no of course not. Oh and just a little hint and tip don't expect for the CNA's to do all the dirty work for you.

So the thing is that the program at Red Rocks is a physician assistant program, its not a tech program. Its the same length as the CU Med School program, it just has different requirements. Also CU's program doesn't require you to get a master's degree either, its an additional option same as RRCC.

I meant to say that the community college does offer a masters degree in addition to the PA training. What is the difference your refering to between the two colleges, when it comes to real life? Thank you

The thing is that nurse practitioner really isn't a route I'm looking into due to the time it would take. First I'd have to get my BSN 15 months, then it would take another 2 years to get my masters. I really don't think I'm prepared to commit this much time to a program. I'm getting older and am looking to start a family in a few years, I just want to get it done. So PA or RN are the two routes I'm looking at.

In Colorado there are a couple of different schools that offer a PA program. One is the CU Medical School, and doesn't require you to have medical training, but you do have to already have a BA and take quite a few pre-reqs as well as the GRE. The other school is a community college and requires you to have an associates degree or higher (but prefer BA), they also require you to have medical training 2000+ hours, and yes CNA does count, also you have to take some pre-reqs but not nearly as many (A&P, Microbiology, Math, & Chemistry), also you don't have to take the GRE. The community college is where I plan to apply. Most schools that have a PA program have the requirements listed on their webpage. Hope this helps.

Of subject kinda but did anyone watch Grey's Anatomy last weekend, the entire nursing staff went on strike and it devestated the hospital. Food for thought.

I also should have been a little bit more clear about where I am right now in school. I am going to graduate in May with 2 undergraduate degrees, in non medical fields. But I want to go on and do something in the medical field. I originally thought about becoming an MD, but don't think I could put in all those years. So I thought about becoming an RN and getting by BSN, there's accelerated programs here where I could be done in about 15 months. Or I could go into a PA program which would take about 24 months, so its relatively the same time to put in. I just wanted a little advice about which you would do. Thanks

Okay so this post really pissed me off. I am not just interested in money, if I was I would be doing something else than what I am. I am currently a CNA, so if you want to talk about taking care of people for the least amount of money thats what a CNA does. The fact is that money is a part of everyones life, and if you don't consider that before you choose a future career your going to be in worlds of trouble.

I'm considering going to school to either be and RN (BSN) or a PA? Which do you think is the better career choice based on your experience? From what I've seen PA's tend to make more money, and get to do more "doctor type" work. Since I am most interested in "doctor type" work, I'm leaning towards this field. What do you think? Thanks

I think it should be ethical to euthanize a terminally ill patient. I am an aide in a LTC facility, and have had to face many patients dying very slowly. Wants a resident stops eating/drinking and has basically reached the last days, sometimes it can take weeks for them to finally pass. I don't understand the point in keeping someone alive just so they can slowly starve to death. Why not just let them go? Thankfully hospice does do excellent care in easing the suffering of a terminal patient. The morphine doeses really do disconnect them, and sometimes it does expedite the death process. Thank god we have that option to ease their suffering at least. On another note with regards to suicide, I have heard and have no proof that the highest suicide group with respect to age is the 65+ group, and I can completely understand that. I have some residents who become so completely dependent on others, and their mind is so far gone, that I sometimes wonder whats the point.

Okay so I started a little bit of heat, and I'm sorry I wasn't more available to respond to the threads. Heres the thing, first off I don't think nurses are lazy. Second I don't think what nurses do is unimportant. Third I understand that your job requirements include charting and what not. Fourth and most important I give the nurses a lot of respect, their my superiors and they deserve it. Let me explain that what I was trying to get across wasn't that all nurses do these things, its just that some do and thats what I was upset about. I have some nurses that I work with that will pick up CNA shifts because they like the patient interaction better, they are right there helping me wipe up BM. But I do have nurses who will go out of their way to get me to do something that if they would have just done it themselves it would have been quicker and better for the patient. The main point of my thread wasn't that the nurses don't do anything, its that sometimes they don't listen. Granted a nurses job requires more paperwork, and less hands on patient care. But that means the CNA is the one who does the hands on patient care and knows the resident best. I work in an locked alzheimers unit, and I know these residents inside and out, I know their behavior, when their hurting, what to do to calm them down, what not to do, I know how they brush their teeth, I know what they wear to bed, I know why they cry and how to help them, I know how often they have BM's, I know their children, I know them! Thats what I was trying to express, these patients I take care of are not blurred faces that come and go in a couple of days. I take care of these residents from the day they arrive here till usually the day they die. I've held their hands as they took their last breath, and wished them into the hands of god. These people are my family and I love them just as much. So all I was trying to say is that I would just like it if the nurses and the administration took my knowledge of these residents into account when I give advice. It hurts when what you say just gets brushed off because your just a CNA. Its a trade off being that I might not have your education, but you probably don't have my knowledge of the patient. So shouldn't we be able to work together to find the best solution as to how to best help the patient. I also want to say I'm sorry, my words came out to harsh, and I made it sound as if I didn't think a nurses role was valuable. And that I did all the work, I know thats not the case I was just frustrated.

The best place to get CNA training is through a long-term care facility. But be forewarned that sometimes that training comes with obligations. Like at my facility where I was trained I am obligated to work only for them. For instance I can't quit here and go work at the hospital where I could possibly make more money, and receive more training. Granted this is a small town but check into it before you obligate yourself. I get paid $11/hr. plus shift differential, I also recieve excellent benefits. The main part of my job is taking care of the residents, I wake them up, I get them dressed, I take them to the bathroom, I help them eat their meals, and I intereact with them! (Thats the best part, also the hardest) Its a really great job and I love it.

I saw the post earlier about the nurse getting confused as a CNA and the way she was treated, and I just had to say something about it. I'm a CNA, in a nursing home, and I get that kinda stuff all the time. I get treated with disrespect like I don't know anything, even though I know the residents better than most anyone else. There are some nurses who help and try not to disrespect me, but every now and then I get the feeling of distaste even from them. The truth is I do more actual care for these patients then anyone else in the field. Alot of nurses say they got into nursing because they wanted to take care of people, but the fact is they spend more time passing meds, and doing paperwork, and getting paid alot more for it, then the people who actually do the care. I'm sorry untill you wiped up someones BM, or vomit, or urine, can you really say you take care of those people. So if you want to do actual care every now and then try helping out a CNA. Sorry but I get really bitter about the disrespect I receive constantly from the nurses. Heres an example. I have one nurse I work with and our personalities constantly conflict, shes from another country and has a very rude and arrogant attitude. One night I was having to stay late and work a shift I wasn't scheduled for, nurse K asked me if I had got urine output on one of our residents. I said no I was going to due it on rounds in a half hour, mind you I am quite busy at this time. She says well you need to go get it now because I need it before I go home in 10 min. Mind you she is quite not busy at this time, sitting and reading a magazine. Tell me why she couldn't get off her butt and get herself if it was important for her. This same nurse has nearly killed a resident who was having a heart attack. She didn't care that I said the resident was having chest pains, trouble breathing, and high blood pressure. Her response was that the resident doesn't take her medication so this is whats going to happen. I didn't know this but I later found out that the resident had a prescription for nitro and ativan in cases like this. It took her at least an hour before she delivered the nitro and she never delivered the ativan. When I asked her how I could make the resident more comfortable, she again changed subject and said how this will happen because she doesn't take her medication. I responded that just because she doesn't take her medication doesn't mean we have to be cruel to her. I reported her behavior but shes still working here. She also does stuff that makes it perfectly clear she doesn't get her hands dirty. She'll go out of her way to have me clean up something that she could have done herself. I get this from all the nurses but shes the worst. The fact is though that I'm not an idiot I have two bachelors degrees, and I'm going onto PA school. Sometimes I know what a resident needs better than the nurse does, and they should know that. And even the aides that only have a high school diploma or GED, most of them have enough common sense and are with a patient long enough to see things nurses can't.

I'm a CNA, in a nursing home, and I get that kinda stuff all the time. I get treated with disrespect like I don't know anything, even though I know the residents better than most anyone else. There are some nurses who help and try not to disrespect me, but every now and then I get the feeling of distaste even from them. The truth is I do more actual care for these patients then anyone else in the field. Alot of nurses say they got into nursing because they wanted to take care of people, but the fact is they spend more time passing meds, and doing paperwork, and getting paid alot more for it, then the people who actually do the care. I'm sorry untill you wiped up someones BM, or vomit, or urine, can you really say you take care of those people. So if you want to do actual care every now and then try helping out a CNA. Sorry but I get really bitter about the disrespect I receive constantly from the nurses. Heres an example. I have one nurse I work with and our personalities constantly conflict, shes from another country and has a very rude and arrogant attitude. One night I was having to stay late and work a shift I wasn't scheduled for, nurse K asked me if I had got urine output on one of our residents. I said no I was going to due it on rounds in a half hour, mind you I am quite busy at this time. She says well you need to go get it now because I need it before I go home in 10 min. Mind you she is quite not busy at this time, sitting and reading a magazine. Tell me why she couldn't get off her butt and get herself if it was important for her. This same nurse has nearly killed a resident who was having a heart attack. She didn't care that I said the resident was having chest pains, trouble breathing, and high blood pressure. Her response was that the resident doesn't take her medication so this is whats going to happen. I didn't know this but I later found out that the resident had a prescription for nitro and ativan in cases like this. It took her at least an hour before she delivered the nitro and she never delivered the ativan. When I asked her how I could make the resident more comfortable, she again changed subject and said how this will happen because she doesn't take her medication. I responded that just because she doesn't take her medication doesn't mean we have to be cruel to her. I reported her behavior but shes still working here. She also does stuff that makes it perfectly clear she doesn't get her hands dirty. She'll go out of her way to have me clean up something that she could have done herself. I get this from all the nurses but shes the worst. The fact is though that I'm not an idiot I have two bachelors degrees, and I'm going onto PA school. Sometimes I know what a resident needs better than the nurse does, and they should know that.

Try doing your blood pressure using a automatic machine, if you don't have one at work, they have them at the grocery store, you probably just didn't hear the beat. If you had a diastolic BP of zero for real you'd be dead, or you wouldn't have any blood flow in that arm.

I actually heard that the lady that did this it wasn't her kid she was carrying it was her daughters.