Questions

Home Health Columnist / Guide · Jun 3, 2003

Most nurses aren't concerned about getting down and dirty cleaning up patients. Nusing assitants are not always available to help you. Really think you need to shadow a nurse at a hospital to see what nursing is REALLY like before you extend time and money becoming one.

Nurses think and act differently than the medical model. A person with long term illness tends to know WHO to call on for advice when their sick: AN RN.

My name and credentials look good on my business card too---from the days when I was a staff nurse. Feel we could improve our image a lot if the Primary RN handed her business card to a patient upon admission. Some hospitals have their RN management team give out business card as part of greeting patients to improve satisfaction scores.

In one home health agency I worked in that provided business cards, we got more patients returning to our agency utilizing them. We've reinsituted them in my agency now.

Angelica · Jun 3, 2003

Suzie- Do yourself a favor and find a different profession. Your posts don't give me any indication that your heart is in it, IMHO.

angelsuzie · Jun 3, 2003

ah... after visiting the website, i think i am not a "nurse" type person. I cannot have anyone(Dr. ect) to look down on me because I am a nurse. Also, I don't see myself cleaning after patients... It seems like nothing is going to change till I graduate the university, anyway. ONLY reason I considered being a nurse was CRNA.. the money is pretty good for education in a yr. compare to 4 or 5 years.

I don't think $ 22 /hr is good. it is really low.

Angelica · Jun 3, 2003

Good post, Suzie. I am probably not the only one breathing a sigh of relief.

ScarlettRN · Jun 3, 2003

I have read so often that one of the reasons fewer people go into nursing is because of the comparisons between other people with an equivalent degree (4 year).

I wish, in spite of the shortage, that more people would come to this site and ask the questions. It would cull the ones who don't need to be nurses before a lot of time is wasted, all around.

Tweety, BSN, RN · Jun 3, 2003

I'm glad you're brave enough to ask that kind of question.

We are so accustommed to body excrement that we forget that it is definately a big turnoff for a lot of people. I've had more than one person tell me they could never be a nurse and clean up after people.

Good luck in whatever "clean" profession you choose. Go for your passion, follow your heart, don't worry about the money. If you're passionate about your work it won't matter and you'll probably make a ton of money at it anyway.

Zee_RN, BSN, RN · Jun 3, 2003

We don't think $22 is a lot either. But most of us aren't here for the money. It would sure HELP, mind you. But again, most of us aren't here for the money or the prestige--although I'm very proud to be an RN.

Good luck in your endeavor to find a suitable career. I think you're wise in deciding that nursing isn't for you.

itsme · Jun 3, 2003

Unless I have misunderstood you, you said a CRNA in a year??? I dont think so. I think you have to have a Bachelors degree in nursing first before you can become a CRNA. Heck of a lot more than a year. Maybe I misunderstood??

Ortho_RN · Jun 3, 2003

Suzie .. I think you have made a very wise choice.. If you are looking for money and money only and the quickest and easiest way to get it, then Nursing is soooooooo not for you... As far as the cleaning goes.. I don't know anyone who wants to clean poop, but its a necessity and you just kinda do it...

Maybe you should look into Business classes or something.. My hubby has a Bachelors in Information Systems and got a job making $60,000 a year straight out of school...

Good Luck in figuring something out..

Angelica · Jun 3, 2003

Wow- You guys are so nice and so diplomatic. Is there a correspondence course I can take to help me be more like you?

renerian, BSN, RN · Jun 3, 2003

Odd pairing of questions........

renerian

Peeps Mcarthur · Jun 3, 2003

AngelSuzi,

I think I know just how you feel, but in any profession there will be some kind of poop to clean up. If you're going to spend all that money and effort, as I see you are willing to go to the masters level, why not make it a point to look into other medical professions. Forget what you don't like about what you think nursing is about.......what is it that you think you like?

I found that what I did like about nursing was the pathology, pharmacology, both as the fundamentals and the mechanics of treating disease. There isn't enough of that for me in nursing, so I changed majors.

There are no bodily fluids, infected or not, that I cannot stand........with the exception of feces. That's the point on the graph where my gag factor and ability to suppress it meet:bluecry1: That being said, there will always be some sort of bodily fluid involved and it will be coming out of places you never imagined! Whatever the case, it would be important for you as a caregiver of any type, to at least be able to put the patient at ease. If you show disgust for their condition you will strip them of whatever dignity as a human being they still have left. In other words, if your dignity comes before that of your patients, both you and your patients will be miserable.

Fell free to PM me if you would like to discuss other career options. I have looked into them all.