Okay so this is just sort of a vent and probably a little irrational pet peeve of mine.
But I always can't help but wonder what exactly someone actually does when they say ... "I work in the medical field".
So either they do something that the general public doesn't know too much about ... like for example a perfusionist... While highly educated and trained ... The public doesn't know what a perfusionist is for the most part.
So if speaking to non-med people maybe it's easier for said perfusionist to say "medical field".
Another scenario that comes to mind is when someone works at a clinic or hospital but has a 100% non clinical job yet wants to give the impression they are some kind of clinician.
So when people tell me "I work in the medical field", I always wonder --"what exactly do you do"?
My boyfriend says this when he tells people what I do for a living. Personally I just say I'm a patient care technician and explain what it is if people ask. I think it's easier for him to say "She works in the medical field..." then explain what it is I do. Or maybe he's just trying to talk me up. I don't know. Lol I just simply say I'm a PCT and I work in a clinic.
Specializes in M/S, LTC, Corrections, PDN & drug rehab.
I was in the ER a few months ago & while laying there I heard next to me a guy drone on & on about how he worked in the medical field. He was telling the nurses & the doctor how to do their jobs.
He eventually mentioned that he was a tech. It took all of me to bite my tongue & not say anything. The only reason I didn't was because I didn't want to be thrown out or anything. My husband said he didn't understand why it bothered me. Lol.
Why not just ask them what they mean by "in the medical field"?
They usually give an equally vague answer like, "I work with people." They also pretend not to hear the question, on occasion ...or like Ruby said, they outright lie.
I sometimes say "I work in health care" or something like that. I do it when I want to indicate that I am knowledgeable about health etc., but don't want the conversation to branch off into a discussion of my specific job. I would never say "medicine" because I am not a physician ... but I don't always want to get into a whole discussion of nursing, so I will just say I am in health care and leave it at that.
Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.
DH always says "I'm a Registered Nurse". I finally asked him if he was that concerned about distinguishing himself from an LPN. "No," he said. "I want to distinguish myself from all the poseurs who claim to be nurses. None of them say they're RNs. They just claim to be a nurse "
Often when I'm just chatting with someone in a non-work setting and the topic of our occupations comes up I usually just say "I work in health care" if I don't really want to go into great depth about the details of my job. If I say "I'm a nurse" then they ask "oh, what hospital do you work in?" and I have to explain that I don't work in a hospital, and then they ask what kind of clients I see in the community and then I have to explain hospice palliative care and then it turns into this huge downer when they realize that my job is to help people die and honestly, most of the time I just would rather not get into it.
I had no idea their assumption might be that I'm a housekeeper or cafeteria worker trying to make myself sound important! I guess though that I don't really care either
I never tell strangers what I do either, if people ask I say I work in customer service, as when I tell people I'm a nurse they invariably want to ask me to look at things or tell me their entire medical history. Which if I'm truthful I don't want to know...
However if/when family members have been ill and I've been asking the Dr's/ Nurses looking after them questions, and they ask I'm always honest and say I'm a nurse, but add that I have worked in a speciality for many yrs, and that's why I have so many questions, as my knowledge is limited!
Just the other day i had something go wrong with a CRRT that i was managing. I explained in vague terms what was happening to the patient's family and she tells me "Now what exactly happened again, my daughter works in the medical field and i'm going to tell her about it"
Not sure if this statement was meant to intimidate me or impress me?
They usually give an equally vague answer like, "I work with people." They also pretend not to hear the question, on occasion ...or like Ruby said, they outright lie.
...... Or they have relative who is a nurse or a nurses aide and they want to impress you or intimidate you.
When an alarm just begins to sound and I'm walking down the hallway and see the daughter silencing it (within seconds) of going off - that's not okay. I've never let an alarm ring for 20 minutes. Alarms are such a high priority in my workplace. Any alarm that goes off is met with either the primary nurse or a fellow colleague investigating the origin - whether serious or benign.
Long ago we had a patient who was a vent-dependent quadriplegic and his family member was his long term caregiver. He would come in periodically with respiratory complications. She would frequently change his ventilator settings, not only the FiO2, but the mode, the pressure support, peep, or whatever she wanted. We had many, many meetings with her to explain why this was unacceptable and not safe, that the pulmonologist ordered setting to help the patient recover from his illness, but it made no difference. And, as we are ridiculously entrenched in "customer satisfaction", administration did not back up the nursing staff on this. In these situations I always wonder why the patient, who is unable to speak for himself, is not also considered to be our "customer".
You never can win with this situation. There was another thread a few weeks ago(?) talking about whether or not to "reveal" that you're a nurse when seeking care or with a family member. The consensus was no, that it looks like you're being overbearing or pompous. So if you're trying to talk with the provider in higher terms than a layperson would, it's either "I'm a nurse" and you look pompous, or "I'm in healthcare" and it's assumed you are support staff trying to 'look good.
Somewhat related, back when I was still a nursing student, my provider (over the phone) sent me to an urgent care to have labs done for possible electrolyte imbalance. I hadn't mentioned that I was a nursing student, I didn't try to guide the nurse or doctor, I didn't try to act like I knew more than I did, I didn't act high and mighty. I was in the middle of studying for the NCLEX, and so my brain was pretty much a set of flashcards at this point. The doctor asks me if I had felt any spasms when my blood pressure was taken, and I said no. In my brain, "trousseau's sign!" popped up and so I laughed at myself. The doctor looked at me to explain, and I just quickly explained what had happened and that I was studying pretty hard. Again, not trying to run the show here, this was the first mention of me being a student. She finished up, walked out of the (non-soundproof) room and complained all the way down the hall to the nurse that she hated having nursing students as patients and they're terrible to work with and they think they know everything and etc. Thanks, doc. You just lost all my trust as a patient and if I ever work with you (possible if she rotates to the ED I now work at as an RN, like some UC docs do), all professional respect.
Sounds like this Doc was insecure. I have known a few over the years who flat out, did not like nurses. I never found out why, but it was obvious to all of us who worked with her, and we were told by one of the other doctors that this was the case. Of course, I have also worked with many docs who are very supportive and respectful, and then there are the ones in between who are simply pompous jerks. However, I don't go in announcing that I am an RN, but I do ask my questions using medical terminology, and if I am asked, I tell them I am an RN. I know there are pros and cons to this, but I'd just rather be upfront.
DH always says "I'm a Registered Nurse". I finally asked him if he was that concerned about distinguishing himself from an LPN. "No," he said. "I want to distinguish myself from all the poseurs who claim to be nurses. None of them say they're RNs. They just claim to be a nurse "
Yes. Often hear, "My daughter is In nursing." Usually meaning, they are CNA's. Again, as others have said, NO DISRESPECT FOR CNAS. I love CNAs. Just that, why not say, my daughter is a CNA?
Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.
Long ago we had a patient who was a vent-dependent quadriplegic and his family member was his long term caregiver. He would come in periodically with respiratory complications. She would frequently change his ventilator settings, not only the FiO2, but the mode, the pressure support, peep, or whatever she wanted. We had many, many meetings with her to explain why this was unacceptable and not safe, that the pulmonologist ordered setting to help the patient recover from his illness, but it made no difference. And, as we are ridiculously entrenched in "customer satisfaction", administration did not back up the nursing staff on this. In these situations I always wonder why the patient, who is unable to speak for himself, is not also considered to be our "customer".
I have often wondered this myself. It seems as though the patient should be our primary "customer", whether or not he is able to speak for himself. The family is a secondary customer. We fought to be able to remove them from the room if they're behaving in a way that is detrimental to the patient's recovery.
cherryelle07
105 Posts
My boyfriend says this when he tells people what I do for a living. Personally I just say I'm a patient care technician and explain what it is if people ask. I think it's easier for him to say "She works in the medical field..." then explain what it is I do. Or maybe he's just trying to talk me up. I don't know. Lol I just simply say I'm a PCT and I work in a clinic.