i am graduating in may after waiting years to become a nurse. i have always, since the tender age of about 9, wanted to be a nurse.
i simply cannot express how much it :angryfire burns my hide :angryfire that everyone and their mother wants to be a nurse now. what's with the sudden enthusiasm and interest in nursing??? particularly in ca, in seems that everyone is telling me that they are doing pre-req's for nursing. ***?? my friend (also graduating with me in may) pointed out that it seems more and more men are coming into nursing. now, maybe she and i will get raked over the coals for this one, but before the $$ spike for nursing pay, men would be laughed at (a la ben stiller in meet the parents) for being a nurse.
i just find it so frustrating that everyone wants to be a nurse now, especially since nursing has become quite the lucrative career. what happened to wanting to be a nurse because you (*gasp*) care about people and like (*gasp #2*) helping others???????
this is all boiling over with me because i see quite a few of my classmates that clearly are in this for the money. i, personally, would rather die than be their patients - that's how greedy, selfish, money-hungry some of my lovely classmates are.
sorry - i just have to vent.
**please note: i absolutely do not mean that men should not be in nursing - i think it's great. i am generally frustrated at seemingly everyone (both men and women) being interested in nursing, now that it pays so well (esp. in ca). please do not accuse me of being sexist**.
I didn't want to become a nurse until I was 35 years old, and it was partly because I wanted to be in a helping profession, and partly because I wanted a job that offered financial stability and opportunities for professional growth. I am an excellent nurse, but I certainly wouldn't do this job if it didn't pay decent wages.
I don't absolutely love every patient I am assigned to care for, in fact, some of them are incredibly unpleasant, miserable people that I am nevertheless very kind to in the face of their manipulative and abusive behavior, and cracking jokes at their expense behind their back is a coping mechanism that I have used.
What I'm trying to understand is why do you even care about what others are doing? I'm not even in nursing school yet (taking my pre-reqs and applying for Fall 2009) but I'm one of those who decided last minute to go into nursing.
I can't believe what I'm reading in some of these post ! I don't think the OP cares about what others are doing or why... What she cares about are compassionate,caring, nurses who are going to take care of her family member, and are not in the nursing field PRIMARILY because of the money ! I can identify of what she is saying.
Is the job market that bad that everyone and there mother want to become a NURSE !
Well, this is nothing no one can control, however it felt good to vent. Please don't go in nursing just for the money and job stability, If you do please don't act like it, show compassion, smile, care for others, and don't make fun on pts. behind their back.
If they can pass the pre-reqs and entrance test I will gladly welcome all to the field. As long as people are willing to provide quality and compassionate care I will greet them with open arms.
Of course I want to make a good salary as do the vast majority of other nurses. We aren't saints and martyrs but qualified and educated medical professionals.
I don't understand why people are insinuating that people who go into nursing for the money cannot make caring and competent nurses. That insinuation is not necessarily true. The elitist attitude towards those who are looking for job stability are hindering our profession. There are many threads on this very site where nursing students say "Oh, I wanted to be a nurse all of my life" and then the same nursing student will say "How much do they make at such and such hospital?". Would you have gone into nursing knowing that you'd only make 10 bucks an hour? I think not.
Some of these post are very unpleasant to read. So you're wondering why I keep reading, because I'm hoping to find at least one post that isn't mean,nasty, or offensive. Can't believe this thread lasted so long. Please close it already.
One of the reasons for the spike in pay is that men have fought for it
Let's back this truck up just a bit ... we "older" female nurses had just a little bit to do with it! This isn't the place for my personal politics, but just who do you think did all the organizing and contract negotiation that pushed those salaries up? That non-union shops now have to compete with? That went out on strike and made it clear that we would no longer work for nothing or under conditions that harmed us and our patients?
And the nursing shortage has had a lot to do with it, regardless of who did what by way of organizing. Market forces resulting from the fact that a certain level of licensure is required to do certain work requires employers to hire RNs and LPNs ... when the supply is short and the demand goes high, the price goes up. Economics 101.
Men in nursing are an invaluable resource and bring their own unique gifts to the field. But let's not forget our history, OK?
Some of these post are very unpleasant to read. So you're wondering why I keep reading, because I'm hoping to find at least one post that isn't mean,nasty, or offensive. Can't believe this thread lasted so long. Please close it already.
If you have a problem with a particular post, please press the report button at the corner of the offensive post. No one is attacking each other here, we are merely having a discussion. What's offensive? That people have varying opinions regarding the nursing field?
i am graduating in may after waiting years to become a nurse. i have always, since the tender age of about 9, wanted to be a nurse.
i simply cannot express how much it :angryfire burns my hide :angryfire that everyone and their mother wants to be a nurse now. what's with the sudden enthusiasm and interest in nursing??? particularly in ca, in seems that everyone is telling me that they are doing pre-req's for nursing. ***?? my friend (also graduating with me in may) pointed out that it seems more and more men are coming into nursing. now, maybe she and i will get raked over the coals for this one, but before the $$ spike for nursing pay, men would be laughed at (a la ben stiller in meet the parents) for being a nurse.
i just find it so frustrating that everyone wants to be a nurse now, especially since nursing has become quite the lucrative career. what happened to wanting to be a nurse because you (*gasp*) care about people and like (*gasp #2*) helping others???????
this is all boiling over with me because i see quite a few of my classmates that clearly are in this for the money. i, personally, would rather die than be their patients - that's how greedy, selfish, money-hungry some of my lovely classmates are.
sorry - i just have to vent.
**please note: i absolutely do not mean that men should not be in nursing - i think it's great. i am generally frustrated at seemingly everyone (both men and women) being interested in nursing, now that it pays so well (esp. in ca). please do not accuse me of being sexist**.
i got into nursing because it offered a better work environment, even for a male nurse....................
:omy: did i just say that? eh
in all honesty though, i was working as a landscaper before i became a nurse. spend many hours shoveling snow in the winter for incredible amounts of time and not even half the money it would take to make me do it again. and dont get me started on some of the things i had to do in the summer. omg, people just dont understand what those people do......working in the rain pushing wheel barrows uphill. hurting your back in a new way every day. then going home and realizing you cant even afford cable.
i went into nursing, yes, because it was a raise, so to speak. it also offered all indoor work, although some of my pts. make me wonder.......my co-workers are not 2 days fresh out of jail and looking to work2day/pay2day so they can go buy a fix and i feel like i am giving everything i can to the community i live in........where as landscaping was just how i got that days meal.
I think there are very few posts in this thread that are nasty and offensive. These forums are meant for discussions like this. Just because someone has an idea that doesn't parallel yours, it doesn't mean that you should take it personally. *shrug*
Okay, I'm done on this thread. Since I don't have anything nice to write at this point I won't continue to respond to anymore of these post. Enough, is enough and I'm out. Have a wonderful weekend everyone :) I won't even dignify some of these posts with a reply any more. Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words from people that don't know me, will NEVER, EVER hurt me. Annoy me yes, but NEVER HURT ME !
i, personally, would rather die than be their patients - that's how greedy, selfish, money-hungry some of my lovely classmates are.
I don't think the OP cares about what others are doing or why... What she cares about are compassionate,caring, nurses who are going to take care of her family member, and are not in the nursing field PRIMARILY because of the money ! I can identify of what she is saying. 
Virgo_RN, BSN, RN
3,543 Posts
I didn't want to become a nurse until I was 35 years old, and it was partly because I wanted to be in a helping profession, and partly because I wanted a job that offered financial stability and opportunities for professional growth. I am an excellent nurse, but I certainly wouldn't do this job if it didn't pay decent wages.
I don't absolutely love every patient I am assigned to care for, in fact, some of them are incredibly unpleasant, miserable people that I am nevertheless very kind to in the face of their manipulative and abusive behavior, and cracking jokes at their expense behind their back is a coping mechanism that I have used.
So yeah, the original post was offensive to me.