Some questions about nursing.

eatmysoxRN, ASN, RN · Jan 6, 2013

Hi, i'm considering going into nursing, I have some questions about it.
Is nursing mostly hospital based? Are there a lot of nursing positions out there in different place. Say like, a dental surgeon's office? Or do you need special training for that?
I've also heard of the 12 hour shifts, where you only work a few days. Does that work well? Does that only apply to hospitals?
How many of you are happy with it? And what reasons are they? I've heard nursing can be harsh and depressing, or really great depending on if the person is suited for it.
What are the main stresses? Is it worth it?
Thanks for any input. :)

There are jobs outside of the hospital but many jobs for new nurses are either in the hospital or LTC (nursing homes). Some doctors office still utilize nurses (mostly LPNs) but many use Medical Assistants. I'd think a dentist would more than likely use dental hygienists, but I'm not positive about that.

I like 12 hour shifts because it means I work less days. I work nights as well which is a beast in itself but there are many threads about that.

Nursing is a crazy but rewarding profession. You get a lot of responsibility but little credit. You get a lot of blame for things you didn't actually do. It's about pleasing the patient more than caring for them it seems sometimes. However, you get to interact with people and care for them and their families during difficult and stressful times.

I learn new things all the time. I love learning and no 2 shifts are ever the same for me. It's a lot of teamwork.

If you're interested in nursing I highly recommend you shadow a nurse in an area of interest. Get at least a glimpse into what nurses do. Nursing is known to be a fairly well compensated position, but there's a reason. It's the responsibility and stress.

~ No One Can Make You Feel Inferior Without Your Consent -Eleanor Roosevelt ~

AnonRNC · Jan 6, 2013

Nurses work in a large variety of locations: hospitals, residential care centers (nursing homes, assisted living), clinics, offices, schools, corporations. I don't have actual data, but I suspect that around 1/2 of Registered Nurses work in hospitals or residential care centers. I suppose an oral surgeon might employ an RN. I know that many out-patient surgical centers exist. If that's a particular area of interest, you might hop over to OR Nurses forum Operating Room Nursing and the PACU nurses' forum PACU Nursing. I THINK that PACU requires ICU experience, which is only available in the hospital.

Shifts can be 8, 10 or 12 hours - depending upon the facility, area of practice and regional trends. With 12-hour shifts, 3 days - or 36 hours is usually considered fulltime. Some places will add on one 8-hour shift per two week payperiod to bring the total to an average of 40 hours/week.

I love nursing. How the body works, how it fails and how it's fixed fascinates me. Because I help people, I feel that my work is valuable and honorable. I enjoy being trusted by my patients and the community in general. I love this definition of nursing:

"The unique function of the nurse is to assist the individual, sick or well, in the performance of those activities contributing to health or its recovery (or to peaceful death) that he would perform unaided if he had the necessary strength, will or knowledge. And to do this in such a way as to help him gain independence as rapidly as possible" (Henderson, 1966).

Every job has stressors. One MIGHT think that nursing's stressors are just a little "worse" than - for exampe - the stress a barista has...because the stakes are high in nursing. A nurse's mistake could cost a life, coffee made wrong never killed anyone. I would DISAGREE...because when a person is experiencing job stress, it's job stress and it's feels the same: stressful.

A current major stressor in healthcare is the pressure to do more, better, with less money. Healthcare funding is a mess. That pressure trickles down to the person actually caring for the patient: the nurse. If you read the "venting about work" threads on this site, you'll find a common theme: not enough time or supplies to do their jobs as well as they want to. Some specialty areas are worse than others. But everyday, nurses go back to work and try again.

Is it worth it? I think so. I enjoy nursing and I encourage people to become nurses.

nurseprnRN, BSN, RN · Jan 6, 2013

I think it's interesting that there are such a huge number of complaint threads on AN with such a small number of balancing ones from nurses who are genuinely interested, content, challenged, and energized by their jobs.

That does NOT necessarily mean that there are so many more unhappy ones-- it just means that people who want to whine make a lot more noise than people who don't have much to complain about. We all know how true that is just from looking around in our daily lives. Sure, complaining is easier. I get that. And thinking more positively will get you further and with fewer mental health issues.

Think about that before you take it as an article of faith that nursing is all horrible (especially the first year when mean older nurses pick on yu all the time-- Hint: they don't), unbearably stressful (Hint: it's not), boring (nope), demeaning (nope), or something to aspire to leave asap (nope).

None of that is true for the vast majority of people working as nurses that I know personally. I should think that more new nurses would be a lot happier if they would look more hopefully at their futures. Those of us who have been nurses a long time have seen a lot of things come and go and come around again. We're still here. Ask us why, rather than limiting yourself to the clamor of those who are scared, upset, or self-diagnosed depressed. Your mental attitude towards your work will be shaped by how you choose to see it no matter what you do.