why are we technicians?

justme1972 · Mar 28, 2007

I totally disagree that nursing is one of the most disrespected professions. If it were, I wouldn't be going to nursing school.

I'm about the only individual left in my entire family that isn't a Doctor, Nurse, Respiratory Therapist or a Medical Technologist (they are teasing me now that I am about to "join the cult").

Maybe it's just me, but in my entire life, I have run into more people bashing physicians and haven't heard of anyone bashing nurses....ever. Maybe I'll hear it more when I'm in a hospital...but every job has it's hardships.

I have never anyone say that nursing was a crappy job, that nurses were poorly trained or poorly educated.

If YOU think the nursing is one of the most disrespected professions, then maybe to YOU, it is.

....and for the record...on salary.com, the profession you should be searching is "RN" or "Registered Nurse" or "LPN". A health care technician is a completely different field.

I'm not saying that I will love my job once I graduate...but it's also going to depend largely on what I make of it.

FlGasman · Mar 28, 2007

....and for the record...on salary.com, the profession you should be searching is "RN" or "Registered Nurse" or "LPN". A health care technician is a completely different field.

I'm not saying that I will love my job once I graduate...but it's also going to depend largely on what I make of it.

Actually if you look under healthcare techinicians, they have all levels of nursing including advanced practice as technician (and practitioners true ). And my soon to be GN friend, just wait awhile. I didnt say nursing was not worthy of respect. , I just said it doesnt get the respect it deserves. I realize you are in nursing school where they fluff us up to be saints, but in the real world its a bit different.

It is very clear to me that doctors can do what they want and get away with a lot of crap that a nurse would NEVER get away with. The competence of nurse is constanly called into question. I am in Anesthesia school and its funny that I have to defend why I didnt "just become a dr" to ridiculous numbers of the general public. This is further reenforced by shock tv shows like inside edition who have shows like "did you realize that a NURSE may be giving you your anesthesia while you really thinkl a physician will be doing it (oh the horror)!" And on and on and on. Why dont we introduce our selves as nurse whatever???? Like "HI this is Dr jones and this is nurse smith? " We should, but we don't becuase of the negative connotation even associated with the word nurse. Instead its Hi Im dr smith and the is jennifer. or Bob. So you are DR smith and this is bob or jennifer. Give me a reason why we technicians. Do we not do research and further improve healthcare as much as anybody??? Technicians don't do research, "technicians are defined as one whose occupation requires training in a specific technicial skill or process" Or practitioner is one who practices a learned profession. So Im not saying NOONE respects nursing, I just saying that we are very disrespected. I have realized this more and more after starting anesthesia school.

FlGas

buddhak0n · Mar 29, 2007

wow I wonder WHY that would be..

You ever notice that people who are continually whining about being disrespected seem to be continually "disrespected" ...

Sorry but not buying it one bit.

buddhak0n · Mar 29, 2007

Oh and if you haven't noticed people aren't exactly BOWING down to Doctor's nowadays either..

So if your goal in life was to somehow be revered and respected perhaps you should consider a career change.

Maybe you can become a cardinal someday and maybe after that .. why not even the POPE.

Fuzzy · Mar 29, 2007

I'm happy to be a technician. I'm fortunate to work in a place where I'm respected. I'm a Certified Veterinary Technician (CVT). Sadly the field, as a whole, is similar to nursing (from what I have read on this board) as far as lack of respect from the general public.

Fuzzy

justme1972 · Mar 29, 2007

I'm happy to be a technician. I'm fortunate to work in a place where I'm respected. I'm a Certified Veterinary Technician (CVT). Sadly the field, as a whole, is similar to nursing (from what I have read on this board) as far as lack of respect from the general public.
Fuzzy

I don't really think it's a matter of respect, rather than a lack of knowledge.

Do you realize that I am almost 40 years old, have been a pet owner my entire life, and never even HEARD of a CVT until a couple of years ago when I saw an ad on TV for a training program in another state?

When you go to the vet office, all I ever heard of was CVT's, referred to by EVERYONE as "the tech"....I never knew it was a specialized level of education that they receive.

Education is key...everyone comes into contact with nurses on a daily basis many, many times in their life. In contrast, every time I have taken my dogs to the vet, the only person I have ever talked to is the Veterinarian and the individual taking my money at the end of the visit.

By the way...I bet your job is AMAZINGLY fun!

Jolie, BSN · Mar 29, 2007

I found it interesting that all specialties of nursing on the allnurses.com salary.com link are listed as health care technicians while physicians are only under practitioners. I always thought we "practiced"! Just another affirmation that we are one of the most disrespected professions.
FlGas

As long as nursing education remains at the community college level (or technical college), we will be viewed as technicians. Please don't flame. I'm not trying to create another ASN vs. Diploma vs BSN debate. Our licensing exam makes us all equal in terms of professional responsibilities, and each educational path has its strengths and drawbacks. But I know of no other profession that continues to accept anything less than a Bachelor's Degree as the point of entry. To the contrary, most other healthcare disciplines (physical therapy, pharmacy, dietetics, speech and language pathology, social work, and advanced practice nursing) have increased their educational requirements in the last 25 years or so. Nursing will not be fully viewed as a profession until we do the same, and then educate the public as to the nature of our practice.

justme1972 · Mar 29, 2007

[quote=FlGasman;2132128

Actually if you look under healthcare techinicians, they have all levels of nursing including advanced practice as technician (and practitioners true ). And my soon to be GN friend, just wait awhile. I didnt say nursing was not worthy of respect. , I just said it doesnt get the respect it deserves. I realize you are in nursing school where they fluff us up to be saints, but in the real world its a bit different.

You think I'm going to nursing school because of a bill of goods the SCHOOL sold to me? Or is it more along the lines of growing up playing around my grandfather's medical practice and spending the night at the hospital with my sisters, many times as a child when my mother had to work the night shift and she couldn't get a baby sitter? Even better...do you think it might be because I had a "calling" about two years before I even picked up the phone to make my first call to a nursing school to see about admission, or that I have spent my entire working career helping other individuals and wanted to do it on a higher level other than working in an office?

RN's...were listed under HEALTHCARE-NURSING

CNA's.were listed under HEALTHCARE-NURSING and PRACTITIONER and TECHNICIAN?

Do you think that Salary.com is the end-all, be-all of how the world sees the profession? Or is it more along the lines of being a database and they put "Nurse" in every conceivable catagory so it would show up on a search?

I'm sorry..mods...bear with me here, I'm trying to be as respectful as possible.

As I said in my previous post, I have NEVER heard a single person bashing the nursing profession in my ENTIRE life...the only place that I see it bashed is in posts like this...and THAT is the core fo the problem. There is no way I am going to put my family through the financial struggle that it is under now to get "downgraded" in a profession.

I am not under a delusion...I live in the real word...I don't think for a second that I am going to graduate as an RN, get my first job in a hospital, work with nurses with 10, 20, 30, 40 years of experience, and be welcomed to "the club" with open arms....I am going to have to prove the basics that I will learn in school, and keep an open mind and ear to realize that I will have so much further to go, and have the wisdom to understand, that no matter how long you have been working as a nurse, you can learn something every day from the most senior nurse on staff right down to the new grad.

I have hopefull in my name for a reason...because I am a positive person and a positive thinker. My only "hope" is that you learn to love your profession as much as I know that I will...and realize that respect isn't handed over on a silver platter, but earned, just like it is in ANY profession.

Fuzzy · Mar 29, 2007

I don't really think it's a matter of respect, rather than a lack of knowledge.
Do you realize that I am almost 40 years old, have been a pet owner my entire life, and never even HEARD of a CVT until a couple of years ago when I saw an ad on TV for a training program in another state?
When you go to the vet office, all I ever heard of was CVT's, referred to by EVERYONE as "the tech"....I never knew it was a specialized level of education that they receive.
Education is key...everyone comes into contact with nurses on a daily basis many, many times in their life. In contrast, every time I have taken my dogs to the vet, the only person I have ever talked to is the Veterinarian and the individual taking my money at the end of the visit.
By the way...I bet your job is AMAZINGLY fun!

Veterinary technology is a young field. The first AVMA accredited program was in 1974 as I recall. At first we were called Animal Health Technicians (AHT). Our field is similar to nursing except we provide care to animals. In order to become Licensed, Registered, or Certified (the terminology depends on the state), we have to pass the state/national boards, maintain a certain number of CE credits, and in most areas now graduate from an AVMA accredited program. The grandfathering of on the job trained techs is becoming a thing of the past. Like the human medical field, there are a lot of advances in veterinary medicine because animals have become a large part of our lives both emotionally and ecomonically. People now expect and demand more professionalism from the veterinary team. My job also has some sad parts like any part of the medical field but I do get to do alot of different things and yes it is quite fun most times.

Fuzzy

justme1972 · Mar 29, 2007

Veterinary technology is a young field. The first AVMA accredited program was in 1974 as I recall. At first we were called Animal Health Technicians (AHT). Our field is similar to nursing except we provide care to animals. In order to become Licensed, Registered, or Certified (the terminology depends on the state), we have to pass the state/national boards, maintain a certain number of CE credits, and in most areas now graduate from an AVMA accredited program. The grandfathering of on the job trained techs is becoming a thing of the past. Like the human medical field, there are a lot of advances in veterinary medicine because animals have become a large part of our lives both emotionally and ecomonically. People now expect and demand more professionalism from the veterinary team. My job also has some sad parts like any part of the medical field but I do get to do alot of different things and yes it is quite fun most times.
Fuzzy

Thank you for educating me on that subject....I did some research on a CVT last night and yes, it didn't sound like you just took a couple of classes and BOOM, you were an CVT....it sounded like it was a difficult program.

FlGasman · Mar 29, 2007

Thanks Fuzzy and Jolie, both have excellent points. The other input I chalk up to ignorance (new nurse save the world syndrome) selective reading (ignoring my SPECIFIC points) and an obvious lack of maturity.