The Guys Club: Guy Students Come on In!

malenurse1 · Feb 1, 2004

I just wanted to say I really, really like this forum! It's nice to hear how other guys are dealing with the trials and tribulations of nursing school! I don't mind being surrounded by women all day at work and at school, but they think soo differently than men. Not in a bad way but, just differently. This helps me to reconnect. THANKS!:roll

piper_for_hire · Feb 1, 2004

I've always been more comfortable in the company of women rather than men, so I'm looking forward to it. I hear we'll all be too busy to be distracted or even make some new friends, which is a bit sad. In any event, I hope it is much different than the 99%male dominated profession that I was in before. Change is good.

-S

agent · Feb 4, 2004

Any guys still waiting on acceptance?

RichardJBoro · Feb 4, 2004

Hey guys, I'm contemplating whether I want to go to Nursing School, or get my EMT license first. Any thoughts either way? Just the more I think about nursing, the less I want to wipe butts. What do you guys think??

thanks in advance for replies.

Sailorboy · Feb 4, 2004

Yes, I am waiting for acceptance into Macomb but I will not know until April.

Cindy_A · Feb 4, 2004

I'm a female (never heard a guy named Cindy have you?) and I've been reading this thread, and I think it's great! I'm really happy all you guys want to become nurses. I got my LPN in 1998, and my RN in 2002. I am now 45 years old, so you can see, I was no youngster when I started either. Nursing is a very rewarding profession, and I LOVE it! I just want to encourage all of you and welcome you to the allnurses BB. This is a great BB, with lots of wonderful people on it. I really enjoy reading posts from the men and getting a guy's perspective on things. Good luck to all of you!

malenurse1 · Feb 5, 2004

Originally posted by RichardJBoro
Hey guys, I'm contemplating whether I want to go to Nursing School, or get my EMT license first. Any thoughts either way? Just the more I think about nursing, the less I want to wipe butts. What do you guys think??

thanks in advance for replies.

Nursing is about WAY more than wiping butts! Truth be told the CNA's wipe most of the butts. RN's are about critical thinking and caring.

RNPATL, DNP, RN · Feb 5, 2004

Originally posted by malenurse1
Nursing is about WAY more than wiping butts!

I have to agree that nursing is far more than wiping butts. But at the same time, you have to have the ability to nurture and care and there are those times when you have to wipe butts. Where I work, we have few CNA's, so we are wiping butts.

Anyway, as a nurse, I think you have to be willing to do things that perhaps are not your favorite things to do. For me, I have things I like to do as a nurse and things I can not do as a nurse ... for whatever reason, I can not manage to clean or deal with colostomys .... when I am working with them all I think about is blowing chunks right in the room. For other nurses, their weak link is sputum or something else ..... but overall, I think nursing is a great profession, despite all of its challenges.

But to answer his original question about EMT training ... it would depend on what you plan to do after you graduate with your RN ... if you plan to enter the ED or another crticial care area, EMT training might be a good start.

agent · Feb 5, 2004

what is sputum?

RNPATL, DNP, RN · Feb 5, 2004

Originally posted by agent
what is sputum?

Trust me .... no question is stupid except for those that go unasked. Sputum is secretions from the lungs. Some people have a lot and some people don't. Patient's that have COPD or other pulmonary function problems tend to produce more sputum.

agent · Feb 5, 2004

I need to get over my pride and not be afraid to ask questions.

thanks

RNPATL, DNP, RN · Feb 5, 2004

Originally posted by agent
I need to get over my pride and not be afraid to ask questions.

There is no place for pride in nursing, I can tell you that. And, when you are in practice, you need to ask questions, even if the other nurses make you feel like you are an idiot. When I was a new graduate, the experienced nurses made me feel like a fool for asking questions. But one of my practice rules is that I will not do anything that I do not understand ..... I often bring a quick reference book to work with me along with my PDA. If I can't find the answer there, I will ask another nurse, one that I trust and know will give me a correct answer.

There are far to many nurses today that fake it because they don't want to look like a fool for not knowing. Well, I for one want to protect my patient! If asking questions makes me look like the fool, then so be it.:chuckle

Never be afraid to ask. But remember, try to retain the answer to the question and not ask the same question over and over. Thats when trouble looms. :rolleyes: