Hello. I am just about to finish my first semester in an LPN program. I hope no one will take this the wrong way, but I never knew there was so much negativity between LPN's and RN's, and in the work place with employees and bosses. When I joined this site it was to meet other nurses and receive support. I had no idea there is so much disagreement between each other. It is almost like a prejudice against certain groups because of the letters behind the name. I want to be a nurse to take care of patients, I really enjoy helping people. I didn't know all the stress I hear about nursing would be compounded by my peers. I guess I just had rose colored glasses on. I talked with my instructor about this and she told me it's true unfortunately. Doctors stick together and have a special bond because they are doctors, but nurses eat their young. She said it could be because we are mainly women, and women are catty. The males I have seen so far don't seem to be this way. Right now we are doing clinicals in a nursing home, and do the same job as the nurses aides. I would never consider myself above them.
I am happy to learn from them. When I first found out I would be doing clinicals in a nursing home I was scared. I thought ok I'll just get through it until I get to the part of nursing I really want to do. I found out that I love taking care of the patients so much that if I was just allowed to do that, I would be happy. It is very rewarding to be apart of their lives. We should all just pitch in where we can. (In our scope of practice) But certainly never consider ourselves above someone else. Maybe part of the nursing burnout is the lack of support from each other. I know there are alot of you who do not feel this way and express it here in your responses to the negative comments, but the fact that the animosity exists, I guess is just beyond my comprehension. Maybe it's because I am going the LPN route to get to my RN could be why I don't see it. I am just happy to be here till I get to the next step. I respect people where they are and the choices they make. Anyway just my 2 cents.
Kim Z. -SPN - SCC (Just 2 more semesters to go!!! YAA!!!)
You don't think women are more catty? I'm afraid I agree that they are. Have you ever sat with a group of women on break or at lunch? I feel that women definitely gossip more than men....myself included I'm afraid....which should be a
Maybe we're too sensitive to stereotyping or have been the victim of certain -isms or -phobias in our society that makes us that way. I think it also makes us more apt not to stereotype others and see how detrimental it can be to our profession to do so.
I don't dare post on which male nurse stereotype makes me :angryfire
Here's something else to consider. When I see very negative posts about nursing, I'll look at the number of posts that the poster has contributed. Often, it's a ridiculously high number. This tells me that even though they may sound quite pessimistic about their work, something about nursing has compelled this person to come here on their free time and spend hundreds (or thousands) of hours communicating with fellow nurses. Does it make sense that someone who really hates nursing would spend that kind of time here? I usually chalk it up to a bad day in those cases.
And the good news is, even if you do get into nursing and the work environment (or anything else about the job) doesn't suit you, there are many opportunities for nurses outside of hospital nursing floors. As SharonH, RN has proven, a person can leave the bedside and still participate actively as a respected member of our profession.
You don't think women are more catty? I'm afraid I agree that they are. Have you ever sat with a group of women on break or at lunch? I feel that women definitely gossip more than men....myself included I'm afraid....which should be a
No I do not think women are more catty. I sit with a group of women everyday, we discuss politics, current events, books we've read, TV shows we've seen, our families and our jobs. And I have to tell you, that some of the men in our building are terrible gossips, many of them come down to our unit to tell us things that are going on, things they've heard and seen. Not a single woman we work with does that, only the guys. Hmmmmm........My co-workers and I are amused by it; after all we understand that they are just bored, but I am not prepared to say that men are catty, just some of the ones I work around.
I've been in this biz for over 15 years so I think I have a good handle on the nature of women which is to say that due to individual differences, some are catty, some are not. The same goes for men.
No I do not think women are more catty. I sit with a group of women everyday, we discuss politics, current events, books we've read, TV shows we've seen, our families and our jobs. And I have to tell you, that some of the men in our building are terrible gossips, many of them come down to our unit to tell us things that are going on, things they've heard and seen. Not a single woman we work with does that, only the guys. Hmmmmm........My co-workers and I are amused by it; after all we understand that they are just bored, but I am not prepared to say that men are catty, just some of the ones I work around.
I've been in this biz for over 15 years so I think I have a good handle on the nature of women which is to say that due to individual differences, some are catty, some are not. The same goes for men.
Maybe we're too sensitive to stereotyping or have been the victim of certain -isms or -phobias in our society that makes us that way. I think it also makes us more apt not to stereotype others and see how detrimental it can be to our profession to do so.
Yes Tweety, you are right. We know all too well how silly (and potentially destructive) it is to ascribe one single trait to an entire group of people.
Thank you everyone who has commented. You have made some great points.
I am usually the glass half full kind of girl. I know that every career has the ups and downs and positive and negative people. I am an idealistic person (my husband says too much so), and I was just surprised by the negative overtones. It could also be the stress of school that is making me look at the negative instead of seeing the positive here. My instructors are really great, but at the same time they are breaking us down so we will have the critical thinking skills we need. It can be an emotional roller coaster that makes you feel very confident in your abilities one minute, to feeling like you are a total idiot the next. This is not a course you can just get by on (not that I do that anyway), you really need to know your stuff and remember every step. I am loving all of it but it can make you a little crazy sometimes. I take everyone at face value and will go into the workforce with a positive attitude, expecting the best. Thanks once again for all your support.
KimmyZ - SPN - SCC
Kimmy, keep that glass half full attitude...keep using this site to learn, to question, and to communicate with other nurses, and even to vent when you need to. I think you will find that the postives far outweigh the negatives! :)
Thanks once again everyone. I didn't mean to start a debate about gender stereotyping. (my professors comment, not mine) But anyway the great thing about debates is it makes us look at ourselves. I am sure I have been catty on occasion. I conciously try not to but sometimes we can all have a lapse in judgement. I think there are some women (and men too) that just are negative people, you might not notice it right away but when you think of conversations you have had they always seem to go to the bad point about anything. (hope this makes sense) I believe negativity feeds negativity.
I bet you all are great nurses because you're obviously caring people to try to make me feel better about the profession. I love nursing school and I love the people who are in class with me. We have become like family, so I know there must be alot of great people who are out there, because we are a great group who will be joining you at the end of the year.:)
One other ?... Why is it that nurses don't get together to advocate for themselves? Why so many different association groups? Why not one that comes together for all? I have heard about the flaws... underpaid, overworked?? This is confusing to me... without nurses who would take care of the patients? A doctor can diagnose and of course it takes teams of different areas give the patient what they need, but the nurse is the patient advocate. We are the direct care takers. I think one of the most important part of the healthcare team. Please educate me on the subject if you can.
One other ?... Why is it that nurses don't get together to advocate for themselves? Why so many different association groups?
Thanks,
KimmyZ
Good question.
I think it's a good thing to have specialty groups to go off on their own to advocate for their speciality, to provide continuing education, to provide research, and information specific to that speciality.
However, having one group that represents all nurses and brings them together has been a challenge. Primarily because the American Nurses Association which is supposed to advocate politically for the all nurses states the entry level to the nursing profression should be the BSN. It alienates and angers, not only LPN's but Associate Degree RNs. But let's not go there. LOL
You don't think women are more catty? I'm afraid I agree that they are. Have you ever sat with a group of women on break or at lunch? I feel that women definitely gossip more than men....myself included I'm afraid....which should be a
Yes I have sat with a bunch of women at lunch. They talk about things that interest them, their kids, work, their families, diets, all kinds of topics. Sometimes yes they gossip.
I've sat with men too and their topics are the latest sports scandal, their kids, their families, work, money, cars. Stimulating topics (I'm being sarcastic here), and sometimes they talk about their coworkers.
I honestly don't think one gossips more than the other. Probably because you hang more around groups of females than groups of males you feel this way, but I think the males and the females where I work gossip equally. Seriously I do.
There are lots of people in the world, not all bad, not all nice. Just be yourself. Treat others the way you want to be treated and, at least sometimes, you will get positive results. You can't generalize and say "all nurses, all docs, all males are non-catty but all females are catty". Just take people as individuals.
Try to keep your mouth shut. Just talk about the weather and other neutral topics. Keep an open mind. Try to be realistic. Recognize that there is evil in the world and don't be too gullible or naive. Don't give up on the human race, though. Most people are pretty decent, just don't expect them to be.
Corvette Guy
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