Tired of friends telling me I can do better than nursing

sabrn2006 · Jul 5, 2004

When I first told my dh that I was applying to nursing school, he could not believe it. I had majored in sociology and psychology in college previously. He thought I would be "wasting" my previous degree. I told him that working in my previously chosen field had actually solidified my intent to change careers. I know for a fact that I don't want to do what I am currently for the rest of my working life.

Part of the problem for some people is one of image. There still exists a certain stigma that nurses are just running around wiping butts and carting bedpans all day. Another problem from my dh's point of view was that his mother and sister are both lpns and complain a lot about their jobs. My mother, however, is an rn and has never regretted her career choice. In fact, she has worked in many varying capacities from med/surg to hospice to education to substance abuse counseling.

Now that I've been accepted, most everybody I talk to is impressed to a certain extent and supportive. I often hear that I will make a great nurse. I sure hope this is the case! Only a very few people give me quizzical looks. I try to shrug it off and realize that it is likely due to their own issues/deficits/whatever. And I am glad to report that dh has come around. He now tells me that my healing hands and positive personality are going to help me in nursing. I think he is trying to butter me up. :)

Dixiedi · Jul 5, 2004

My ex use to hassle me about being a nurse. He use to say that I would get bored and I could do something else and make more money. Key word, ex. I got a lot of "are you sure" from my friends at first too. But after I re-educated them on the real nursing profession, they became really supportive.

Hey! I have an X like that! After he had me just about whipped I realized it's he who was not up to par. Oh, nurses, according to him, were snobs, thought they were better than everybody else (yea, that's why you all to often find us at the other end wiping something green up. LOL)

Some people are either just to uneducated (not his case) or just to -God, I don't know what he is!-

LOL

Love it when I see that I am not the only one crazy enough to have made that big a bad choice!

mavnurse · Jul 5, 2004

Hehe, you know what? The person who gave me the hardest time about all of this was an ex! He was an engineering major who failed hs first semester of calculus and had to find something else! :chuckle

Altra, BSN, RN · Jul 5, 2004

Hehe, you know what? The person who gave me the hardest time about all of this was an ex! He was an engineering major who failed hs first semester of calculus and had to find something else! :chuckle

Reaffirms my belief that God has a sense of humor ... :chuckle

Good luck to all! :)

pnurseuwm · Jul 5, 2004

Yeah, like someone else said, maybe it stems from where you live. I'm in the midwest and whenever I tell people that I will be going to nursing school in the fall I always get "Girl, so you're going to making money huh?" "You will ALWAYS have a job!" "I have my degree in 'blank' (teaching, computers, political science, etc.) and I CANNOT find a job, EVERYWHERE I look people are asking for nurses. You've got it made!"

When you're a nurse and your friends look at your paychecks and the bunch of money you may make working nights and weekends, check their reactions then.... you may be surprised

tmarie75 · Jul 5, 2004

Some of them will be saying
"Do you want fries with that?"
or
"Paper or plastic?"
I almost forgot...
"Welcome to Wal-mart!"

I think it's terrible for someone to say that nursing isn't a respectable job, but I think it's also terrible to downgrade any job, no matter how little or how much someone else makes. People who work at fast food places, supermarkets, and at wal-mart, etc. deserved to be respected also. I don't work at any of these places, but I think it's wrong to look down on anyone's job, no matter what it is. Nursing isn't any better or any worse than any other job in my opinion.

Hellllllo Nurse, BSN, RN · Jul 5, 2004

Your friends are not the norm. Did you know that according to the Gallup Poles, nursing is the most respected of any profession in the U.S. the U.K, Sweden and Australia?

http://www.minoritymedicalstudents.com/html/Keepsake/nursing.htm

A POSITION OF TRUST

Deemed the most respected profession in the United States in a recent Gallup poll, nursing has a long and noble history yet, in recent years, the profession has most often been in the news because of shortages. For the forseeable future, nursing should prove to be one of the most open and in-demand of all health-care professions.

CHOICES & MORE CHOICES

Nurses are trained at different educational levels -- from an associate's degree to a bachelor's through graduate school -- and fill all types of positions. Graduates of nursing programs take the National Council Licensure Examination in order to become a Registered Nurse. Other areas -- teaching, for example, as well as administrative positions, researchers, clinical nurse specialists and nurse practitioners -- require master's or doctoral degrees. Everyone is aware of the nurses who provide care in hospitals and clinics, but nurses also can be found at the core of home health care, nursing and assisted-living facilities, the U.S. military, and local, state and federal programs. Nurses can be trained in general care, or may specialize in all areas of health care, from emergency nursing to coronary care, from geriatrics to neonatal nursing.

JUST THE FACTS

Think you already know all there is to know about the nursing profession? Check out these facts from the American Association of Colleges of Nursing:

Nursing is the nation's largest health-care profession, with more than 2.5 million registered nurses nationwide. Of all licensed RNs, 2.1 million -- or 83 percent -- are employed in nursing the field of nursing.

Nursing students account for more than half (52 percent) of all health professions students in the United States.

Nurses comprise the largest single component of hospital staff, are the primary providers of hospital patient care, and deliver most of the nation's long-term care.

Most health-care services involve some form of care by nurses. In 1992, 66 percent of all employed RNs worked in hospitals. By 1996, that number had declined to 60 percent, as more health care moved to sites beyond the hospital and nurses increased their ranks in a wide range of other settings, including private practices, health maintenance organizations, public health agencies, primary care clinics, home health care, nursing homes, outpatient surgicenters, nursing-school-operated nursing centers, insurance and managed-care companies, schools, mental health agencies, hospices, the military, industry, nursing education and health-care research.

Though often working collaboratively, nursing does not "assist" medicine or other fields. Nursing operates independent of, not auxiliary to, medicine and other disciplines. Nurses' roles range from direct patient care and case management to establishing nursing practice standards, developing quality assurance procedures, and directing complex nursing care systems.

With more than four times as many RNs in the United States as physicians, nursing delivers an extended array of health-care services, including primary and preventive care by advanced nurse practitioners in such areas as pediatrics, family health, women's health and gerontological care. Nursing's scope also includes services by certified nurse-midwives and nurse anesthetists, as well as care in cardiac, oncology, neonatal, neurological and obstetric/gynecological nursing and other advanced clinical specialties.

The primary pathway for entry into professional-level nursing, as compared to technical-level practice, is the four-year Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing (BSN).

To meet the more complex demands of today's health-care environment, a federal advisory panel has recommended that at least two-thirds of the basic nurse workforce hold baccalaureate or higher degrees in nursing by 2010. Aware of the need, RNs are seeking the BSN degree in increasing numbers. In 1980, almost 55 percent of employed registered nurses held a hospital diploma as their highest educational credential, 22 percent held the bachelor's degree, and 18 percent an associate degree. By 1996, a diploma was the highest educational credential for only 27 percent of employed RNs, while the number with bachelor's degrees as their highest education had climbed to 31 percent, with 32 percent holding an associate degree as their top academic preparation. Between 1975 and 1999, the number of RNs (with diplomas or associate degrees) graduating from BSN programs rose from approximate 3,700 a year to more than 12,000.

Special thanks to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing for permission to reprint their fact sheet.

jenrninmi, MSN, RN · Jul 5, 2004

I'm sorry to hear the things your friends are saying. I think they must just be ignorant to what being a nurse entails. I always get, "I think you'd make a terrific nurse", "You will never have problems finding a job", "That's good money"...etc. I've never received even one negative comment about me becoming a nurse.

angel337, MSN, RN · Jul 6, 2004

this is eye opening for me. i have never gotten a negative response from people when i told them i was pursuing a rn degree. most people were like "wow, that's great" " i wish i could do that" " you'll at least have job" the list goes on. the people that were negative were other nurses. especially when i started my clincals the nurses were always warning me that i was making a mistake. now why a person would try to discourage a nursing student? only god knows, but 3 years later i am a rn and don't regret it. i agree with stitchie that while your friends are interviewing for 6 months for the best "respectable" job, you will already be employed making over 40k a year. as a nursing student you will always get people in the profession trying to discourage you, but if these people are truly your friends, they will support you know matter what.

Rn2b204 · Jul 6, 2004

Tell your friends if they can 't be supportive then they need to keep their negative comments to themselves.

You are about to start a rigorous program and you will need people that are in your immediate circle to be supportive. Friends, family etc.

Keep your eyes on the prize and don't let them make you lose focus. :)

RN2b204; start diploma program Sept. 04. All excited..... :)

klone, MSN, RN · Jul 6, 2004

For some reason, everyone keeps questioning me on why I want to be a nurse and telling me that I should find a job that's "more respectable."

Maybe they misunderstood you and thought you were going to school to become a wetnurse. :chuckle

lunakat · Jul 6, 2004

No negative responses from my friends, however my boyfriend has turned into a hater! He is jealous that I got in and he didn't. I got in on the first try and he applied twice before finally starting LVN program. I thought he would be happy for me but all he has been doing is asking my about my GPA, who I know in the program. When I tell him my GPA he was upset to learn it is lower than his! He was also shocked to find out I don't know anyone who works for the program. For the last two months he keeps telling me he isn't going to get his ADN as planned because he says once you have your ADN you can have a BSN but that instead is will just be a BS degree. What a load of crap! In fact ever since he found out its been going down hill. I imagine once I finally start our relationship will be over. Who knew? :uhoh21: