Too much emphasis on "caring"

[sweet~revenge]

I've gone back to school to get my BSN. I knew it would involve a lot of nursing theory and writing papers, but I figured I could handle it.

After having to read and write about Watson and Ray and all this caring nonsense, I'm ready to pull my hair out. If I have to read the word "caring" one more time I might go off the deep end.

After having been an RN for 5 years, I've seen enough to know that nursing is in trouble. Hospitals are trying to dumb us down, grind us down until we are nothing but broken bodies with broken spirits only to replace us with any one of the next 500 new grads ready to take our place. We are a necessary evil they must deal with to run the hospital. Nursing care is included with the cost of room and board for crying out loud!!

Nursing does not need any more emphasis on caring! We have enough of that, in fact a little too much. What nursing needs is more emphasis on science, health care economics, and efforts to make nursing into a true profession. We need more autonomy. If we actually charged for nursing care and made money for the hospital instead of being included with the room rate, then we could start on the road to real autonomy. If we had autonomy, we wouldn't get "write ups" like we were children. We would have an active voice in the way the hospital runs. We wouldn't be short staffed and have no control over patient assignments. We need to recruit people who are not afraid to stand up for what's right, who want to learn the science of nursing, who are caring yet interested in furthering nursing as a whole. Right now we don't have that. Maybe it's too late and maybe we never will.

I'm sorry for the rant, but I'm so frustrated right now. I care about nursing, I care about patients. This is making me re-think continuing my nursing career. Thank you for listening.

[redhead_NURSE98!, ADN, BSN]

My manager said she was sending out an email about us being more caring. She said that our patients say that we don't "show enough emotion." I asked her, "So, should I go stand in their room the next time I start crying at the nurse's station?"

She tried to act like she was not amused, but her face gave her away.

[wooh, BSN, RN]

My manager said she was sending out an email about us being more caring. She said that our patients say that we don't "show enough emotion." I asked her, "So, should I go stand in their room the next time I start crying at the nurse's station?"

She tried to act like she was not amused, but her face gave her away.

We'd have too much fun working together. :)

[lindarn]

From my personal experience, the state nursing association in Washington State, is, as we say in Brooklyn, about as useful as tits on a bull. They have NEVER made any changes that have been effective or made positive changes. I remember a few years ago, they went ballistic over some petty, red herring the hospital was trying to impose. They were picketing in front of the hospital, and looking serious. It does not occur to them, that evey three years, when the contract is expiring, the hospital throws a riduculous, outrageous, change, that keeps the nurses occupied, and distracted, about what the issues for the new contract, should be. Like staffing, benefits, pay, etc. And they never get to these really important issues because they are attempting to fight over stupid, outrageous, issues, that the hospital knows they cannot do- like taking away all sick time, or equally ridiculous thing. They fall for it every time like clockwork!

They talk a good story, but when the pedal hits the metal, they turn into daddys little girl, scaredy cat, milktoasts. They are afraid of making waves, afraid of seeming too agressive.

I posted here the other day, about the Chicago Teachers, going on srike. They are striking for the students, and fighing a corporate takeover of the public shool system,

They are fighting the PTB,who are trying to destroy what few effective unions there are left.

Teachers belong to a national union, which is supporting the Chicago teachers union. Teachers are marching to City Hall WITH parents and students in support. Teachers involve the parents, and that is how and why they get what they want, and whey they have been so successful in protecting their profession.

Nurses need to take a page from teachers, and stand and fight. That means bringing a union into your facility, not just ANY UNION, but the National Nurses United, who have clout and have been the only nurses union to make ANY POSITIVE CHANGES in the nursing profession.

NOTHING will ever change until nurses take control of our profession, and the ONLY WAY TO DO THAT IS TO UNIONIZE EN-MASSE! You cannot do it your self, you do not have the control or power to make effective change by yourself. If you believe that you can do it by yourself, you are suffering from delusions of grandeur, and need some serious help.

If you are in Washington State, PM me, and maybe we can put our heads together, and get the NNOC here in Washington, and do something positive.

JMHO and my NY $0.02.

Lindarn, RN, BSN, CCRN

Somewhere in the PACNW

[PMFB-RN, RN]

At least in FL, now Nurse Practitioners will require a Doctorate to practice after 2015 (unless grandfathered in prior to)QUOTE]

*** I don't think so. Do you have some evidence to back up your claim?