TOO OLD

[lawandaluxnurse]

Is anyone out there as po'd as i am, trying to switch to critical care, keep getting blocked, is 46 considered ancient for and RN, I have 13 years under my belt, i can still run circles with the 20somethings. why is noone giving me a chance? I STILL HAVE ALOT TO GIVE!!

[roser13, ASN, RN]

This thread has gone very far with very little information from the OP. I wish he/she would weigh in and give just a little more detail as to why his/her seeming inability to find an ICU position is due to ageism.

[mom22many]

". I guess the aging in place is for the 30 yr old of this country!! I don't think these "latch key kid" gen X'ers stopped to think beyond their own noses. The world started to fall apart when they came into power!! They have improved nothing- not even for themselves or the generations after them. Their too busy posting their dinky's on facebook.

I am sorry folks are having trouble with employment, but i think to generalize a group like this is dangerous. I learned this through a friend when i had done something similar with mid-westerns. Its negative, not of sound facts and wrong. I am in my 30's and have much respect for people of any age and many of the "latch key kids" and Gen X'ers do as well. These folks mentioned above in some studies are more accepting then generations before and have now seen parents extremely hurt and want to do more to improve the quality of life for everyone. Everyone has a past that helps mold/forms who they are, which is directly influenced by the folks who came before, who parented this group. Many of us do think beyond our noses i hope you find peace with us younger people cause many of us have respect and value the knowledge of the "older" generations~~

[ckh23, BSN, RN]

You better do it quickly because what I have seen in the past 4 weeks after sending my patient's to an ED full of you young nurses- is a 29 yr old now with a disabling CVA and a other(28yr old) with a retroperitoneal bleed from a blunt force trauma your generation missed!!!!!!!! Discharged both from the ED. What- were they posting dinky's on facebook in the ED?? I'm no MN - and pinning the purple heart on your chest is not going to impress me- you need to bone up on your assessment skills, pathophys and critical thinking and then figure out how you, the nurse, are going to influence the providers decision to discharge or not discharge a patient.

Last time I checked nurses didn't make medical diagnosis. Sure we can assess and try to influence the MD, but that doesn't mean they are going to listen.

And to blame it on nurses because they are young is ridiculous. You are really starting to take on the role of a hypocrite. Your doing the same thing that you are so vehemently against, except you project it onto the younger generation. You just make these broad generalizations about the younger generations, but the older generations are not without your flaws. Should we all start going on rants about our so called leaders of this country that have run it into the ground, cheated on their spouse, sent naked photos of themselves, etc? The older CEO's that have been indicted because of the scams they run? It wasn't 20 somethings behind Enron.

I personally take offense at your statements because I'm not that way. I have seen my share of good and bad nurses, young and old, but I don't take the older bad nurses and just put all older nurses in the same category. I differentiate them into good and bad.

[Tait, MSN, RN]

You can't teach a know it all generation. As for my attitude- If those I work with knew I posted these theoughts- they would be shocked. They have no idea I have those opinnions. I sit back an observe. I see alot of excuses posted by this gen x group above.

Since the OP seems to have abandoned the discussion here, I guess I am comfortable now following this tangent.

I am sorry where ever you work makes you this frustrated.

I am sorry this forum is the only place you feel the right to vent these frustrations, because to be honest, there are a lot of us here who do care. We are younger, because by default we were born later. However most of us love our parents, believe they raised us well, and we are in nursing because we do care.

I admit it is easy to admonish the crowd coming in behind us. I see new BSN's (ADN vs. BSN angst) and grumble to myself that they don't have enough experience. I see younger nurses that don't want to wipe butts or deal with patients when they have homework for their NP classes to finish. It bugs me, but I try my best to bring it to their attention. Remind them why they are here, and in the end, they are often sweet, but slightly misguided. Most of the new nurses I have precepted are strong, caring, and joined nursing for all the right reasons.

I don't know what else to tell you, to ease the frustration. Hopefully venting it out has given you some modicum of relief.

For now at least know there is one nurse out here, who understands the value of my taxes, social security, what have you. My mother, unemployed/contract working for two years (57 years old and no health insurance) with a Master's and 20 years of Public Health experience is more than welcome to use it all up.

Sincerely,

Tait

[Jenni811, RN]

It is against the law in any state to ask age on a job application. Just sayin ...

they can ask date of birth though. Anyone will be able to figure it out...

[Ruby Vee, BSN]

how about me? if i am accepted for the fall, i will be entering nursing school at the age of 55? is that crazy? should i reconsider? thoughts?

when you finish school you'll be a 57 (59?) year old new grad and you will get paid the same as the 21 year old new grads. you have nothing to worry about. it's those of us with 30+ years of experience that folks don't want to pay.

[Moogie]

I have my BLS, ACLS(current since 2002), a Critical care course from one of the major university hospital systems in my city, conscious sedation, PACU course- 10 years of tele/stepdown( cardiac medical and post open heart, 4 of those years as a travel nurse) 18 yrs oncology, med-surg( with a current med-surg certification) 1 yr endoscopy, 1 yr clinic and 2 yrs ambulatory care outpatient surgery

I wonder if the nurse manager is intimidated by the extensiveness of your experience. I was once in a situation in which I was older, more experienced, and more educated than the manager. Suffice it to say it was very unpleasant.

I don't know what your educational level is, but you certainly have a great deal to offer as a nurse. Maybe you should consider going back for a BSN if you don't already have one or an MSN. Getting an additional degree is a good way for the experienced nurse to jump start a career and move into a role that maybe he/she had not previously considered.

I am sorry this is happening to you.