What field of nursing would you NEVER consider working?

RN4NICU, LPN, LVN · Jul 19, 2005

#1 - LTC - the epitome of too understaffed to give the patients what they deserve

#2 - Adult Med/Surg - too much crap (figuratively and literally)

#3 - Psych - different kind of crap, but still crap.

#4 - Home Health - The thought of going into strangers' homes creeps me out.

#5 - Labor & Delivery - call me when the baby comes out.

#6 - ER - Trauma cases wouldn't be bad, but the people who did not need to be there (as evidenced by their demanding and attention-seeking behaviors that I have seen posted about and heard ER nurses talk about) would drive me totally up the wall.

#7 - General pediatrics - the parents would drive me up the wall.

#8 - Adult ICU - not as bad as adult med/surg, but I just don't particularly like working with adults.

Looks like I'd better stick with the NICU.

zacarias, ASN, RN · Jul 19, 2005

I always thought I couldn't work peds and while I never plan to, I now am not saying that I would never do it.

What I would never do those is GI/ENDOSCOPY!! I can't stand it. I observed one time and their was a deaf patient undergoing colonoscopy and he was tensing all his muscles and crying out as loud as he could in pain while the nurse gave him more fentanyl. It was just so horrible to watch and the future fentanyl doses didn't seem to help that much.

Then there was a old lady begging to have the colonoscope taken out. "Please take it out oh God take it out." The GI doc would say, "just a few more minutes." Fast forward to 45 minutes later when the procedure was finally over.

Obviously my experience tainted my view of endoscopy but I don't ever want to work there.

chicagrl72 · Jul 19, 2005

LTC = Just not my thing, my personal beliefs are against things like feeding tubes for 90 year olds and other such devices to keep someones body alive why their mind is barely there. The mind starts letting go, but in western society we can't accept the fact that death is just as natural as life so we do everything possible to keep grandma's "BODY" alive. While I run in to that aspect in my current field its not as prevailant as it is in nursing homes.
OB any aspect: I have no desire to work in that area lol.
MedSurg: I will never go back, I did my year and learned a lot but unless my state suddenly decided to make mandated staffing ratios 1:4. I don't ever forsee myself working medsurg again.

PLEASE ...explain more about the med surg thing and why it was so horrible for you ..i may need a bit of schooling on this one

please detail what you had to do..obviously you felt very over worked

chicagrl72 · Jul 19, 2005

It sounds like you (original poster) might be a student? I felt the same way about drug addic moms.
Then between my ob instructor who said, that all babies and childeren develop in a positive direction only, and a L&D nurse. The L&D said that it is sad but then she told me a story about such a child who grew up to be exactly the opposit of his parents and went on to do great things in the world.
These two nurses changed a very firm attitude. So much so that at graduation when I had the oportunity to speak before the assembly of guest and graduates I talked about this very experience. No one wanted more to work with babies no one wanted more to KILL the mothers who used during pregnancy. I can now, because of these two great nurses look at this very differently and not want to strangle every drug mom.
Never say never. There are some aresas I would probably not do well in for any length of time. Everything has it's draw backs. But for instance I thought I hated neuro. Then when my floor started dealing with a lot of neuro and I took some advanced classes on it I began to fall in love with it.
I thought I would love hospice and I am finding it is probably not for me now that I am here. I find I acutally prefer to be an advocate and support for the dying in the hospital than doing home visits where we basically put out fires for families of dying.
Then dump the burden of careing for this person 24/7 on the family. We basically only do 1-2 x week regular visits and only consider pain an emergency.
So if they call for "emergency" poop clean up or some such then we don't go. Of course it is not something we go out for or even send a CNA out for.
However, the real message here is the family needs help and is overwhelmed scared etc. etc. We do try to address the undrlying problem but I feel we are ineffectinve. It is almost like we are saying. You desided to have him die at home and you desided to care for him through it. So deal with it or place him. But don't expect hospice to do your work. It is more like hospice is a consulting service not care givers. (JM feeings.)
Anyway I am looking for a change after 6 mo with hospic. Yet I don't see a lot of complaints about hospic and everone including families call us saints. But I see a lot of phone visits being done.
I don't know that I a cut out for psyc. but you know we do a lot of psyc anyway.
I don't see myself in OR. although it is interesting work. But who knows. (long periods on feet, less direct patient care more working for the MD.)
Someone mendioned stoma care. I did not want to do that but then I have developed a interest in wounds and I know that come with the territory and can deal.

great post but i don't think OP was a student

perfectbluebuildings, BSN, RN · Jul 19, 2005

Although, I try to "never say never," I think areas I would not work would be,

Ones I think I couldn't handle emotionally, would be burns or pediatric oncology.

Overall, in every aspect, I think I would be useless in an ER!!

And, Ortho (I CAN'T STAND BONES!!! Give me vomit, poop, phlegm, whatever, but PLEASE DON'T MENTION BONES!!! Our lectures about broken bones of any kind ever in nursing school made me cringe).

I think I'd enjoy home health but like some other people have said, I'd never find out because I'd get lost trying to find all my patients' homes!

It's so neat that what one person can't stand, another person loves, and vice versa.

BETSRN · Jul 19, 2005

I thought this might be interesting to find out. Please include a reason, be it a bad clinical experience as a student, fear, lack of excitement, too chaotic, etc.
For me it would have to be the NICU. Don't get me wrong, I love babies. My problem would come the first time I saw an addict come to see her baby. I would lose my professionalism instantly. So I'm thinking it best to stay away from such a situation.

I could never do Psych because so many of those long term repeaters are so manipulative and they know how to work the system.

SmilingBluEyes · Jul 19, 2005

I just can't say "never". If I needed to put food on the table and roof over our heads, I would do the work.

mitchsmom · Jul 19, 2005

As a student, the only thing so far that I really didn't like is repiratory stuff. But I felt that way before I even cared for anyone with respiratory problems... and it's not the mucus... it's just not being able to breathe. I would never be a respiratory therapist in a zillion years!

A lot of people have mentioned peds. I liked peds better than I thought I would. Kids aren't jaded like a lot of adults. Although I know they are out there, I didn't have any problem parents in my short time there. As a matter of fact I had several scared Spanish-only parents that I felt like I could comfort a little since I speak some Spanish and no one else did. The others were absent (for different reasons) or just normal people. There is a lot of room for comfort in peds I think.

mitchsmom · Jul 19, 2005

I just can't say "never". If I needed to put food on the table and roof over our heads, I would do the work.

I think that goes without saying... so don't say "never" ... but where would be your last pick?

Marie_LPN, RN, LPN, RN · Jul 19, 2005

It's not the kids in peds that would make me want to avoid working there. It's the adults.

(Example: the mom who SWEARS that she's got a restraining order against the dad, tells the staff he is not to call or come by. He comes by, staff says that he needs to go, mom goes off "WHY DID YOU TELL HIM TO LEAVE???" Um, lady, you're the one that SAID to the staff you wanted him to go away....)

MADDOG70, BSN · Jul 19, 2005

ICU/Med SURG/PEDS/HONC/Hospice- These are places you spend alot of time with people and bond with them. I don't want to bond. I work ER. I want to fix em up and send them away. I would get too attached!! I would be a mental case crying all the time in PEDS. They would fire me!! When I really think of it anywhere you have the same faces all the time would bore me. KUDOS to all you nurse out there that work floors. I really respect you for your hard work. Wiping butts and turning pt's is not for me. Hospice nurses GOD BLESS YOU!! Not sure how you do it emotionally!! I would be depressed all day!! Thank you for your dedication and hard work to all nurses outside my specialty.

I thought this might be interesting to find out. Please include a reason, be it a bad clinical experience as a student, fear, lack of excitement, too chaotic, etc.
For me it would have to be the NICU. Don't get me wrong, I love babies. My problem would come the first time I saw an addict come to see her baby. I would lose my professionalism instantly. So I'm thinking it best to stay away from such a situation.

lady_jezebel · Jul 19, 2005

I could not work in procurement for organ donation. There's no way I could pressure a family who is in the midst of dealing with the loss of a loved one to donate that person's organs.
I know others will post how organ donation is so wonderful...that it makes something good out of a tragedy...that it can help ease the pain of loss, etc. I just don't see it that way; never have.

I understand your feelings, but I work with transplant patients & see an entirely different side. Just remember that there are two people & two families involved in every transplant story -- organ donation really does save a life & give another person with a very sad story a second chance (and we're talking about someone's mom, dad, child, sister, brother, etc...). The nurses who work in procurement feel very passionate about what they do b/c they experience the stories of all people involved, the donors and recipients. I greatly admire these nurses, for they have incredibly difficult & emotional jobs.