What keeps you going as a nurse?

Emergent, RN · Dec 2, 2016

First and foremost, I love having a marketable skill and being paid for it.

Nursing is amusing. Some days it's a veritable freak show. The people you meet are so varied! People can really open up to their nurses, it's almost like being a priest in the confessional.

I love the process of building trust with the patients. Then, the peek into their worlds is fascinating.

NotMyProblem MSN, ASN, BSN, MSN, LPN, RN · Dec 2, 2016

1. Payday

2-10. Lack of knowledge in how to do anything else.

NightNerd, MSN, RN · Dec 2, 2016

Sometimes, the need of a steady paycheck is kinda it. BUT, most of the time I love the idea that I can quantify the way I'm helping someone, whether it's an improved lab value or pain score, seeing them demonstrate a new knowledge or skill to improve their autonomy, or simply knowing that my listening and encouragement made them feel better. I'm mostly in it for the feelings, lol. Also, I definitely have the most interesting job in my social circle, which is pretty neat.

Cab411 · Dec 2, 2016

Caring for my patients. When they need help I'm there for them. And when I get them what they need, get them comfortable, meet their needs, I feel like I did my job. And not just patients but their family members too. I love caring for people always have always will.

Being a patient advocate.

Luckyyou, BSN, RN · Dec 2, 2016

OT and bonus pay.

CrunchRN, ADN, RN · Dec 3, 2016

1st - making a good living.

2nd - occasionally being able to make a difference for people going through the toughest of times.

Davey Do · Dec 3, 2016

Sometimes, the need of a steady paycheck is kinda it. BUT, most of the time I love the idea that I can quantify the way I'm helping someone... I'm mostly in it for the feelings, lol. Also, I definitely have the most interesting job...

Yeah.

Getting a paycheck is great, but I could have done any number of jobs just to get a paycheck.

It's the feeling of being a contributing member of society and elevating my own sense of consciousness and worth. It's helping others help themselves. It's like Linus Van Pelt said: "Love is like jam- you can't spread even a little without getting some on yourself".

Nursing is a difficult job with the array of knowledge, actions, and personalities one has to deal with. That difficulty is what attracts me. Just about anyone with a moderate amount of intelligence can become a nurse. But not just anyone can be a good nurse. It takes motivation, drive, and interest.

Nursing constantly presents challenges. And meeting those challenges is what keeps me going as a nurse.

Thanks for asking, NurseEnvision!

AllOfMyWat · Dec 3, 2016

1) Best money I can make for only two years of education.

2) Caring for my family.

3) Helping an underserved group of people.

4) I'm great at it and learn quickly.

chacha82, ADN, BSN · Dec 3, 2016

I forget which theorist (semester's over, my brain checked out) said nurses do for the patient what they CANNOT do for themselves. After I read that it made a huge difference for my practice. I'm only 18 months in but it has got me through some tough nights.

kbrn2002, ADN, RN · Dec 3, 2016

Of course the paycheck, and knowing that if the worst happened and I became unemployed I wouldn't have any problem finding a job somewhere else. It's nice to have a highly marketable skill.

Outside of the obvious benefit of employment I really like taking care of my residents. I do feel like I make a positive impact in their lives. It also just feels good knowing that the families of my residents feel confident that their loved ones are well cared for and happy.

Missie Hannie · Dec 3, 2016

Echoing what everyone else has said, having a marketable skill and a nice paycheck is pretty great!

I work in a NICU, and seeing my sweet tiny babies grow bigger and stronger warms my heart. There are a lot of crazy times as well, but knowing that I'm helping these families during a scary time in their lives keeps me going :)