What keeps you going as a nurse?

[NurseEnvision]

Share your thoughts about the things that motivates you everyday as a nurse!

[JadedCPN, BSN, RN]

Obviously the paycheck and the job security.

That aside - kids are the most awesome, annoying, hilarious, brutally honest, unintentionally jerkish people to work with (which my inner sarcastic twisted soul very much appreciates) and I absolutely love being able to take care of them as well as help their families during a tough time in their lives.

[NurseHeart&Soul, MSN]

Being present for a patient and their family during some of life's most vulnerable moments.

Identifying the subtle clues of intimate partner violence and sharing resources with a person who would never in a million years ask for them.

Holding the hand of a person taking their last breaths, because I won't let them die alone.

Catching a baby during an emergent delivery...something amazing about being part of a birth.

Sitting with a family who has just lost a loved one...and being present for their every need.

Being called an angel by a patient or family member....that carries me through for awhile.

Sharing my mistakes with newer nurses and colleagues hoping I will prevent them from making similar mistakes.

Learning that something I taught a co-worker made a difference in the care they delivered.

At the end of the day...knowing that I did my best with the resources I had and treated people with the respect they deserved...

[FurBabyMom, MSN, RN]

Ummm...I think I'm the odd ball here. Most days I love my job itself. I get to do some of the coolest things, and have some great coworkers. Not that things are perfect at work, they sure as heck aren't.

Right now, the reasons I'm not leaving my current employer:

1. Grad school - my tuition reimbursement is a sweet deal. So I'm "stuck".

2. How awesome the doing part of my job is.

3. Being able to help care for patients and their families on what is nearly always the worst days of their life/lives.

4. My relationships with my coworkers.

[Chedmonds]

I work as a Hospice nurse,and while certain aspects of the job are terrible, the feeling that I get when I know I'm helping a family or a patient through a hard time is what keeps me going. I was on call on Thanksgiving and had to leave my family gathering to respond to a "he's not waking up..." call, which I always dread. It was one of my favorite patients, and though I would much rather have been eating with my family instead of waiting on a funeral home, the patient's spouse cried and said how she was so glad I was on call that day because she needed me there. I was mentioned in the obituary, and I know without a doubt that I made someone's worst day a little more bearable. That's what keeps me going.

[SaltySarcasticSally, LPN, RN]

So many things!! I love sarcasm so my co-workers I feel like are "my people" because they have better sarcasm than I, I hate to sit down and love for my work day to be fast so nursing keeps me engaged. I like being a nonjudgmental ear for people and I think I can relate to a lot of people so I use that in my nursing practice. I don't share personal stories with patients but just a sympathetic undertone to conversations. I love that we can do so much with one degree to. Nursing has definite downs but all fields do! Gotta roll with the punches like anything in life.

[femaleRN]

Money. I'm burnt out.

[Here.I.Stand, BSN, RN]

I love my work (most days.)

Feeling like I helped someone through the most difficult situation of their life.

When they do die, feeling like I helped them have a comfortable dying process.

I love the flexibility. I work very part time, and am home with my kids the rest of the time.

The pay is great for the time I put in. I earned $44/hr with an AAS degree at one point.

I will always have a marketable skill. If my husband died tomorrow, I would be able to provide for my family on my own.

[Been there,done that, ASN, RN]

I can work from home in my jammies.

[sevensonnets]

Well, for me it's simple: I actually like what I do for a living, and I love my coworkers, some of whom I have known for 22 years.

[NotYourMamasRN]

Constant Denial.

[Liztacular]

I love seeing my traumatic brain injury and stroke patients walk again. I love when they come back a month later and give me a hug. I love being able to learn new things all the time.

[scully4174]

Mmm I see a lot of paycheck. Which is good. But for me I quit my job as executive chef which I made more money to become a nurse. Why. Because my mother had small cell lung cancer and I quit to care for her till the end. That's why I'm a nurse. I see my mother and sons in patients and get a joy out of my job that I never did before.