Why go into nursing? is it for the money or for other reasons

TexasNurse2B · Jul 26, 2011

I want to help people which is my reason. My daughter got very sick at 3 weeks old and was in the NICU for about a month. The nurses were so passionate about their jobs and helping my daughter and taking care of her while I was away from the NICU. That is the moment I knew I wanted to be a nurse.

Trenia · Jul 26, 2011

If I wanted to make money, the last thing I would go into is nursing.

1manwlfpk · Jul 26, 2011

My dad was killed 2 years ago in a house fire, after that i went through alot of rough things in my ife but always stayed strong for my mom and family. I want to one day work with burn victims and their families. I am a 27 yo male just now starting ym pre-reqs this fall , changing careers so i can go into nursing. Since my dads death i have been in a couple fatal accidents where i had lost someone close to me. One of my best friends died in my arms before an ambulance coujld get to her. I have spent alot of time in the hospital and i feel it is my calling, once was pursuing a career in music as a country singer, now im going into nursing, ha never woulda thought. I figure now while im still young, single and no kiddos would be a good time to start! Cant wait! I have so much respect for all of you who have paid your dues!

katoswife · Jul 27, 2011

I never thought that I would want to be a nurse...I didn't want to go through all the schooling and work weird hours...but as I've gotten older I've realized that it's a great profession where I can make a difference and feel fulfilled...I've taken a long roundabout way to get here but I know this is what I'm meant to do.

Texas247365 · Jul 27, 2011

No one doesn't take money as a factor. Some are more dollar oriented then others, but no one works for free, and there is a reason that no one stops at CNA (after all, if we are talking patient care, the "I really want to help people" type of care, thats the cornerstone of CNA).

For me nursing is about getting paid to do what I want to do. I am getting paid to go to school, I'll get paid to gain experience in my first job that is already lined up and if I am lucky I'll have my schooling paid for while I get my FNP.

Yeah, I want to practice medicine, and nursing wasn't my first choice in that route, but I'll still kick*** even if my reason isn't cut and pasted from a Miss America Pageant.

Iridescent Orchid, CNA, LPN · Jul 27, 2011

I'd definitely be in the wrong (to myself) if I were in it just for the money and it'd be more than unfair for my future patients. Sure, the pay is much greater than these dead-end minimum wage jobs I've been keeping throughout my teens and so on, but I rather get paid for doing something I want to do and enjoy doing. I've lived on the borderline of poverty pretty much my entire life, others would say it was definitely poverty - but to me, it's all I know. Growing up, I had the basics and of course the necessities majority of the time, but there were still times we went a week or more without any electricity and would have to grill out, go to my aunt's house for showers, etc. until we could get it cut back on. My mom had to do machine work because that was the highest paying job in our area, and she was lucky for that...As a kid, it didn't bother me at all - I enjoyed the television being unusable and having all the family time. My mom was a single parent, and she did all she could to keep me happy...even through 2 weeks in the winter without electricity, she smiled, we told ghost stories around a propane lantern under layers of cover...although that was one of the sweetest memories I have - I don't want my kids to go without things such as electricity, water, even the smaller things. A lot may say Nursing isn't good money - but to me, it's amazing money, vs. the whopping $7.65 I'm making right now.

I'd be lying if I said I wasn't into it for the money - but I'm also into it because I want to help people and that's the joy I get out of life. Why not get paid doing something you love?

lissa.the.cocoa · Jul 27, 2011

I'm in a PhD program in public health and I do research on HIV and AIDS. Some of my research projects involve interviewing and other interactions with study participants who are living with HIV and I get to talking with them because I like people. I just got so frustrated sometimes, though, because they would be navigating the system and wouldn't have any advocates for them, or they wouldn't have appropriate care or there was a shortage of services. Being a PH student I've also read a lot of articles, both scientific and popular, about the national nursing shortage and especially the need for less expensive primary care than physicians can provide. I read a LOT of articles and books on health care and just seeing some of the horror stories that people go through, it made me wish I was doing something that more directly contributed to the care of others. I love research, but it's indirect at best - you kind of hope some policy-maker is going to pick up on your article a few years down the line and make a policy that's based upon it, but the entire process from idea formulation to grant writing to data collection to writing and editing of results to publishing them ITSELF can take 3-5+ years, and you still haven't made an impact except within the scientific community.

I was also kind of appalled once I learned that medical school students aren't required to take a public health course, or even a basic sociology course. Some schools don't even require psychology. The things I've learned, I think are indispensable to care providers! Especially if you are working with HIV patients or others in urban or rural health centers; your directives and work with them should be influenced by what you know they have access to.

So I want to parlay my knowledge of public health and my love for research into a more clinical field. I want to do direct work with patients, and make an impact on a very day-to-day scale instead of a year-by-year one. I want to be that bright spot in someone's possibly horrific interaction with the medical system, but I want it to be on the level of a nurse practitioner with that nursing philosophy of it being about care and education and outreach. I'd also love to - once I have the experience - influence policy in a hospital setting or on a governmental level and do research.

But in addition - I realize that my career opportunities will expand by a LOT even if I just did an BSN, much less an MSN. It's hard to get academic jobs and even harder to get them somewhere you actually want to live. I live in the NYC area and I'd like to stay here, but trying to find an academic position in one of the most coveted cities in the country, in a field where openings can get 100-200 applications - yeah, okay, lol. BSN-educated RNs make roughly the same average starting salary as a first-year assistant professor, which is kind of sad. Nurse practitioners make more than your average assistant professor. It's not about the money for me, but when you combine having a direct impact on your patients + the exploding career opportunities for nurses (every time I look on hospital websites, there are very few or no jobs for PhD holders but 30-50+ for nurses...) + the pretty good pay even with the high COL in this area = great opportunity indeed.

akulahawkRN, ADN, RN, EMT-P · Jul 27, 2011

In my case, money is a driving force, however it's not the only force in play. Over the years, it's been very much shown to me that taking care of other people is what I really do like to do. It's a personality trait. Nursing is just one way to express that trait. One other reason I chose nursing is that as long as I'm willing to make some sacrifices, primarily pay, I can move into other areas of nursing should I become stagnant in a particular field.

love7777 · Jul 27, 2011

very intersting stories.

windmill182 · Jul 27, 2011

I grew up with an alcoholic, heroin addicted, and manic depressed mother. I have dealt with several of my mother's hospital stays from her drug abuse and suicide attempts. One hospital visit really struck a nerve with me when I was just 15 years old. I remember she was sleep induced in the ICU as a result of mixing medication with a large amount of alcohol. I was sitting outside her room while two nurses were accessing her. I will always remember what one nurse said, right next to my sleeping mom, "Looks like someone was using her AA book as a paper weight." I couldn't believe the insensitivity of such a comment. I knew my mother was no Angel, but I still knew she was deserving of loving care like anyone else in that hospital, regardless of what she did to get there. I told myself from that day in the hospital that I wanted to be a nurse, so that could provide nonjudgmental and loving care to anyone who needed it. I plan on making this my priority in my nursing career, whether it's a child, grandparent, drug addict, or even a prison convict.

I have strongly considered working with drug dependent patients in rehabilitation or a detox setting because of my knowledge with this disease. I feel like I could provide loving care and support to these patients and their families, while not judging. Obviously, it is something they need to successfully attack their addiction. I know this because I eventually saw my mother manage her disease. I am proud to say that she is now 5 years sober.

Tricia76 · Jul 27, 2011

I knew I wanted to be in nursing for a long time..I believe it started when I was around 11 or 12..My Aunt had cancer and it was the most devastating thing I had ever seen..just watching her slip away. She was my mom's sister and best friend..they were inseparable most the time...I just knew then that I wanted to be a nurse..even though I have waited so long..I am finally doing it. I love the thought of helping others and yes it is a stable job to..it is good money..so I would say it is both..to care and for the better pay.