Why don't nurses bond?

My coworkers are my extended family. I guess it depends on where you work.

I worked in a unit once that was like that. It began at the unit director's level, and I think that sets the unit up for bonding. She led by example.

I have been marathon watching Chicago Fire. I have always heard that fire fighters bond and become like family and so far that is what the show portrays.

It's a TV show. On ER, the characters only hung around with each other and all married/had babies with people they met at work. In the real world, people have lives outside of work.

I have been marathon watching Chicago Fire. I have always heard that fire fighters bond and become like family and so far that is what the show portrays. I am just curious, why is it that we nurses (for the most part) do not stick together and bond like most fire fighters do? I have been a nurse for 18yrs and worked in 5 different settings. I have never seen this kind of bonding in my own personal experiences. Actually it has been quite the opposite. In school they pounded it into us to CYA. I thought at the time that we were CYA to avoid lawsuits or problems with management. I never dreamed we had to protect ourselves from each other as well. I hear a lot that it is because the profession is predominately female but I am not sure I believe that. I am sorry if this has been discussed to death just point me to the previous threads and I will be on my way. If anyone cares to share their experiences and opinions about this I would be interested to read them. Thanks

You're kidding, right? Nothing like sweeping generalizations based on binge watching a TV show!

OK, I'll bite.

Your assumption seems to be that nurses DON'T bond. I have not found that to be the case. However, you're never going to find examples of bonding in real life to rival a TV show where the characters have NO life outside of their interactions with their cast mates. In every place I've worked, the "characters" (my colleagues) have life outside the workplace.

My workplace is slated to become a new reality show on the discovery channel. We are really cool and have bonded as well as firefighters or the characters from any other TV show!

My workplace is slated to become a new reality show on the discovery channel. We are really cool and have bonded as well as firefighters or the characters from any other TV show!

Are you serious? Squeeeeee!

Actually, this thread reminds me of a very specific episode of ER. Doug and Carol had gotten back together but it was a secret. Mark and Doug go to California because Doug's father dies, Mark overhears a message that Doug is leaving for Carol on her answering machine. (Before the days of cell phones and text messages.) When Mark overhears, he asks who Doug is calling and Doug says "just someone I've been seeing for a few months" then Mark starts guessing who it could be and naming colleagues. Doug asks, "are you going to name everyone who works in the hospital?" Mark says "she doesn't work at the hospital?" in a way that suggests it would be shocking for a doctor at the hospital to date someone who doesn't work in the hospital.

TV isn't real life. I know of ONE nurse/doctor marriage that resulted from work and dozens of nurses who married people they met elsewhere.

Yea partners and crews get together until they don't. Then someone sleeps with someone else's wife, or the local fire **** (woman who enjoys many partners in the same social group) wants to try sliding down all the poles in the station. Then some poor dude gets a blanket party. Alternatively you could wake up to your partner pleasuring himself on the other end of a sectional sofa while you were sleeping... And the tv is off. That's a long shift to finish out, no bond was formed. I once found an engineer tied to a backboard in the bay because he left a mess in the bathroom and the new guys finally revolted about pulling cleanup duty.

seriously if you could see the disciplinary reports I have had to sign you would not believe Chicago Fire any more than you believed ER or Grays Anatomy

Thought of a big fireman playing with himself. Okay am I the only one interested loll?

Thought of a big fireman playing with himself. Okay am I the only one interested loll?

Hahahahahahahahaha.

No.

Kidding!

Where are our tax dollars going?!

Aside from one person, I have always preferred to keep work and my personal life separate.

I will speculate that while both nursing and fire fighting are stressful jobs to hold, fire fighters depend on each other to survive and they work together toward one cause (at a time) vs. nurses who see our patients individually and do not depend on other nurses for our physical survival.

There has been bonding between nurses everywhere I've worked. We always had each others' backs...

This.

A lot of bonding had occurred at previous positions as well; I'm still in contact with a core group of individuals, even though we all moved on from a particular place, and where I work at now, we do go out once in a while together, and there is bonding amongst us newbies-we even have plans to meet outside of work.

Actually, this thread reminds me of a very specific episode of ER. Doug and Carol had gotten back together but it was a secret. Mark and Doug go to California because Doug's father dies, Mark overhears a message that Doug is leaving for Carol on her answering machine. (Before the days of cell phones and text messages.) When Mark overhears, he asks who Doug is calling and Doug says "just someone I've been seeing for a few months" then Mark starts guessing who it could be and naming colleagues. Doug asks, "are you going to name everyone who works in the hospital?" Mark says "she doesn't work at the hospital?" in a way that suggests it would be shocking for a doctor at the hospital to date someone who doesn't work in the hospital.

TV isn't real life. I know of ONE nurse/doctor marriage that resulted from work and dozens of nurses who married people they met elsewhere.

Here is how many mornings after a graveyard shift in my former career I spent watching that show, I instantly remembered that episode, that conversation, and how sad I was for Mark much of that season. He had a crap season. He was painted like a jerk, but he really wasn't. He was just struggling. Yeah, lots and lots of TNT first thing in the morning after a long shift...