Why do nurses seem to have a bad reputation?

Nurses General Nursing

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I don't know if it's just me, but it seems like nurses get a bad wrap sometimes. For example, on Grey's Anatomy the nurses are looked down on completely, and one of the nurses even gave syphilis to a doctor. Also, the nurses on the show are generally grumpy and in one episode they go on strike and refuse to work.

I also feel like nurses have a reputation for sleeping around. My dad who is 85 and is a retired general surgeon says that back when he practiced, nurses were known to sleep around a lot. He said it's because nurses are around life and death so much that they get careless in the sexual promiscuity sense. I just think that all of these stereotypes portrayed through TV are really rude and not realistic.

I just started nursing school a little over a month ago and this has been bothering me. Does this bother anybody else? I just was curious to see different opinions on the subject.

I agree, television shows make nurses seem uneducated and like they do nothing, so annoying. Wish they portrayed reality.

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Where's the bad rep???...I would say nurses aren't getting a bad rep, but that's my little corner of the world.

No, no, no, OP said "bad wrap". I had a tuna wrap today. It was a bit soggy, so I guess I'm a nurse with a bad wrap.

:bag:

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Specializes in ICU.

A lot of nurses DO sleep around, but so do a lot of doctors, teachers, bus drivers, waitresses/waiters, etc. etc. I have seen the "sleeping around" in every hospital I ever worked in, but I have also seen it everywhere else, too. I have always wondered why some people aren't concerned about sexually transmitted diseases, but I have also wondered why some people still use tobacco and drive while intoxicated. It is in all professions.

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Specializes in Peri-op/Sub-Acute ANP.

I have worked in a number of different hospitals and other nursing facilities. I can honestly say, I have not seen a lot of sleeping around among the staff. I have heard about a lot of sleeping around from gossips but I've never been convinced that it actually happens as much as people say it does. I think the reality is probably a lot less salacious than we are led to believe when it comes to the "goings on" in the average hospital. But, hey, if you have the energy after a 12 hour shift well then knock yourself out with my blessings!

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Specializes in M/S, LTC, Corrections, PDN & drug rehab.
I have worked in a number of different hospitals and other nursing facilities. I can honestly say, I have not seen a lot of sleeping around among the staff. I have heard about a lot of sleeping around from gossips but I've never been convinced that it actually happens as much as people say it does. I think the reality is probably a lot less salacious than we are led to believe when it comes to the "goings on" in the average hospital. But, hey, if you have the energy after a 12 hour shift well then knock yourself out with my blessings!

Hahaha Yep! I worked in corrections & I knew of nurses hooking up with C.O.s & C.O.s hooking up with C.O.s during & after work. It's not just a nurse thing, it's a people thing.

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Anyone else now have Joan Jett's song "Bad Reputation" stuck in their head? No? Just me? Could be worse, at least I like that song. But I'm gonna go ahead and echo Joan's position - "I don't give a damn about my bad reputation..." OP, I think you are putting far too much thought into this particular STEREOTYPE of nursing.

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Specializes in IMCU, Oncology.

When I have watched Grey's Anatomy, I distinctly remember the docs sleeping around and in on call rooms - like on every episode - this was a long time ago, I don't know if it has changed! Never really remembered a nurse being portrayed in that manner. However, there is a particularly memorable episode which comes to mind when the doctor's were taking in a patient secretly and there were no nurses. They were trying to calculate a medication dosage and couldn't figure it out. They said something along the lines, "well the nurse usually does that." It is true they demean nurses, but I was actually surprised this one time when they made the nurse look good!

I really wish there was a more accurate medical drama out there, where they show how much the doc is a part of patient care and what nurses do. It truly irritates me that I watch the docs do all the procedures nurses typically do on television. They aren't giving credit where credit is due IMO!

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Specializes in Critical Care.

Maybe this is coming from the recent cam girl posts we just had. lol

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Specializes in Med/Surg, Ortho, ASC.
I don't know if it's just me, but it seems like nurses get a bad wrap sometimes. For example, on Grey's Anatomy the nurses are looked down on completely, and one of the nurses even gave syphilis to a doctor. Also, the nurses on the show are generally grumpy and in one episode they go on strike and refuse to work.

I also feel like nurses have a reputation for sleeping around. My dad who is 85 and is a retired general surgeon says that back when he practiced, nurses were known to sleep around a lot. He said it's because nurses are around life and death so much that they get careless in the sexual promiscuity sense. I just think that all of these stereotypes portrayed through TV are really rude and not realistic.

I just started nursing school a little over a month ago and this has been bothering me. Does this bother anybody else? I just was curious to see different opinions on the subject.

A bad wrap? As in a spoiled chimichanga?

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Specializes in Behavioral Health.
I don't know if it's just me, but it seems like nurses get a bad wrap sometimes. For example, on Grey's Anatomy the nurses are looked down on completely, and one of the nurses even gave syphilis to a doctor. Also, the nurses on the show are generally grumpy and in one episode they go on strike and refuse to work.

I also feel like nurses have a reputation for sleeping around. My dad who is 85 and is a retired general surgeon says that back when he practiced, nurses were known to sleep around a lot. He said it's because nurses are around life and death so much that they get careless in the sexual promiscuity sense. I just think that all of these stereotypes portrayed through TV are really rude and not realistic.

I just started nursing school a little over a month ago and this has been bothering me. Does this bother anybody else? I just was curious to see different opinions on the subject.

As a guy in a field that's 91% women, I wish this were actually true... Don't judge. ;)

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Nurses are made up of a huge cross section of a very broad demographic. Either that or I missed out on my right to have a lot more fun than I did.

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Specializes in HH, Peds, Rehab, Clinical.

You chose your career with the research of Grey's Anatomy and your father's tales guiding you?

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