So, I did a rare thing the other night: I watched Grey's Anatomy.
I generally avoid the show for two main reasons:
1. I work in the ICU, so the last thing I want to see is the ICU (or whatever make-believe "unit" it is where they practice) when I'm not there.
2. It portrays doctors as NURSES and nurses get NO credit!
Three examples: Dr. Meredith turning a patient?? Dr. in OR with concrete-block-boy pushing D50 and Insulin?? "Figuring out" to put a foley in the patient?
In my time as a nurse (albeit short -- life-longers please disagree if you have contrary experience), I have never seen a doctor do any of these things.
ONCE in a while, I'll get a rare, rare doctor (resident, mind you) to help me pull up a patient, but usually that's b/c the patient is in respiratory distress and needs a position change to breath, and I have only seen a doctor push a med ONCE, and it was again, a resident, TPA, and during a code (b/c that's hospital policy).
And the foley?? What nurse would allow a patient to even ENTER the ICU (much less bolus them with excessive fluids) without making sure they have a foley? Has anyone ever seen a physician put one in a routine patient? Ridiculous.
So, this is my question...why no love for nurses? We not only DO these things (most without being asked, mind you), we double check them before we do, know when they're needed and usually are the ones asking doctors for orders for them...so, why, when positive media-attention is needed for nurses MOST...are these super-unrealistic-suave-RESIDENTS getting the credit?
I noticed another thing while suffering through the show...when the young boy fell down and had a seizure, what did Dr. Gray immediately do?
She yelled, "NURSE!" Because, even her distorted, fictional, unrealistic character-self knew that the nurse would be the one who knew exactly what to do.
It's about time that Hollywood woke up to the fact that nurses are the award-winning, exciting, realistic, intelligent, juicy people they need to be spotlighting on prime-time TV. Then, maybe we'll start to see a break in this nursing shortage.
Yay, someone else watched Night Shift!! If you want to see some nurses in action and doing their job well, watch the soap opera General Hospital, since some of the main characters are nurses (Liz ect.). Of course there are docs too (Robin & Patrick) but nurses are definitely involved - in fact the nurses station is sort of the central part of the hospital. I actually think daytime G.H. portrays nurses better than G.H. Night Shift (where nursing student Layla spent all the time in the world trying to get with Dr. Drake LOL). I'll admit G.H. can be pretty fake from a medical standpoint sometimes (every one gets shot but recovers perfectly fine), but its tons of fun! :heartbeat I like Grey's, but I love daytime soaps more (can you tell? LOL). :nuke:
I once read an article called Henchmen, Handmaiden, and Wh0re$, the media portrayal of nurses. (or something like that, if anyone has seen it or heard of it and has a link please post it THANKS!!!)
That is the way the public sees us. I'd like to think that educated people understand that TV is NOT real, but in my experience many, many don't understand what we do and what our job is!
It really is up to us to be professional and compassionate and help educate others what we do.
I personally do not watch "medical" show because they do NOT portray me or the values that I hold as a nurse.
Another tidbit...This is also what politicians see!!! & believe!!!! so for those of us without a state board of nursing or with laymen on the board...this is how they make the rules! (????!!!) Sure I have a practice act, but who is really over it? People who watch Greys and Scrubs! If that isn't a reason to become involved and watch those people, I don't know what is!!!!
Specializes in Peds Critical Care, Dialysis, General.
One of our attendings decided he could drop an NG better than any one of the RNs in our ICU. It was a miserable failure. I also got on his case after dropping the ventriculostomy from it's ordered level (10cm above lateral canthus to -20cm "just to see if it was really patent", esp after it drained out 30ml over a short span).
I don't ask for much - just leave my stuff alone!!!
Specializes in Cardiac stepdown Unit & Pediatrics.
Apparently they have a RN on the set along with a MD to act as "medical consultants." The RN's name is Linda Klein and according to her IMDB page, she's also acted as a consultant for Doogie Howser, Nip Tuck, and a bunch of other things. (See http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0458868/)
*Here's an article where they talk about the medical consultants*
This is a link to a special that was done awhile back on 20/20 where they highlighted the medical consultants.... I remember watching it vaguely but I specifically remember them talking about how most of the actors/actresses can't remember the proper way to wear a stethoscope. (After seeing it, I paid close attention and Katherine Heigl is REALLY BAD for wearing them backwards!)
So, I did a rare thing the other night: I watched Grey's Anatomy.
I generally avoid the show for two main reasons:
1. I work in the ICU, so the last thing I want to see is the ICU (or whatever make-believe "unit" it is where they practice) when I'm not there.
2. It portrays doctors as NURSES and nurses get NO credit!
Three examples: Dr. Meredith turning a patient?? Dr. in OR with concrete-block-boy pushing D50 and Insulin?? "Figuring out" to put a foley in the patient?
In my time as a nurse (albeit short -- life-longers please disagree if you have contrary experience), I have never seen a doctor do any of these things.
ONCE in a while, I'll get a rare, rare doctor (resident, mind you) to help me pull up a patient, but usually that's b/c the patient is in respiratory distress and needs a position change to breath, and I have only seen a doctor push a med ONCE, and it was again, a resident, TPA, and during a code (b/c that's hospital policy).
And the foley?? What nurse would allow a patient to even ENTER the ICU (much less bolus them with excessive fluids) without making sure they have a foley? Has anyone ever seen a physician put one in a routine patient? Ridiculous.
So, this is my question...why no love for nurses? We not only DO these things (most without being asked, mind you), we double check them before we do, know when they're needed and usually are the ones asking doctors for orders for them...so, why, when positive media-attention is needed for nurses MOST...are these super-unrealistic-suave-RESIDENTS getting the credit?
I noticed another thing while suffering through the show...when the young boy fell down and had a seizure, what did Dr. Gray immediately do?
She yelled, "NURSE!" Because, even her distorted, fictional, unrealistic character-self knew that the nurse would be the one who knew exactly what to do.
It's about time that Hollywood woke up to the fact that nurses are the award-winning, exciting, realistic, intelligent, juicy people they need to be spotlighting on prime-time TV. Then, maybe we'll start to see a break in this nursing shortage.
Any thoughts?
I agree with everything you say. I stopped watched watching the show after the 1st couple of episodes because not just lack of nursing but the characters are slimy. Not one redeeming character in the show.
Not only do I love Greys--I LOVE LOVE LOVE house and I even watch ER.
They are fictional shows--no they may not portray real nurses, but I see enough of that every day...I stil love them.
I also watch Desperate Housewives and have never lived in a nieghborhood like Wisteria Lane!!
I have never watched Grey's and have stopped watching ER since it turned into a soap opera (though back in the day it showed nurses working quite hard and all) but I LOOOOOVE House! He is just too cute to not watch, oh yeah and I like the medical aspect of it too... ummm yeah...
I believe Grey's anatomy portrays docs doing what nsg do on a regular basis because, the public isn't really aware of what nurses do...I believe that the image of nursing is still changing from that pin-up poster girl dressed as a nurse to more of a professional and critical thinker/lifesaver.
(I'm still a student, so bear with me--I don't remotely know it all--just a tiny, tiny bit from clinicals :chuckle)
I think it's the view that doctors are the be-all/end-all and nurses are their servants. Though that isn't nearly as true as it used to be, for some reason it's perpetuated by not only the media, but in many cases healthcare facilities. A lot of people have some kind of "white coat syndrome" that automatically makes them bend over to kiss doctors' rear ends when they walk in the room. Instead of acknowleding that the health care team is just that--a TEAM--nurses are many times left by the wayside. The only time nurses have shown up as key members to plots in Grey's Anatomy are when they sleep around with doctors. As if all nurses are just waiting around the corner for McDreamy, LOL (although I must say he does have great hair!). I don't know see how hard it can be to throw in a couple of nurses as main characters...give them storylines and lives just like the doctor characters...I don't think it's rocket science.
I'm just a lowly student as well. (Actually a student on a hiatus! Going back in the Spring '09!! Can't wait to be an RN!!) :nurse:But this is what I liked about the show Scrubs! Nurse Carla rocked! :) Not a hand-servant to the doctors, definitely a professional in her own right. I think we need more Carlas in the media!
This is why I like Scrubs! Even though it's a far cry from reality, at least Carla (the only nurse!) gets some attention as doing a lot of the work. Also, although she's friends with the docs, she goes in to greet/assess the patients with the docs, which I think elevates her status to that of a colleague (rather than a plebe) which I really admire.
Of course, there is a lot of NON-reality in the show which I think stems mostly from it being a comedy. But at least we get SOME recognition!
P.S. While in nursing school, several of my classmates would come in drooling over "last night's Gray's." I wanted to gag half the time...
Specializes in Adult and Peds ED, Forensic Nursing.
I remember watching it vaguely but I specifically remember them talking about how most of the actors/actresses can't remember the proper way to wear a stethoscope. (After seeing it, I paid close attention and Katherine Heigl is REALLY BAD for wearing them backwards!)
I have noticed that! First when she was examining a deer (!?!), and I thought they would catch it, but then it happened again recently. They are doing multiple takes for a scene, why wouldn't they fix that? I think it is funny that she of any of them has her own line of scrubs. (Maybe she has a family member who is in health care and wanted cuter scrubs?)
I do like the Carla character on Scrubs. And there was the time on ER when someone told Abby to become a doctor so she could do more good, and she said something about the nurses doing the most good around there. But then she became a doctor. Oh well.
I will also mention Emergency! the TV show from the 70's (you can see episodes on the NBC website). Nurse Dixie McCall was totally on her game. I saw one where she told off a resident for being rude to one of her nurses. Of course according to IMDB she wasn't in very many episodes, but everyone I know who watched the show when it was on originally remembers her, could be the uniform;-)
thank you merellis, i couldn't remember the dumb blonds's name, i don't see how she got her contract picked up
i know that cop shows are not like they are in real life but it does give the patients a totally spaced out idea about doctors, i have never seen a doc stay all night at the bedside of a patient, really i know that there is no way that they could do this but patients and famlies esp first admit think that the doctor is waiting at nurses station to swoop in for any minute thing that happens
hearts895, RN BSN
465 Posts
Yay, someone else watched Night Shift!!
If you want to see some nurses in action and doing their job well, watch the soap opera General Hospital, since some of the main characters are nurses (Liz ect.). Of course there are docs too (Robin & Patrick) but nurses are definitely involved - in fact the nurses station is sort of the central part of the hospital. I actually think daytime G.H. portrays nurses better than G.H. Night Shift (where nursing student Layla spent all the time in the world trying to get with Dr. Drake LOL). I'll admit G.H. can be pretty fake from a medical standpoint sometimes (every one gets shot but recovers perfectly fine), but its tons of fun! :heartbeat I like Grey's, but I love daytime soaps more (can you tell? LOL). :nuke: