Why do some people assume NS is easy?

[citylights89, BSN, RN]

I'm not talking about other nursing students, but the general public. Heck, even patients!

I have had a patient ask me was I in nursing school (obviously). She then asked how far along I was and how long was the program. I told her it was a 4 year degree with 3 years of nursing classes (at my school). She said "What?! For a nurse?" Granted, she was out of it and in pain, but it was just the way she said it. The general public is really uneducated on what nurses actually do and their schooling. We need to work on improving that so people don't just think we are all assistants who work under the doctor.

Then there are the people who call themselves nurses, or have others call them nurses, when they are medical assistants and such. I'm not going through all this rigamorue in school to be compared to someone with a certificate who went to school for a few months. I'm sorry but that's not a good look.

Nurses might as well be aliens because apparently who we are and what we do is a mystery covered by the CIA.

[OB-nurse2013, BSN, RN]

Wow I completely agree. I think part of the problem is sometimes with the older generations they just don't understand because it wasn't that way for them. My grandma constantly asked isn't she in ns yet, but I don't undestand why its taking so long (this was before I got accepted to ns) It was annoying but she actually went to school to be a nurse when she was young, she dropped out early on, but she went to one of the major universities by me and even there the training was just basically being thrown in a clinical setting and listening to the doctor.

I think another problem is the role of nurses on TV a lot. An exampl, and a silly one I know, but was an episode of Scrubs. On the episode Carly (the nurse) is upset with JD (a resident) because he doen'y value her intelligence because she never went to college, so really she just applied to be an RN and that was that...Nurses never go to school..uggghh then even at the end of teh show her husband who's also a doctor hands her a phamplet to go to nurse practioner school...Like of to be an np she just has to go get some certificate-it was just so stupid to me..I know this is just a sitcom but there's several like that.

[semester1kid]

No one who knows anything about it believes it's easy. The people who think it's easy are probably the same ones who believe it's all about wiping butts (lay persons who have no clue)

[Nurse Connie]

I think a lot of people don't realize nurses don't just blindly follow doctor's orders. My mom was surprised when I told her if an MD gives a wrong med or dose and a nurse doesn't catch it he/she is just as responsible. My dad is always asking if I'm in med school!

[ImThatGuy, BSN, RN]

I've heard students say in class something along the lines of "why do we have to learn this we're not doctors." Idiots.

That said, I think a lot of people go into nursing thinking that all they're going to do is take temperatures and give pills with the resulting healthy paycheck.

What could be hard about learning to take temps giving pills, right? That means school must be easy, lol.

[Sun0408, ASN, RN]

Because to the public all we do is pass pills and wipe butts.. Oh and "just" follow orders.. Couldn't be farther from the truth.

[thatsthekeyRNC]

I feel the same way.. people always ask me why I'm not done yet, that their "friend" or whoever finished in a few months. They don't realize that there is a difference between CNA, LPN, ADN, and BSN :-|.

My friends mom is constantly asking me why I'm not "working in the hospital" yet, meaning clinicals, but I am in a 4 year BSN program where only the last two years have clinicals...I cannot explain it to her because she thinks it's like an ADN program!

People also ask me why I always have to study and why I work so hard for nursing and it blows my mind that they have no idea what nursing school is.

[Rosie707]

SO I STARTED TO GO TO COLLEGE TO GET AN MA CERTIFICATE, BUT THEN MY SISTER IN LAW WENT THE SAME WAY. I THOUGHT I COULD DO BETTER , SO NOW I AM WORKING TOWARDS MY BSN. SINCE SHE HAS GRADUATED AS A MA, OUT OF NO WHERE SHE IS A PEDIATRICIAN ACCORDING TO HER PARENTS. SHE TELLS EVERYONE THAT SHE DOES PHYSICAL CHECKS ...AND IN OTHER PLACES SHE IS A NURSE....SHE ALSO DOES PRENATAL CHECKS...

MY MOTHER IN-LAW SAYS, "HMMM.WHY ARE YOU TAKING SUCH A LONG TIME IN SCHOOL, MY DAUGHTER FINISHED IN NINE MONTHS AND GETS PAID 29 AN HOUR...."

I SAY " OH. REALLY I HELPED HER FIND THAT JOB AND TO WHAT I REMEMBER THE JOB OFFERED HER $13 DOLLARS AN HOUR.THAT'S WEIRD HOW SHE IS MAKING A LOT NOW ESP. AFTER 6MONTHS."

MY MOTHER IN LAW SAYS, " MY DAUGHTER WILL NEVER CLEAN ASS.."

"THEN HOW IS SHE A NURSE?":uhoh3:

I AM NOT JEALOUS I PROMISE I JUST HATE THE FACT THAT MY IN LAWS TALK, SO MUCH TO THE POINT WHERE THE WANT TO PUT ME DOWN. BUT U KNOW SOON I'LL BE BETTER AND I WONT BE TALKING S*** LIKE THEM.!"

[Chinook2]

Breathe Rosie, breathe...and hit that capslock button. :)

[happy2learn]

Rosie, it's really not a good idea to plan your life and career in order to "do better" than someone. You need to stop comparing yourself to others and do what makes you happy. That is all that matters. People will always do better than you or have better things than you. You will live a sad life if you keep comparing your life to others and try to out do them.

Sounds like you both feel some need to prove something to people. You should only have to prove things to yourself, not others.

Back to the original topic, people who are ignorant on something will always assume it's easy.

[Saysfaa]

I think Rosie meant she decided she could do better than a MA, not better than the sister-in-law. The point was having done the MA, she understands exactly what it is. Hmf, not that anyone with a half a clue could scramble an MA with a physician unless maybe they just saw alphabet soup. With the other examples of status inflation, that doesn't seem to be the case with these inlaws.

[OB-nurse2013, BSN, RN]

Just after reading and posting on this trhead I get on the phone with my best friend, who is a little ditsy, and she starts asking me well-why is it so hard to get into ns isn't it easy? I state no its not and ns is very hard and she's mystified and says oh really it's hard???? well whats hard the classes???