Yeah, that's right, it's my fault.

Nurses General Nursing

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Last evening I was informed by a patient that the high cost of health care can be blamed on nurses and their high compensation and benefit cost. This is a afluent, well educated person in his late 70s. For past ten years he has been heavy user of health care due to a series of medical problems. He has had the most advanced medical care in the world, the best medical care money can buy. Indeed, I believe that he has had the best of everything all of his life. I am willing to bet it has cost millions of dollars to keep him alive here in his later years. But that has nothing to with the cost of health care and health insurance does it. It is me who at the end of my career, after years of being severly underpaid and over worked, who is now finally making a pretty good wage who is responsible for the high cost of health care. To bad I couldn't say what I was really thinking because it was a patient. However, if someone out on the street makes a comment like that they are going to be sorry they every met me.

people tend to think nurses make "good money." I must admit, nurses make more money than anyone in my family has ever made, but I won't feel guilty about that when I start practicing. I have a friend who works for human resources at her company & she got a starting salary about the same as a new nurse! then, I saw online a position for the HR director making well over $100,000! what are the requirements? a BBA & about 10 yrs HR experience. to me this isn't fair. it takes a special person to be a nurse. nurses save lives & do what so many others can't. and no matter how many years experience, a nurse will NEVER make $100,000 with just a bachelors degree.

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Last evening I was informed by a patient that the high cost of health care can be blamed on nurses and their high compensation and benefit cost. This is a afluent, well educated person in his late 70s. For past ten years he has been heavy user of health care due to a series of medical problems. He has had the most advanced medical care in the world, the best medical care money can buy. Indeed, I believe that he has had the best of everything all of his life. I am willing to bet it has cost millions of dollars to keep him alive here in his later years. But that has nothing to with the cost of health care and health insurance does it. It is me who at the end of my career, after years of being severly underpaid and over worked, who is now finally making a pretty good wage who is responsible for the high cost of health care. To bad I couldn't say what I was really thinking because it was a patient. However, if someone out on the street makes a comment like that they are going to be sorry they every met me.

You said he has the best money can buy, he has you as a nurse, can't get no better then that.

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From what I hear, nursing is steady work, but steady and safe never make the best money.

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Specializes in Medsurg, Rehab, LTC, Instructor, Hospice.

I have always said, on admission, families have to sign (or they don't get in) permission for administration of psychotropic medications. Usually the patients are not the problem, it's the families. Prozac in the air filtration system should be of some benefit......(no really, you think I am jaded???)

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I have always said, on admission, families have to sign (or they don't get in) permission for administration of psychotropic medications. Usually the patients are not the problem, it's the families. Prozac in the air filtration system should be of some benefit......(no really, you think I am jaded???)

Umm, I'm in full agreement! Forget flouridated drinking water! Let's pump it in city water supply! Does that make me jaded to? :rolleyes: hehehehe

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Specializes in cardiac.

There is no way I would have listened to that and not set him straight. Not in an angry manner, because as you said he is a patient and you have to keep it professional, but more in an "are you JOKING me" kind of way. Some people need to be educated on how much the job really takes and he sounds like one of them.

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I provide medical care....I am not your servant, I am not a RMT...if you want an extensive back rub, hire a masseuse. Grrrrrrrrrrrrr. I wonder if your pt would have thought you to be over paid, if he coded and you were the one that "brought him back"? Ask him how much he thinks thats worth?

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Specializes in CVICU, Burns, Trauma, BMT, Infection control.
You're my hero!!

And don't forget about those people who's biggest worries in life are paparazzi, whether they'll win an Oscar/Emmy/LaffyTaffy, and where are their personal chef/personal trainer/nanny/assistant.:angryfire :angryfire

When Nurses,Teachers,Firefighters and Police make the big money instead of ball players and "actors" the world will be right.

Not only are we not compensated for our experience if you get enough experience and start speaking out against unsafe situations they not only don't appreciate it,they "help" you to the door and blacklist you as a trouble maker.

Then they hire a less experienced nurse.burn him/her out so bad that they get out of nursing all together and they cry "Nursing shortage". :banghead: :angryfire :angryfire

You need a bigger fiery face person icon for this. :(

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Last evening I was informed by a patient that the high cost of health care can be blamed on nurses and their high compensation and benefit cost. This is a afluent, well educated person in his late 70s. For past ten years he has been heavy user of health care due to a series of medical problems. He has had the most advanced medical care in the world, the best medical care money can buy. Indeed, I believe that he has had the best of everything all of his life. I am willing to bet it has cost millions of dollars to keep him alive here in his later years. But that has nothing to with the cost of health care and health insurance does it. It is me who at the end of my career, after years of being severly underpaid and over worked, who is now finally making a pretty good wage who is responsible for the high cost of health care. To bad I couldn't say what I was really thinking because it was a patient. However, if someone out on the street makes a comment like that they are going to be sorry they every met me.

You don't suppose this is the same guy who wrote the article about how nurses should work selflessly, do you?

Personally, I think he's just senile. It's pretty easy to determine how much nursing care costs. And it is not anywhere close to covering a majority of the hospital bill.

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Specializes in Trauma/Burn ICU, Neuro ICU.

Hi Oramar,

Maybe this will help you feel a little better. I taught high school science before I started nursing, and teachers get the SAME cockamamie comments from parents! Example: The reason school districts are having so much trouble is because of the ridiculously high salaries teachers make. It's all their fault! Apparently, if teachers didn't make so much money, all the problems would go away.

I guess salaries are relative - I am always floored that ANYONE thinks nurses (or teachers) make big money. I've mentioned this before, but I'm taking a huge paycut to work as a nurse.

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Specializes in Family Practice, Psychiatry.

I get so irritated when these comments come along! Even a friend of mine (unknowingly) irritated me the other day when saying that some nurses are "only in it for the money." If it was about the money, I would definitely find another profession that was a lot easier and less stressful! I always respond in those situations (like I did to my friend), "We may make more than some people, but it's not nearly what you might think -- and it's not nearly enough for everything we do!"

It is especially irritating coming from someone who is "better educated". I'm sorry you had to deal with that (and were not able to tell him what you really thought)!

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I still maintain my theory that the world will have righted itself when teachers and nurses make the salaries of professional ball players.

This is another reason the nursing profession is denigrated: people assume it's as easy to become a nurse as it is to become a teacher (or some other fairly simple curriculum). It's erroneous to equate teachers with nurses. A teaching degree is much easier to acquire than is a nursing education. (The level of difficulty of the curriculum generally isn't close to that of the medical professions.)

Back to generalities: in general, the public has been repeatedly told they're 'entitled' to the point of becoming jaded, obnoxious, and expecting something for nothing. In addition, the image of nursing is still glorfied hand maiden. The public would be rather shocked to see a nursing curriculum. Unfortunately, with hospitals propagating the customer service paradigm, coupled with having nurses implement it (rather than hiring other staff to do it), it adds to the erroneous image of nursing. From a pt's perspective, a nurse knows nothing except how to twiddle a few machines & do basic tech stuff...along with waitress/waiter duties. In their minds, only the MD knows anything. Even the public perception of MD's is starting to fall by the wayside. Too many arm chair 'medical professionals' who spend their time on simplified literature from WebMD. They have no REAL concept of what exactly it is people in the medical professions really have to know. As many have said, you have educate people.

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