So I work at a state psych facility. Im a young, male RN and im charge on a unit with only men (generally lower functioning, older men).
I've worked med/surg, LTC, now psych. I love it. Good work flow, not too stressful, pretty chill job. So tonight, I have an agency LPN who's passing meds with me. We get to talking and she said she works at a local hospital in med/surg. Well I said "ew, no thanks, too stressful for me. Always understaffed with too much to do." She replied "well, I love it. Ive always loved being a real nurse. Im not a psych nurse."
Now, the OLD me would have popped off and said something smart (ex army). I just let it roll off my back. What would YOU have said?
My point is nurses need to treat each other with respect. If we don't, who else will? My house feels warm and inviting. No mahogany, no leather bound books.. just come on in.. lets talk.
What other profession would allow a newbie of 1 year to challenge.. let alone disregard the experience... of a nurse that has been practicing longer than you have been on this planet?
Sigh...
So where is the sense of respect in this post? Everyone has insight to share, whether its from the "newbie with only one year of experience" or the veteran nurse. Everyone else in between as well. Its hard to talk about respect when you come off as disgruntled and void of any yourself.
Specializes in LTC, assisted living, med-surg, psych.
Respect is an ALL-way street. :)
I would like to remind members to please take a moment before hitting the 'Post Reply' button and ask themselves these three questions: "Is it true?" then, "Is it kind?" and finally, "Is it necessary?" Not every emotion requires (let alone deserves) to be expressed. Just sayin'.
When we nurses diminish each others' credentials and commitment, experience level and specialty area, we devalue ourselves and make it outrageously easy for people outside the profession to do the same.
If a nurse has the proper license; is capable, skilled and intelligent; and is blessed with common sense, kindness and integrity; I don't give a flying fig if he or she is "called" by the Lady with the Lamp or the man with the mortgage note.
I love the fact that there are nursing roles for adrenalin junkies, rabid perfectionists, gentle hand-holders, extroverts, introverts, workaholics, surfer dudes, high-wire walkers, ballerina princesses and warm, smiling sunbeams with fuzzy bunny slippers.
If you're happy in your practice, be grateful and show some grace toward those who are not. If you're unhappy, try to find a way out or enough good things in other parts of your life to compensate.
We need to be on the same team, no matter what position we play.
I wouldn't have said anything either. It's not worth it. Often when people make comments like this it is because they are insecure with themselves more than mocking other people. You know you are a real nurse and are secure enough not to have anyone validate you.
Not everyone has a "calling". Id rather work with a nurse who's in it for a paycheck but is still caring, nice, and agreeable than one who is in it for the love of patient care but is also judgemental.
I wanted to be a teacher, but the paycheck wouldn't be enough to support my lifestyle. I chose nursng because there is still an aspect of teaching. It works for me. Just because I dont like the old fashioned bedside nursing doesn't mean anything.
Specializes in Peds/outpatient FP,derm,allergy/private duty.
I was curious about all the "not a real nurse" stories currently on this site, so I decided to do a search on "not a real nurse", which revealed 8-10 pages of results. There I discovered that QA nurses, LPNs, LTC nurses, managers, educators, psych nurses, "nurses in non-clinical jobs without x number of years" on the med-surg beat, medspa nurses, nurses w/
I guess I missed the part where I put anyone down. I simply said "no thanks" because of the understaffing and stress. No putdown involved.
Many people could be offended by the word, "ew", because of it's association with things that gross people out. Maybe she was one of them -- but we weren't there, and the absence of context could really draw people to assume an intention that was never there.
A number of posts have been edited or deleted because they were argumentative, insulting or off topic. A few were removed because they referred to deleted material.
This ongoing wrestling match over who is or isn't a "real nurse" is foolish at best and damaging at worst.
You don't have to be a believer to see the wisdom and truth of the following biblical passage:
The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don’t need you!” On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty. God has put the body together, giving greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.
Be thankful for nurses who are willing to do jobs you find boring, repulsive, scary, unworthy, dull, demeaning, unimportant, too slow, too fast, too difficult, too easy, etc. Without them, YOU might have to take one of those positions.
This site is dedicated to all nurses. Belittling others and judging their calling, caring, credentials, career track or commitment will not be well received. Further posts that engage in this kind of diminishing behavior are subject to editing or removal.
Please, demonstrate respect for your fellow nurses, and show others how we should all be treated.
I sense quite a nasty tone in this thread and I'm not sure where it's coming from or why? No matter what prompted the initiation of this thread, it is a legitimate issue. though not a psych nurse myself, I have heard similar comments from coworkers in regard to psych nursing. It frequently gets the big 'eye roll.' this attitude is what prompted my response in this thread as I find it an attitude worth combatting. One's skills and abilities can earn awards and recognition...but one's character is only rewarded by the intangible respect it earns from others and the peace in one's heart from personal growth. I find that often nurses, though they can care for patients without judgment or prejudice, frequently do not afford their peers the same. Fortunately I also find that this is not the prevalent attitude and I am thankful for that!
Well, this thread can be deleted if the moderators want it to be. I only came here and was curious if anyone else would have found it worth it to reply or not to the original question.
Like I said, *I* personally don't need validation of what I do; I know I have a license, that I take pride in what I do in a tough, challenging field, so I don't need the validation of other nurses to feel like a "real" nurse. Basically, my point is this: I think a good nurse is defined by their character and their actions, not simply by what role they play.
If you disagree with me, well, opinions are like..... you know the rest of the quote.
jollydogg_RN, ADN, BSN
333 Posts
Oh is that right? Well im a pretty big deal, too. My apartment smells of rich mahogany and I own many leather bound books. What's your point?