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kevincodd (Washington, DC) |
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Date: |
August 14, 2012 |
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The average nurse burns out in 5 years. I didn't understand why during school. Now that I've been a nurse for 2 years, I get it.
First, the good:
1) It pays relatively well. If you stick with it you can make some serious dough through gigs like travel nursing. But remember, it pays well for a reason. You work your ass off and earn EVERY PENNY.
2) It's easier to get a job as a nurse than for many other careers.
3) If you're willing to work hard, you can help people out a lot, you can literally save lives that would otherwise be lost due to your coworkers' laziness or incompetence.
Now the bad:
1) Most of the Dr.'s treat you like crap. Most of your coworkers treat you like crap. Administration treats you like crap. In a legal situation, they will throw you under the bus in a heartbeat whether you're at fault or not. Many patients and their families treat you like crap; in an urban setting, most will. 9 times out of 10, this is a completely thankless job.
2) Patient loads are so freaking high that it's a miracle we don't kill more people. You have a new admission in addition to your 5 other patients. Did you take 10 minutes to go through the worthless fall risk screening criteria? Did you document it properly? Did you remember to put the orange sticker on their chart, door, and wrist band to alert ancillary departments of their risk of falling? Did you check the eMAR to be sure the pharmacy put in the new medications properly (10% of the time they don't)? Did you check to be sure food services brought the right tray? Guess who's liable if they brought up something the patient is allergic to. Hint: it's not food services. Have turned each of your patients every 2 hours to prevent skin breakdown? The nursing assistant has decided to be defiant and make herself scarce for 45 minutes, so now you have to spend a bunch of time cleaning up your patients after they crap the bed. Have you given all your meds on time? You go to put on gloves, but they weren't restocked. So now you have to go down to supply and get more, then get back to what you're doing. Two call bells go off before you even get to the supply room.
...I could go on. Point is, you spend most of your time either doing worthless documentation or other peoples' jobs for them. Your superiors never recognize you for this. All they notice are the things you don't do (most of the time, those things are pointless). In my practice, I care for the patients 1st and take care of the legal BS later. If I'm sued, I'm sued. I practice according to my conscience.
3) The hours are horrible. Most of the time, you work 3 12-hour shifts per week. At first glance, this seems great. "Wow!" you think, "4 days a week off!?" But you're so dead tired after your work days that all you can do is sit home and recover. Between the horrible things you see (and pain you sometimes have to cause to save peoples' lives), the insane amount of stress you're under, and hurt from how you're treated, I honestly feel the way soldiers look in movies after narrowly escaping death. It sucks the life right out of you. Plus, you will frequently work the night shift. When this is the case, that means you sleep during the day. That means your "time off" will be nights, when everyone else is asleep and there's nothing to freaking do.
4) Occupational hazards. I am a Christian and I try to see the dignity in every human life. But let me tell you, it is extremely difficult sometimes. You get patients who have every conceivable form of hepatitis, HIV, and who knows what else. They are drug addicts who CONSTANTLY harass you for pain meds when they clearly don't need them (they're sleeping soundly when you go into their room, for example). They don't even pay for their damn hospital stay. Taxes or the hospital do. And guess what, they have a sense of entitlement that would make Paris Hilton blush. You are literally risking your life taking care of these people (accidental needleskicks happen ALL THE TIME; hepatitis is transmittable through feces, which you get the pleasure of cleaning up) and they still treat you like crap.
5) You will get no respect. I think society generally recognizes that "nursing is hard", but they really have no idea the degree to which this is true. I could do any job after having survived this one, but doubt many employers would see it the same way. Most people just don't understand how tough you have to be. You have to have phenomenal time management skills, people skills, intelligence (after you have a year or two of experience you have more PRACTICAL knowedge than the new doctors do), and ability to handle stress.
My advice: This is a sacrificial vocation if ever there was one. DO NOT DO THIS JUST FOR THE MONEY. It is absolutely not worth it. Most days I envy the janitor who cleans up my unit. Only go into this job if your goal is to help people. No other reason is enough to make you put up with all the BS. |
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Author: |
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Anonymous |
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Date: |
March 04, 2008 |
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I only became a nurse because my mother pushed so hard. And it was the best thing she could have ever done for me. Clinically, managing care, saving lives, teaching patients, is amazing at all levels of care. Personally, this profession has allowed me more freedom and financial security that most. It is completely recession proof and there is always work if you are willing to do it. And the flexibility of hours, days of the week, full-time, part-time or perdiem status work so well for my family. I make enough working 2 8-hr shifts a week to keep both of my children in private school and pay for competitive gymnastis for my older child. I can be a nurse and never see another patient in my entire career. It can be hard, dirty work, especially in the beginning. But the work pays off for the rest of your life. |
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Author: |
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Anonymous |
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Date: |
February 05, 2007 |
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Nursing is a very rewarding career for someone who is a hard worker and puts pride in their job. I would recommend this career to anyone who is very responsible, caring, and who can handle stressful situations. To become a Registered Nurse you need training from an associates or bachlors program. After being a nurse for three years, I would do it again in a heart beat. It is a very rewarding career. You can work 8, 10, or 12 hours a day depending on the facility. There are various specialties that a nurse can do. However, most jobs require you to work weekends, holidays, nights. The job can be very stressful and demanding at times. Before applying for a school, I would suggest that you follow a nurse for a day or try working as an aid to see if it is something that you like. |
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Author: |
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Anonymous |
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Date: |
January 18, 2007 |
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The nursing career provides an excellent income, in Minnesota starting wages are upwards of $22/hr. Overtime is always available and bonus programs extending earnings capability are common. The job itself can be both exhausting (physically and mentally) but is rewarding overall. The variety of positions available to RNs is amazing. With the specialization of healthcare disciplines you can work in very specific areas from pediatrics, geriatrics, phone triage, orthopedics, cardiac care, neonatal intensive care, pediatric intensive care, research, etc. The degree also can be used as a spring board to get into pharmaceutical sales, medical device sales/service, or can be continued to even more lucrative careers such as CRNs that command six figure starting salaries. If all else fails teaching is also an option. The job market is extremely stable, the nursing shortage has been well publicized. I would choose the same career again. I recommend the 2 year degree, start working, and let your employer pay for the upgraded 4 year degree. This will gain you 2 years of experience (and Pay) and will also allow you to skip out on 2 years of tuition/loans! The pros are listed above, the only cons are the patients/families threatening to sue you over everything you can imagine--carry your own private coverage, its very cheap--the institution you work for may not always support you.... |
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