nursing

[Avocado]

is nursing a good career?

 

[look.sky.ward]

No.

 

[tkae.]

No.

Seconded.

You don't get paid enough, your coworkers are typically toxic, your administrators are either unqualified to be making medical decisions or medically competent but have no managerial skills and treat it like it's British Royal politics (you will NEVER have a boss that's both a qualified nurse and a good administrator), you're overworked, will have atypically bad working conditions, will see lots of emotionally exhausting situations, it's physically demanding...

Nurses eat their young for a reason.

My mom is a nurse by the way, which is how I know.

 

[gromit]

[MENTION=5489]shortnsweet[/MENTION] is a nurse, and I believe [MENTION=6336]AphroditeGoneAwry[/MENTION] is a nurse midwife... although I don't know if either of them still post that much on here.

Similar careers which pay more/have more autonomy would be NP or PA. More schooling though, too.

 

[Firebird 8118]

Oh dear... I wonder if my sister will be able to handle this work, if this is the case.

 

[King sns]

Seconded.

You don't get paid enough, your coworkers are typically toxic, your administrators are either unqualified to be making medical decisions or medically competent but have no managerial skills and treat it like it's British Royal politics (you will NEVER have a boss that's both a qualified nurse and a good administrator), you're overworked, will have atypically bad working conditions, will see lots of emotionally exhausting situations, it's physically demanding...

Nurses eat their young for a reason.

My mom is a nurse by the way, which is how I know.

Yea, ridiculousness is ridiculous though, and in life we have to try and leave it in the ridiculous compartment, even if it permeates our job.

[MENTION=5489]shortnsweet[/MENTION] is a nurse, and I believe [MENTION=6336]AphroditeGoneAwry[/MENTION] is a nurse midwife... although I don't know if either of them still post that much on here.

Similar careers which pay more/have more autonomy would be NP or PA. More schooling though, too.

vanity checks, a mention will get me talking more


In regards to the OP, you have to make it okay... If you make a point to stay around some brighter, lighter, more inspiring people, it is realistic to stay happy and fulfilled. And if you can do that, then it can actually make you really strong in a lot of other areas of your life, and it's really freeing.... You have to be prepared for a lot of shall I say... *character building*. There are craploads of great people, craploads of wisdom, craploads of happiness, but also craploads of craploads. Cliche, but it is what you make it. It's rare to be a true natural as well I noticed. Be prepared to be bad at some or many aspects of school and your job..... There's lots of nurses on youtube that are helpful. Is nursing a good career? ...... Maybe.

 

[/DG/]

So I don't have any first-hand experience with this, but my mom is a nurse. She became a nurse a bit later in life, and I have to say that ever since she started working, she is always exhausted. Like I said, she is a bit older...so maybe it isn't as exhausting for everyone, but I dunno. The pay does seem to be pretty good though. My mom makes much more than my dad (if he didn't also get a pension), who is a skilled factory worker.

Nurses eat their young for a reason.

What do you mean by this?

 

[prplchknz]

from my understanding. Nurses get paid more than other people and what you get paid also is dependant on what type of nurse you are.

 

[Avocado]

Yea, ridiculousness is ridiculous though, and in life we have to try and leave it in the ridiculous compartment, even if it permeates our job.



vanity checks, a mention will get me talking more


In regards to the OP, you have to make it okay... If you make a point to stay around some brighter, lighter, more inspiring people, it is realistic to stay happy and fulfilled. And if you can do that, then it can actually make you really strong in a lot of other areas of your life, and it's really freeing.... You have to be prepared for a lot of shall I say... *character building*. There are craploads of great people, craploads of wisdom, craploads of happiness, but also craploads of craploads. Cliche, but it is what you make it. It's rare to be a true natural as well I noticed. Be prepared to be bad at some or many aspects of school and your job..... There's lots of nurses on youtube that are helpful. Is nursing a good career? ...... Maybe.

ok, i'm locked in.

crossing my fingers that I chose right.

as a male, i notice it is often viewed as female to nurse, but the youtube male nurses looked happy. :]

 

[Qlip]

ok, i'm locked in.

crossing my fingers that I chose right.

as a male, i notice it is often viewed as female to nurse, but the youtube male nurses looked happy. :]

I know a few nurses, it looks like hard work, but it's very much in demand and you can find a job anywhere. More than a couple of them are working to cross over to be doctors.

 

[Avocado]

I know a few nurses, it looks like hard work, but it's very much in demand and you can find a job anywhere. More than a couple of them are working to cross over to be doctors.

very cool...
travel nursing looks fun...

 

[Sunny Ghost]

I work as a Nurse aide in a hospital, at the moment.

Male nurses seem to garner the most respect.

It's hard work. Long hours. Physically and mentally demanding. Some patient's will run you around like you're a maid. And you're assigned a lot of work that keeps you from giving patient's the type of one on one you wish you could as a care taker. But, most patient's are incredibly thankful and it is rewarding.

Oh, also because the shifts are 12.5 hour shifts, we work 3 days and have 4 days off. So that's kind of nice, too.

 

[Showbread]

Some of them get paid pretty decently. Around where I live RNs working in hospitals can generally expect $60,000 (before taxes) a year right out of college, potentially more if they work night shifts.

Obviously, it's a very high stress job. But, that's nearly twice the average income fresh out of college, only working 3 days a week. It could be a heck of a lot worse.

 

[Sunny Ghost]

Some of them get paid pretty decently. Around where I live RNs working in hospitals can generally expect $60,000 (before taxes) a year right out of college, potentially more if they work night shifts.

Obviously, it's a very high stress job. But, that's nearly twice the average income fresh out of college, only working 3 days a week. It could be a heck of a lot worse.

Yeah. The nurses I work with said that the hospital we're at starts new nurses at $25 an hour. They thought that was low. I thought that was excellent. But, again, I'm just a nurse aid, so obviously my wages are much lower. Personally, I'd be quite content with $50,000 a year. Heck, I'd be content with $30k a year. I'm somewhere in the $20-25k bracket. Le sigh. Hopefully I'll be considered for a raise soon.

Something else to consider: Do you have the virtues necessary to be a good nurse? Patience, kindness, an open mind, empathy, etc. Patient's and the hospital setting can and will push you. It's really easy to become frustrated.

I'm going to school for nursing, as well. I recommend getting your CNA in the meantime or doing some volunteer work in a hospital. This can give you a clearer picture as to what lies ahead and if it really is for you. Also, many of the nurses and the management I work with tell me quite often, that the best RN's were often CNA's first. (They're also the least likely to abuse the CNA.)

 

[tkae.]

What do you mean by this?

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/02/11/when-the-nurse-is-a-bully/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_r=0

Yea, ridiculousness is ridiculous though, and in life we have to try and leave it in the ridiculous compartment, even if it permeates our job.

All I know is that nursing is notorious for backstabbing, throat cutting, politics, etc. Disproportionately so compared to other fields. I don't know if it's the gender ratio (not to be sexist, but after you enough you start to wonder), I don't know if it's how management is chosen from the ranks of equally-skilled nurses, I don't know if it's a disparity between agism and experience/knowledge. But it's part of the nursing culture.

[MENTION=5489]shortnsweet[/MENTION] Similar careers which pay more/have more autonomy would be NP or PA. More schooling though, too.

Nurse Practitioners are also the Assistant Managers of the medical field. You'll get as much responsibility as a doctor without the pay or recognition. You pretty much have to do all of the boring work he can't be fucked to deal with.

as a male, i notice it is often viewed as female to nurse, but the youtube male nurses looked happy. :]

I can't remember the exact percentage, but more than 90% of nurses are women. You will get a lot of daily estrogen in nursing. Fun fact: male nurses also make more than female nurses, more than the gender pay disparity's average. So money is definitely in your favor if you go into nursing.

But it's not a job that's very forgiving if you're doing it for money. You will burn out fast, and possibly faster than you'll even earn the money from schooling back. Just so that's said.

I'm not saying there isn't an upside to it. If you don't mind getting your hands dirty with all of the bodily fluids or all of the workplace drama, and you get satisfaction out of helping people, then sure, go for it. But don't go into it thinking it's like something you'd see in a TV drama. Whatever the big medical one is now, I don't keep up with those.

It's not like that. It's not an even remotely forgiving job.

 

[garbage]

Nursing's pretty good. It has its ups and downs.

All I know is that nursing is notorious for backstabbing, throat cutting, politics, etc. Disproportionately so compared to other fields. I don't know if it's the gender ratio (not to be sexist, but after you enough you start to wonder),

My wife seems to think this is the case.

She works in an ER. One would think that the most stressful part of the job would be.. y'know, people dying. But somehow, the notoriously terrible work environment beats it by a landslide. Chatty Cathies do not help. One has to have a lot of psychological strength and people-knowhow to make it through the job environment--namely, the other employees.

But that's worst case, and typical of the ER. She has also worked in other floors.

When nurses work together as an actual team, they are the strongest team on the face of the planet. They constantly have each others' backs and expect no reciprocation.

Oh, also because the shifts are 12.5 hour shifts, we work 3 days and have 4 days off. So that's kind of nice, too.

Yeah, this is a great benefit. Want to take a three- or four-day vacation? Knock yourself out; you can do it almost any time!

 

[skylights]

A comment on the gender thing and the nature of employees being the issue - I do think part of it is gender, but part is also the power structure. Consider you are a nurse, and coming on to your shift. Whether it will go well or poorly depends partially on what the day brings, but also partially on whether the people behind you did a good job, and whether your coworkers are doing a good job. You and your coworkers are handed directions by others, which it is your job to follow, which at times is comforting and at times is aggravating. You need to cooperate with people above and below you, and also laterally with your team. That's a lot of hierarchy and a lot of cooperation. Medicine is also notoriously competitive, so you have a lot of people who are naturally competitive and/or have been steeped in competitive academic environments before having come into the field. That's even more complex interrelating going on. Add to that the daily stresses of the workplace and regular tensions that occur between people, and add to that women are predisposed to cooperation over competition but to some degree are being pitted against one another for attention, promotion, and recognition, and then add to that women, particularly women who are interested in people and people's lives and wellbeing, are predisposed to discussing the who/what/when/where/how of everyone. And then as one last addition, note that women, particularly women who are interested in people and people's lives and wellbeing, tend to be emotional, and this is an environment where emotion runs high.

Doesn't it sort of make sense?

Will be back to put in my 2 cents on nursing but have class now.

 

[kyuuei]

I'm currently a nursing student.

Nursing is cool for several reasons:
- It's a viable career. It's becoming more important in the US, especially with higher levels of nursing education.
- It's versatile. You can specialize in something and avoid things you dislike.. dislike children? There's plenty of ways to be a nurse without working with them directly eventually.
- It's decent money. You can work part-time as a nurse and make the same as full-time at a low paying job.
- It's rewarding. At least, it can be.
- There's plenty of work opportunities. You can move anywhere and pick up a job doing something. I'm planning on working overseas as a contractor.

It sucks because:
- It's competitive. That means you'll have people purposely sabotage you, steal your hard-earned position from right under you, talk shit behind your back, and all you have to do to earn that is to be good at your job. It sort of sucks to get shit thrown at you by people the better you get at something.. but that's how any competitive field is.
- You deal with ALL kinds of people. You helped that sweet sick old lady last week and she thanked you so kindly for your service. And now, Crackhead McSnorts is throwing a shit fit about what a piece of garbage you are for not giving him more morphine. And the fucking kids are crying in the room next door. And a family member is pissed at you because you were 5 minutes late getting into the room because their poor Winslow is in dire pain from his wisdom tooth removal procedure that he just cannot wait for the cancer lady next door to get some extra attention so she doesn't atrophy further.
- Your boss sucks. Usually. Probably. From what I've heard anyways.
- Your co-workers see you a lot. It's not like good ole target.. where susy does cathy at the party and everyone heard about it next week. I mean, any work environment where you see the same number of people in a stressful environment for extended periods of time is going to quickly degrade into a high school like environment. The army had this amazing way of turning a sort of crappy situation into a full blown suicide attempt just because people could shut their god damned mouths. You work 12 hour shifts with all sorts of people who have to see your mug all the time. People are going to start to talk. A lot. And you'll be in that mix for sure.
- You work. Like, actually work. They aren't paying you all that money to pop a pill into someone's mouth. You go to school for a few years and get shit there, then you get shit as a newb at your hospital settings, then you get shit for not knowing procedures between different hospitals, and then patients give you shit. Then you document everything and wash your dried out hands and do it all over again. Then you realize you're only half way into your 12 hour shift.

You really have to take the good with the bad.. and with a job as awesome as having medical expertise, and saving lives, knowing what to do, having to challenge doctors and hospitals sometimes, and being able to go wherever you want to do whatever you want in the field... yeah, there's going to be a lot of downsides.

You need to have a job that works for you. If you dislike pressure, and making decisions, and competitive fields, nursing is NOT going to bode well for most outside of moving to a small town or working in a small, specific clinical practice that suits those needs. But even then--those things exist. It can be great.. and it can be tiring.

Nursing a great career--if you're up to it. If not, there's plenty of ways to take that career.. you can get more into research, you can work in small clinics, you can be an NP and just deal with peoples sniffles and aches and pains.. but to say it has a lot of downsides is misleading. Everything has a proportionate amount of downsides.

 

[skylights]

Well shoot I was going to say a few things but I think [MENTION=4939]kyuuei[/MENTION] beat me to everything

I have been pre-nursing for a while and I've shifted because it's not the right combination of factors for me. The upsides that drew me to the profession were: helping people in hard situations; high people contact; importance of the job; variety of positions, patients, and daily tasks; the scientific knowledge base; the good pay; the respect; the team cooperation; the varied schedules; and the neat medical stuff.

For the pleasure of intellectual fodder, here's a recap of a few nurses I know well and how they feel about their jobs:

ESFJ, 2w1, sp/so. 25/26 years old emergency RN. Works night/weekend shift at an urban hospital. Makes bank. LOVES her job. Loves the tasks, loves the knowledge, loves the people. She's very upbeat and positive, and she's got a healthy emotional distance which I think helps her a lot. She's very into caring for people and helping set them back on the right path. Found nursing school to be a bear but still seemed very happy in it. Is loving her life now as a new RN and rising up in the rankings. New car, new house, just happy all over.

ISFx, maybe 6w7, maybe so/sx. Around 20 and has worked as a CNA/home health caregiver for years. Doesn't really like her jobs, complains about them frequently. Really sweet girl but seems to always be struggling with how a patient treated her badly. I think she might be happier in a medical administrative/support staff position where she can still be really sweet and helpful and use her medical knowledge but not have patients taking it out on her.

ESFJ, maybe 1w2, maybe so/sp, just-graduated 23-year-old emergency RN. Works nights and loves her job. She is all about helping people do things better and right. She's very sweet and enthusiastic as well as disciplined, super-organized, and very good with detail.

ESTJ, maybe 6w7, maybe so/sx. Older woman, probably around 55/60. Earthy, very caring, loves to know what's going on with other people. Longtime RN and currently an anesthetist, I think. Enjoys her job but has backed off to part-time. Not a fan of cliques, gossip, backstabbing. Prefers autonomy and practical treatments, enjoys funny/perplexing cases.

I think in general people more inclined to be happy as nurses are independent, positive, disciplined, encouraging, patient, flexible, detail-attentive, and responsible.

 

[SensEye]

It's a decent way to make a living if the work suits you. The population isn't getting any younger and you can be outsourced overseas. A friend of mine became a nurse (male). He seems to enjoy it, at least in the sense that after bouncing around a few careers this is the one he stuck with.