Is nursing a career worth going into??? Anyone a nurse?

Did nursing for about 25 years...There are lots of
pros and cons with the job, but the personal pride
you receive from interacting with your patients can't
be measured, really. The only thing I would be sure
to mention to you is to be SURE you are both physically
and mentally strong.

This job is NOT for sissies and you need to pay constant attention to using your back correctly. Back injuries put
most people who go into nursing out of work, and it is sad
because it can be prevented. If you are asked to lift someone
who is way out of your range, refuse to do it without a
"Hoyer Lift" or other specialized equipment--these are
special devices to transfer patients from beds to wheel
chairs, etc. Salaries for registered nurses are very good
now--unfortunately when I got into the profession as a
practical nurse they were not as high.

Good luck to you!

O'sCookie

My wife is a nurse. She has good days and bad days. The money is pretty good and its easy to find work. If your ok with working around the sick and ok with blood, poop, and puke then yes its worth going into. Good luck.

I agree with everything the poster above states. I am an RN of 30 plus years. In addition I would say, the pay is good for a two year degree and job opportunities are plenty. You will enjoy the profession much more if you are a compassionate person and truly like taking care of people.

From the outside looking in... I have a rental condo I rent to a nurse. I had to verify his income that was great for my area of the County.

I know a Nurse works 12 hour shifts at a Hospital but do have time off.
I would think it would be a very rewarding career helping people but would also be upsetting when people die.
My daughter required lots of medial attention most of her life. Based on my personal experience Nurses are true gifts from God!

How will you react when some old thing with impacted fecal looks back over their shoulder and goes, "DIG IT OUT!"

Becoming an RN is just about as hard as becoming a doctor.
The classes are demanding and middling grades will not get you to RN.

Wife was medical surgical floor hospital RN for 15+years: money was pretty good hours were long. Management cut staffing ratios(patients/cna's/nurses) almost weekly.

An experienced "lead" or "charge" nurse "gets" to manage AND take patients...Which is almost an impossible work load. Wife worked 7-7 shift but never got home before 10:00p.m. after all charting; and followup.

When inadequate staffing was always brought up; managements' answer was to add two assistant managers (not more floor nurses or cna's).

Yes there's puke and shit and urine every where. And drug seekers;and creepy grabby geezers.and demanding families.You live and die by the patient satisfaction survey numbers. IF you can hack it you'll never be unemployd.

My BF was a nurse, yes the pay is good but the stress of always being around people who are sick and their families takes it toll on you. She burnt out after a while and took another job.

Masters in Nursing for ~ 30 yrs. Nursing is a great career, never dull. Many specialized fields. Always learning and teaching. See people at there worst and best and is always rewarding. Puts your own life in perspective. Work with many other high caliber professionals and a few duds. Good money and benefits but you will earn it! Good luck to you.

Yes- this and many other good statements here. I have been a nurse for 25 yrs or so- it is a great profession with many options for you!! I mean many!! You can work from home, or in a Doctor's office, hospital, school, jail, cruise ship, movie sets, theme park, nursing home, public health, research, lawyer, home health, forensics, IT, jail or maybe as a consultant. There's more once inside of any of those areas- i.e. hospital, ER, ICU, Infection Prevention, etc. etc. I may have left out something...

The suits are what brings the profession down- it's all about money. They THINK it's all about money with us too but they are so very wrong. Any nurse I know would gladly give up a dollar or so (collectively as a group)from their hourly to give to have someone help them provide safe and efficient care.

It is extremely frustrating in that sense. The newer nurses need to draw a line in the sand and come together to stand strong against the suits who do nothing except to push for more with less, so they can get their bonuses at the end of the year. Some nurses just complain and keep on with the same, hoping it will change without any effort, it drives me crazy to hear them whine about this and that but just sit there. I tell them I don't want to hear it unless they are ready to do something about it. (voice there complaints, etc) There are ways.... ;)

I could go on, but overall, it has been a great career, one that has allowed me to assist someone in need during a very personal, vulnerable time in their lives. I am humbled and feel blessed to have been able to have been there for someone as they were born and others when they have left this world, and hope that I made the transition smoother and more comfortable.

Keep us posted on what you decide, I think you would enjoy it, the work is steady and reliable. You will learn something new everyday. Promise. The schooling isn't easy but is challenging, but it needs to be so we know what we are doing, right? Best wishes to you, if you do go into it, go at least BSN, it is what is desirable out there these days, and there are many options to get it quick.



Last Edited by starrynites on 06/08/2017 11:22 PM

My son is going to Med school in 2 months, to be a MD you need 4 year as a N you need 2, become a MD. Take the mcats

A Doctor needs approx. 8 yrs of schooling, nursing minimum of 2 for ADN. There is a shortage of Drs also.

Not true, 4 years in med Sc and 3 resd. I know been working on this for 5 years with him. After 4 years he gets paid as a resd more than a n about $150K. After 7 years he make $500k a year

I think nursing is a wonderful career. I tend to find that nurses really have a better handle on ALL manner of physical problems and illnesses, as opposed to doctors with specialties that find them NOT putting pieces of the puzzle together. This includes GPs who don't keep up with new findings.

My ER RN step-daughter came to realize how much more she knew than some of the doctors she comes in contact with. This includes times she sees doctors mis-diagnosing the signs she knows she's seeing.

She's now back in classes to become a doctor. After many years of schooling to rise up the ladder, she figured: why not continue?

Good luck!

If you care to be stuck (injected) by EVERYTHING "they" deem necessary, by all means. Go right ahead. Good luck though.

I'll offer up prayers for your safety.

Sorry, I understand that my previous post are illegible as I was doing something else and was not really paying attention. The medical field is extremely rewarding. But it takes a particular type of person. I could never do it. Your best bet would be to volunteer and see if you like it. My son did two years at the local hospital volunteering and two years at a free clinic. It's not easy to become a medical doctor or nurse for that matter. My son will do four years of medical school and received his M.D., then become a resident at a hospital somewhere in the country for three years. If he decides to specialize which he will, he will have additional schooling but will still be practicing. But with the shortage of medical professionals and industries becoming automated it's not a bad place to be. We have 10,000 baby boomers retiring every day and they are in need of tremendous amounts of medical attention. Good luck and think big become one of our next medical doctors.

Eric

go into trauma scene cleanup

at least you get to suit up in protective posture gear when dealing with the scum of the earth


florence nightingale was a fool

why was she a fool, exactly?

Don't go into it for the money or expecting to live in an episode of Grey's Anatomy or Chicago Med. I've been an ER/Trauma nurse for 15 years in a level I trauma center and am as jaded as you can get. I know I have some form of PTSD from the shit I've seen. I've held people's hands as they took their last breath. I've cried with the family and wanted to punch out the drunk driver in the next room who killed my patient. Emotionally draining and it will eat away at your soul after a while.

You will smell, hear and see things that will never leave you. Once you smell certain STD's in the exam room, you'll smell them in line at the store and wonder who needs to go get a Rocephin shot.

On the flip side, I can remember every patient that came back to say thank you when they were discharged from the hospital. I've seen people survive things that seemed un-survivable. There's not a feeling in the world that can compare to doing chest compressions on someone, getting their pulse back and see them walk through the ER doors to say thank you. Those are the days that make the grind worth it.

It will be the hardest job you'll ever love......if you do it because you truly want to help people.

I've dated some nurses, all liked their job, the schedules and some had gone back to school as a second career. I knew a retired cop who went into nursing. There were a few nurses in my night class division of law school, the professor said they are common because like cops, they can retire at a decent age and start a second career. My one ex was all about the clogs!

:Pepe540:

what a great post, thank you

as with most jobs which used to be rewarding nursing has become a nightmare .
the corporates have squeezed 2 nurses worth of work out of each unfortunate one . they literally have to run between patients and its still not enough .
the pay is shit due to overtime but no penalty rates any more .by various means the boss keeps you thinking you might lose your job anytime and reminds you frequently .
one young nurse i knew , in her first job , came home crying every day because she was bullied by other nurses .
probably due to the elevated stress levels everyone is feeling . this is australia but corporations work the same everywhere .

she wasn't in mopp4

I forgot that this site appeals to a lot of Asperger's sufferers who don't get satire.

Man are you stupid, Im a doctor and can tell you that getting an Associate degree in nursing is like high school. Stupid fxcking nurses all think they know as much as the doc just because they copy many of the things the doc does. If you get a C- average, you get into a nursing slot easily. My niece took many nursing classes while in high school. She makes 100k per year as an OB/GYN nurse, not bad for a year of school. I spend 20 years in school and never got to practice because the Indians wouldn't let me in. If you dont like blood, do something like psych nursing, peds, ICU or become a nurse practitioner.

You will be supporting the $3 trillion a year Medical Mafia

Read "The terrible reason why doctors have awful hand writing"

[link to www.metatech.org]

Do natural health instead - the way of the future

Can't recommend this field. The quality of work life for nurses have been on the decline for 30 years, and are downright dangerous for nurses as well as patients/clients. The money is generally good, but the trade off (usually mandatory weekends, holidays and odd hours; unsafe staffing levels; threats to your license from multiple angles; demeaning work; endless complaints; getting reported for frivolous stuff) is huge, and you can expect to be treated like crap, regardless of your credentials, experience or specialty.

So many posts on this thread are 100% bullshit.


This is MAYBE the only person who posted who actually is/was a nurse.


This is the truth.


You think that all of the f'd up assholes you see on Facebook, or on the news, or out in public somehow develop a sparkling personality when they're sick or injured? No they're 1000 times worse.

You absolutely get treated like complete crap by everyone, including those who are below you on the pay/education scale ie: secretaries, nurses aids, LPN's, male and female cleaning crew people transporters, etc. etc.

EVERYONE treats you like crap but most especially other nurses...

Thank you to all the nurses or there and shit on the haters

This is all bullshit.

This is bullshit.