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I am not a nurse but my impression is that it is an excellent job with good money BUT it is very demanding and stressful and can be uncomfortable for those who don't like to work odd shifts.
Still, it sure beats a lot of other majors in college. It is very practical. You work with a lot of professionals. It is very respected.
There is far more to nursing than direct patient care, far mor than wipe a butt, clean puke & starting iv's. There is everything from instructor in hospitals & clinics, case/care manager (insurance company & hospitals), discharge planner in hospitals, administrative work (charge nurse, dept manager, director...), utilization review (review everything from a case to QA issues to coding of bills submitted for payment)...there is a huge variety of work as an RN and even far more work options as a BSN & higher degrees.
I have heard nurses say they dont get paid enough for all the things they have to put up with. If you didnt like being a CNA then you probably wont like being a nurse. In some parts of the country it might be easy to get a job. They need nurses in inner cities and rural areas, but most nurses want jobs in more desirable areas. Everyone and their grandma is going to nursing school. You will hear people say nursing jobs are recession proof, but thats a big fat lie. No job is recession proof. Rad techs make good money but the field is saturated. Here is a website with info on allied health care careers. Allied Health Professions | explorehealthcareers.org A website on medical careers. Medical Field Careers | A Great Medical Field Career Starts Here. Oh and if you dont like science and math (especially science) then I advice you not to go to school for a health or medical career.
There is far more to nursing than direct patient care, far mor than wipe a butt, clean puke & starting iv's. There is everything from instructor in hospitals & clinics, case/care manager (insurance company & hospitals), discharge planner in hospitals, administrative work (charge nurse, dept manager, director...), utilization review (review everything from a case to QA issues to coding of bills submitted for payment)...there is a huge variety of work as an RN and even far more work options as a BSN & higher degrees.
The majority of nurses still work in hospitals, doing patient care or low-level, e.g. head nurse, management. There is only ONE director of nursing per hospital. Instructors require a master's in general.
The majority of nurses still work in hospitals, doing patient care or low-level, e.g. head nurse, management. There is only ONE director of nursing per hospital. Instructors require a master's in general.
I hate the way nursing schools lie to students and make it seem like its so easy to find a job away from the bedside. Most of the jobs require years of experience or additional education beyond associates and bachelors degree. Most new nurses will work doing hands on care. So many go to nursing school thinking it's easy to get the experience for crna or other advance practice degrees and it takes time to get there. If something sounds to good to be true....
It's such an American mindset. Everybody goes to school aiming at the manager/non-workhorse position. It's a country where everybody thinks everybody can be a Chief while and no indians doing the work. They scoff at the very probable outcome they'll be stuck doing indian's work for their tenure. Indeed it is a widespread case of optimism bias.
We can't all be 'consultants' people; it's 10 asswipers to 1 paper pusher, not the other way around......Nursing, like many other highly-advertised 'get-rich-quick' schemes, is replete with people who went through the effort of getting the credentials with no substantive intention of actually doing the work. counter-intuitive as is may sound, it's quite in tune with the motivations of why people flocked into the field. Most just want that paycheck, they could care less what they do for a living. Problem with that approach to one's vocation is that the second the job turns fastidious people start hating life, paycheck be damned. It's a false economy to pursue something for the income potential only.
There's no shortage of nurses, there's only a shortage of nurses willing to do a nurse's job.
Lots of nursing jobs, but not many desirable ones if you've been a nurse awhile. You know the ones you don't want and the ones you do want. It can take time to find the right job. For new grads, lots of jobs seem to want experience, too--1-2 years general nursing experience. You can always get a job where you train, but shifts, hours, floor might not be what you want.
Lots of nursing jobs, but not many desirable ones if you've been a nurse awhile. You know the ones you don't want and the ones you do want. It can take time to find the right job. For new grads, lots of jobs seem to want experience, too--1-2 years general nursing experience. You can always get a job where you train, but shifts, hours, floor might not be what you want.
Another nurse??? There are so many of us!
I have not worked in acute care in 9 years. It's hard work, but it's rewarding.
I am encouraging one of my children to explore nursing. Even if the shelf life of a floor nurse (I date myself) is not that long, it's always there. You can go back to work if you really want to. The wages are good.
I had a circuitous path to nursing. Three years at a four year college. Took a leave of absence because my mom was diagnosed with cancer. Saw nurses up close and admired them.
Met my husband and married. Got my RN at a Hospital Diploma School. Loved the first five years.
Went back to complete my BA , and decided not to do that in nursing.
In any field I have worked my back ground in nursing has been as asset.
If you want to make a difference and KNOW that you will have a job, do not rule nursing out.
It's such an American mindset. Everybody goes to school aiming at the manager/non-workhorse position. It's a country where everybody thinks everybody can be a Chief while and no indians doing the work. They scoff at the very probable outcome they'll be stuck doing indian's work for their tenure. Indeed it is a widespread case of optimism bias.
We can't all be 'consultants' people; it's 10 asswipers to 1 paper pusher, not the other way around......Nursing, like many other highly-advertised 'get-rich-quick' schemes, is replete with people who went through the effort of getting the credentials with no substantive intention of actually doing the work. counter-intuitive as is may sound, it's quite in tune with the motivations of why people flocked into the field. Most just want that paycheck, they could care less what they do for a living. Problem with that approach to one's vocation is that the second the job turns fastidious people start hating life, paycheck be damned. It's a false economy to pursue something for the income potential only.
There's no shortage of nurses, there's only a shortage of nurses willing to do a nurse's job.
Like OTR trucking jobs where drivers never see home or a regular life for months, it seems most of the nursing shortages are more or less high-turnover at the hospital floor levels.
Yes, there may be other options available for a nursing graduate beyond dealing with the general population, but the way I see it, those first 2-5 years is going to be all about dealing with drama of "X-Name General".
Just another "weed-out" process that takes place since the first "weed-out" process that occurred during school.
I think it depends on what you really want. my SIL is a highly paid operating room nurse in Orange County, California.
She loves her job.
(I was surprised as a patient in another hospital how the nurses kept telling me what I good patient I was. If they told me they
needed for me to take a shower, or walk awhile, or take meds, I did. I told them they probably say that to all the patients and
they said no, they put up with a lot of disgruntled people. I figured I was there to get better and they were there to help me.
I never realized they were treated badly by anyone.)
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