[singforsam]

What does it take to bump up from a nursing position to something in the higher ranking of the medical world? Or is it just a profession where its good pay and you would want to stay a nurse?

Sam
Fontana

[AmandaWIRN]

Nursing and medicine are 2 different worlds. Most of us have no desire to go into medicine. I myself started out in medical school, decided it wasn't what I wanted to do, then switched to nursing school.

[Ricu]

If one were to want to move through different careers in the field of medicine one would need to meet educational and licensure requirements. it isn't really possible to just change jobs. Amanda, Nursing and medicine are two different worlds?

R

[cougarnurse]

Depends on how you look at it RICU! There are successful MD's, and behind them MANY tired, frazzled nurses!

[Ricu]

Originally Posted by cougarnurse

Depends on how you look at it RICU! There are successful MD's, and behind them MANY tired, frazzled nurses!

Agreed. For what it's worth, I see that as two professionals playing different positions on the same team; not different worlds.

R

[AmandaWIRN]

I meant, the world of Nursing is VERY different from the world of medicine. Yes, these two worlds overlap, but what a nurse does is TOTALLY different from what a doctor does....

[Ricu]

I know where you are coming from but I guess my work environment causes me to think a little differently.

R

[AmandaWIRN]

What is your work environment?

[Ricu]

I work in a critical care unit where the environment is very collaborative. The unit has always been this way but that relationship has extended to other departments I think, since we began a hospitalist/intensivist program a few years ago. Over the years we've expanded the nursing practice with numerous medication and treatment protocols. Recently due to nursing intervention and in conjunction with the Cath lab and ED staff, we've developed a STEMI resposne team. The role of this team is to ensure door to balloon inflation time is within one hour and that has been very successful. Proactive and tenacious nursing activity is what created this and keeps it happening. Now for a flipside story. We also have a house-wide rapid response team which has been an ongoing project for the last few years. It's been marginally successful due to underuse. Care to take a stab at why this happens? You might think it's becuase of physician resistance but it isn't. Actually, it's nursing reluctance. The common complaint is that the patient's assigned nurse feels that calling the team is like admitting that the situation is out of his/her control. Imagine that, nursing pride comes before efficient patient care. Some nurses would rather call a code later than ask for help on behalf of the patient whose condition is deteriorating. Very frustrating but a work in progress.

Even though I am fortunate to work in a very progressive unit, other units at my hospital as you can see, are not so progressive. I have a hard time with that because the opportunity is there for change and instead of striking out and redefining the nursing role, many prefer to do nothing. Those same nurses I find, are the ones who complain the loudest about poor job satisfation.

R