What Do Nurses Do?

I'm an ICU RN. I wish the general public knew that I may not gush or smile. It's not because I don't care. It's because I am focusing on caring for my patients and getting everything done. That my patients always come first. I will go without eating or drinking or bathroom breaks - I sure Continue Reading

- DH

Some home care agencies won't hire LPNs. The one I work for does though I do recommend that you be IV certified. We have a bunch of LPNs who aren't and at times it's tough to get all the patients done on time. There are times we have had patients with daily or even worse Continue Reading

- MM

I'm a CRNA (Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists) - the general public is usually clueless as to what I do. Most people don't know I am the one safely providing their anesthetic. I've been asked if I hand the anesthesiologist what he needs or if the anesthesiologist tells me what to give.

- KC

I'm an LPN I work all units however my full time job is in assisted living and I want others to know we don't babysit! Wr pasd meds, do change over, treatments, help with meals, assisting our STNA with showers, transportation etc. There have been nurses that come to AL and say I never would Continue Reading

- JC

The general public just has no idea how many of their care decisions are made by nurses in every field of care. I work in LTC I take care of the same 30 or more people everyday that I work and a lot of times these patients are seen by a doctor for five minutes Continue Reading

- JH

I think it takes something like this to get the ball rolling. Nurses deserve to be recognized. Like firemen were during 911. We are never seen in action, or put into the media spotlight, because we are usually behind closed doors. And HIPPA makes it even more difficult to talk about our day on Facebook Continue Reading

- JP

Staffing Ratio here in PA. Hospitals fading out LPNs. I had some of the best experience in an Acute Care setting. All aspects from ODs to Oncology. Utilizing us to our fullest potential and giving us a chance to learn MORE instead of staying stagnant. More job opportunities for us LPNs.

- CT

Hospitals get higher reimbursement if their nursing staff are BSNs (Bachelors of Science in Nursing). I happen to be one, but feel this trend is cutting out fantastic nurses with other certifications.

- BJN

Where I work the nurses run the show pretty much...we know what we are doing and there's rarely a time that I get an order for something that I didn't ask for or at least anticipate. But I still get parents asking to talk to the doctor and disregard everything i'm saying like I haven't Continue Reading

- JD

I am a surgical technologist and I can stand in the same place for 9+ hours without food, water, sitting or bathroom break.

- JB

I am a retired er nurse I worked er for 28 years of my 32 year service. It was the nurses responsibility to alert and directed the physician to the most critical patients, You need strong assessment skills to do this, one young er nurse told me you have the best gut instinct for which pt. Continue Reading

- WW

Hospice RN, was staff development and rehab. Don't wait to put your loved ones on hospice until they are in the late stages. We improve quality of life. Don't be afraid of the h word.

- KA

I have been in nursing 34 years my entire adult working life..Started as LPN in 1981.. life got in the way and I went to RN school and graduated ADN in 1990..BSN in 2013..I work in a Level 1 Neuro trauma ICU.. 1. We have continuing education every month called CBL's required by the hospital. Continue Reading

- KR

Being an EMT I hate that nurses dismiss my information or role their eyes when I bring a patient in. I know we get tired but the patient sees that and in the end unless it's a rare occasion where I have to make the split second decision bc they need a specific hospital most patients Continue Reading

- DZL

LPN in corrections. I have been there for 28 years. Everyday medical staff put there selves outthere. They are surround by people that are deemed dangerous to society. They try us every chance they get. They put our knowledge to work. Alot of time we have to hold our tongues and our actions. Every once Continue Reading

- AT

I went from working in labor and delivery to doing Case Management for the last year... It was a hard move but a good one. A completely different world to say the least. It forced me to look at healthcare in different ways. Despite the general populations belief... case managers can make a difference and Continue Reading

- CKR

Not hiring LPN's in hospitals anymore is a cost saving measure. They hire CNA's, pay them much less but train and expect them to perform many of the tasks that LPN's used to do. What the CNA's can't do has been put on the RNs. Having an LPN give meds was a huge help to Continue Reading

- MS

Can someone PLEASE tell all of my cute little elderly patients that I am NOT sleeping on 3rd shift out at the Nurse's Station?? Lol I can't tell you how many times they have ever-so-sweetly wished me a good nap or apologized for "waking me"!!

- SL

RN for 34 years, requiring ongoing continuing education, certifications. Have cared for patients from birth to death, including the famly in aspects of care when appropriate. I have held severly premature babes until they pass, whispered into the ear of an unconscious person who was terrified the moment they lost consciousness. Have held onto the Continue Reading

- DW

Nicu nurse. I want to people to remember that the nicu is still an icu, not a baby nursery. I understand you want everyone to see your baby, but those babies are at high risk of developing infections so having a lot of visitors is not in the baby's best interest. Another reason is they Continue Reading

- JS

What I wish the public knew: as a CNA, I am so much more than a butt wiper. I am there when family is not. I hear their fears and disappointment about aging and dying. I'm there to reassure them and help guide them and make sure they do what they can so they don't Continue Reading

- AM

I'm a respiratory therapist at a long term care place.....its rough....we watch people slip away daily....the nurses here are over worked and under paid as are we....we take care of the families as well as the patient....we educate the doctors as well....that's right people....we educate everyone involved....we do this 24/7 and rarely are thanked but Continue Reading

- JS

"Several things......... 1. We do a crazy amount of continuing education.......our education doesn't stop after nsg school 2. The dr is not gonna be at your bedside for more than 10 min per day.........if he shows up when you have a change in condition it's because A NURSE called him (or her) 3. You're not Continue Reading

- TMT

I was tired of being overwhelmed with nonsense in the actual ER that I now am working for a telephone triage service and I keep people away from the ER if needed.  See if your primary MD has a nurse line! We really do know what we are talking about! Call me anytime like Carly Continue Reading

- LL

Ltc, I want people, family members to spend time with their loved one now, not when it's to late. This happens everyday, it breaks my heart to hear elderly patients make excuses why their children do not come to visit.  Ex: A patient of mine had her birthday a few weeks ago, her son sent Continue Reading

- EH

I work 12 hour night shifts, three in a row. From 7p-12am I do not sit down. I have to complete 20 ceu's every two years. I must do much more to actually keep current. I read approx 10-20 journal articles a week. I am a graduate student, full time plus work full time. I am Continue Reading

- AR

LPN...Home Health Nurse...Pediatrics ..in my field you have the really really involved parent/ parents or the ones that disappear until 5 mins before your shift ends..but nevertheless I'm there taking care of their vent dependent child.. Making sure that everything is done and they are comforted when they become upset or in distress...your child is Continue Reading

- ARR

We need to educate the public about EVERYTHING our job entails. They truly don't understand... I'm an ICU nurse... I do much more than wipe butts and feed patients... I assess my patients ALL shift, I critically think, I educate patients, family, and doctors, I deal with all the complaints and the verbal abuse, I Continue Reading

- AC

I'm in orthopedics. I remember the day I was reminded that "pain is not a life threat" and the "vast majority of orthopedic surgeries are elective." That gives a different perspective. We do all we can to help as many as possible but when reasons beyond our control force us to decline doing surgery on Continue Reading

- MD

RN for 32 yrs in upstate NY. I've been an IV therapist for 24yrs. Although they see us, most pts and their families don't realize we work more holidays and weekends than we spend with our own families. Most think cuz we work in a hospital, our healthcare and medications are free. I have had Continue Reading

- EP

ER nurse here. I have a BSN but I am expected to be a customer service rep and tap dance for a positive patient review. It's required that I make sure to fill out a whiteboard because some company the hospital is paying 7 figures to says that it will improve Q scores. Point being, Continue Reading

- AR

I'm a scientist. I spent a year or longer learning how to read those monitors. This line is blood pressure, these two are heart rhythms and rates, this one is the oxygen level. 95% is excellent for your 'mom'. (Mom smoked up until day of surgery, so I'm going to turn down the nc to Continue Reading

Cardiovascular Surgical ICU/CVSD

FNP (family nurse practitioner) in Michigan and people call me a PA EVERYDAY!! The general public really has no clue in my experience...I love my job but it does stink to do everything a physician does and the public, our patients having no idea what a practitioner is..I'm sure CRNAs must face the same battle...It would Continue Reading

- FK

I have been a RN for 16 years: telemetry unit, stroke and dialysis unit, home health, doctor's office and rehabilitation. I have heard many say... You sit in front of a computer all day. Well, that is when YOU see me. Most people have no idea what our responsibilities include: full head to toe assessments, skin Continue Reading

- KT

Rn BSN, home health, hospice, ICU, management, traveler- people have many misconceptions about nurses, in general. The most common that I've come across is that RN is better than LPN/VN is better than CNA etc. Everyone is critical and meaningful and has something valuable to contribute.

- CL

Working in aged care people think all I do is hold hands and paint nails. They don't know all the wound care and assisting with showering... Medications.. Emotional support for families.. And we are on the front line.. Doctors aren't there 24/7

- JS

ER Nurses are the first one(s) you see when u come to the ER. They have already assessed you, initiated care and and usually diagnosed you before the doctor gets a chance to see you. Most likely before the doctor enters your room, you've gotten your IV, cardiac monitor, oxygen, EKG, and are prepping for Continue Reading

- SM

I want people to know that in the state of NY as of November 2010, it is a felony to assault a nurse on duty. I believe it should be a crime in every state.

- EP

The public has been shown and told that doctors run the show and make all the decisions, therefore nurses must be the hand maidens. It doesn't help the profession that hospitals try to tout themselves as the best place to go for care because we offer you more, leading the public to assume what they Continue Reading

- BT

I am an LVN for the 4th largest school district in California. We see a lot of sick kids in the health office. Sometimes it's the nurses who can see past why a kid might be getting Fs or not showing up to school. Sometimes they are being neglected or abused. Some see a problem Continue Reading

- TL

I would have to agree with the comments about Hospice nurses, we don't "push" Roxanol to quicken the dying process..and we are truly trying to control pain and offer them some quality of what is left of their life. We struggle with losing patients and we aren't robots part of being a good nurse is Continue Reading

- TPD

DNP, RN, CPNP - I wish that my patients knew that my years as a pediatric nurse both general and in the ED at a level 1 trauma center, in addition to my education, have value. I am able to lay out an excellent treatment plan, there is nothing more insulting than being asked, "when Continue Reading

- KK

Home Health director. The general public doesn't realize that on a daily basis I fight with insurance companies to get the care a doctor has ordered paid for. They don't realize that the reimbursement for their care is directed by standard guidelines and rarely on an individual case by case basis.

- AW

Hospice is meant to be a 6 month benefit not a 48 hour one! Hospice isn't a death sentence. Your terminal illness is. Hospice gives you hope for a quality of life with the time you have left. The sooner you access hospice care the more we can help you have quality of life. Oh, Continue Reading

- MKR

I understand how important charting is, but I spend more time with my computer than with my patients. I am an RN in post surgical ICU step down. Many people do not understand how time consuming charting can be.

- KM

What I'd like the public to know..... I work in a pediatric bridge hospital. A place to transition patients from acute settings to, hopefully, home. We train parents/caregivers in everything from ADLs to trach changes. Our nurse to patient ratios are very fair and manageable in my opinion. I sincerely wish patients' caregivers would understand Continue Reading

- DRT

ICU RN- I wish people knew that most weeks I spend more time with THEIR loved ones than I do with my own

- HM

RN/ADON/RAC-CT in long term care. I wish people would realize that just because we work in long term care doesn't mean we are less of a nurse. I have personally experienced more times then I care to count when I tell people what I do they always say… oh so do you plan on trying Continue Reading

- SS

Nephrology ARNP, I can't tell you how many times I've heard "well, am I still going to see the doctor?" Or (my fave) "I came to see the Dr. If you wanted to be one, maybe you should have gone to school longer (wait for it..) no offense." My response: "you are more than welcome Continue Reading

- SW

I would like bedside staff to know that hospital mid management is just as frustrated as floor nurses (or aides) are. Our hands are tied because we don't have the final say in staffing or budgeting. I feel responsible for so many things that I can't do nothing about. I have been a CNA and a Continue Reading

- ID

I'm an lpn in long term care, have been for 36 years now. Yes we care for your loved ones, and most find a special place in our hearts! As you can see we care about what we do, I'm proud to be an LPN. As I became a nurse to CARE for people not Continue Reading

- TL

I am a Psychiatric/Mental Health nurse from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. I want the general public to know that my job isn't just managing aggressive or annoying behaviors, rather there are some nights where I soothe the anxious to sleep with a hug and a song or two. Most nights I don't get to eat my dinner because Continue Reading

- SK

Healthcare workers that work nights do not get to sleep during their shifts. Night shift workers do not necessarily get to sleep all day before working all night. Many of us have a reason for working nights and have children to care for at home... However working nights makes sense for many of us so Continue Reading

- RRW

Oncology RN. I teach my students that the reason patients are in the hospital is because they can easily get medically worse, and it is our job as RN'S to rescue. Otherwise the patient is ready to go home, and no nurse is needed. If they take that role seriously, everything else falls into place.

- KV

Addiction is treatable. It is a disease with treatment options.

- BF

I've been a LPN for 15 years. I've done geriatric, mental health, family planning, and now dermatology. My office is primarily the medical side of derm, meaning we don't do the fillers and injections. We deal with skin cancers and abnormal moles. I hate telling a patient over the phone that they have a skin cancer Continue Reading

- MC

I work in a small ICU, and they should know the doc isn't there so if your family member had a crisis it is the nurses taking care of it.

- KL

I'm a nurse w 11 years experience but only 1 1/2 years working in the field of addiction crisis. I love my job and I love my clients. I don't think the public understands the level of critical thinking required to even sit for the boards let alone succeed on the floor. We don't just Continue Reading

- AD

Med-tele RN, and mine is that doctors usually don't round in the middle of the night. If you code, then yes, a doc will show up. Sometimes the on call doc will show up if we have called them a lot about the same patient. The residents may come by and check on their patients Continue Reading

- NJ

And someone tell the general public to be nice to us human beings. We're not terrorists....we're nurses and we are very nice people. You're always going to have that one bad apple but it seems like lately there are 10 out of 20 bad apples. If you can wait for your food at whataburger, you Continue Reading

- LL

Most of the time, administration has no idea...

- SH

Oncology RN . We need to educate the general public on the advanced education nursing offers. I think education lends credibility to us as a profession.

- MC

I am a home health LPN. I work however many hours my patients need. I not only help my patients, but their families depend on me too. They need my support, my knowledge and my time. Sometimes, my being there is the only break they get. I love their acceptance into their home and their Continue Reading

- SF

As a hospice nurse we don't kill patients! We don't give morphine to "send them out". We give morphine to ease their pain and make their breathing less labored. Our patients are terminally ill and we allow them to pass comfortably at home surrounded by their loved ones.

- LR

At this point in my career I am the dreaded agency nurse. I go pretty much where ever with little notice, am mostly treated like a leper by most staff nurses, and apparently no longer have a name but am simply referred to as "the agency nurse". Despite all of that I still do my very Continue Reading

- MD

As a Hospice Nurse in Hawaii I often get asked "how do you do this every day?" "how do you cope?" "Don't you get attached?" I tell the that I do get attached and that there are times when it gets overwhelming but I manage by giving A LOT of hugs.... I hug my patients, their Continue Reading

- DW

LTC RN (Long Term Care). I want families to know that it's okay to have made the decision to entrust your loved one in our care. It's understandable that you feel guilty, but it's not necessary to take your anger/frustrations out on the staff that are working so hard to care for your loved one. Continue Reading

- BR

I am an Emergency Room/Trauma RN, straight into the ER out of nursing school. I am ACLS, PALS, TNCC, ENPC, and ASLS certified. What the general public doesn't know or understand, is that these certifications give me the training and responsibility to recognize and treat many different life threatening situations, by myself, without a doctor Continue Reading

- DA

Ortho Trauma OR RN here, Many times I see people at their absolute worst...severe pain, life threatening injuries, possible legal trouble, scared...the list goes on. Anyway, I try to make them smile or laugh. When I'm checking in an 80 year old man who fell and broke his hip, I'll ask him if he took his Continue Reading

- HP

The public does not know that nurses hold college degrees. They do not realize how much actual education goes into becoming get an entry level nurse. They don't understand that in some hospitals every minute of the shift is monitored, meaning that a nurse can never be in one place for more that a few Continue Reading

- MG

As a former ER nurse....waiting in the ER is a good thing because that means you aren't actively dying or losing a limb. Also, please remember that we are human, too. We have feelings and "life" happening. Please say please and thank you. ...it goes a long way.

- JB

Nurse to patient ratios not just in hospitals but in SNF's (rehab and long term care units) often rehab nurses 28-30:1 and CNA's 10-14:1... Sometimes 60:1 on LTC for nurses.... Nurse to pt ratios in the hospitals as well can be ridiculous... Floating nurses to other units despite discomfort... The pay scales are ridiculous and Continue Reading

- SH

Can someone please tell the 160 patients in triage that they need to be triaged and sometimes there are other people that are more sick than yourself. I'm a trained ER/triage nurse and I know when you need to come back to a room faster than the moment you realized you needed to come to the Continue Reading

- LL

Certified Nurse Midwife! BSN, MSN in midwifery. I work in an OB/GYN office taking care of women from teens to menopause, perform annuals, treat infections, prescribe birth control and other meds including narcotics. I also provide prenatal care, antepartum care (assist laboring women and delivery, repair) round on my postpartum patients and see them for Continue Reading

- CB

I would like the public and patients and their families that just because a nurse is walking down the hall, her brain is buzzing with all the care she must give her patients and organizing. The organizing goes on constantly due to changes to pt condition or new pt. Just because we are sitting does Continue Reading

- BC

Trauma surgical critical care nurse. I think that it's important for the public to know that while we are fighting to keep our patients alive we also provide care/compassion to our patient's families. We wear many hats all at one time. We do so very willingly because we care.

- AM

I am a registered respiratory therapist and we are unseen many times. But very important in the lives of many. Nothing else seems to matter if you can't breathe.

- JK

Float/pacu RN and NP student: When you hear about our day it doesn't sound so busy. What most people don't realize is it's not one patient at a time. It 2-6 patients at a time. And we're not specialized. We are jack of all trades for patient care. We have to know a bit about Continue Reading

- SM

Getting an admit from Cardiac Cath lab. This makes 5 patients. Stress!!! Walk quick to room, turn down bedding, raise bed away from wall. Look at report sheet. 50 y/o male, hx of smoking, NIDDM, obese (wait, he weights 100 kg, about 220 lbs, I wonder how tall he is?). Walk and grab pressurized tubing, Continue Reading

Cardiovascular Surgical ICU/CVSD

Feel like my nose is in a computer all day and less face time with my patients

- KO

Wanted to be a nurse as far back as I can remember. Some days when I get body fluids on me or get hit just because - I wonder why - then I get a smile a kiss and thank you and I remember why.

- DP

I think In general that the public has no idea how much knowledge that nurses have. Nurses know pathophysiology , chemistry, anatomy and how to calculate how much medicine to give, how fast to give it and what the side effects are. Nurses know that you may show your anger at the the nurse when Continue Reading

- CSA

Nurses are the punching bag most of the time. Problem with the doctor? Patients tell the nurse. The meal service? Nurse hears it. Radiology? Other departments? The telephone? The housekeeper? You name it. We hear about it. So please, voice your concerns but do it nicely smile we are dealing with a billion fires to put Continue Reading

- LA

FNP-BC here and what I want the general public to know if that all of us have had extensive training both in the class room and on the job to do what we do EVERY SINGLE DAY (nurses and beyond). I may not "be a doctor" but I can do many of the same things Continue Reading

- AM

RN-Nurse Educator--I want the public to know that we are usually the first ones to deal with abuse-child, elderly and domestic violence. We are the ones who try to get these people out of these dangerous situations. We are the ones who contact social services, get the hospital social workers involved.

- TF

If you're working with a 5:1 ratio on a 12 hour shift, and you take one 30 minute break and your documentation takes about 90 minutes, you have a total of about 2 hours to spend with each patient.

- KP

I'm a scientist. Your potassium level is 5... I'm going to hold your potassium, call your doc, let him/her know, that yesterday your k was 4.5,  You took your lasix yesterday. Yes, Dr. i gave the 20 of lasix just now. You have him on 40 KDUR BID, yes, he got last nights dose. Ok, Continue Reading

Cardiovascular Surgical ICU/CVSD

I think the Nurse, CNA, PCT, LPN, PT, RT to patients is scary and needs to be addressed patient need to come first and it should be 10 to 2 RN nurse and 3 CNA to assist in the care of the patients it's not fair to everyone for 1 person doing all the work

- TS

I'm a LPN, Hospice Nurse (15 years total doing hospice) I want the public to know that we do not kill people once they come into hospice or a hospice IPU. It makes me crazy when people say "oh there going to the unit, they wont come back out alive" Um no we do wonderful things Continue Reading

- ALM

We have a team of 69 women and men nurses at University of Michigan who do Vascular Access. We place IV's and PICC lines 24 hours seven days a week. Most hospitals only have that service on days. I love my job and work with a group of dedicated, talented, caring people. We are all Continue Reading

- MBR

I'd like the public to understand and respect how much education it takes to become an RN. 4-7 years to get a BSN. Life long continuing education, tests and study for certifications, ACLS, PALS, ATLS. and specialty certifications.

- KL

We are faced with multiple reimbursement changes and being forced to work within lower budgets. Soon we will be reimbursed based off of our survey scores. This is crazy, I wish pts/families would understand what that survey is for instead of using it as a way to complain about things out of our control.

- AM

26 years, 4 years on a Med Surg floor where we would have 15 to 16 patients a piece and most of them would be total care patients with high acuity and the floor also served as a step down unit for the ICU. Then transferred to the ER where we had 32 beds and Continue Reading

- KM

People often think nurses can turn on and off their emotions or put up walls to deal with loss. The best nurses are touched every day by the humanity of their patients and sometimes go home at the end of a long day exhausted, not only physically, but emotionally. (Former oncology nurse/IV therapy nurse now Continue Reading

- AW

I'm an LVN. NICU, PICU, ICU. I believe that many people do not realize that nurses do not always do what the "Drs orders" say right away. What I mean by that is...1. We catch and ask for correction of mistakes. 2. When doc orders Mr. Smith to have laxatives, stool softeners, etc, BID, we Continue Reading

- NS

I am a recovery room nurse. I monitor patients as they come out of anesthesia. Do you know that many times we must hold your chin up with our hands, no matter how heavy your head is, to keep your airway clear after surgery? You will never remember, because you have been given meds to Continue Reading

- DM

1. As an pediatric ER Triage nurse.... Be happy when the I am not "rushing" your child straight back. It means through my years of training and experience I am saying your child will be ok. You don't want to see me run. Me running with your child is a VERY bad sign. 2. I have Continue Reading

- CH

Nurses pull arterial lines... were freakin athletes! That big 'ole artey, you know, the aorta; it essentially carries blood from the heart to THE WHOLE BODY... ok. So if someones Blood pressure is 130/85... how much force does it take to stop the bleeding from that hole in your femoral artery? Quick calculation says > Continue Reading

Cardiovascular Surgical ICU/CVSD

I am a Respiratory Therapist. After being asked what I do for a living and I say RT the usual response is "oh so you just give breathing treatments- that must be so easy!" That is NOT all we do. Yes that is ALOT of our job but not entirely. I work in a small hospital Continue Reading

- CC

I would like the general public to know just how hard we have to study to even get through nursing school. I am on my senior year of my BSN and it has been blood, sweat and tears getting through this program! We have to know so much to be able to go on a floor Continue Reading

- SI

Cardiac Nurse here. I would like the general public to be aware that we are here to improve health, heal wounds, care for you in your time of need. We nurses do many things and are many things to many people. We are tolerant and understanding of scared loved ones and patients. I want the general Continue Reading

- MC