I’ve heard it said that nurses are a secretive bunch, that they keep certain things under wraps from their patient and patient’s families. My first thought of a nurse not disclosing information to those he/she cared for seemed ludicrous. But then I thought, Well, perhaps that’s true.
After all, everyone has secrets, and even your nurse might be keeping something from you. The fact is that there are some things you don’t need to know, some truths you can’t handle, or some things that we would just never tell you if given the option.
I guess nurses are a secretive bunch. But if it’s right what they say, that the truth will set you free, then here’s ten secrets your nurse has been keeping from you.
1. That we’re exhausted! Your nurse will never tell you how tired, fatigued, or absolutely beat they are. You may say, “you look tired,” and we’ll answer honestly enough, but we’ll mostly make our exhaustion seem like less than it is.
You’ll never know just how much the stress can drain us, or how years of rotating shifts have made us just plain worn out. Cause we’ll never let on. You won’t know our feet are aching, and our brain is aching even more. When you ask surprised, “are you still here?!” we’ll just smile and nod, adding, “I still have four more hours.”
2. That giving your medicine is a big, frustrating deal. Okay, I know, giving pills is what nurses do. Some patients may think that’s all we do. But what you will never know, what your nurse will never fully explain, is how really time-consuming and challenging our morning med pass may be.
We don’t just go grab a pile, put them in a cup, and saunter satisfied to your bedside. It’s so much more than that, even if it only takes you a second to swallow them.
Your nurse looks at every medication you have ordered, then makes certain she knows what each med is for. She will check for contraindications, possible side effects, and/or interactions with other meds you are on. She’ll make the decision if you need certain meds given or held until a later date.
There will possibly be phone calls to the physician to clarify an order, and if your nurse seems to be taking a bit to return, it might be because she had to run to the pharmacy for a medication of yours that wasn’t available.
Next your nurse is just hoping all the barcodes will scan!
Giving medications is no where near as easy as it looks, but your nurse will make it seem like a breeze.
3. That we “bend” the rules. Usually if you ask your nurse for something the legitimate answer may be no, but your nurse will respond, “let me check on that.”
I’m not saying your nurse disregards doctor’s orders, but I am saying your nurse weighs the pros and cons of the directives set in place for your care. He/she usually knows just how far to push the envelope while maintaining safety, but ensuring patient satisfaction. It’s a fine balance to make certain you’re happy, or as happy as you can be in the hospital.
4. When we’re sick. You might pick-up on when your nurse doesn’t feel well, but the majority of the time your nurse won’t disclose to you their own health. While naturally your nurse will stay home if battling a contagious disease, for most other illnesses your nurse will still show up to care for you.
You won’t know the chronic pain your nurse endures, or about the slipped disc in their back. They might involuntarily wince when they lift without thinking, but if you ask they’ll say, “I’m fine.”
Everyone knows nurses make the worst patients. So while we excel at caring for you, we might neglect ourselves, and we’ll seldom let on how bad we feel.
5. That our other patient just died. In my critical care unit I’m usually right outside your door, if not right by your side. If you don’t see me for a while that may indicate things are not doing so well in another room.
When I return, perhaps visually flustered, I will apologize profusely for ignoring you. Bless your heart for being so understanding most of the time.
I’ll never be able to tell you why I was unavailable for a time, but occasionally it’s because my other patient has died. It won’t change how I care for you, except to make me work harder to get you well.
6. That our family is sick. Working as a nurse usually doesn’t afford you the ability to leave at a moment’s notice when your child falls ill. Nurses will continue to care for their sick patients even when sickness is waiting for them at home.
Your nurse will never let on about their role as a caretaker for an aging parent, or how exhausting it may be to give the attention needed to a chronically sick child at home. They will instead give you 100% while at your bedside, because that’s their job.
We feel that while you’re here getting better that things should be about you. So we’ll probably keep our dealings with sickness away from work a private matter.
7. A striking family resemblance. Here’s what I mean by that. It’s possible, highly likely in fact, that your nurse has been on the receiving end of the situation in which you find yourself. They have been that grieving, confused family member fighting for dad to pull through. Naturally, when they see you that striking resemblance to their own family member might be at the forefront of their mind.
For me it’s my mom. I see many patients whose case mimics my mother’s. I think of her each time, but I rarely say a word. She fought the good fight, but eventually went to her forever home. I’m pulling for you, so I usually keep that secret to myself.
8. How often we go to bat. For you. Although a part of me would love to brag about it, in the end I do not. At least not to my specific patient.
Everywhere around the world nurses step away from the bedside, and they fight for the best interests of their patients. They go to bat for you always. They go head-to-head with physicians or other health care professionals, and present their case for what they desire for you. You will likely never know it, but we do. That’s our job, so we just keep the particulars to ourself.
9. How scared we were when we almost lost you. Many of my peers might not use the word fear, or say that an acute situation scared them, but most will agree that when a patient crashes and things go bad that their body reacts.
Hearts race, stomachs clinch, and despite the liquid efficiency of the team, there’s a measure, albeit small, of worry. We want you to come back, and it honestly scares us that you might not.
But you will never know this. Not fully. We’ll tell you what happened, and honestly describe the events, but that moment of fear will have faded in the face of victory, and it will be purposely forgotten in favor of mutual rejoicing.
10. How we think about you off the clock. I’m not sure if you know this or not, but when your nurse leaves your bedside they take a piece of you with them. They will wonder how you’re feeling, and will likely call the other shift on duty to see how you’re doing.
I often times tell a patient, “I’ll be praying for you,” but I wonder if they realize that I really do. Maybe that’s my little secret.
Maybe your nurse does keep secrets, but some things are just hard to put into words. Some incidents are indescribable, and other times it’s just best left unsaid.
I don’t want you to worry though. I promise we’ll tell you most everything else.
Lisa Marie says
Brie, I loved this blog. It is so true, I have lived this and nurses all over the world live this everyday. I teach and share my stories with these things during their clinical instruction.
Bless you for writing it so eloquently.
brieann.rn@gmail.com says
Thank you so much.
Carlene says
Having worked ER/ICU it was very stressful! However when we saved a life or made someone better it was always worth it.
JJ in LA says
While I’m not a nurse, it is sort of the family business. My mom, my sister, a couple of aunts and a few cousins are nurses. I’ve trained and worked as an EMT, Physical Therapy Tech and Phlebotomist, and have other relatives in the allied health fields (Respiratory Therapy, Radiology Tech). I’ve spent many long days and nights in hospital settings, from small 40 bed rural hospitals to Level 1 trauma centers,
For my money, nurses, especially critical care nurses, are bonafide superheroes. Give me the short redhead ER nurse with 28 years of experience who can keep an ER running over a resident who has to look up dosages any day.
Burlene says
All of these things are true., and after 35 years, mostly at the bedside, I am happy to be retiring and leaving all of this to a new, energetic nurse.
Catherine M Meadows says
Why are you addressing this to patients??? Does your car repair person tell you how hard it is to work with dirty, gooey, auto parts?! Does the person who does your nails talk about the lung damage they get from fumes? Does your attorney talk to you about the aggravation of having court dates canceled or how bad she felt when she lost a case? Do folks tell you how exhausted their work makes them?
Be a professional- quit whining. Nurses are not special-it makes us look like fools when this kind of stuff is posted!
Catherine M Meadows RN
brieann.rn@gmail.com says
Thanks for your opinion. I’ve found after being a nurse blogger for four years that other professionals, such as myself, find a comfort and camaraderie when I write about the difficulties inherent in the field. It’s not whining, I can assure you. Sorry you missed the point.
Lorraine Givens, RN says
You post was spot on that you so much! It is hard to explain to the outside world what nursing is really like and I think you summed it up nicely.
Lorraine Givens, RN
brieann.rn@gmail.com says
Thank you.
Judy jensen says
Amen to many ofthe comments we would not be part of this profession unless we loved it. So fortunate since there are many people who just work for their paycheck. I am a retired nurse who spent 40 years living a life of challenges but very rewarding
Nancy Bush says
Brie, Thank you for this article. It was right on. I have been a nurse for 40+ years and have had all 10 points happen to me.
My daughter is a phlebotomist and #10 has recently occurred with her. She reads the obits to see if a patient has died and has also called back to work to see a certain patient is doing.
If you are in healthcare (any part of healthcare) and you really care about the lives of the people you touch all 10 of these points are true
Thank you for sharing and don’t let people like Ms Meadows tell you that you are whinning. You are not.
I recently have wondered if there has been a study on nurses who have retired, are ill, and if the illnesses they have are related to their work as a nurse
brieann.rn@gmail.com says
Thank you for commenting.
Greg says
I do get your point, but come on. Telling patients that getting and giving them their medication is bothersome. How ignorant!!!! I have been a nurse for almost 14 years and never found this or any part of my job as a bother. If any nurse thinks this is bothersome, get another job.
Shannon Meyer says
Thank you for this post. I as a nurse have felt everyone of these situations. I at no point felt like this was whining. I felt more like you were educating people on how important our patients are to us. Thank you again
brieann.rn@gmail.com says
Thank you so much Shannon.
Arceli Abernathy says
Catherine M. Meadows- Wow! I am sorry that you do not know that nursing comes with grace. Daily grace from our heavenly Father. I’m an ER nurse and I know that being a seasoned nurse it is by the grace of GOD that I am still in the field. I pray that you will find the passion and joy of the calling that you had been called into. Brie, thank you for sharing your experiences with grace and truth. GOD bless you.
brieann.rn@gmail.com says
Thank you so much. 🙂
jeffs55 says
I wonder how many of you nurses were forced to take on these lofty responsibilities. Great though they may be, you all ASKED for them. It may have been the large hourly wage or it may have been out of a sincere to aid your fellow man. I am leaning towards helping your fellow man. You would have to go into the $100 per hour range to get me to clean someones diarrhea. In any case, shut up. We all have a sack of rocks to carry around and you went looking for yours.
brieann.rn@gmail.com says
While I do take a mild offense at your comment (shut up?!) and almost didn’t approve it, I decided to let it on through since you must have missed a large theme in this post. You might want to give it a second read, and you’ll see the parts that discuss where nurses care about and think about their patients so much. Some people only see the parts of something they want to see, and perhaps if anything about the field is most difficult, it is that.
Rachael, RN says
Dearest Jeffs55: I assure you, we do not receive a “large hourly wage,” and definitely not $100 per hour, not even CLOSE! Why are you reading a nurse’s blog when you clearly have no respect for nurses? I wish people like you could follow me on one of my 12 hour shifts in the ICU. I think your attitude would change, especially if you were watching us care for your family member. I don’t consider my career a “sack of rocks.”
A nurse from the trenches says
Oh Jeff. Brie was being very kind when she said she only took mild offense at your comment. I take extreme offense! You are just plain rude! The only excuse I’ll give you is ignorance. Which obviously you are. You would be the kind of patient and/or family member that I deplore but I would still treat with skill and grace.
After 38 years in the profession I know one thing for certain. Like a soldier who comes home from war and attempts to share his (or her) experiences the only ones who will ever truly understand are the ones who fought in the trenches beside him.
Heather says
I get £12.90 per hour looking after elderly people in their twilight years, most of them with dementia. Maybe one day, you too can be grateful that some people care for others so much that they will do all of this for a relative of yours.
Therese says
Response to Catherine Meadows: When you share as a professional about your job, that is NOT whining! Right off the bat you come across as a very non-compassionate woman! If we as RN’s just did the basic of our jobs as Robots with no feeling, no insight, no compassion or empathy, where would the patient be? Would our just being robotic nurses help the healing of the patient? I don’t think so! Sometimes it helps for others to know just how intense, stressful and tiring our jobs really are, but not during the time we are treating and caring for them! The only nurses I have ever heard whine are ones who possibly should have never entered this profession. There are “whiners” in all walks of life, so why focus on nurses. Your analogy to the mechanic Ms. Meadows isn’t quite accurate. I have heard many a mechanic complain in a whining manner. The best and most professional nurses I know, never come into the work place whining! You know why? Because they are professional, caring, skilled individuals who know it is NOT about them, but the patient. Along with that we look at the overall, big picture and support the family during that time. I hope your heart softens for the benefit of your patients and your peers!
James Smith says
Dear Catherine,
As a sometime patient, Family or Friend of sometime patients, and as the former husband of a CANCER patient (now long deceased.), I’m gonna call you out on this.
There are those people who will never realize that the world does not revolve around them. They will make everyone else around them miserable. Unless one has the patience of Job.
Nurses are human beings who work in an incredibly demanding field. Sometimes they prevent a doctor from making a fatal mistake or get crapped on trying.
Sometimes they’re held up on a ward because a patient (terminal) has bled out and they had to stop and change clothes. The give away was the blood stains they couldn’t get off their shoes. They then came to the ER to access my wife’s portacath because nobody in the ER had the skill to do it. She came down like an angel with a smile on her face, and took care of my wife with efficacy and grace.
My current wife and I have many friends in the nursing profession, both active and retired.
I have an interesting perspective because of this.
I’ve seen both sides.
Brie has tried to help patients and their loved ones look “behind the curtain” as it were.
Speaking of which, let’s just touch on the opposite side of the coin.
My wife has been cursed with Endometreosis.
Bad enough to require two surgeries.
To give others better understanding, not for you,(you’re a Nurse, you know this stuff!)
The second surgery was attended by both an obgyn, and a bowel specialist. It was a closed surgery and they utilized a laser to cut and cauterize the tissue involved. After the surgery, the doctor showed us before and after pictures.
The surgeons knew their stuff, and did a great job.
As this was DAY surgery, my wife was to be discharged after recovery. As it turned out, the unit was closing for the end of the day. Of course the NURSE wanted an easy time for her shift….” Here, this is a prescription for pain medication when you get home. There’s a pharmacy just down the street, you can get it filled there.” And discharged just like that.
In the very next bed, “Here, I have PAIN MEDICATION for you, because the pharmacies will be CLOSED.”
The pharmacy she indicated was undergoing remodeling, and was CLOSED!
By the time we got to the next pharmacy, it was DAMN near to closing. It was that late.
Of course the anesthesia was wearing off, and it was Laser Surgery. Think third degree burns all over the inside of your abdomen.
Imagine your loved one in excruciating pain because one person wanted an easier night.
If I could have, I’d have wrung her neck thoroughly.
As I said, I know a lot of nurses.
ALL of the nurses I know are wonderful people.
But, that one person spoiled a lot of goodwill.
As I said, nurses are all human beings. And I’m willing to say most are worthy of high praise because of the special qualities they bring to a tough job. To those nurses that embody the best of nursing, Cudos to you all!
To the individuals who just show up for a paycheck, please! Go find something else!
Unfortunately, the best ones will keep on until they just can’t go on. And the ones who aren’t really worthy will hang on FOREVER, and will make their patients wish they’d died and gone to Hell.
brieann.rn@gmail.com says
Thank you for commenting and sharing.
paula langdon says
Yes, you are correct. Workers in all industries have problems and possible health complications that arise out of their work. But nobody dies if a nail technician or lawyer don’t do their job. Nurses and people like me, Health Care Assistants, have the responsibility in our hands for the most vulnerable people in society. The sick and infirm and the dying. I don’t think this blog is whining. It is educating the public as to what our jobs entail.
Donna says
Ms. Meadows, you need to reread the article. I found statements of what we DON’T say but are going thru. I found no winning and found the author to be spot on. It is a shame that you didn’t read correctly what was said. I hope you are more careful with taking off orders that you were in reading this blog.
R.O says
My bet is that you are probably one who “eats their young” and a “nurse bully.” It certainly doesn’t help the patients if the nurses can’t work together. She can post what she wants, you are entitled to your opinion just as much as anyone else, but you have no right to tell her not to post this. With the compassion you have just shown, I’m thankful I don’t work with you.
Beth says
Wow Catherine I hope I NEVER get you as a nurse. You would make a better mortician with that attitude!!!!!
Jpuckett says
I feel you really missed the point….
Cathy McNeil says
Hmm… That wasn’t very nice. I’m going to assume you’ve just had a very long and difficult day.
Cathy McNeil says
Hmm…That’s not very nice. I’m going to assume you’ve just had a very long and difficult day.
jules says
Panties ? Bunch ? Whine ? Much ?
Sara P. says
I think your reminders to patients and their families that nurses are human too is important. Not that we should expect nurses to do less than their best, but to give grace when maybe we have to wait longer than we feel we should. Or when we don’t get our way. When we’re sick and in the hospital, sometimes we need to remember even then life isn’t all about us.
brieann.rn@gmail.com says
Thank you for commenting.
Catherine MMeafows says
Brie, I apologize for the “whining” comment…as I re-read the blog I realized I was wrong. I enjoy your writing. What I understood the blog to mean was that our patients need to know these difficulties and that is what I was objecting to- and I think my examples of other professions were good ones. If this is for nurses then I small for it!
brieann.rn@gmail.com says
Thank you Catherine. No problem.
Karen says
Lovely message Brie. As a nurse of 43 years I appreciate this very much.
brieann.rn@gmail.com says
Thank you.
Reverend Joseph M. Johnson says
My wife is a nurse, and all of the above are true. You folks are the best. Truly a calling to be able to do this well. Keep sharing dear, it’s not an embarrassment to be honest and transparent, and certainly not whining. Thanks for serving humanity with grace, dignity and kindness. I salute your profession… and my lovely wife.
brieann.rn@gmail.com says
Thank you so much!
dorothy Taffner says
First time I have seen this blog and I really like what I am hearing. My experience with Nurses has been wonderful..they are caring..know what they are doing and talking about..are always listening to me..tell me that they like me..enjoy my humor..and don’t mind when I have a lot of questions..which they always try to answer. They help me when I am anxious and fearful..and that means so very much to me. When my husband spends the night with me in the Hospital they are so thoughtful of him too…he is a retired Hospice Nurse so when I have had to be in the Hospital he is there changing the bed..helping me to wash up and just doing all that he can do to help me and to help my Nurse at the time. Thanks for having this site to reply about something that is close to me..Dorothy T.
brieann.rn@gmail.com says
Thank you so much for commenting and sharing with me. God bless you and your husband. I’ve been a hospice nurse myself and it’s a wonderful calling, and takes a special nurse.
Tammi Crowder says
All this is so true. I’ve been a nurse for 31 years, the last 15 with geriatrics. It takes a huge toll on my body and I frequently wonder how much longer I can continue to do this, but I love my patients. This population also lends itself to having more frequent deaths and patients crashing than some other areas. Thank you for sharing this with others. Maybe they will realize that we really do care about them and when we are not right there at their bedside, it’s because we are caring for someone else in need of our services.
brieann.rn@gmail.com says
Thank you for commenting and sharing.
Beth Dinkela says
#11. That your doctor is one that we would never send a family member, or a friend, or even someone who asks “who should we see for problem X”. Because it’s unethical, and unprofessional. If a doctor is wonderful, I say that they pass “the mom test”, that they are someone whom I would refer my mother to. But when their doctor is a butcher, or a quack, or unprofessional, or treat nursing staff like shit? How do you tell a patient that?
Janice McConnell says
I unfortunately have been in that position more than once in my career. All you can do is keep the patients best interests at heart and do what you can to shield them from the doctor’s mistakes. The most I have ever said was to tell a patient he was entitled to a second opinion when things were going wrong. They practically never ask for one as they have confidence in their doctor and believe what he says. It is a terrible situation. As far as how they treat nurses, it’s part of the job to let it roll off your shoulders. They are pathetic people.
martie says
After45years in ICU…….I’ve been blessed to see many miracles and Iwatched many take their last breath….no I didn’t ask for this as somebody wrote…….I chose caring for all of humanity..even the goofball that commented on the $100 bucks an hour….I’m trusted with many people’s most previous possessions….their loved ones..I’ve missed school plays, dance recitals, church,holidays, poignant memories my children made while I was at work ….and I did it because I wanted to make a difference….it’s not glamorous…never will be….but I’m blessed to have cared for such awesome patients who left me a much better person than I was before I met them….so kudos to all the dedicated nurse s who care for the grateful n ungrateful…..please be advised…..I’ve gotten way more than I ever asked for
brieann.rn@gmail.com says
Thank you for commenting.
Mlg386 says
I believe the $100/hr comment was an effort to give a small nod of respect before he slammed this well written piece and proved that he really doesn’t understand. He said that he would require that he be paid that sum in order to do what is really a small small part of our jobs. It is the part of our jobs which requires only a small amount of effort, usually. We have people’s lives in our hands every day. Multiple people’s lives. We are weighing every decision and truly caring about what we’re doing. When you have a patient going downhill and you’re calling other departments in, making phone calls to specialists, chancing calling the physician’s cell phone directly and bypassing the service… Still having 4 or 5 other patients to care for with the same caliber of expertise that you’re caring for the declining patient with … And it’s 4pm and you haven’t taken a break yet (eating, toileting, or otherwise) … And we’re not getting paid anywhere near $100… But he’s most concerned with poop and telling people who are doing so much more than he is, for so much less than he’s willing to do it for you to shut up… Just thought I’d help clarify.
brieann.rn@gmail.com says
Bravo.
L. Klemmer says
Brie – Bravo to you! I have been an RN for 35 years and find all of these ideas to be very true. I worked 8 years in Med/Surg Neuro/Neuro surgery and needed to find something different after young adults who contracted MS, where wheel chair bound after 8 years , being cared for by elderly parents. After 23 years in L&D, my thoughts echo your ideas. I can not say to a Mom- ” stop pushing while I have lunch or go to the bathroom”.
Many shifts without food or a break for 8 to 10 hrs because that is what we do.
Every administration in the country should read this! I have established a relationship with this couple from induction to delivery. I had the Nurse Manager criticize me many times for over-riding lunch when we are in the middle of a delivery. Wake up people! It angers me and makes me sad to think the ” higher ups” are thinking about saving the all mighty dollar instead of safe nursing and patient satisfaction. Put on your old nursing shoes and walk a shift with me to see what I do in 8 hours!
gene says
from a patients point of view, as I have been a few times: Nurses don’t receive enough respect. I myself would love and respect nurses
brieann.rn@gmail.com says
Thank you Gene.
Cheryl W says
To Catherine Meadows – Sorry you are misunderstanding the point to Brie’s post. She is NOT saying this to patients, she is just reinterating that most of the time our job as Nurses is misinterpreted and misunderstood. The general public, thinking that we are just robots following written orders, when actually we care very much about our patients and spend a lot of time making sure that their drug administration is spot on and that their care is appropriate. She is not only absolutely correct in her blog, but I support her for supporting the majority of nurses out their who do their job day in and day out without complaints and mostly without kuddos! I hope that you can see the value in this blog as many others do. Cheryl of Michigan
gates8105 says
Excellent!
John Henderson says
Dearest Brie, I have suspected for sometime now that nurses are really human! With your ability to care for 7 to 15 patients per shift with the precision of an android and the true compassion of a saint, you are truly a blessed site when you turn the corner into my room. While there are some nurses who wear their home life on their shirt sleeves bringing their fight with hubby or a self-centered teenager to the “office” – it is a pleasure to know that mostly we are your only focal point while you are here on the job. I would like your permission to copy this article about the 10 secrets and make it available to the seniors here at our apt building as well as our local Antelope Valley Hospital.
Awaiting your written permission,
my wife, Karen and I are serious fans…
John & Karen H
brieann.rn@gmail.com says
Thank you so much for your kind words. I’m honored, and yes, permission granted. Thanks again.
Stephen Kuklin RN BSN says
After 43 years of being a bedside nurse, I can honestly say that everything you say is the truth. I worked Peds for 10 years and NICU for 17 years. I have advanced certification in both NICU and Medical-Surgical Nursing. Every single patient I cared for were like a family to me. There wee many times when I called to see how an infant was doing. I cannot tell you how many times my heart sunk when I came to work and a child, who was very sick, was not in their bed. I gave each patient I cared for a bit of me until there was not a lot left. You celebrate your triumphs and you mourn your loses. I would not trade my past nursing career for anything on earth. Now that I am retired, I do not suffer the highs and lows I did while nursing everyday. My life is more settled and predictable now. As my time approaches to meet my maker, I will be proud to go to my greater reward because I will know that I left this world a better place for my having been here to care for those who could not care for themselves.
And I would like to respond to Catherine Meadows. If we, as nurses, cannot be here to support each other, then what kind of human beings are we. Nursing is a calling, not a job. Nurses receive such little support from others because no one but a nurse knows what we go through. If we cannot support each other then we are less human than the worst critics who condemn us for being to caring or to concerned.
Thank you Brie for putting in words, something that the public will read and perhaps understand.
brieann.rn@gmail.com says
Thank you so much for commenting, and for encouraging me.
Scott says
As an oncology nurse for almost 30 yrs, you’ve hit on just about everything I think about, daily. I’ve been blessed to have never suffered from burn out like I’ve seen in so many of my coworkers and I still love my job and patients more than ever. Doesn’t mean I don’t get tired or frustrated. I just try to put it in perspective and never let my patients see it. Whenever I feel overwhelmed, I remember the smile on the face when I’ve calmed a fear, relieved a pain, or helped someone transition to the last phase of their life with dignity. Kudos to all my fellow nurses!
brieann.rn@gmail.com says
Thank you for commenting and sharing.
PiedType says
I’ve been a cancer patient for eight months and without exception the many nurses I’ve met this year have been wonderful, smiling, caring, competent individuals. I’m constantly amazed because I can see how grueling the job is. I know I’m not their only patient, yet they know everything about me, are constantly smiling and reassuring and going the extra mile to make sure my every concern is addressed. Words can’t express how appreciative I am. A simple “thank you” as I leave is totally inadequate. But it’s all I can offer. Thank you, Brie, to you and nurses everywhere.
brieann.rn@gmail.com says
Thank you so much for commenting and sharing.
Katie says
I have been living with severe Crohn’s disease since I was 17. I am now 29. In the past twelve years I have spent a great deal of time in and out of the hospital. I am on a first name basis with my gastroenterologists nurse. The care I have received has been incredible. Allison, my GI’s nurse has laughed with me, cried with me and suffered with me through some of the difficult times of my life. The nurses that cared for me in the hospital were absolutely fantastic. They went out of their way to understand my needs since often even medical professionals are unfamiliar with what Crohn’s is. They never made me feel like a drug seeker as many other Crohn’s patients have experienced. Were it not for the nurses I have encountered over the last 12 years, I don’t know if I would have had the mental and physical fortitude to continue my fight to live.
From this chronically ill patient to all nurses that genuinely care,
THANK YOU❤️
brieann.rn@gmail.com says
Thank you so much for commenting and sharing.
anonymouse says
Ugh, the few negative comments here really disgust me! I appreciate that you address the patient in posts like this, because quite frankly, they need to hear it. It shows them that we really do care, AND that we are human beings who have needs too. It is not appropriate to share you personal stuff with your own real-life patients while at work, but in a general format like a blog, have at it. People are curious. Reader’s Digest even runs a “what your ___ won’t tell you” article every month! Also, I get that every job involves some stress, and yes we do choose to be nurses, but what makes certain jobs unique is the intense level of emotional/psychological stress that they entail. Nurses, physicians, firefighters, EMTs, police officers, dispatchers, and military personnel all experience things that would devastate, traumatize, or haunt most people. The fact that we “choose” to accept those things as part of our work does not change the fact that we still experience them with varying degreees of sensitivity. They are just “your job” but you still have to cope with them. I personally don’t grieve after most deaths, codes, etc, but that doesn’t mean everyone else can simply take them in stride. Do we criticize veterans who have PTSD and call them “whiners” just because they chose to enlist? No! Then why is it okay to do the same to nurses who want to talk about emotionally traumatic events at work? Seeing someone spray blood on the ceiling as they exsanguinate is a littleeee bit different than an auto mechanic getting greasy fingers. Again – yes, we choose to be nurses, but someone has to do it. If we all just said “you’re right, I shouldn’t be a nurse if I must acknowledge ___”, your detractors would be singing a totally different tune!
brieann.rn@gmail.com says
Thanks for the great comment.
Linda says
Thanks so much for your comments on nursing. I wasn’t able to get into nursing until I was 30 years old After working for 15 years in hospitals, nursing homes, private duty and insurance work, I had to retire due to my health. I miss nursing and all the patients I have encountered over the years. God bless all you new nurses and experience the hard work and memories throughout your career. You’ll never regret it.
Rusti Dodson says
Thank you! As a geriatric nurse dealing with not only medical issues but different Dementias, SPOT ON!!!
Sandy wheeler says
How true are your words. I graduated from nursing school in 1962 and made 1.62 an hour. Obviously I did not become a nurse for the money. I agree so much with your post. We do it because we love people and want to help them. Even when we are hurting we keep going for the sake of our patients. I am retired now and really miss my RN job.
Marian Wilson, PhD, MPH, RN-BC says
Beautifully articulated, Brie. I especially appreciate how you highlight the role of nurse as advocate who stands sentry at the patient’s door. So very important and under-appreciated. RN since 1988.
brieann.rn@gmail.com says
Thank you.