Just a quick little thought. Nurses and Doctors have different perspective when treating a patient.

Nurses tend to the physical, emotional, and the beside issue of every day life and death. Doctors tend to the physical, the labs and other such things.

Each of us play an important role, but each role is different.

I became a nurse because I wanted to be directly involved in the care of the patient at the bedside; doctors do not often get that opportunity.

When I'm told, "Honey, you're way too smart to be a nurse you should go back to school and be a doctor." I smile sincerely and tell them, "I'm to smart to be a doctor, I'd rather spend more time with them."

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www.MyOwnWoman.blogspot.com

During my first semester of my first year in nursing we had to write a paper about nursing as a profession and I put that as a reason. Doctors really don't get to spend so much time with patients and nurses have the chance to really communicate with the patients.

In the end, if I had to choose one stereotype that sticks to everyone's head it is that everyone thinks all nurses are females.

Just wanted to give everyone an update about this post. Apparently the ad got pulled, if you didn't see it, this was the Dentyne ad I was talking about:

http://www.nursingadvocacy.org/image...07/dentyne.mov

You can read all about it here:

http://www.nursingadvocacy.org/news/...6_dentyne.html

"Nursing supporters have persuaded Cadbury Schweppes to withdraw a "naughty nurse" television ad its Canadian division had been running for Dentyne Ice gum."

LOL....you can't fool us male nurses! We spend day in and day out surrounded by women...who certainly do their own share of fantasizing about doctors! Usually it's McDreamy from Grey's Anatomy....does that count? hehehehe

And more than once, I've caught all the female nurses gathered around the computer ogling some hot man they found a picture of on the internet...giggling away!

You're secrets out! Women do it to!

:P

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Nurse Sean
http://nursesean.com

As far as the "you're so smart, why don't you be a doctor." besides the things people have said, what I tend to say is that I like the nursing model a lot better than the medical model -- it's holistic and patient centered (rather than disease centered).

Not exactly related, but something I wanted to share about the influence of media: studies show that a little more than 50% of hospitalized patients survive CPR, but only 14% survive to discharge. Now interestingly, back in the 90's someone watched Rescue 911, Chicago Hope, and ER and the survival rate was 75% with 67% surviving to discharge. The patients portrayed were, for the most part trauma patients (who have the highest survival rate -- they tend to be young w/o a lot of co-morbidities...not exactly the typical hospital pt. When asked about this, the producer or director or whoever had just gotten their MD and they insisted that they were very careful to be realistic and that "people don't believe what they see on TV" (hah!).

Another study asked people about their expectations: (http://www.aemj.org/cgi/content/abstract/7/1/48) "to determine public expectations of CPR and correlate these expectations with various sources of information regarding CPR, including age, television, personal medical training, public programs, friends/family with medical training, and personal experience with CPR. Methods: A written survey was randomly distributed to local church congregations and completed on a voluntary basis. Results: Ninety-six percent of the respondents expected CPR to be unrealistically effective. "

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A Window For Your Home: Stories of dying and doctoral education

http://awfyh.blogspot.com/

magic is the deliberate manipulation of coincidence

Okay, I'll own up to one sexist comment. A hunky young cardiologist walked by - I'd never seen him before - and I said, "Man, nursing has it's fringe benefits and docs like him are one of them!"

Yes, I did say that. I'm so ashamed.

Anyway, the doctor behind me got really mad and said that "If a man said that it would be sexual harrassment!"

I said, "Don't worry Dr. Smith, you're cute, too!"

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The ER is the only place where you are rewarded for efficiency by getting more patients!

Kim
http://www.emergiblog.com