I am your nurse today. You think that I’ve given up on your family member and I’m just letting him die. What you don’t know is that I left your room to cry in the break room because my heart breaks for him. I was your nurse today. You’ve told me you are suicidal and you think I’m judging you. But what you don’t know is that I’ve been in your shoes and I truly understand. I was your nurse today. You’re embarrassed to tell me you overdosed. What you don’t know is that I lost my friend to an OD and would give anything to see him again. I was your nurse today. You’re mad that I made you reposition in the bed, causing you discomfort. But I just want to keep you safe from skin breakdown. I was your nurse today.
See more 4 things a nurse doesn’t play about her stethoscope her feelings her coffee and her pens shirt
You’re flustered that I’m pushing juice down your throat, poking you with needles, and pushing meds down your IV. But what you don’t understand is that your blood sugar is massively low and I’m trying to protect you. I was your nurse today. You’re upset that you’ve only seen a nurse a few times in the last 12 hours. What you don’t understand is that I have a patient in critical condition that needs tending to, a new patient just arrived on the floor, and I was just punched in the face by a confused patient. At this moment I feel like a failure that I haven’t been able to give you the attention that I would like to and now I feel like I’m a failure. I was your nurse today.
I don’t always know the answers but I’m always searching. Always learning. Always listening and observing. Each day I come in with a stethoscope around my neck, a badge on my shirt, and my heart on my sleeve. There is no difference between you and I. I’m a person with problems. I am no better or less than you. The only difference is that I am your nurse today. 4 things a nurse doesn’t play about her stethoscope her feelings her coffee and her pens shirt. Well written! I’ve been doing this for well over 2 decades now. When I was younger I would not have given to shits. Now I have progressed into how you see patients now. I’m right there with you. I cringe and try to correct on-the-spot when I hear comments or see a Nurse (with only a few yrs under their belt)
nursing students need to read this…
Yesterday I overheard a nursing student snark, “yeah, this is why I’m in nursing school – so I can pass trays.” And if I hadn’t been up to my eyeballs in other things to do for my patients, I would have stopped and said: You’ve already missed the point entirely. I’m not sure why you DO think you’re here. If you hope to be a good nurse (or coworker, or person with a heart), you’re going to spend the majority of your working life doing things you SO mistakenly think are beneath you. You are going to pass trays with a smile – excitement even, when your patient finally gets to try clear liquids. You will even open the milk and butter the toast and cut the meat.
You will feed full-grown adults from those trays, bite by tedious, hard-to-swallow bite. You will, at times, get your own vital signs or glucoscans, empty Foley bags and bedside commodes without thinking twice. You will reposition the same person, move the same three pillows, 27 times in one shift because they can’t get comfortable. You will not only help bathe patients, but wash and dry between the toes they can’t reach. Lotion and apply deodorant. Scratch backs. Nystatin powder skin folds. Comb hair. Carefully brush teeth and dentures. Shave an old man’s wrinkled face. Because these things make them feel more human again.
