The Nurse Will See You Now

I am an RN in homecare for technology dependent clients and also work in a residence for intermediate care mentally retarded women. I've been a nurse for many years and I have never worked for pay in a hospital setting. There are thousands of nurses like me who see clients and families daily and for the long haul. Part of the problem with respect I believe stems from the way medicare and insurance companies only reimburse for specific "skilled" care and do not consider the complete picture of assessment, treatment, and preventative measures taken by nurses with medically fragile people who are not in the hospital. Thank you for acknowledging the role of nurses in education.

"It is an age-old problem, the clash of cultures and tug of war over credit between two professions working in close quarters toward an identical goal."

This is the first falsehood - doctors and nurses do NOT have identical goals.

Doctors treat diseases; nurses treat people.

Consider: nursing is the only health profession that includes patient/family teaching as part of it's core curriculum - nurses routinely educate on how to prevent falls and bedsores, integrate diet and exercise, and increasingly, how to navigate a broken healht car system. It is also the only health profession that includes education in case management - that is, helping a patient/family manage multiple complex health problems in the context of medical, emotional and environmental concerns.

Consider: a 72-yr old woman with type II diabetes and cataracts enters the hospital for repair of a fractured hip - at home is her 78-yr old husband, whom she cared for until her injury. She has an orthopedic doctor, an eye doctor, and an endocrinologist - but to keep her and her husband out of a nursing home, a home health nurse with case management skills is required. Such a nurse will help her coordinate her medicines, physical therapy sessions, diet, exercise, and help her cope with her other life needs such as cooking, shopping, and caring for her husband.

It is noted, with confusion and sadness, that Obama has not brought the nursing profession to the health care table, particularly when he had the endorsement of the American Nurse's Association, but not the American Hospital or American Medical Associations.

Nurses are the health professionals that receive training in holistic care, and understand that to treat a disease is to miss the point - it is people we need to take care of, not diseases. If we are to adopt a new paradigm of preventative wellness over the old notions of diagnosis and treatment, we will be much more successful if we include the nursing profession.

When we are finally ready as a country to treat people instead of diseases or profits, we can only hope that our nation will have enough nurses to answer the call.

I have been a nurse for over 30 years. Nurses are the backbone of medical care provided in the US. Some physicians know this: they ask nurses for information, look for input, and treat them with the respect they deserve. However, there are physicians like you describe in this article who look at nurses as underlings who do their bidding. Those doctors have never had to depend on their patients to receive care WITHOUT nurses-if they had, they would be singing a different tune. Nursing is an art and a science and it is a very complex job. We need a partnership with our physicians, and when that partnership trust exist-our patients benefit.

Thank you for recognizing that nurses do more than "care" for their patients. Nurses spend significant periods of time with hospitalized patients. It is their expertise and medical skills that are used to recognize problems that should be brought to a physicians attention. Physicians spend very little time with a patient in a hospital it is the nurse who assesses the patient throughout the day, who plans for interventions which may or may not include physician involvement and implements those plans. Nurses have extensive medical knowledge not just nurturing skills.

Bravo! Thank you for truly SEEING Nurses as the professionals they are. As an RN for 32 years, I certainly would not discount what a physician or any other medical professional does. However far too often the Nurses are the unsung heros of the healthcare system. Nurses do their "tasks" as well as providing the all important education and support that are too often left out by others. It is far past time for Nursing to be recognized as a Profession equal to Medicine, by physicians and by Nurses themselves.

WOW !! Gracias, I have been an RN for 20 years and an NP for 15 and work in emergency care. I love my Docs believe me we work together; but it is amazing when you ask people about nursing and all they think we do is clean bedpans and give medicine... thanks for educating the masses.
Elda from Houston

WOW Gracias!!! I have been a nurse for 20 years and it is awesome to hear from people who "get it"!!
Houston RN, NP

A nurse as a patient advocate doesn't involve her or his ego in the care of the patient. The patient is the main concern always. Not only is the public unaware of this due to the media, but the healthcare administrators too often place little or no concern on nurses as individuals; we are so often just bodies out on the frontline, rather like the general watching the war from his post far from the action.

Thank you for recognizing the Nursing Profession. We have always been there - from cradle to grave. Let us continue to support those "seasoned" Nurses- and their ability to practice their profession. We cannot afford to loose anymore nurses. Who will be there to care for us?

A nurse is a patient advocate, and patients see that the moment they are in a hospital or clinic. The nurse is the professional who sees the whole picture, and often teaches patients how to be well and stay well after their time in the hospital. In a perfect world, the best and brightest will choose nursing. We can't count on the mainstream media, so let's find more ways to tell children to consider this marvelous career!

Thank you for recognizing the true value of the Nursing Profession. We have always been there -from cradle to grave. Let us stand together and support "direct care nurses" - have control over their practice/working condition- so they will not leave the profession. We need to retain experienced nurses at the bedside.

Thanks to Jerry Adler for his insightful essay. I've been a nurse for 37 years, picking up a graduate degree and a doctoral degree along the way. I've had an exciting career as a college professor, a health care consultant, and a nurse executive. I've observed that the role of the nurse is better understood by the public, despite the poor images portrayed in shows like "House." I came into nursing at a time when verbal and physical abuse of nurses was tolerated. Nurses must speak up and stand up against such violence, including violence by collleagues. If we value ourselves and our profession, if we speak up when nursing is misportrayed in the media, and if we demand the end of the "bad behavior" in the workplace that is finally recognized by the Joint Commission, then essay's like Mr. Adler's will not be needed.

Years ago, when the TV show "ER" debuted, I was impressed that nursing was well represented in the shows. But as the years went on, doctors became the main focus, and the smart nurses went to medical school. It became just like the other medical dramas, with the medical staff taking all the glory. I had to stop watching it. And don't get me started on "House!"

I have been in critical care nursing for 17 years which took me through all areas of intensive care nursing. Categorically, we are the center of all recovery of patients. We have highest number of employees in any health care system but the administrators have never seen the full importance of the profession. By the way, on average a physician spends less than ten minutes with a patient while a nurse spend 12 hours for for 36-48hours a week. It is about time nurse are recognized. Nurses and physicians must work collaboratively, nurse's pay must improved, the public should know the relevance of this profession. clastegen@yahoo.com

I came to nursing late in life -- back to school at 30 after years in another profession. I had the grades and the smarts to get into medical school, but chose to go into nursing because of my own personal experience with hospitals -- that doctors see, diagnose, prescribe, but nurses are the ones who actually care for the patients. Thank you for this fine tribute.

Iam an Orthopaedic surgeon and I have no reservatioons to say nurses role is as important as physicians and sometimes they step in physicians shoes to walk an extramile for patients overall well being. A good nurse is an asset to any health establishment.Surprisingly, not incorrrectly, patients do want to ask nurses more questions than they do thier doctors. Thats a complement to nurses,I am sure.

I have worked in the health care for 20 years. The general public does not get what a nurse does, until they need one. In media coverage and medical TV shows, nurses are invisible, while the hero doctors are omnipresent. In real life, the exact opposite is true. Doctors breeze in and out of the patient's room, while the nurse is a constant present at the bedsid; assessing, comforting, teaching, counseling and saving lives.
http://realityrounds.com/
www.realityrounds.com

I have worked in health care for 20 years. Physicians and nurses mostly work well together, as a team, for the common goal of the health and recovery of the patient. The public does not realize what a nurse does, until they need one. Nurses are invisible in the media and TV shows, and doctors are the ever-present heroes. In real life, it is the exact opposite. Doctors breeze in and out of the patient's room,while it is the nurse who is constantly at the bedside: assessing, teaching, counseling, and saving lives.
http://realityrounds.com/

As a pediatric nurse, I would like to thank you for your wonderful story! We are often under-appreciated, and our contributions are often under-valued. Thanks so much for shedding the light on what it's like to be a nurse, and sharing your accolades for our profession!