Hooray for Nurses

Last night I got to spend the evening in the hospital.  No big deal, I was having some cramping and hadn't felt one of the babies move all day, so I decided to go in just to check; I'm a worrier like that.

So anyways, it occurred to me that nurses are amazing.  When you think of the health care system, you think of doctors running the show, but in my recent experience that's not been the case.  Both last night, and when I went in about a month ago for dehydration due to the flu, I didn't even see a doctor.  The nurses in the labor and delivery ward took car of everything, and called the doctor just to check with them that everything was good.

As a teacher, I can see a lot of similarities between the two professions.  First of all, you will always get those people who think nurses are jerks, just like you always get those people who think teachers are jerks.  You cannot change the minds of these people.  They have decided that we are are jaded and hate our jobs, and love to torment those poor saps who fall under our care.  But I know this to be true of teachers and I suspect nurses are the same - we wouldn't go to work every day if we didn't love what we do, and generally think that we were or could be making a difference.

The nurses that I have encountered in the last few months (and between myself and my husband there has been a lot), have been kind and compassionate.  They genuinely care about their patients, and unlike doctors, have the time to discuss what's going on and answer questions about treatment.  They have all been professional and knowledgeable, and have made me feel comfortable being in the hospital.

So how do you account for those people who hate nurses (or teachers, for that matter)?  I think you have to remember that these people are human beings just like anyone else.  They have crappy days and too much work to do.  And, just like teachers, they get people who go into a situation thinking that they need to be an advocate and fight for what they want, when in reality, they need to respect the education and professional knowledge of the person they are dealing with and work with them to find a solution to their problems.  And they need to be nice - I have never had a nurse act rudely or unkindly toward me, because I make a point of being nice to them.

Come to think of it, nurses and teachers really ought to get together and share some war stories.  I think we have a lot more in common than we have previously realized.