Friday 13th: 4 Myths About Being A Nurse Busted!
There are some myths about working as a nurse that we hear time and time again. These misconceptions can lead to people not wanting to pursue nursing as a career because they develop certain beliefs about the type of work that is involved or the type of people that do the role.
In honour of Friday 13th (a day steeped in superstition!) we are going to debunk some of the most common myths about working as a nurse. Feel free to share this with your non-nurse friends to set them straight!
Myth 1 – “Being a nurse is a woman’s job”
Although 89% of nurses and health visitors are women according to a report in March of this year, this is very far from being a ‘girls-only’ job. In fact, it is likely that the mistaken belief that it is a woman’s job that has played a major part in creating these stats. Anyone can become a nurse as long as they have the right attitude and motivation to care for people.
Myth 2 – “Nurses have a boring job”
Some people believe that a nurse “just takes temperatures and fluffs pillows”. This is not the case! Their role is varied and includes administering medication, liaising with other healthcare professionals, monitoring patients, educating patients and their families, keeping patients safe and updating records. Whilst keeping patients happy and comfortable is high on the list of priorities it is by no means the only thing they do!
Myth 3 – “Due to the Nursing shortage it’s easy to get a job”
You wouldn’t think that because there is a shortage of engineers that it will be easy to pursue a career in it, so why would it be different for becoming a nurse? Most nurses undergo 2-4 years of training before they are qualified and require a set number of hours of continued professional development training for their Nurse Pin Revalidation. Find out more about revalidation here. This is by no means an easy job to get or do.
Myth 4 – “Nurses are just doctors' assistants”
Nurses and doctors actually have very different functions in their roles and rarely work on the same tasks. The roles they do work alongside and support each other to providing the best care possible. Nurses will act on a doctor’s recommendations with regard to medication and booking patients in for tests but they do not act as an assistant. Doctor will have secretaries and junior staff to support them in their role.
Can you think of any other common myths you’ve heard about nurses? Let us know below…