Need help..don't know if i should continue nursing

I am doing my pre-reqs for nursing in a ASN program at a county college. I have done research on rn, pa, and cls. I am in school full time with a 4.0 gpa and I work as a certified clinical medical assistant. Therefore, i don't have the time to volunteer and shadow any RNs or PAs. I know first hand how drs can treat their help and how some patients are nasty but i never worked in the hospital before. I love science and medicine but i find myself having a low tolerance for dealing with ******** at work. Whether its from the drs or patients. I like to help others but i tend to be brutally honest and take no bs. I believe everyone has a job to do and should work together for the best interest of the patient. I believe in doing my job and i take it very seriously. However, I am not an emotional person and very introverted when it comes to small talk. I don't know if i should continue with becoming an rn or change into becoming a PA or clinical lab. scientist. I do not like stress (from dealing with bs) and want to come home from work in peace. I want to make good money doing what i love in medicine. I just need to know what it is truly like to be a rn. beyond the so-called explanation of it being a calling or helping people. what is the real deal? is it a fight to keep your licensure everyday? is it alot of bs? I just don't know what career path to take. I am 27 years old with no children and know i am starting a career late so my dream of becoming a doctor & going to medical school would be out for me. So RN, PA or CLS (i really don't like their low pay though). any advice would be greatly appreciated b/c i am honestly stuck Last edit by tnbutterfly on Nov 16, '11 : Reason: Language
What's a cls?

Sweetpumpernickel,Let me start off saying that you are not too old to start med school if this is something you really want. I am 46 and doing my prereqs for Nursing. If this is something you REALLY want to do, then go for it or you will think about it all your life and say I wonder what life would be like IF!!Now let me say this. I don't care if you are a Dr or CEO of some business. Even Drs have Dept Heads or Hospital Administrators that they have to deal with. You will always have someone over you that can be be a jerk and make your life miserable!! I worked in the Medical Field (Telemedicine) for several years and yes there are Drs. that think they are GOD and will do anything to belittle anyone that does not have DR in front of their name. But also have had the pleasure of working with some really WONDERFUL Drs. as well. As for the patients you will always have to deal with them whether you are a Dr, RN etc if you go into anything medical. The really sweet ones make it worth all the NASTY ones!! I find if you try to be sweet to the nasty ones 9 out of 10 times they will lighten up or even turn around, then that 1 out of 10 will always be a pain and you just have to not take it personally (that part will be a bit tough)I guess it all comes down to what you really want to do for a living??I know of several people who went back to school in thier 30's to start Med School and have loved it!! So don't think about the jerks you MAY have to deal with. No matter what field you decide (Medical, Business, etc) you will always run across a sour grape but there are so many others out there that make working in your field enjoyable.I know I kinda rambled on, but I hope this helps a little!!GOOD LUCK

I don't understand why you think it is too late to become an M.D. A doctor I saw years ago, who was the most wonderful physician I ever had, went to medical school and graduated at the age of 35. He had gone in for a Bachelors in Music previously. It is not too late. By the way, if you want to talk about doing things late, I graduated from nursing school with a BSN at the age of 57. Now that is late!! However, what you need to consider is that medicine (in general) is about to become vastly more stressful. CMS is going to start paying hospitals, in part, on how they fare on patient surveys. If the Obama Health Plan goes thru (and I do believe we should all have access to health care), then many physicians are going to be leaving medicine altogether or cutting back to part time with not enough primary care people entering the pipeline from the other end. For all of us who are thinking about becoming NP's or APN's, it is we who will likely bear the brunt of the shortage. There will be a high amount of pressure, higher than it is now, to achieve more with less, rush patients through their visits and literally wear roller skates to get everything done. All that being said, if you have a mind to remain in medicine because you love it (and I understand because I feel the same way), then go for it and maybe even go for med school. Just remember you have to pass your MCAT's with relatively high scores and the MCAT's will include both physics and calculus in addition to biology. Good luck.

I believe that CLS is a Clinical Lab Scientist.

You are not old! And if you aspire to be a Dr then do. Or become a RN and then a doctor....I knew a woman who did just thisand she was amazing doctor. If you just do your RN...I would go for masters or become a nurse practioner or physicians assistant. Because being a floor nurse is everythingyou could have bad dreams about. it is not the patients! they are the blessing:-) it is the system the politics the gossipthe the and all the above. Good luck!

I feel like a 27 year old should be a little more mature and realistic. You want to work in healthcare, but claim you're introverted and not a people person? You just want to have a "stress-free" job and make lots of money--yeah, DON'T WE ALL?! If these are the things you're looking for, a career in healthcare is not for you. Also, yammering on about how you don't like BS and how you don't take BS from others sounds very defensive, unprofessional, and probably won't win you any good jobs. If you can't hold it together long enough to make it through a day at work without having this attitude, you won't make it in healthcare.

Quote from sweetpumpernickelI am doing my pre-reqs for nursing in a ASN program at a county college. I have done research on rn, pa, and cls. I am in school full time with a 4.0 gpa and I work as a certified clinical medical assistant. Therefore, i don't have the time to volunteer and shadow any RNs or PAs. I know first hand how drs can treat their help and how some patients are nasty but i never worked in the hospital before. I love science and medicine but i find myself having a low tolerance for dealing with ******** at work. Whether its from the drs or patients. I like to help others but i tend to be brutally honest and take no bs. I believe everyone has a job to do and should work together for the best interest of the patient. I believe in doing my job and i take it very seriously. However, I am not an emotional person and very introverted when it comes to small talk. I don't know if i should continue with becoming an rn or change into becoming a PA or clinical lab. scientist. I do not like stress (from dealing with bs) and want to come home from work in peace. I want to make good money doing what i love in medicine. I just need to know what it is truly like to be a rn. beyond the so-called explanation of it being a calling or helping people. what is the real deal? is it a fight to keep your licensure everyday? is it alot of bs? I just don't know what career path to take. I am 27 years old with no children and know i am starting a career late so my dream of becoming a doctor & going to medical school would be out for me. So RN, PA or CLS (i really don't like their low pay though). any advice would be greatly appreciated b/c i am honestly stuck

Knowledge is a treasure that no one can take from you. As for the BS, it is everywhere, not just medicine, and it is an element of society that you will just have to learn the best methods on how to deal with it. Also, your nursing career will depend on what field of nursing you enter into, it is not always about working in the trenches.

My thoughts exactly Kool Aide.

Just because you are 27, does not mean you can not be a doctor if that is what you want.

Quote from TankwetiI don't understand why you think it is too late to become an M.D. A doctor I saw years ago, who was the most wonderful physician I ever had, went to medical school and graduated at the age of 35. He had gone in for a Bachelors in Music previously. It is not too late. By the way, if you want to talk about doing things late, I graduated from nursing school with a BSN at the age of 57. Now that is late!! However, what you need to consider is that medicine (in general) is about to become vastly more stressful. CMS is going to start paying hospitals, in part, on how they fare on patient surveys. If the Obama Health Plan goes thru (and I do believe we should all have access to health care), then many physicians are going to be leaving medicine altogether or cutting back to part time with not enough primary care people entering the pipeline from the other end. For all of us who are thinking about becoming NP's or APN's, it is we who will likely bear the brunt of the shortage. There will be a high amount of pressure, higher than it is now, to achieve more with less, rush patients through their visits and literally wear roller skates to get everything done. All that being said, if you have a mind to remain in medicine because you love it (and I understand because I feel the same way), then go for it and maybe even go for med school. Just remember you have to pass your MCAT's with relatively high scores and the MCAT's will include both physics and calculus in addition to biology. Good luck.

I have two bachelors...Business and Nursing. Being a nurse is hard work..but what isn't.. The KEY is thinking hard and making a decision. What do you want to do? I know a guy who is a cytotechnologist. He looks through microscopes all day, makes the same as me..and works M-F. He likes it..I would go nuts doing it. I would say keep looking around and try to see what is what you want to do. Then..once you decide you hit it hard. And if you change your mind..then you change your mind. Life is short..you have to hit it hard and just go for what you want. There will be pain involved, but you will make it.