What Is Happening? | Nursing Hacks # 18

We went from the world loving us and calling us 'healthcare heroes' to them physically assaulting us in public and saying we are in the Illuminati. These past three years have been quite a ride. Now granted, I live in Florida, and it's been umm, more colorful here. But, when I turn on the news, I'm forever seeing a nurse on the news for doing something outrageous or a nursing program disbursing fake degrees or stealing students' money. I am, indeed, feeling some type of way about nursing right now, haha. Nursing is the most trusted profession, but it doesn't feel that way lately. If it isn't hospitals nationwide facing retention issues, unsafe ratios, or abysmal compensation, the nursing field seems like trap after trap. A trap to harm yourself, a trap to hurt others, a trap to compromise your morals or a trap to get you stuck. It's okay not to like the circumstances of something and still strive for better and hope for improvement. 

We, as a profession, need to talk about so many things. These unresolved topics, over time, can erode our passion. It can make us not trust our colleagues and hesitate to continue progressing within the profession. Where is nursing going? Where will I be in 6 months? Questions with varying responses. But when you think about those things, understand we all have different pathways and needs. In the shitshow of 2023, don't lose who you are. It's okay not to know what you want but know exactly what you don't want. Allow yourself the space and time to see what you want and need. Pretending everything is fine and acting as if nothing requires reexamination is dense. The profession is in transition, and it's okay to admit that you see some significant issues that must be addressed. We don't need to have all the answers. We need to be open to the conversation that what's happening isn't working for some of us. The shenanigans barometer is on shitshow right now, and we all need to just sit down and process everything and sit in the uncomfortable. Let's take it back to the practicum days and allow reflection on the sheer experience of what we have gone through without judging where we are in the process. Collect your thoughts, process your responses, and acknowledge your space. Once we understand our feelings and reactions, we can direct our efforts to improve our spaces. This isn't a sprint. It's a marathon. Get to stretching.