During our community nursing semester in school, we were paired with nurses throughout the community so as to be exposed to nursing outside of the hospital setting. It definitely wasn't my favorite semester (that is, if I had to pick a "favorite" semester in nursing school...), but I did have a few enjoyable experiences. There was one particular experience, though, that I wasn't quite sure what to make of. One day my preceptor asked if I would mind keeping myself busy for an hour or two while she did "an errand." I didn't quite know what to do at first, but since we were by the mall I knew I'd figure something out to do!
When we met back up a while later, she told me she had been to an interview for a nursing job at a different agency. I thought it was funny, actually, and it served to reinforce my growing belief that nursing everywhere must apparently just be the pits. Part of me thought it was unprofessional, though. Not just because she left a student during clinical (not that I was complaining!), but because she was doing it on company time.
While that is probably true, in the process of starting and leaving The Forefront and arriving at This Hospital, I've realized something else. I don't think I generally give allegiance to things "just because" (ok, well outside of ease anyway), but I guess somewhere inside, I had hoped to give loyalty to a job and just assumed it would be given back in turn. As we all know from The Forefront debacle, this is not the way the working world, well, works. I think I was a bit too harsh in my judgement of the preceptor that day.
I guess what I'm trying to say is that I'm beginning to understand (and accept) the fluidity of nursing as a career. It's not that we're all egotistical, it's just that nobody else has our own best interests in mind. Somehow I doubt that was the lesson I was meant to learn in clinical that day, but then again, the CON and I never did see eye to eye on nursing education...
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