L8 - Informational Interview Report
Interviewee: Jeanette Langston,
BSRN
In
interviewing Jeanette Langston, who is a dear friend and the person who has
encouraged me to pursue a career in nursing, I received valuable information that
I believe will be quite helpful as I finish school and through my career. The
first set of questions I asked were about schooling and what the industry feels
is the best degree to obtain to be successful and to be marketable. Jeanette,
like me, went to school as a second career while her kids were school age.
Discussing schooling with her helped me to relax a bit as I have been very
stressed about my health and it’s impact on my grades. Her advise to me was to
just do the best I can and not stress about how many delays I have experienced
because of my health. We discussed the importance of getting into a nursing
program and not working during the program as it really impacts how productive
you can be. One of the questions I asked addressed if it was better to have an
associates or bachelors degree and she said that it really was a non-issue
unless someone wants to work in administration. The pay scale for nurses is not
affected at this point at most hospitals by whether or not they have a bachelor
degree. I was also concerned about the amount of nurses that are going to be
needed and if there was talk about the nursing shortage being over and the
market flooded with nurses. She indicated that is only an issue in some places
and that nursing is a great career to be in as there is always a need. The
position found may not be in your ideal setting, but jobs are out there. As
nursing has been a career for a very long time, positions are continually
created to replace those who take retirement.
My
second series of questions were about the job itself and the positive and
negative aspects. To me, they seemed to really be the same as any other job.
People who don’t want to work as hard as they should, not showing up for shifts
creating understaffed shifts and dealing with co-workers who do not respect you
or your ideas. She said some doctors are amazing to work with and others are
jerks and have low opinions of everyone around them. She supervises the New
Mother floor, Labor and Delivery and Pediatrics so she has worked in some of
the areas I would love to work in. She said they are challenging areas to work
in. I asked what is most challenging in working with the New Mothers and
pediatrics and she said the hardest thing is death and or sever damage from
illness. The most negative or hardest aspect of the job was seeing mothers and
fathers that she knows are unfit walking out with a beautiful new infant or
child knowing that they may be back possibly and in worse than the last time.
Also, seeing a mom who has obviously done drugs or alcohol and you know that
they are going home to the same situations that most likely will still involve
substance abuse.Overall, she indicated that it is a wonderful career full of
opportunities to develop new skills, there are multiple areas to work in so
there is a lot of variety, continual learning requirements of additional
classes to maintain licensing and to provide excellent care to those in need.
In
conclusion, I feel these are things that fit my talents and I am so excited for
the opportunity to prove myself, help others and make a difference. While preparing the questions for the
interview, I found myself listening and thinking through what it means to be a
nurse and what challenges other than the basic duties of the job would present.
To see a child go home, knowing they may be back due to illness complications
or situations at home will be very difficult and I really don’t how I would
react. One part of the occupation that makes me nervous is how I will deal with
death and if overtime I will become desensitized to all of the things you see
as a nurse. During our discussion, I did pay attention to my concerns about
working on a dual degree and decided that it will be so helpful to have had all
the Behavioral Science and Psychology classes I have taken. Nurses do not only
deal with the patient, we deal with families and need to be professional yet
empathetic in taking care of them. The small acts of service we provide to
patients and their family members can be the one thing that helps them thru the
trauma and sadness they are dealing with until they are actually ready to deal
with their situations. Time can only tell and I am anxious to get to the point
where I can work in a hospital to start building my career and reputation
No comments:
Post a Comment