‘Just’ a nurse.
You’ve heard this common phrase before. That someone is ‘just’ a nurse. That you’re ‘just’ a nurse.
However, when you really think about it, this phrase shows how nurses are devalued in our society.
As opposed to doctors, nurses often do not get the credit that they deserve for saving lives.
Nurse Caitlin Brassington, who lives in Queensland, Austrailia, heard this phrase many times over the years.
However, when she ran in to one of her acquaintances, who then called her ‘just’ a nurse, Caitlin decided to stop being silent about it.
Instead, she decided to remind people how degrading this phrase is by writing a heartfelt post on Facebook.
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This is just an excerpt from her post – visit her Facebook if you’d like to read the whole thing!
“‘Just a Nurse.’ I am just home from a busy shift, looking very ordinary in my scrubs. On the way home today, I stopped at the shop for milk and saw an acquaintance. She has never seen me in uniform and said that she didn’t realize I was ‘just a nurse.’
“… I have helped babies into the world, many of whom needed assistance to take their first breath, and yet I am just a nurse.”
“I have held patients hands and ensured their dignity while they take their last breath, and yet I am just a nurse.”
“I have counseled grieving parents after the loss of a child, and yet I am just a nurse.”
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“I have performed CPR on patients and brought them back to life, and yet I am just a nurse. I can auscultate every lung field on a newborn and assess which field may have a decreased air entry, and yet I am just a nurse.”
“I can take blood, cannulate and suture a wound, and yet I am just a nurse. I can manage a cardiac arrest in a newborn, a child or an adult, and yet I am just a nurse. I can tell you the dosage of adrenaline or Amiodarone based on weight that your child may need to bring them back to life, and yet I am just a nurse.”
“I have the experiences and knowledge that has saved people’s lives. So, if I am just a nurse, then I am ridiculously proud to be one!”
This post has received a lot of support on social media, with nurses all around the world commenting about their own experiences of being undervalued as well.
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Hopefully, Caitlin’s powerful post will help the public to value and appreciate all the things that nurses do!