I like to help people. So sue me.
You are a nurse. You are out in public, going about your business and you see a person in distress, or a situation where someone has been harmed or injured in some way.
What would you do?
I had a conversation with some fellow nurses yesterday that I found kind of surprising. Someone was cursing their husband for telling her son’s little league team that she was an ER nurse. Now the coach wanted her to volunteer to run the first aid station at some of the games.
“I never tell anyone I’m a nurse,” she says.
The other nurse agreed and said that she never wears her scrubs home when taking the subway, because she would be expected to help if something went wrong.
Now, I understand where this mentality comes form. Everyone’s afraid of liability. Everyone’s afraid of losing their license if something goes wrong.
Call me naive and idealistic, but if I saw someone in distress, or someone who had been harmed, it would take wild hungry pit bulls to keep me from helping them. You see, it’s kind of why I became a nurse in the first place. Not only is there something so infinitely rewarding about being able to help someone in a crisis situation, I also consider it to be my duty. And I may not have the type of first-line emergency skills that many ER nurses and EMTs have but I’ll tell you what I can do. I can hold pressure to stop someone from bleeding. I know BLS and if there’s an AED around I can set it up, calmly and quickly. I can hold someone’s hand, talk them through the situation and try to keep the scene calm until the EMTs get there.
And if you’re still afraid, well, there is something to protect you. It’s called The Good Samaritan Law.
I’m proud to be a nurse. Sure I may do my share of complaining about all the menial stuff, but in the end, I have pride in who I am. This is going to sound incredibly corny but when I wear my scrubs out in public, stopping to get coffee before work, or stopping at the grocery store after my shift, I hold my head up a little higher. The funny thing is that people seem to treat me with slightly more reverence when I’m in my scrubs. And I don’t mind that at all.
I'm a critical care nurse, and a social media evangelist. Find out more 
Every time I hear someone start coughing/choking in a restaurant, I get tense and nervous and listen very closely until they start speaking again…
I’m (nervously) waiting for the day I witness something happen that I need to do something about.
Jacob — September 24, 2008 @ 12:09 pm
Wait, what? I understand not wanting to run the first aid station, the coach shouldn’t even ask and the nurse has every right to say no. But are there really nurses who don’t want to help in public? Good grief, if someone is in distress and it is within your power to help them, you should help them! I would probably get in the way in such a situation, because I lack proper training. But IMO any nurse who wouldn’t help in that situation should be ashamed of him/herself.
Meredith — September 24, 2008 @ 12:22 pm
Great post. I agree with you totally. Healthcare personnel cannot keep (or act according to) their profession only for the workplace.
Vijay — September 24, 2008 @ 12:39 pm
My mother is the sort of nurse who will stop at a fender bender to be sure everyone’s ok. I love and respect her. When I’m a nurse I will use her as my role model.
alicia — September 24, 2008 @ 1:02 pm
I like to help people. So sue me….
You are a nurse. You are out in public, going about your business and you see a person in distress, or a situation where someone has been harmed or injured in some way.
What would you do?…
Healthcare Today — September 24, 2008 @ 1:32 pm
I’m proud to be a nurse although I don’t go around with a megaphone announcing it to the crowd. My family does that for me.
Seriously, we nurses have a moral obligation to help in case of emergency–like life and death situation. Of course, we have to make sure we’re safe first. The Good Samaritan Law, yes, I like that law.
I, myself, volunteer in my kids’ clinic among other places. I understand some nurses don’t want to volunteer but just a simple “no” should do it if they’re asked to help out.
Karin RN — September 24, 2008 @ 2:05 pm
Hi Beth. It is apparent why you have combined your skills as a nurse with your social media skills. Helping others through the digital media experience is similar to helping people who are sick or have been hurt. We all need a little attention sometimes, and those with a big heart don’t hesitate. Sounds like that’s the kind of person you are. At BlogWorld last week, Chris Brogan said a lot about giving it ALL away?your very best?always. When that kind of spirit is in one’s heart, the result is usually win/win. And that doesn’t always mean $$. I hope if I am ever hurt in public, a nurse like you is near.
Jack Hadley — September 24, 2008 @ 3:35 pm
I actually hear a lot of that, too. I am with you, as well, but in most states, the good samaritan law holds us to a higher standard, in other words, if we do something wrong, we could be liable, if we had the knowledge to know better…
That being said, I would not ignore someone in trouble, either…
Disappearingjohn — September 24, 2008 @ 6:30 pm
Great post. I feel the same way about wearing scrubs in public…I feel kind of special. When people ask me what I do, I tell them that I’m a nursing student…because I can’t wait for the day that I have my own license and I can say that I AM A NURSE. Just thinking about it makes me feel proud!
Caroline — September 24, 2008 @ 8:29 pm
I’m with you, Beth. I love being a nurse and would help in whatever I could. Most nurses that I know would do the same without hesitation. If you can, you do; it’s a part of the duty of being a nurse.
Shellee — September 24, 2008 @ 11:44 pm
The only thing I hate about people knowing I am a pharmacist is strangers then asking me about illegal drugs as if that is my forte.
However, if there is anyone that needs help I am always there. As Jacob said I tense too thinking someone is choking. At dinner if I suddenly stop mid-sentence and look over at another table my good friends know I am making sure someone is ok. I have held pressure everywhere from someone who kicked a boat prop in the Ohio River to a severely lacerated wrist from falling on a beer bottle in Costa Rica.
I may not have the skills to help everyone but I am willing to die trying.
PharmacistMike — September 25, 2008 @ 12:32 am
Maybe what you witnessed is a sign of burn-out? I haven’t been an RN for very long, but there was this day in the coffee shop when one of the baristas tapped me on the shoulder while talking on the phone with an emergency dispatcher. Someone was lying on the floor of the bathroom unconscious. The details of what happened to him aren’t important, but the fact that this person (who actively dislikes me) enlisted my aid in a potentially emergent situation made my heart swell. “Yes,” I thought to myself, “this is why I’m doing this”. What could be worse than seeing someone go down and not know what to do? Seeing someone go down and not being able to summon the wherewithal to do something about it, I’d say. Great post as always!
PM, RN — September 25, 2008 @ 4:55 pm
Great thoughts Beth.
From one proud nurse to another, thanks.
Strong One — September 27, 2008 @ 2:05 pm
another great post from ya! i am proud to wear my scrubs in public too
in school they do tell us about the good samaritan law, and i think that’s great. as a nurse i really feel it’s our duty to help someone in crisis if we do encounter that. i haven’t had to yet, but caring is such a basic part of who we are and what we do so i would have an awful time keeping myself from helping.
Amanda Goodwin — October 6, 2008 @ 12:47 am