Do you work in healthcare?

[gracefulhat]

Very simple post. Please list if you work in healthcare and what is your position. I work as an RN in surgery (PACU).

[Ryuichi13]

Very simple post. Please list if you work in healthcare and what is your position. I work as an RN in surgery (PACU).

Does it count if I used to? 

I'm a Paramedic, disabled while working.  I still have my Paramedic license, just renewed it as a matter of fact.  Never know when you're going to need it, and I worked TOO hard to just let it expire.

I used to be a street Paramedic, then I went into the private sector, doing mostly nursing homes and private insurance transfers.

Ryuichi

[gracefulhat]

Does it count if I used to? 

I'm a Paramedic, disabled while working.  I still have my Paramedic license, just renewed it as a matter of fact.  Never know when you're going to need it, and I worked TOO hard to just let it expire.

I used to be a street Paramedic, then I went into the private sector, doing mostly nursing homes and private insurance transfers.

Ryuichi

Ofcourse that counts! Paramedics are so awsome and so unappreciated. People believe that nurses have a high rate of back injury, and they do, but paramedics have it even worse. I worked in nursing homes as well for 13 years.

[Ryuichi13]

Ofcourse that counts! Paramedics are so awsome and so unappreciated. People believe that nurses have a high rate of back injury, and they do, but paramedics have it even worse. I worked in nursing homes as well for 13 years.

Thank you!  I'm glad that someone feels that way! <3

I actually hurt my back AND my hip.  I miss working, but I knew that there was a possibility of getting permanent injury while working and I wanted to do it so bad I didn't care.  I had many "interesting" years working as both an EMT and then a Paramedic.  I'd go back in a heartbeat if I could lift more than 50lbs once again.

Ryuichi

[Kylo]

I used to work in the lab section of an NHS hospital, with the MLSOs and MLAs. Diagnosis of samples.

[Tessa James]

I was once an RN and then had a career as a CRNA (Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist) for 33 years.  I am now retired and grateful to have another career as a community activist.

[KittyKat]

I was a medic in the Army for 5 years and just finished my first year of Nursing school(ADN). Hopefully in another year I'll be getting my RN license. Plan to get my BSN within a year after.

[izzymacattack]

I tangentially work in Healthcare via work comp claims.

[Cassandra B]

Yup, DSP worker.

[Mendi]

Practical nurse in pediatrics...or was...a month ago I was kicked out of the hospital district for being trans woman.

There is now trade union lawyer trying to sort this mess and it is likely, that we´ll end into court.

Also the ombudsman for equality has started two enqueries about the situation.

I´m disappointed and don´t really have the motivation to work as a nurse anymore...just don´t know what else to do...

[gracefulhat]

Practical nurse in pediatrics...or was...a month ago I was kicked out of the hospital district for being trans woman.

There is now trade union lawyer trying to sort this mess and it is likely, that we´ll end into court.

Also the ombudsman for equality has started two enqueries about the situation.

I´m disappointed and don´t really have the motivation to work as a nurse anymore...just don´t know what else to do...

Mendi I am so sorry. Your story is one of the main reasons I started this thread. I am preparing for HRT and though I feel that the nurses and doctors I currently work with will on be supportive, I have my fears as well. Mendi I hope you will keep us all updated on this thread about your situation and you are in my thoughts.

[gracefulhat]

I was a medic in the Army for 5 years and just finished my first year of Nursing school(ADN). Hopefully in another year I'll be getting my RN license. Plan to get my BSN within a year after.

KittyKat girl you're awsome! My younger brother is an army medic at Fort Campbell. Thank you for your service and I'm sure you will do great in your last year of ADN RN. Just remember, when it comes to nursing, C = degree. So many of us get so down when we can no longer get top grades through nursing school, but you just have to keep your final goal in mind of passing that NCLEX. You're going to do great! Hopefully they will give you a NCLEX training class in your last semester. To study I used online apps only taking thousands of questions and passed it on the first try at 75 questions. Hopedully you will repost on this thread when you do pass so we can celebrate with you.

[gracefulhat]

I was once an RN and then had a career as a CRNA (Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist) for 33 years.  I am now retired and grateful to have another career as a community activist.

Tessa, I currently work in the PACU as an RN and being a CRNA would be a dream. Do you have any suggestions you could give me since my current hospital doesn't currently employ CRNAs. What area did you work in and did you have to be closely monitored by anesthesiologist or did you have alot of free reign? Was school really difficult?

[Mendi]

The collegues were and are supportive. The whole ward signed a petition stating that I´ve been wrongly treated. That was in vain...

It´s the management, which is transphobic to the bone...

[natalie.ashlyne]

I work as a PSW in a Long term care for the last 15 years. I have worked in hospitals nursing homes retirement homes group homes and private homes.

Practical nurse in pediatrics...or was...a month ago I was kicked out of the hospital district for being trans woman.

There is now trade union lawyer trying to sort this mess and it is likely, that we´ll end into court.

Also the ombudsman for equality has started two enqueries about the situation.

I´m disappointed and don´t really have the motivation to work as a nurse anymore...just don´t know what else to do...

Mendi I am so sorry that happened to you but I am glad you already spoke to the union don't back down at all it may take bit but you should definitely get something because that is not a reason to dismiss that is Bull and invades human rights.

[Dee Marshall]

I managed a 14 bed psych rehab for years. I got forced out within 6 months of coming out and one month of starting HRT. Can't prove what they did. They covered their tracks well.

Now I'm an independent living skills trainer for people with traumatic brain injuries. They knew I was trans from the get-go.

The spy who came in from the cold in the War Between the Sexes.

[KittyKat]

KittyKat girl you're awsome! My younger brother is an army medic at Fort Campbell. Thank you for your service and I'm sure you will do great in your last year of ADN RN. Just remember, when it comes to nursing, C = degree. So many of us get so down when we can no longer get top grades through nursing school, but you just have to keep your final goal in mind of passing that NCLEX. You're going to do great! Hopefully they will give you a NCLEX training class in your last semester. To study I used online apps only taking thousands of questions and passed it on the first try at 75 questions. Hopedully you will repost on this thread when you do pass so we can celebrate with you.

Yeah, I pretty much have to live by Cs get degrees right now. I just barely passed MedSurg II with a 74.65, if I had gotten one more question wrong on any exam I would have failed. I had straight As the semester prior to nursing and nothing lower then a B in prereqs :x.

[Tessa James]

Tessa, I currently work in the PACU as an RN and being a CRNA would be a dream. Do you have any suggestions you could give me since my current hospital doesn't currently employ CRNAs. What area did you work in and did you have to be closely monitored by anesthesiologist or did you have alot of free reign? Was school really difficult?

GFH,

I certainly do encourage you and found my career to be both intense and deeply satisfying.  Each patient deserves to be safely transported and there is a clear beginning and end to the care we provide, one person at a time.  Being a PACU Nurse is excellent experience while admission to schools has become highly competitive and the hoops to jump through keep coming.  MD anesthesiologist tried for many years to close our schools and legislate us out of the picture as prime and less expensive competitors.  I served for years as a the sole anesthetist for a small rural hospital and also worked in major medical centers.  I was trained and able to provide the full range of anesthetic techniques including various regional approaches like spinal and epidural blocks.  The distinction between MD and CRNA care is one of politics vs real capacity and with determination you can reach any goal.  Less motivating for me but still rewarding is personal growth and financial renumeration.  CRNAs provide the majority of care for the 26 million+ anesthetics delivered annually in the USA.
Again, I encourage you to look in to a future as an anesthetist or nurse practitioner if having autonomy is important to you.  It was to me and I started in the early 70s when nurses were too often treated as the doctor's handmaidens.   

I frequently needed to be immersed in the natural world after a typical work week as the intensity and focus of the operating room is so completely clinical.  Best of luck to you

[Doreen]

Make no mistake though... discrimination is still a very real phenomenon even in a caring profession like nursing.  Maybe even especially in a caring profession.  The backstabbing, back talking, and general hostility among female employees is.. toxic frankly.  Take no part in gossip, it will always be there though.

I worked in health care many years... as a CNA, LPN, RN.. yes I traveled through the ranks to achieve what I became.  Having 'transitioned' before I even started the profession didn't mean I didn't face issues.  Frankly I didn't pass as well when I first started.  In CNA care, they honestly just care about a body there.. but the higher up I went, the worse the toxicity became.  It had nothing to do with my care or patient teaching or anything.. People are just hateful in general I found over the years in nursing.

Maybe you are blessed to live in an area that isn't so rife with blatant discrimination.. though I doubt it.   Oh, the upper management will make it sound like 'performance evaluations' weren't perfect, but if you ask enough questions you'll find a certain family member or wealthy benefactor 'wasn't comfortable' with your presence in their care.  I won't give specifics away, but suffice to say I actually did get called in the office for obviously discriminatory practices.  However in a right to fire state, good luck proving it when they don't put it on paper.

Oh..if you happen to have one of those massive conglomerates that control ALL the hospitals, clinics, etc.. and get fired? ever?  Good luck finding a job anywhere.  That means every single nursing manager knows they can be dictators.. and you are at their mercy, utterly, for your future.

I love nursing.  I miss it actually.  I will go back into it some time if I can get my health issues resolved.  But be aware.. be forewarned. 

[Tessa James]

Make no mistake though... discrimination is still a very real phenomenon even in a caring profession like nursing.  Maybe even especially in a caring profession.  The backstabbing, back talking, and general hostility among female employees is.. toxic frankly.  Take no part in gossip, it will always be there though.

I worked in health care many years... as a CNA, LPN, RN.. yes I traveled through the ranks to achieve what I became.  Having 'transitioned' before I even started the profession didn't mean I didn't face issues.  Frankly I didn't pass as well when I first started.  In CNA care, they honestly just care about a body there.. but the higher up I went, the worse the toxicity became.  It had nothing to do with my care or patient teaching or anything.. People are just hateful in general I found over the years in nursing.

Maybe you are blessed to live in an area that isn't so rife with blatant discrimination.. though I doubt it.   Oh, the upper management will make it sound like 'performance evaluations' weren't perfect, but if you ask enough questions you'll find a certain family member or wealthy benefactor 'wasn't comfortable' with your presence in their care.  I won't give specifics away, but suffice to say I actually did get called in the office for obviously discriminatory practices.  However in a right to fire state, good luck proving it when they don't put it on paper.

Oh..if you happen to have one of those massive conglomerates that control ALL the hospitals, clinics, etc.. and get fired? ever?  Good luck finding a job anywhere.  That means every single nursing manager knows they can be dictators.. and you are at their mercy, utterly, for your future.

I love nursing.  I miss it actually.  I will go back into it some time if I can get my health issues resolved.  But be aware.. be forewarned.

Health care remains an historically hierarchal structure within our culture no doubt about it.  Doctors will almost always be at the top with everything from special parking places to separate dining facilities in many medical centers.  This is not, however, written in stone and much like challenging the dominant paradigms of gender we can push open the boundaries for care and capacity.  The initials after our name may tell us very little about the capacity to care and be sensitively supportive as we negotiate a more cooperative and collegial practice setting.

Being out on the job is laudable as most healthcare people have no better understanding of people who are transgender than the average citizen IME.   I was unable to be fully "out" during my career although most people who really knew me considered me gay or weird with my earrings and rainbow shoelaces.  Hopefully our positive interactions and consistent good works are recognized as we leave the squabbling to those that will.