Nursing.....have we lost the plot?

I qualified as an RGN in 1989. I had a great career for 13 years before having my first child. My second child will soon be going to school and the question is....do I go back?

Nursing is just not what it used to be. The caring seems to have gone, and striving for a diploma or degree has replaced it. I am not slating my colegues, I just feel that the point of nursing seems to be getting lost in the administration.

I love caring for patients, making them feel well. I miss everything to do with it....but what do I do. I have already started looking into retraining in IT.

I agree with your sentiments-being a nurse is a difficult position in the political field of patient car. My wife has been a nurse for 10 years now and she see's it all the time.
Lets face it-life is gettin tougher.
What I would recommend is that heath care needs GREAT nurses such as yourself.
Dive back in or take a part time job in Nursing-see how the current medical atmosphere is at your location. Should you feel that the climate dictates a change in your career-go for IT
Please do not give up all the hard work that you have accomplished
Please give it one more shot
If you can change the day for one patient then you have succeeded
Good Luck!

im starting my nursing training in september and i very much hope that it isnt all admin and paperwork!! i love the caring aspect, and from wanting to be a childrens nurse it makes the communication and caring element so much more appealing.
my friend has just been training for a year and her theory about the changing role is that alot of new trainees have become "too posh to wash", and dont care about people anymore.

go back to work. do what you have been trained to do....take care of people and help them feel well. paperwork can always wait, people cant. dont waste your training and the part of you that wanted/loved to be a nurse. xxxxx

Nurses are in such short supply that it would be a shame for you to give it up, especially as you seem to be a caring and compasionate person. Since there is such a need for qualified nurses, depending on your location maybe you can be selective about where you decide to work? Be prepared to ask employers questions about their work practices, and maybe work as a travelling nurse for a while to see if there is an organization you feel drawn to. There is politicing and administrative nonsence in any career.

You have my greatest respect and I have an answer for you.

Start back part time working in a care home. This country is so desperate for people like yourself who do give a damn about the patients and I think it'll be a start. This way, you're not diving straight back into nursing at a hospital but you're easing yourself in to a more relaxed environment.

I understand why you don't want to go back as the NHS is just one great big administrative error but offer your gift to another part of the industry.