License to Nurse

I recently passed my NCLEX, which, for those of you who don't know, is a big, long, hard test that graduate nurses have to take in order to obtain their nursing license and get a job. When we pass this test, we are also awarded two letters to put behind our name: RN.

RN. Registered Nurse. 

These may just seem like two letters to most people, maybe even an acronym for when you want something "right now" (which, if we're being honest isn't far off from what most people think of our job description.) 
However, these two letters mean a whole lot more to me and so many other caring people than just "Registered Nurse." 

See, to me, these two letters hold a lot of weight. 
They hold the weight of two very hard and challenging years with many books studied, many late nights and early mornings, 
many cups of coffee, 
many firsts and exposure to tragedy, death, new life, old people, young people, mentally ill people, and everything in between, 
and for some, many many tears.

But these two letters also hold the weight of the future that we are committed to 
of many more late nights and early mornings and cups of coffee,
many more materials studied to keep up with the ever-changing times, 
many patients who are counting on us to know what we are doing 
and how to fix their problem 
and when to intervene when we are the only ones there to keep them alive, 
many patients who, more than anything, may just need a kind word of encouragement,
 many hard times with many more tears cried, 
and many triumphs that will make it all worth the pain that we are called to endure. 


So as I add these two extra letters behind my name, know that I am not just being licensed to give meds, bandage wounds, and treat patients' physical illnesses, but I am also being licensed to be a nurse who cares for the whole person, who lives through the suffering, and who fights for the good to always be done. 
These two letters mean that I am expected to meet people where they are in the worst moments of their lives without judging or complaining, but rather, showing compassion and empathy without a second thought. 
This is what I've signed up for and this is what passing the NCLEX and receiving my 
"RN" mean.

I just pray that I will live up to the standard to which I am called.

Callie Houston, BSN, RN

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