MTVs Teen Mom / YouTube "Teen Mom" star Ashley Jones
“Teen Mom: The Next Chapter” star and nursing student Ashley Jones has been expressing reservations about her career choices and is asking fans for advice online.
“Nursing students…. Are we all scared 😂,” Jones captioned a TikTok she shared this week where she opens up about her fears. Jones also shared a tweet the day before expressing similar concerns, writing, “As a nursing student, seeing all these OG nurses come out and say it’s not worth it, is so discouraging … like what am I doing ??!”
As a nursing student, seeing all these OG nurses come out and say it’s not worth it, is so discouraging … like what am I doing ??!
See Jones’s TikTok where she explains her point of view and hear what advice fans have for her below.
Ashley Jones is Feeling ‘Discouraged’ About Nursing Career
Ashley Jones, who is at the beginning of her nursing school journey, wasted no time expressing her feelings about nursing school in a new TikTok. The MTV star shared that she’s been hearing and seeing a lot of nurses online complaining about being overworked and telling prospective nurses not to pursue a nursing career.
“It’s making me scared, it’s making me second guess what the f*** I’m doing. Ever since I got into nursing school, I have heard nothing positive about it,” Jones admitted in the video, “All these nurses have been coming out saying, ‘Run for the f***ing hills.’ So I’m like, am I the only nursing student feeling this way, a little discouraged? I don’t know.”
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, as of 2021, there were 3,130,600 jobs for nurses, with a median pay rate of $77,600 per year, and over the next decade, there are projected to be approximately 195,400 more jobs for nurses in the United States. Despite these numbers, many nurses over the past years, especially since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, have expressed burnout and similar feelings of discouragement as Jones has.
The American Hospital Association posted a 2021 report about the state of the healthcare workforce that cited “critical” nursing shortages, with “the annual turnover rate of hospital certified nursing assistants (CNAs)” at 27.7%. The AHA also reported that in 2017, over 50% of nurses were over 50 years old, and almost 30% were above 60 years old. In the coming years, this will lead to a very large part of the nursing workforce entering retirement and an even greater need for more new nurses.
Nurses Share Their Perspectives With Ashley Jones
Ashley Jones’s TikTok and Twitter posts received a big reaction from fans, with many (including some registered nurses) giving their insight into the matter.
“Been a nurse 8 years it’s a love hate relationship but definitely wouldn’t do it again if I knew then what I know now,” one fan wrote on TikTok.
“Don’t let anyone dull your sparkle. It’s what you make of it. It’s like anything in life and people suck everywhere. I graduated this year and I love!” another fan shared.
“I haven’t even started yet and i feel discouraged already. I want to experience the process myself. But ppl just keep on being negative about it,” another fan added, relating to Jones’s feelings of discourgement.
“[The] problem is that nurse influencers glamorize what it’s like. Yes great you made money and traveled and bought things. But let’s also talk about holding a patients hand as they die. The absolute personal and intimate care you have to give… I love being a nurse but don’t do it for the glamour. It really isn’t glamorous,” another fan shared on Twitter.
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