This Woman Had The Best Response To Being Called "Just A Nurse"

    "I have held patients' hands and ensured their dignity while they take their last breath, and yet I am just a nurse."

    Brad Esposito
    by Brad Esposito

    BuzzFeed News Reporter, Australia

    This is Caitlin Brassington, a nurse from Australia who works in the regional city of Toowoomba, west of Brisbane.

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    Last Friday, Caitlin had just finished her nursing shift and stopped at a shop to grab some milk. There Caitlin saw an acquaintance, who noticed her scrubs and said she didn't realise Caitlin was "just a nurse".

    Angry and frustrated, Caitlin wrote on Facebook that in her 18 years as a nurse she had heard the phrase "just a nurse" multiple times, but hearing it on Friday really got to her.

    "I think it is a reasonably common, throwaway comment, which I think is the point of my Facebook post," she told BuzzFeed News. "Obviously, it is about being a nurse, but I think it is also about all of those people, be they teachers, mums, or shop keepers, who feel diminished or undervalued in their jobs and roles. "It is about showing each other some respect and not placing a worth or value on someone's job title."

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    Facebook: caitlin.brassington

    "I think it is a reasonably common, throwaway comment, which I think is the point of my Facebook post," she told BuzzFeed News.

    "Obviously, it is about being a nurse, but I think it is also about all of those people, be they teachers, mums, or shop keepers, who feel diminished or undervalued in their jobs and roles.

    "It is about showing each other some respect and not placing a worth or value on someone's job title."

    "I have performed CPR on patients and brought them back to life, and yet I am just a nurse," Caitlin wrote on Facebook.

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    "I am the medical officer's eyes, ears and hands with the ability to assess, treat and manage your illness, and yet I am just a nurse.

    "I can a[u]scultate every lung field on a newborn and assess which field may have a decreased air entry, and yet I am just a nurse.

    "I can educate patients, carers, and junior nurses, and yet I am just a nurse.

    "I am my patient's advocate in a health system that does not always put my patient's best interest first, and yet I am just a nurse.

    "I will miss Christmas Days, my children's birthdays, and school musicals to come to work to care for your loved one, and yet I am just a nurse."

    Caitlin's Facebook post has received more than 2,000 likes and hundreds of shares, with hundreds also commenting with messages of support and praise.

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    "I would really like as many of those people that do feel undervalued as possible, to make themselves a coffee, and read through the comments," Caitlin told BuzzFeed News. "These responses are not just for me personally – they are for all nurses!"