[ainz]

The "us versus them" mentality, that is nursing vs administration will NEVER improve anything, it only inflames things. I thought my previous reply was pretty detailed and clear. No I am not saying it is the fault of the nurses when a for-profit buys up the hospital(s) in town. I am saying that nurses need to quit *****ing and whining, unite, educate themselves on what really drives our healthcare system (and currently it is not the desire to heal the sick and ease suffering), and get in a frame of mind to EFFECTIVELY communicate and deal with the non-clinical people who are currently running most of the hospitals in the country. Also, it is very logical that the largest department in a hospital with the greatest number of people in a single discipline (nursing) will have a tremendous impact on shaping the culture and atmosphere of that hospital. Therefore, nurses have the power, if nothing else by sheer numbers, to make a hospital a more pleasant place to work. And why would a nurse who is helping people cope with illness, saving lives, and easing suffering choose to be a CEO? I did. Why? Because I got tired of the crap that greedy administration was dishing out. I got tired of being the receiver of idiotic policies and decisions made by accountants that governed the way I could practice as a nurse. I got tired of hearing all of my nurse colleagues *****ing and whining but doing absolutely nothing that would bring about any change. Besides, being a CEO gives you the chance to make decisions that allow clinicians to drive how care will be delivered so they can continue to help people cope with illness, save lives, and ease suffering, all while actually enjoying their job and where they work. Being a CEO allows you to fully understand the motives of the people that are running our healthcare system and allows you to be in position to go about the business of making subtle, incremental change, and, it allows you to be in a position to defend and ward off things that will damage nurses and their practice. And by the way, I work for one of the for-profits. I see what goes on. In a sense, I have infiltrated "them" and I am feverishly working to keep things focused on taking care of patients. I need some help!! It is very discouraging for me when I read stuff where nurses see themselves as powerless victims in need of a union to help them or just simply quit and leave the profession. Nursing is a sleeping giant, a powerful force to be reckoned with, most nurses just don't realize that a united profession of nursing has the power to literally redesign our healthcare system.

[caroladybelle]

Originally posted by spacenurse
Are you saying it was the nurses attitude that made management decide to punish long term nurses who are dedicated to the health of the community because travelers who have no desire to fit in get the top $$$?

Why would a nurse who is helping people cope with illness, saving lives, and easing suffering choose to be a CEO?

EXCUSE ME!!!!!!

As a traveler, I have no longevity/seniority. I can get dumped on. I don't ever get the "lighter" load. No one cuts me slack because my uncle/aunt died. I am not "entitled" to special days off. I pay for my own holidays, vacations, sick days. I don't get raises for good work. No one makes sure that I get my breaks. I have to do my taxes/paperwork for licenses/get CPR, ACLS on my own. And quite bluntly, I have to fit in with everyone, everywhere, at any time. And I can be let go for any reason.

This means that I have to be my very best every single day, every single moment and you bet your derriere, I am - I earn every penny of that money and make them respect me. And I am never "permitted" to rest on my laurels - someone would gripe about it.

I earn that respect by hard work at all times - I don't have it endowed to me by some title/seniority/union position.

If you don't like the fact that we make a bit more money, you try doing it for a while and see how it is.

If you don't force (and to a certain extent it is force) your management to respect and earn that respect, that is not my fault. You could negotiate and work as hard as we do, and you could leave your unresponsive management/job just as easily as we do. But you choose not to, for whatever reason.

But don't put me down for what you will not do/negotiate.

In response as to why would a nurse become CEO.......

A politician was asked , "Why would any good person enter politics as it is full of liars and cheats". In response, he replied if nothing but cheats and liars go into politics, nothing will ever get better. If things are to improve, good people need to take risks.

[Nurse Ratched]

Originally posted by bagladyrn
At the hospital at which I just completed a contract, an interesting memo was posted to the staff. It stated that since the hospital was overbudget for their contract nurses, money for contracts would be taken from funding that would otherwise be alloted for staff raises!!! Talk about causing resentment and division. Being the outspoken sort that I am, I pointed this out to the higher ups, reminded them that THEY had contacted ME for this contract (had been there before) to ask if I would consider coming back, and let them know that with this sort of attitude it was unlikely I would say yes the next time.

I'm sure that this post shows where the problem lies, at least in that particular facility. Any administration that would make such a blatant attempt to drive a wedge between its staff and agency nurses deserves to have to scramble for staff. They obviously have no respect for their nurses, regardless of where they acquire them.

Ainz, I do agree with you that, if nothing else, we each at least have control over our own attitude and need to do what we can each day to promote a positive working environment.

[pickledpepperRN]

Originally posted by caroladybelle
EXCUSE ME!!!!!!

As a traveler, I have no longevity/seniority. I can get dumped on. I don't ever get the "lighter" load. No one cuts me slack because my uncle/aunt died. I am not "entitled" to special days off. I pay for my own holidays, vacations, sick days. I don't get raises for good work. No one makes sure that I get my breaks. I have to do my taxes/paperwork for licenses/get CPR, ACLS on my own. And quite bluntly, I have to fit in with everyone, everywhere, at any time. And I can be let go for any reason.

This means that I have to be my very best every single day, every single moment and you bet your derriere, I am - I earn every penny of that money and make them respect me. And I am never "permitted" to rest on my laurels - someone would gripe about it.

I earn that respect by hard work at all times - I don't have it endowed to me by some title/seniority/union position.

If you don't like the fact that we make a bit more money, you try doing it for a while and see how it is.

If you don't force (and to a certain extent it is force) your management to respect and earn that respect, that is not my fault. You could negotiate and work as hard as we do, and you could leave your unresponsive management/job just as easily as we do. But you choose not to, for whatever reason.

But don't put me down for what you will not do/negotiate.

In response as to why would a nurse become CEO.......

A politician was asked , "Why would any good person enter politics as it is full of liars and cheats". In response, he replied if nothing but cheats and liars go into politics, nothing will ever get better. If things are to improve, good people need to take risks.

Sorry I did not make it clear. NO TRAVELER IS OVERPAID!
I HAVE quit a job because Tenet purchased the hospital. I HAVE worked with the nurse negotiators at my hospital as a representative of the night shift for my unit. We have VERY excellent patient care standards, wages, and benefits including retirement. We are VERY GLAD to work with the fine traveling nurses who have helped us. Two have been on staff for years.
I was saying that a MANAGEMENT that routinely disrespects nurses as evidenced by the memo is NOT a management I would work for.
After working as a nurse in five decades why would someone tell me to go back to school and become a CEO? I am an excellent nurse. I believe you are too.
I will quote here the post I was responding to:
ainz, "I could not count on much help from the regular staff and I did not want to not "fit in."

That is a shame. The travelers who are my friends fit in very well. One comes every winter for two assignments. She goes back to the cold climes to visit family for the holidays, then returns to help us during the busy flu season. She is a GEM.

Please believe I was not putting you or any nurse down. I was putting down the CEOs of companies like Columbia (now HCA) and Tenet who have been arrested and/or convicted of crimes.
Clearly they cannot be taught to respect nurses.
Do you blame the nurses when the CEO commits a crime? When they risk the very lives of patients for the sake of the budget? (meanwhile they pay themselves million$).
Travelers are generally good nurses worth more than they are paid.

PS: I fail to understand why posters want others to become CEOs or travel nurses.

[pickledpepperRN]

Originally posted by ainz
It is very discouraging for me when I read stuff where nurses see themselves as powerless victims in need of a union to help them or just simply quit and leave the profession. Nursing is a sleeping giant, a powerful force to be reckoned with, most nurses just don't realize that a united profession of nursing has the power to literally redesign our healthcare system.

I think an all RN union is a legal framework for working for a united profession of nursing. We ARE working to redesign our health system so that nursing care is once again recognized as the purpose of our hospitals.
www.calnurse.org

[Teshiee]

I don't blame any nurse(s) who take control or their situation by doing traveling or registry. There are awful staff nurses too but their hospital will cover their asses to an extent. I have seen some nurses really give them a hard time. And I tell them don't hate them because they are not willing to subject themselves to abuse of a fulltime employment. You get paid for what you are worth it amazes why many nurses arent't doing it! I am looking forward in being a traveler. Even perdiem work is far better than fulltime. It would be wonderful if we all could be independant contractors then we can really demand what we want and get treated better.

[angelbear]

I think I get what AINZ is saying. I have thought it many times myself. Alot of our problems as nurses could be solved without unions if the nurses could all just get on the same page at the same time. Ya know kind of all for one and one for all mentality. If there are not enough nurses to cover a shift but the staff nurses agree to come in extra to cover it then management never has to come in or hire agency. We are screwing ourselves by doing this. If we would all stop doing this then management would have to either come in themselves or hire agency for far more than they are paying us. This would give us something to haggle with. We could collectively ask for a meeting with management and administration and ask for some concessions. For example we would be willing to pick up extra hours in exchange for an x amount of extra personal hours. Or incentive pay for coming in when not schedueled. We wouldnt need to have a union we could bargain simply by standing together. This is happening where I work right now. We are extremely short of nurses. Because of the set up of our facility as well as high amount of family scrutiny they can not run us very short so If they cant get us to fill in they bring in agency. So far they have been able to cover the majority of the days with our staff and only have agency in a few of those days. I personally treat agency with the utmost respect they are good workers and do a good job for the most part. My problem is not with them it is with management who says we are in a budget crunch and have frozen our wages yet they will bring in agency rather than work deals with us or come in themselves. That is why I think all the nurses should quit picking up any extra time and stand in unity forceing management to either pay alot for agency, come in themselves, or negotiate with us. I think I just rammbled a whole lot but I hope it makes sense.

[pickledpepperRN]

Angelbear:
You make a lot of sense.

[angelbear]

Thank you spacenurse.

[rncopper]

As a present traveling nurse for over 2 years, I HIGHLY resently the article!
Yes, I am a "gypsy": I travel thru out the country, bringing my experience with me, hoping to add to it with a new assignment. I AM flexible, learn quickly (I need to because at many assignments, I am expected to "hit the floor running"!), AND, at every assignment I want to be "part of the team"!
I resent some of the posts that say I do not have an interest in the facility that I am at. While I am at an assignment, I am there to do the best that I can, to help the other nurses, NOT to be in my own little world!
Personally, for me, I do not travel for the money. I travel for the existance of a "Perpetual Tourist". I became disillusioned with the "politics" of staff nursing. After being in management for several years, I knew it would not change.
So, I "hit the road". I have no sick time, no PTO, no "friends or family" when I first get to an assignment (though I quickly make some!), BUT I am confident that I can handle (or learn quickly) whatever is thrown at me.
I consider myself the best nurse I have ever been since I started traveling. I keep up ALL my certifications, take CEU's all the time, and have been exposed to many different ways of doing one thing!
Yes, traveling is NOT for everyone! BUT for the author to ASSUME (we all know what that means!) that we are a risk for the patient, and a liability for the hospital: HOGWASH, I say!