Happy Thanksgiving to all! Reason to be thankful: I am not a nurse anymore!

Nurses General Nursing

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Hi all,

Happy Thanksgiving to all!

This year is special because I have something really special to be thankful for! I do not have to work as a nurse anymore! Which means I no longer have to:

1) Listen to patients complain because they have had their cold symptoms for more than two days and they just cannot wait in the ER waiting room!

2) Listen to thankless patients yell and belittle me becuase they are sick of waiting for the doctor to come in to see them, and then watch as they treat the doctor with the respect that I deserve for ordering all of thier lab and radiology exams while they were waiting to see that doctor!!

3) Wait hand and foot on patient's who have been in the ER for 10 minutes and just need to eat right now! There abdominal pain is just that terrible!

4) Hold my bladder until it is ready to explode!

5) Eat lunch AND dinner at the end of my 12 hour shift that I haven't had a break on, while I am forced to feed patients that have been in the department for 10 minutes!

6) Listen to other nurses put a guilt trip on me when I demmand a break!

7) Hear about the negative comments that other nurses have said to a preceptee about how bad of a preceptor I will be, but I am only a preceptor "becuase management loves me and thats the only reason I got employee of the month too".

8) Hear that a charge nurse complained that I only take sick kids that require 1:1 care becuase I do not like to work. We all know critically ill children are no work at all, you just stand there and twidle your thumbs! This same charge nurse is the first to run and get me when a sick kid comes in and assign it to me!

9) Watch patient's suffer for 2-3 hours with pain and/or nausea/vomiting becuase we are so overwhelmed with patients and god forbid the doctors see patients in a timely manner. The same doctors that refuse to put some medications in our order sets!

10) No longer getting hit, spit at, and verbally abused by any patients, especially psychiatric patients!

11) No longer have to worry about the medical patient I am neglecting because the psychiatric patient who comes in every other day is acting out because they suddenly need a sandwich, a cigarrette, a shower, and medication for their anxiety!

12) No longer have to do rape kits, something I was never trained in as a nurse, god forbid we skip the magnet crap and put the money towards SANE nurses so that someone who has some forensic training can do an exam that SHOULD REQUIRE someone with forensics training!

Last, but not least, I could continue with this list, but it would go on for days. I no longer have to be tired and miserable all the time and I no longer have to dread the very thought of going to work!!!

HappyParamedicEXRN!

Specializes in NICU Transport/NICU.

Ever thought of just leaving the ER?

We nurses were just discussing this very thing the other day. Dr. comes in and spends 3.4 minutes with each patient, doesn't even look up from his clipboard to examine physical sites being pointed out by patients and nurses, mumbles orders (afterall, why should be bother to write them down legibly) and is treated like "God".

This would not happen in a male dominated occupation.

Nurses do not fully realize the power they possess to bring about change in nurse/patient rations, and make this occupation a great and honorable one, instead of an occupation that washes/burns out thousands every year.

Specializes in Trauma Surgical ICU.
We nurses were just discussing this very thing the other day. Dr. comes in and spends 3.4 minutes with each patient, doesn't even look up from his clipboard to examine physical sites being pointed out by patients and nurses, mumbles orders (afterall, why should be bother to write them down legibly) and is treated like "God".

This would not happen in a male dominated occupation.

Nurses do not fully realize the power they possess to bring about change in nurse/patient rations, and make this occupation a great and honorable one, instead of an occupation that washes/burns out thousands every year.

Please tell me how? I would seriously love to know.. It is so sad watching the burnout, overworked, overstressed nurses try to do their jobs..

All I can say is, WOW! You sure told it like it is and I am so happy for you! Wish it were me, I am so sick of all the crap as well.

I get burned out too. All the things you won't miss are things that could be changed. Won't you miss the patients that you help? Will you miss that 1:1 pediatric patient's parents thanking you for helping their child? Will you miss the feeling of knowing you did something that will make another human's life better?

I hate the day to day drama and crap at my job, but I love what I do. I know that there is going to be day to day crap no matter where I work, jobs are like people, none of us is perfect.

I love knowing that I make a positive difference in people's lives and get paid for it.

I am proud to be a nurse.

Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.

i'm sorry you were so miserable as a nurse. i hope you continue to enjoy whatever it is you are going to do now.

i'm thankful that i have an interesting, challenging job (as a nurse).

i'm thankful for all the nurses and cnas that take care of both my mother and my mother-in-law.

i'm thankful for my health, my fabulous husband (also a nurse) and the paycheck that pays for the house, two nice cars and a comfortable lifestyle.

i'm thankful that i'm on nights for two weeks now and can step away from family drama that exists on day shift.

Specializes in Hospital, med-surg, hospice.

Good luck and best wishes for your future! Won't you encounter these same pts just earlier??

Hey Happy,

What did you like better, nursing or paramedic work and why? What are you plans for the future?

~Katherine

Specializes in ED, Pedi Vasc access, Paramedic serving 6 towns.

I am currently as a paramedic full time again, and believe it or not my take home pay is double. Yes I have to work more hours, but a 24 hour shift on the ambulance feels like a 4 hour shift in the hospital as a nurse!

Yes I will have to deal with irritating people, but only for about 10 minutes before they become some poor nurses' problem which is fine with me! (sorry, I hope I do not sound like a mean person there, but it is so true)

and my patient's tend to be much more thankful than the ones in the ED, since I can give them relief from pain, nausea, and sometimes anxiety related to their condition. It's much easier to give patients the attention most of them deserve when you only have one of them! Thus I do not need to work as a nurse to feel like I am helping people... I do that every shift I work on the ambulance and enjoy what I do. Nothing like looking FORWARD to going to work! It's a great feeling and life is way to short not to know what that feels like!

HappyParamedicExRN

I am currently as a paramedic full time again, and believe it or not my take home pay is double. Yes I have to work more hours, but a 24 hour shift on the ambulance feels like a 4 hour shift in the hospital as a nurse!

Yes I will have to deal with irritating people, but only for about 10 minutes before they become some poor nurses' problem which is fine with me! (sorry, I hope I do not sound like a mean person there, but it is so true)

and my patient's tend to be much more thankful than the ones in the ED, since I can give them relief from pain, nausea, and sometimes anxiety related to their condition. It's much easier to give patients the attention most of them deserve when you only have one of them! Thus I do not need to work as a nurse to feel like I am helping people... I do that every shift I work on the ambulance and enjoy what I do. Nothing like looking FORWARD to going to work! It's a great feeling and life is way to short not to know what that feels like!

HappyParamedicExRN

You are so right. I appreciate your honesty. I envy you..but of course I am genuinely happy to see someone move in a better direction :). Congrats!:yeah:

i'm sorry you were so miserable as a nurse. i hope you continue to enjoy whatever it is you are going to do now.

i'm thankful that i have an interesting, challenging job (as a nurse).

i'm thankful for all the nurses and cnas that take care of both my mother and my mother-in-law.

i'm thankful for my health, my fabulous husband (also a nurse) and the paycheck that pays for the house, two nice cars and a comfortable lifestyle.

i'm thankful that i'm on nights for two weeks now and can step away from family drama that exists on day shift.

when someone comes home to announce, for example, an award that they earned, do you one up them? where's the courtesy? it's not really hard to read in between the lines.

i have seen you reply this way to many people who so much as peep about their dislike for nursing or what goes on in nursing. that says a lot, because i am fairly new on the forum.

just because you have supposedly had these experiences, doesn't mean it's like that for everyone.

i still look forward to reading your posts. take care

You make that wound sooooooooo good!!!! Having a hard time finding decent work as a nurse in North Carolina!!!

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