HELP Recyle disabled nurses

Nurses General Nursing

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I know that I am not the only nurse who is no longer working as a nurse due to a back injury. In the US, OSHA requires that you be able to lift 50 lbs to work on the floor as a nurse. I can't.

My "reasonable accomodation" was a move to watch heart monitors on the med-tele. floor where I worked. I also took quite a pay cut to do this. My only other option was to be unemployed.

I have my BSN, ACLS and over 15 years of nursing experience. I can't lift much, but I am still capable of starting IVs, inserting foleys, giving meds, assessing pts and knowing when a pt is in trouble. Frequently, I am a resource person to the nurses I work with, answering questions and debating options.

Years ago, I saw a news story on this nursing student who graduated and worked from her wheelchair. I can still walk, but am not allowed to work as a nurse but someone in a wheelchair can? This doesn't make sense.

There is a nursing shortage. It is bad....I see the shortage every day at work. I have good clinical skills and experience. And I am not alone. Is there any way that we can recycle and use nurses who are still able to perform a great deal of the core skills required in the daily routine of nursing care?

Can anyone out there (or here) help us......We want to help you by being able to do the work we have been trained to do and by working with you.

Thank you for your help.

Thank you so much for the good information, PRN!

You know what is eerie....my injury was in November of '99 too.

I've been perusing the SSA sight but sometimes it gets a bit confusing...thanks for straightening out a few facts for me. :)

I am already noticing I am having a more positive attitude on this Remeron...I have never heard of it before so it must be a new one. It's in a classification of its own, my doc says. Thank God for small favors, right? Less anxiety and fear is always good. :)

Thanks again!

Deb

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Hi everyone! This post must be an answer to my prayers! I was "let go" from my nursing job in March 2002. I have a claim lodged with Indiana's Workers' Comp Board. I suffered 3 back injuries within a year. Anyway, this last injury I was off work for 6 months & the dr. put me on work restrictions. When I gave them to my DON she took me to the head of Human Resources & together they told me they had nothing for me & goodbye. Needless to say, I was crushed. I will pray for you all & thanks so much for this post.

Sincerely, Debbie

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Nurtain, that is just like me in that I suffered several repeated back injuries. It soon became apparent that I was getting weaker and weaker, couldn't pull pt across bed with draw sheet etc.

At the point that the hospital was ready to remove me, I went to my doc and demanded physical therapy. I had just been getting flexeril and some time off for repeat injury. When I finished my therapy I was told that I should just be glad that I could do what I could. Lifting pts was a no-no.

Anyway, my employer let me watch heart monitors.....for a big pay cut.

Mattsmom, the possibility of a nursing job would be as the employment health nurse at my hospital. The hours would be great, Monday thr Friday, no holidays or weekends. And I would get to work as a nurse again......waiting for a job interview now.

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That's WONDERFUL news, Mercykitten, keep us updated!

These are the kinds of jobs injured/disabled hospital nurses should/could be offered, IMO: supervisory, case management, chart review, pre-admission or outpatient nurse, employee health, nurse recruitor, scheduling or staffing nurse, surgical/procedure scheduler, hospital bill auditor.....the list goes on. What I DON'T understand is why hospitals prefer to run injured nurses off in many cases, One would think they would gain loyalty from their nurses if staff knew if they were injured, a nurse has a chance to be accomodated in the workplace....

Hi there,Nurtain, many of us here have been through what you are now experiencing. Keep your chin up, find a good attorney and an empathetic doctor (NOT one whose loyalties are with the hospital...I made THAT mistake.), and demand treatment for your injuries. Don't let anyone bully you into not taking care of yourself!

Welcome, and please post often! :)

These non lifting jobs are SO HARD to find, as there is no shortage of nurses who want to do non-bedside nursing. I interviewed for dozens of them over the past 2 yeard and they always seem to go to a 'better applicant' or one with a few more initials behind their name than me. ;)

Oh well. Keep pluggin' everyone! And have a GREAT weekend!

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Mattsmom, I think one of the reasons that hospitals just let injuried nurses go is that there are a lot more injuried nurses than people think. I know of at least three from my floor in the last three years. Multiple by the number of units/floors we have, and that could be close to 54 nurses. We have 18 units.

Maybe the number of injuried nurses in the least three years isn't that high, but still that would indicate quite a high number. Also, I am not including in that number the people who suffered an injury and were off for a week or so and came back to work. I know that we do have people who come back to work and avoid lifting whenever possible. They somehow avoided getting lifting restrictions and therefore kept their jobs.....their jobs that pay better than non=nursing jobs.

Is this the case for you all. Do you know of lots of injuried nurses. Do you know of people working, having cheated their way around restrictions?

All of us who have posted so far are obviously having to live with our restrictions. But I do hope together that we can make things better for each other. Thanks for all your input.

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To everyone, I just want to sincerely thank all of you for your input. I don't feel so all alone. I know of 4 nurses who over the past yr have had various surg. on various parts of their bodies. They are back working except for 1. Nursing is like combat. It is very tough on the body. I just finished a case mgmt course online & am getting ready to send out resumes. Wish me luck as I wish you all luck in whatever you choose. I will kep coming back for more. Thanks again.

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A case management course online? Ooh, that sounds interesting, Nurtain...give us details please! :)

That is another option for those of us who are injured.....although I know of a nurse who was REFUSED a case management position because of her inability to lift (???).

I may have mentioned her before, she is now a social worker doing the same type of work but not as a 'nurse'. :(

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Specializes in Community Health Nurse.

I'm anxious to be RECYCLED as a nurse! I will be working as a nurse again by next year. I am determined to be, and I won't allow anything negative to get in my way, either. Returning to college is a must for me, and I am looking forward to it. Life is as good as I make it for myself! :)

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Hi Renee! Are you all set to go to college? What will your major be? BSN or??? Enquiring minds want to know, LOL! :) I hope to feel up to that in time myself.

And I am hereby finished with that blasted SSD paperwork (at least the first round of it). It is SOOOO repetitive from the pain report to the function report to the disability report...

I mailed it off today so we'll see what happens. ;)

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Specializes in Community Health Nurse.

Hi mattsmom:)

Actually, I want to become some kind of doctor. I can be a PhD nurse and major in counseling... My dream is to become somebody's doctor, so I figure I can use my nurses degree and build on it to become Doctor Renee one day. My major was Psychology before I became a nurse, so I can continue in that area and become a Psychologist. I just want to expand my options, even if I expand them as a nurse...a PhD nurse of course. I'll keep you posted, but it aint gonna happen anytime soon...unless I win the Texas lottery or something. :chuckle

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I wonder how many nurses are not at the BS d/t injury or the actual physical demands of BS nsg? I'd bet it is a high percentage. I can only offer words of encouragement to keep trying and keep focused on your goals. You'll get there! There is degree or a job for you. I found mine!

Similar thread about this subject on this BB:

https://allnurses.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=15630

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Hi, Everybody. Been thinking about you all this week. It was a rough one where I was. One night we worked two nurses short, one more Er admission would have made us three nurses short.

I couldn't help but think that recycled nurses like us could have helped. In some cases just somebody able to do IV pushes and give IV pain meds would have been a big help. When you are working short, any help is worthwhile.

My floor is now short by at least 8 nurses. That is more nurses than we have working night shift.

Still haven't heard anything about a job interview.....but this can be a slow process.

Let's all keep encouraging one another. It is nice to know that others understand what we are going through.

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