Is Nursing Administration Supportive of you where you work?

NurseTami · Sep 23, 2001

Well, Bonnie, the same type of DON was hired at the LTC where I worked as an LPN. I no longer work there. Not only did she do all of the above, she was very two faced, went on and on about how wonderful people were then told the ADM what idiots she thought we were. Good bye, and not sorry to go!!!!!

P_RN, ADN, RN · Sep 24, 2001

Well I don't work there any more, but when I did, NO they weren't supportive. Neither were they when I went before the worker's compensation board . Your ivory tower was just a mezzanine compared to where I worked.

"Dime a dozen" "Load the wagons and he** with the horses" was more like their mantra.

hoolahan, ASN, RN · Sep 24, 2001

Administrative support...isn't that an oxymoron?

Just kidding! Problem is you never realize you had a good one until you get the next one.

We had one DON who used to correct typos in red pen, and you had to watch every single word you said, she had a hang up about how we communicated.

Current DON cannot process things that are stressful to her...ex, B, I am having an MI, crushing CP, can't finish my pt's for the day... Response, well Linda, that is why we like you, you are so organized, we can always rely on you to turn in your holiday request on-time. HUH??? It's like she just proceeds with her agenda, no matter what is going on around her. I finally realized she responds to written problems, but again, another one who will highlight sentences and ask you what you meant by that, then rephrase it, how many times can you say I was not supposed to be on-call on Labor day and I want my OT? And that I hope that the call situation is cleaer the next holiday I have to work.

The there are the micromangers who have to know every thing you do every single minute fo the day. These are the ones who you swear have your phone lines tapped. My girlfriend and I would RAG this chick OUT on the phone (I am talking home phone lines after work hours), and the next day she would call a meeting and bring the same things up, look at one of us and say what do you think? I swear it was spooky. It happened more than once!

I have finally realized I need to be my own boss. I am no good at taking orders from others. No good at all. Lois is advising me on how to start my own biz in NJ. Put a rush on that info in the mail Lois Jean! PLEASE!!

The only good manager I have ever had is the one for the staffing agency, when she calls me it's only to offer good news of double time offers!! I like her! And when my friend was a manager, she told me recently that she was always harder on me than anyone else b/c she had to be sooo careful no one would say she was playing favorites. I miss working for her. She always treated everyone very well, gave off on vacation requests w/o a question, she was great.

frustratedRN · Sep 24, 2001

the administration is very supportive where i work. when we tell them about the problems we are experiencing they always "look into that" lol

they must have this huge list of things to "look into" cos they havent gotten back to us on any of them yet....lol

we had a staff meeting last week and both my supervisors were there. one is an acting supervisor since ours is on maternity leave.

they both know i want transferred and they both know why.

at the end of the meeting i asked them both together if i could PLEASE be transferred.

its the same damn floor just a differnt part. same management.

the acting supervisor said it wasnt her decision to make it was the other supervisors (this is why i got them when they were both together) so i looked at the other one and said...well ok then can i please be transferred? she said it wasnt her decision to make. i looked at them both and said...hey..please dont do this to me ok?

then they BOTH did the flim flam and said it was the managers job. i said ...great..when will she be back?

november...lol

ive been back on hell the last cpl days and things havent been too bad. the nurses treat me differently now as one of the staff. i dont know what happened there but its ok with me.

i am still having a major problem with the amazon nurse and her sidekick.

so i have documented that bullcrap and tomorrow im going to write them both up for unprofessional conduct...lol

the funny thing is that for all the bullshit they put me through ive really learned a lot because i had to. i have to be on my toes all the time. i work defensively...stupid huh?

i watched one of them putting in orders last night. she didnt know what the heck she was doing...she obviously hasnt done it much. i have had to cos where they put me we rarely have a secretary.

the amazon is going to ask me to switch with her...i heard....so she can go to one of the other nurses wedding. im going to tell her i cant because i have plans....i plan on sitting home and laughing at her cos she has to work and cant go.

so ill be busy.

ubcnme · Sep 24, 2001

Heck no, they're not supportive! I work in a public health agency in the immunization department which is part of the communicable disease program. We have a new 'team leader' who initially hired on as a staff nurse which I trained when I was still working in the STD clinic. Then our team leader retired and this lady, who supposedly has a background in administration/management, had an interview with our program mgr---as did I. I have been cross-trained in every area of the CD program including HIV, STD, TB, immunizations---she had not a clue what any of the nurses in any of the depts did---but the program mgr felt with her background that she was the best person for the job! OK---so I got over that and transferred to immunizations---she is now our team leader but also has to work as an STD nurse because of our short-staffing. Over the last 3 months it has come to light that she is very incompetent....possesses no critical thinking skills and her clinical skills are nil! Last week I found out from the state DIS that she had committed a HUGE breach of confidentiality talking to STD pts while someone was installing a phone line in the room AND the door to the room was open! The state notified our program mgr who is her direct supervisor and it was swept under the carpet! She talks to us during our 'team meetings' as if we are kindergartners and acts like we don't know diddly as to what we are doing when we are basically running things ourselves. Our program mgr is covering up for her left and right and I think it's because she doesn't want to admit she made the wrong choice. We feel as if we have absolutely no one to turn to when we have issues that really need to be resolved by a mgr. Oh, I also witnessed a severe breach with another nurse on our team--of course our 'team leader' thinks this nurse is wonderful---I found her talking in the waiting room to an elderly couple who had had positive PPDs about TB and INH treatment.....I was hot to say the least. I approached her and politely asked if she wouldn't mind bringing her clients back to a private room...I mean there were only about 20 people in the waiting room listening to every word she said! I want to write her up so bad....but you see, I am viewed as a troublemaker b/c I speak my mind and advocated more than once for patients and have bucked administration more than once....so I'm afraid if I wrote her up, I would be constantly picked on until I quit. I love my job for the most part...all of us 'lowly staff nurses' are in the same boat and I love the hours b/c I have weekend/holidays off and as a single mom it's really what I need to do right now. Suggestions?

hoolahan, ASN, RN · Sep 24, 2001

Hey "u" I know just what you mean!!

Let's start a management euphamism thread, OK? Just for fun. I'd love to hear the terms management uses to dismiss bad behavior as OK and good behavior as undesirable.

Ex...

Management terms equivalent staff terms

Trouble Maker Pateint Advocate

Of course I am drawing a blank right now, but you get my drift.

I'll start it.

ubcnme · Sep 24, 2001

OK, you go! I've got one: "Let's work as a team"="I don't really want to hear any of your issues....keep them to yourselves and work it out amongst yourselves"....sound familiar?

ubcnme · Sep 24, 2001

BTW, I've decided to go ahead and write up the nurse whom I witnessed breaching confidentiality in the waiting room.....p*ss on them if they don't like it. We already have a bad enough stigma attached to our agency b/c we are the 'county health dept' without our own staff making our agency look as if we don't care about our clients needs! We'll see what comes down the pike on this one....I'm giving a copy to our 'team leader', a copy to the program mgr, and keeping one for myself.

WriteStuff · Sep 24, 2001

:eek:

"Ubcnme" (sorry I don't have your name,

What you are talking about is EXACTLY my point and why I made this post.

I've been in this business long enough to have experienced a wide variety of settings, in and outside the hospital. After all these years I can conclude that there are "three" administratively environmental personalities" and they are these".....

1. Proactively Supportive to Staff

2. Indifferent toward Staff

3. Counterproductively hostile toward Staff

Numbers 2 and 3 by far are in the majority!!

Talk about "the games people play now".......here are some of the "euphemisims" from management that make you want to down a dose of Kaopectate:

1. "I'll get back to you on that........

2. "Let's table that for a later date........

3. "Work your problems out on your own shift"........

4. "My door to my office is always open........

5. "We do it this way because the 'regs' say so......

6. "If your having problems then you're not well organized........

7. "I'll take your concerns to Risk Management.......

8. "Well, we've never had that problem before......

9. "Let's not rush to judgement....

10. "Just send me an e-mail....

11. "I'll consider it when it's put in writing.....

There are so many more.......all we ask is that management BE as concerned as WE are about our patients, our residents and our clients!! It is extremely frustrating to give "quality care" when those in leadership roles have their own hidden agendas, are obssessed with their own "image", and lack not only management skills but the clinical expertise that enhances those skills. We won't even go down the road of "communication skills" with those folks......that's another thread (or piece of hemp rope) altogether.

Thanks for your input folks.

Bonnie C., RN