Is working in a hospital really so awful?

Nurses General Nursing

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I addressed this question in the middle of a poll thread about how much people cry at work, but didn't get much of an answer. I feel like if I put it in this forum more people will be able to answer, and also benefit...

Are RN hospitals jobs the ones that make people cry the most? I keep reading in various thread that RNs leave hospitals to find some other nursing position, and are always "so grateful" they found this new job.

More than one nurse has told me, almost as a precaution to a pre-nursing student, "Remember, hospitals are not the only place nurses work."

And yet I know most RNs need to work at least a year in a hospital setting before they can move on to a new kind of RN job. I feel like I am going to have to brace myself for one year of torture before the light at the end of the tunnel!

Is it true? Say it ain't so!

Also, what are these mysterious RN jobs people leave hospitals for, where they are so much happier and grateful?

Thank you!:redpinkhe

Specializes in floor to ICU.

Yes, it can be. But on the flip side it can be very rewarding too. I love the days when the staffing allows me to spend quality bedside time with my patients doing teaching or just listening when they need to talk about whatever.

Specializes in ob/gyn med /surg.

well it's only awful from the time you punch in until the time you punch out...lol... noo i'm just kiddin ya... i think the work is very hard but i love the people i work with and that makes all the difference.... they make work worthwhile because you know someone has your back and it makes work easier ....

Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.
Are RN hospitals jobs the ones that make people cry the most? I keep reading in various thread that RNs leave hospitals to find some other nursing position, and are always "so grateful" they found this new job.

Hospital nursing jobs can be physically, mentally, socially, and politically difficult. The problems are multifaceted.

Many facilities are understaffed and lacking supplies, which leads to additional stressors. Bedside nurses must frequently juggle demanding patients, verbally abusive family members and visitors, rude physicians, and uncaring managers with a great deal of tact and savvy, which can be emotionally challenging in the long run. Hospital nursing is also permeated with politics. If the bedside nurse does not have the will to survive, the hospital environment can serve as a vacuum to drain the lively soul out of you.

Specializes in Pediatrics (Burn ICU, CVICU).

Depends on the hospital. Simple as that.

Specializes in Telemetry, Med Surg, Pediatrics, ER.

Do not form your opinion of hospital nursing until you have had a chance to experience it for yourself. We are all different, and of course not all hospitals have the same atmosphere. Your coworkers make all the difference in the world.

As a new grad, I went to work on a telemetry unit. I worked in a toxic environment and was miserable. I work in the ER at another hospital now and I absolutely love it. At this point I cannot imaging doing anything else. You will find your niche in nursing. Sometimes you have to follow your heart, not the opinions of others. Just because something was good/bad for someone else does not mean you will have the same experience.

i have worked in a lot of hospitals and have found a variety of feelings, personalities and reactions.

those that won't admit it tend to be sour all the way around but don't realize it.

some people have a habit of coming in sour and crabby and then others feed off of it and - again - don't realize it and won't admit it.

some people are totally gifted at handling the stress but i think the number of those people is small and i really admire them. when you see them snap, you know it's really bad.

in my opinion and based on my experience, hospital nursing tends to "suck" more than not. i can't believe the people i have met online and off that feel the same way. out of those that don't feel the same way i found that many of them fit in the upper two categories....many of them being a large part of the problem as to why a floor can't keep nurses or what actually makes a floor unbearable.

it is very hard and you won't know anything until you yourself experiences it. chances are that if you are coming here for advice, you are looking for support to make your decision to do it. you will get that. and you just won't know until you get your feet wet.

i have finally found a place that allows for patient care and the shift and people i work with is wonderful! but.....when the day shift comes in, a handful of them are very sour and negative and feed off of each other and i am so glad i don't work with them. :yeah:

i love my job again! is it hard? yes. but i like it again. i am praying to make that my home and would appreciate any prayers from any of you because i came to this board so knocked down.

i have still been researching the web about nursing and staffing and all. i love this blog.....

http://thevalueofhumanlife.blogspot.com/

it really hits home.

if you decide to go into nursing (and i believe you made your choice) - please be a part of the change for the patient's sake. but...be very careful - read the blog and you will know why.

Specializes in MS/ Tele.

There are many nursing jobs from Forensic CSI, to home health, to Military with many environs, hospitals, nursing homes, adult day care centers, just to name a few. Spend a couple of years on a med/surg floor, start IV's, drop some tubes and go from there. Tell some families their loved one have passed. Get some tools in your belt and then move on.

Honestly I like to complain about it. But I've been doing it for a long time. And I miss it when I'm off. It has it's bad days and good days.

Specializes in peds cardiac, peds ER.

I love my job!!!!

I work in a hospital, full time, on a busy pediatric cardiac stepdown. Yes, it is stressfull, and some days are tough.

But I work with great staff, I have great management, I love the patients, and I love the families. I love going to work each day.

Yes I have cried at work. Usually because I have lost a patient. But for every one lost there are many more happily discharged home.

My job is great, I can't say enough good things about it. This is a second career for me and it was a great decision.

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