Why In The Heck Should I Be A Loyal Nurse?

Companies were loyal to employees as recently as a couple of generations ago, but the good old days are gone forever. Why in the heck should I be loyal to my workplace when I know that the people in upper management would never show any loyalty to me? Nurses Announcements Archive Article

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teiladay

68 Posts

This doesn't surprise me one bit. Most seasoned nurses have topped out on the wage grid and are earning top pay, whereas new grads often start at the lowest pay rate on the wage grid. The bean counters figure they're saving plenty of money by replacing 'expensive nurses' with cheaper labor, but they're not taking account the wealth of knowledge, experience, and the unspoken 'spidey sense' that highly seasoned nurses bring to the table.We need the highly experienced nurses to transfer their knowledge and skills to the next generation of nurses. Whatever we do, management would be foolish to continue kicking seasoned nurses to the curb just because they earn 'too much money.'
Don't be fooled. "bean counters" are very skilled at what they do, and becoming an actuary (passing all the associated exams) is something a relative few people on the planet can do.The bottom line isn't complex and I'll be direct:1. Will replacing senior, well trained, highly knowledgeable staff with people with little knowledge positively affect the *bottom line*.(yes)2. Will the lack of experience harm the patient or the *bottom line* the most?(the patient)3. Will the probability of harm to patients (in dollars and cents... to include expected litigation) affect the *bottom line* more than the money saved by the reduction in workforce and hourly pay?(No, not even close)There you have it in a nutshell. Corporate has taken everything into consideration and don't forget that the business of healthcare (like virtually any other business) is to make money.What often (not always) makes horrible sense at ground level makes perfect corporate sense... Unfortunately.
Specializes in pediatrics, geriatrics, med-surg, ccu,.

The OP is right. There is no loyality to the employee anymore. I am one of the older generation nurses that was loyal to the hospital I worked in. I thought that this place of employment was loyal to me as well. Boy was I ever wrong. I started at this hospital as a CNA and after graduation I stayed at this hospital for 21 years. I and several other "seasoned" nurses were suddenly out of a job. Loyality used to count. Not anymore. We were thrown out like an old pair of shoes. The only loyality I will show is to myself.

Specializes in Public Health Nurse.
Is hard to be loyal when experience nurses are always seen as an expensive cost, and some new grads are all just waiting for you to drop dead to take your position. Nursing school saturating the system and medicaid medicare hcahps reducing hospital reimbursements.

Sheesh, I do not want any of you experienced nurses to drop dead to take your position. I just want a shot at a new opening...we new graduates deserve a chance to work too and here in South Florida, experience will always get the job before us new graduates.

Specializes in Public Health Nurse.
... I am grateful to my boss for giving a new grad a chance. My coworkers have embraced me and I've had a wonderful environment to learn my new trade.

Where are you Aurora? I wish to meet a manager who will give me the same chance.

SA2009

72 Posts

Lindarn, I completely agree regarding unions. In the last semester, I took History for BSN and do have a better understanding as to why Americans have such a strange relationship to unions. Employers, I don't care in what sector, are in the business for the bottom line. Period! At this point especially because the economy is contracting, the job market is tight which makes is an "employer market" meaning the abundance of people looking for works allows the employer to lower benefits (includes wages, hours, PTO, etc.) and to pick who they seem most appropriate for the benefit of the institution or business or company.

So, to come back to loyality to the employer, no, I don't think it would be wise at this time.

BrandonLPN, LPN

3,358 Posts

Union doesn't really mean a thing nowdays. If ya write a grievance you get retaliated against and all they do is sit in meetings and don't help. Loyalty is nothing to a company, customer service and ratings are the only things that matter. If the patient or family isnt happy and they dont get what they want the nurse gets reported and hauled in the office for not providing 'good customer service'
It depends on the union, though. Where I work (a state facility) the union has thwarted the state's attempt to privatize the CNAs for years. Our CNAs who made it to the top of the pay scale make over twenty dollars an hour. They want to replace them with agency aides who get paid eight dollars an hour. How's *that* for loyalty? A union can be a great "loyalty substitute" for employers who have a deficiency in this field.

Guest343211

880 Posts

Commuter, you make many true points. I'm not sure what may be meant by some employers as loyal. I am faithful, reliable, committed to my patients and their families--I mean, does that count? The loyalty of any organization, for the most part anyway, is to their bottom line--sadly nurses are mere workers, numbers. I strive to be loyal to my God, myself, my spouse and family, my friends, and I'm faithful to the cause of caring and advocacy of those in need.

Honestly, I think, however, I have been most "institutionally" loyal to those institutions that showed repeatedly their commitment to their values and mission statements, as well as when they demonstrated fair and good treatment of each other and the patient/clients. If they showed that they are worthy of loyalty, I gave them loyalty and have gone well beyond due diligence while employed my them. I have also tried to be positive about former employers--even when they did not demonstrate that they were faithful to their stated values.

When, however, an employer demonstrated that they didn't really live their mission and values statements, and when employees and/or patients and families were not treated with compassion and fairness, well, I knew I would need to pick up work elsewhere and work toward moving away from the place--or else limiting time there.

Nowadays, often decency, much less true loyalty has become quite rare; therefore, I advise nurses to have more than one position--a backup job. You need to be able to mitigate your losses quickly should you ever have to endure the capricious antics of people within the new era of healthcare. This makes a statement in and of itself; but mostly it's about survival. When you watch nurses get screwed enough times, you learn quite quickly what you have to do.

Daly City RN

250 Posts

Specializes in Neuro-Surgery, Med-Surg, Home Health.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

I stayed with one employer, a large trauma center in San Francisco.

It wasn't easy. It was a hard and stressful job, but a job I was and forever proud to have had.

After 27+ years, I have retired and am enjoying a well-earned pension.

I do not know how I survived all those years.

I am honored to have worked with so many fine, hard working nurses and doctors.

Yes, being loyal to your employer, the right employer, may reward you with a comfortable pension.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Specializes in Acute Care Psych, DNP Student.

I am loyal to my values & ethics and nothing else.

Specializes in Critical Care (ICU/CVICU).

As someone who has been burned by a previous employer (who I gave 2.5 years to as a nurse intern with a spotless record, only for them to not want to hire me as a new RN...while they hired OUTSIDE new grads over me..with higher gpas), I am the FIRST person to tell new grads to never trust their employers. I have made sure to always think of a plan B just in case.

Specializes in Public Health Nurse.
As someone who has been burned by a previous employer (who I gave 2.5 years to as a nurse intern with a spotless record, only for them to not want to hire me as a new RN...while they hired OUTSIDE new grads over me..with higher gpas), I am the FIRST person to tell new grads to never trust their employers. I have made sure to always think of a plan B just in case.

I never heard of interning for that long, or not getting a job as an RN after successful completion. It must have been a kick to your stomach to be passed like that. I hope you were able to at least use that experience you learned and gotten a better place to be employed at.

I am not sure we; new graduates, have much choice at the moment. I will literally kiss the ground when I get a job, just to get the experience to hopefully have a choice at the end where I want to work.

I was at my last employer for over 24 years, and yes I agree, at the end of the day is about the bottom line, money. My time there can tell you that I like to settle in a place, but this has taught me to now, just make sure to be loyal to my needs, without compromising of course the care of my patients.

Specializes in Critical Care (ICU/CVICU).

I have heard of this happening to someone else as well. She worked as a ER tech for over a year at a hospital and 2 months before graduation, they told her she wouldn't be hired since they only hire BSNs (she was getting her ADN). I was like "why don't they just hire you since you are already in their system and you just apply for your bsn right away, like other coworkers do?" She stated that's the way it is for the new grad internship apparently, they don't give preference of insiders, with adns. (and this is a BIG popular hospital chain in the Houston area). Needless to say, she quit as soon as she knew that she was not even going to be hired...and she swore that she would NEVER work for this particular hospital again. (Same with myself. Now that I have been working as a critical care nurse at another facility, I have been offered positions at the facility where I interned at...I also refused, due to the lack of loyalty I received from them.)