Am I Just a Cynic or Is nursing a poor career?

Nurses General Nursing

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I need to ask other nurses if they are as dissatisfied with nursing or is it just not for me? I've been a nurse for 2 years and I hate it. (I am going back to school for something else, I will not be a nurse that hates her job and does it for anyother 20 years.) I am an RN and have worked in the hospital (tele & med/surg) and LTC. While there are differences, it seems that they all have the same issues that upset me.

#1 I feel abused from every angle. I feel like a servant to my pts, family can be so demanding and rude, some doctors can be more condisending that family (but even one it too much, a Ph.D. doesn't give anyone the right to belittle others.) Management is, well management. Short staffing the floor and aloof to issues. It seems these issues (which I've seen on many boards, are "just a part of nursing". There's always that nasty doc no one likes talking to, or that crazy family member that makes our day nearly imposible. Is it over sensitive of me to not want to deal with this anymore?

#2 I feel like the general public is moving towards a "anti-healthcare" attitude. People sue for everything. It seems that people don't feel we are entitled to break (as we've discussed in another post), I've seen first hand many times that the public wouldn't care if you were 9 months pregnant, they expect you to lift mom single-handedly out of the chair and into bed, and NOW! because they "don't want to wait" for you to get help. The nurse doesn't even need to be pregnant, she could be 110lbs and "mom" could be 400lbs and her 25 family members (8 of which are young strapping men) will demand you get mom up to the commode NOW!, and all 25 will stand there and watch and god forbid the guy across the hall is coding!!! Even another human being dieing is not important enough for you to derail from getting their 400lb mom another package of gramcrackers..and so an and so on. And all the while they think the nurse is LAZY!!! I hear this very often. (This actually happened to me at a diner) the couple behind me and my husband were having a bash fest on how lazy and stupid nurses are. They never considered that maybe a nurse was in earshot! My husband lit into them, and they apologized but said that the nurses at a local hospital "killed" their grandpa. I asked about grandpa who was 89 y/o had a "failing heart and kidneys" but "was doing well untiL he went into the hospital". I want to DUMP MY SOUP ON THEIR HEADS!! This seems to me to be very common that people blame nurses(or docs) for inevidable deaths.

#3 Short staffing that's only getting shorter...need I say more.

#4 Missing time with family. I will admit I knew about this before I got into nursing so I can't complain. But since I've had my son, I no longer want to miss holidays. I'm sorry, but my pts are not worth the times I will miss with my family on holidays. I want to be home christmas mornings with my son and 10 year from now I won't remember the pts I had on xmas but I will remember that I missed his first xmas (or second or what ever).

#5 Liability. I knew this too, so I can't complain, but people make mistakes Cashiers ring you up for the wrong amount, cooks make and waitress serve the wrong food, I'm sure plumber or contruction workers have been called it to fix something but after wards it still leeks or whatever and they have to be called back to do it again. I'm not saying that nurses are the only profession that our mistakes can be very dangerous, I'm saying that even the smallest mistakes, one that would never hurt anyone, gets everyone up in arms about it. And pts and there family expect nothing short of God caring for them or their family. A nurse on the floor I used to work on went to take a blood sugar on the wrong pt. The family was there, it never even got done. They stopped her, but the pt was confused and wouldn't have been able to tell the nurse she was a BGM. The family had a melt down and reported her and she got in a lot of trouble! Its not like she was about to give morpine to this lady. I know a mistake is a mistake, but there's no forgiveness in nursing, not matter how tiny the mistake. We can not make mistakes, as per the general public. Well, I'm careful, but I'm not perfect.

Sorry to sound so negitive. Am I just looking at this all wrong? Does anyone else feel this way, but it doesn't bother them? :(

this is exactly what i mean.

i did read your post from the beginning to end. i was not addressing you personally. if you take the time to reread my post, i was addressing people who might be in ob. i was not, repeating not, referring to you.

this was my one and only chance to have a baby. and the experience was ruined by a nurse who was not thinking. i was not looking for the experience to end all experiences because i do know what it's like in l&d, and from what you said, you don't know what it's like in l&d.

i'll have you know that i've worked in l&d for the last 10 years as a labor doula. working side by side with the nurses assisting them. while they got to go sit down and gab with everyone at the desk, sip coffee, i was supporting their patient, standing by their bedside for as much as ten hours. i was called in because the nurses were sick of handling patients like this. did i get a break? no. did i walk out when being cursed at? no. while nurses went home at shift change i stayed with the patient until their labor was done. and did i even get paid for this? no

keep in mind that i put up with her behavior for the better part of this shift - 8 hours. also, keep in mind that it was my husband who insisted that i change nurses. he was the one calling nursing supervisors - i didn't even ask him to do it! i had a wonderful nurse the night before (long labor with pre-eclampsia if you really want to know). i know what horrible is because i've worked with it, and i was being far from horrible. i wanted to be a nurse in the worst way. i wanted it so badly. i was working so hard on prereqs, gaining real world experience for references. but after what i went through, after what i saw when i was in labor (with good pain relief so i was not out of control) and my ob experience (i'm not even going to get into that) that i wanted no part of it. i know that i'm not gaining any friends with this post, but i need to get this out. i'm sorry that you misread my post. obviously you missed the part at the bottom where i absolutely praised the staff and gave them the highest rating i could on a press-ganey. i really want to go on, but i really need to stop.

I'm not going to justify how I feel, or why I have a hard time believing people's nursing stories. I don't really care what your resume consists of, that doesn't change that I'm sitting on the fence (that means I don't have an opinion on your story either way. You're not the only one in the world with a bad labor experience. What I went through to have my son was scary. And I did have a run in with a resident, on an issue that ALL of my nurses and my primary OB backed me on. I did not, however, let this ruin my son's birth experience.

I don't think it's the profession, I think you need to find a job that suits your family life and doesn't make you feel dumped on as much as your current job (though realistically, every job has its drawbacks).

HOW TRUE!

I have worked nights,evenings, days on cardiac, med-surg, ICU, float pool, holidays, weekends,etc,etc.

I switched to a 'desk' job 2 years ago for the sake of my family. No nights, holidays, or weekends. I miss diect patient care but not at the expense of time with my family.

Otessa

I have just gotten done crying on my husband about what happened. He was there. He KNOWS that I was treated horribly by an RN.

Yes, I have been angry about this. For YEARS I worked with patients to give them the best possible experience they could possibly have. Every labor was special. Not ONCE just I judge a person. When my turn came that's all I asked for, and I was treated like common trash. I have tried to make the best out of a bad situation, and someone comes along when I open myself up and rips old wounds open.

As I said, I was NOT even referring to you in the first place.

There is so much more I want to say, but I have to stop myself. I was violated, things were done without my permission.

Specializes in Med-Surg.

Wow. Sounds like some raw feelings in here. Not taking sides.

I think you both have misunderstood each other's intentions, and put feelings out on the line because of that. Typed words are hard to read sometimes, they don't have the body language and facial expression to back them up like spoken word.

Specializes in Adult and Peds ED, Forensic Nursing.

I would have to reiterate the "grass is not always greener" comment. I am coming to nursing to help people and to feel that after a day of putting up with bs, at least I have done some good in the world. The way better hours and better pay help too :-)

Maybe it is time to get out. You do seem pretty adamant about leaving, so maybe you should. I am tempted to suggest you try other areas of nursing too, but maybe it is too late.

I know when I left my last career it was absolutely time to go, I tried a few different avenues and hated each one more that the last. When I did leave I felt guilty, giving up on the career I had devoted 10 years and a degree to, and actually did get some stress from co-workers for giving up.

Anyway, if it is time to go, go. If nursing is no longer right for you then don't worry if you are being cynical, do what is right for you and your family. Good luck, and I hope it works out. I hope you find your dream vocation.

Finally, and I hate to stoke flames, or get flamed myself ;-) but honestly... There are bad nurses out there. There are. It is not always the patient's fault.

When I got to the point where I thought every client was a needy lunatic, and all my bosses were evil jerks, and my coworkers were all self centered morons (oh and I did get to that point, and I still believe they were) I had to stop and think that part of the problem was me. Not that I was a bad person, but I was soooo over it and had become so cynical that I was doing everyone a disservice by showing up.

I really hope you can find something that makes you happy. It is a nice feeling when you do :-)

btw I took tons of those free online career aptitude tests and think they helped me recognize the career paths that were in the back of my mind but that I hadn't accepted yet.

Good luck!

Specializes in Adult and Peds ED, Forensic Nursing.

I said I wasn't going to do this, especially since I know you don't want advice on what to do, more validation of your feelings etc, but I can't help it...

I was just reading on the CNS board about nurses doing medical advertising and medical writing. Also, I have never known a school nurse (except when I was in school) but they would have the same hours as their kids, and I personally think it could be interesting. I am really interested in the visiting nurse service, but I hear it can be dangerous.

Anyway, sorry for that, I am a meddler and a fixer, I can't help it.

As for the original question, (finally, took me long enough) all your points are valid and true, so cynical or not, the fact they bug you so much is the important issue.

Specializes in ER, PACU, Med-Surg, Hospice, LTC.
I do have something to say, and I do not mean to be harsh. If you hate nursing, please, for your patients, GET OUT! Especially if you work in OB.

Why "especially OB"? Are OB patients somehow 'more important' that other patients? :bugeyes:

Specializes in Adult and Peds ED, Forensic Nursing.

ugh.

last post.

before i am misunderstood, when I said "there are bad nurses" I meant that BabyRN2Be's nurse may have been mean and grumpy and bad. I absolutely did not mean at all that anyone on this board is a bad nurse.

Specializes in Advanced Practice, surgery.

This thread has been closed for the time being for staff review

Specializes in Advanced Practice, surgery.
Wow. Sounds like some raw feelings in here. Not taking sides.

I think you both have misunderstood each other's intentions, and put feelings out on the line because of that. Typed words are hard to read sometimes, they don't have the body language and facial expression to back them up like spoken word.

This is an excellent statement and far better than anything I could say at this point.

I am going to reopen this thread. We enjoy lively debate and discussion at allnurses, and it is clear that there are some very strong emotions because of personal expereinces associated with this thread. I would like to remind all members to please discuss the subject, but do so in a professional and polite manner.

Many Thanks

Sharrie

Why "especially OB"? Are OB patients somehow 'more important' that other patients? :bugeyes:

This is a good question: I really did not want to imply that OB patients were special. And what I meant to say was L&D, my mistake and I'm sorry. Not that L&D patients are more special either, but while you are in labor, you are facing a cataclysmic life event, for better or worse. I know that L&D isn't always rosy as I have volunteered to sit by a patient's bedside as she was going through a fetal demise.

While I know that other patients in the hospital may face a cataclysmic event, it's a little different in L&D in that emotions are all over the map as that experience will change them for the rest of their lives - they are about to be parents, whether the outcome is joyful or intense grief.

I'm not so eloquent at the moment and I'm not communicating this correctly. The mom may have never been in the hospital before in her life and may have pictured her labor as difficult, but normal. When those plans go downhill, it would be helpful to have someone present who will not make emotions even worse.

I do hope that made some sense. I would like to add that in my post that the lettering in red was messed up and I will go back to edit that. I am not proud what I said last night, and I'm sorry about that. But I've worked so hard through the grief of having much older wounds opened from when I was younger, and someone came by and said that "I don't believe you", that was more than I could stand and six months of recovering from my birth experience was dashed.

In my time here, I've had to talk with other RN's on the L&D board who have worked with bad doulas. I know that they are out there and they make those who want to complement the medical professionals life difficult and puts a bad mark on the rest of the profession as doulas are not considered the norm, and some are considered to be pests. Fortunately, I work at a hospital where we've come to an understanding that we are there to help each other. But when I go to work away from my "home", I know I have an uphill battle.

And, as MollyMel (?) had said, there are some bad nurses out there and I had the misfortune of dealing with one while going through a difficult labor. For my privacy, I do not want to spell out what went wrong, but it was outside the norm.

I feel badly that I had praised a wonderful group of nurses by giving them the highest ratings on a survey, and no one seemed to even recognize that. I know that there are good nurses out there, and for the most part, there are sooo many on here.

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