Are we bleeding out?

cinnamongirl233 · Apr 7, 2006

i got out of management almost as quickly as i got into it. i went into it full of great ideas and fully supported by the staff. however, i had no support from the higher-up's or even the supervisor for the opposite shift, who would lock herself in her office and watch dvd's while the rest of the nurses were doing everything they could just to get by. i will never go down that road again. unfortunately, with the nursing shortage, a lot of nurses are well aware that they are a warm body filling a slot on a schedule and as long as they show up and don't kill anyone, there will be no consequence. and if they do work harder than they have to, what's in it for them? without rewards for good work and consequences for bad work. i tried to explain this to the director in an attempt to deveolp some motivation to no avail. :devil:

now i'm back nursing, doing what i love and i'm only responsible for me. it's great.

joannep · Apr 23, 2006

Hi, I also have just resigned as a DON of a small stand alone ambulatory surgery centre. I was there for 2 years, worked an average of 42 to 48 hrs per week with no overtime, and only 2 week annual leave over that time. I stayed because I didn't want to have less than 2 years of employment there on my resume. I left because I finally had enough of such bad conditions.

llg, PhD, RN · Apr 23, 2006

What do we need to be doing, as nursing professionals, to retain good nurse managers? Have you ever or are you currently considering leaving your nurse management role? If so, what are some of the reasons you would leave? What is missing that might make you stay?
The question really is, are nurse managers adequately supported / educated / nurtured / recognized / cared for? What needs are not being met?

I notice this was your first post. Is this for a homework assignment? for research? for an article that you hope to publish? Many of us really like to know how our responses are going to be used be we jump into such a discussion.

I don't mean to be "un-welcoming," but I hesitate to contribute to a thread without knowing what the OP's agenda is. Could you please cue us in?

llg