Are They Jealous?

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Okay, I have a new problem. I am very proud of my RN, which is brand new, but many LPN's feel the need to OUT-SHINE me. Everything I learned in nursing school about this was that the RN was the boss, but in the real world it is so different (of course!) Are they jealous of my higher salary with so little experience? Is their a big salary difference? Any advice as to overcome this so I can learn my job the right way, and to avoid getting into trouble?

I'm sort of in the opposite situation. When I start my job next month, I'll be the lone RN with several LVN's. I'm petrified of being expected to delegate to people who have years more experience (and therefore knowledge) than I do. I hope they'll go easy on me! :)

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The RN is not always the "boss." I had a prn job at a SNF where I was a charge nurse and the ADON was a LPN. She was the boss. Just remember that an LPN may have many years of valuable experience that one can learn from. My last job was in a hospital and we had two LPNs on day shift that had been nurses for a LONG time and their experience was invaluable. Also, most nurses work somewhat independently of one another-i.e., different assigned patients, so you may not be delegating to an LPN.

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Specializes in ER.
I'm sort of in the opposite situation. When I start my job next month, I'll be the lone RN with several LVN's. I'm petrified of being expected to delegate to people who have years more experience (and therefore knowledge) than I do. I hope they'll go easy on me! :)

Don't worry! Kill 'em with kindness, respect, and lots of questions:)

T

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Specializes in 5 yrs OR, ASU Pre-Op 2 yr. ER.
Okay, I have a new problem. I am very proud of my RN, which is brand new, but many LPN's feel the need to OUT-SHINE me. Everything I learned in nursing school about this was that the RN was the boss, but in the real world it is so different (of course!) Are they jealous of my higher salary with so little experience? Is their a big salary difference? Any advice as to overcome this so I can learn my job the right way, and to avoid getting into trouble?

If you have the i'm-the-boss attitude, it's puts people off.

Believe it or not, it's really not all about the money to everybody. OR jealousy.

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So I am just a beginning LPN student but let me tell ya, we are working hard to get our licenses and after all the hard work, rn or lpn you just want a little respect for your accomplishments. I am not jealous of any RN student or think that either of us are working harder than the other. My instructor said we have to change the culture around us so that we are all a valuable piece. We are all trying to help people, it is not kill or be killed.

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Specializes in ED.

I am a new RN on a med/surg unit working with two different LPN's on the weekends along with other RN's. One of the LPN's usually jokes with me and calls me "the boss" which I promptly tell him there is no way I'm the boss over anyone there or want to be. He has definatly been doing this longer than I have lol.

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Specializes in ED, ICU, MS/MT, PCU, CM, House Sup, Frontline mgr.
I too have worked in enviroments where a request for help was met with a blank stare . However, if I ask for help I do not take no for an answer. If someone asks me for help I'm there, because that is the only way I know how to do my job. None of us are an island, we need each other in order to do our jobs.

I also have to say that if I worked in an enviroment where there was no team work at all that I would look elsewhere for employment.

I agree with you especially with regards to moving to a different place of work. When I was younger (a few years ago) I stuck bad work environments out and at the cost of my health. I don't waste my time in such environments any more.

As for your suggestion not to take "No" for any answer, I agree with this too. I basically stay in people's faces and act like I do not notice I am being blown off until I get the help I need.

In any case, if I ever manage to work as a Health Care Administrator, I will not have RNs working in the capacity of being less then Supervisors in some way. I think the "teams" will be more effective.

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Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.

I am an LVN who feels absolutely no jealousy for my RN co-workers. In fact, I respect their accomplishments and contributions to our workplace.

I am employed at a 205-bed nursing home that has three ADONs (assistant directors of nursing). All three ADONs are LVNs who delegate tasks to all floor nurses, LVNs and RNs alike. I don't treat my CNAs as if I'm their boss because it marginalizes their self-worth. It is possible for you to delegate without possessing a 'bossy' aura.

I earn $18.50 hourly. The RNs earn $23 per hour. If you do the math, the pay difference is merely $4.50 per hour.

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During my hospital orientation in nursing school, I was treated very badly by some of the LPN's on the med/surg floor. As a student nurse in the BSN program, I learned that whatever we learned in class (textbook stuff) was completely different from the skills/knowledge we had to learn/gain on the job. I was like a lost sheep, and I'm not afraid to ask for help, whether they were RN's LPN's, CNA's, etc. But my first few days on the floor, they refused to help me, it's like they had some kind of conspiracy against me. They basically said that since I was a BSN student, I should know how to operate all the equimpent and stuff. Sometimes I wish they would cut us some slack, as if they were not students before or ever new to a job!! After that, I vowed that I would always be a nice and understanding to the nursing students or new grads because I know how confusing and scary their first experience on the job may be.

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Specializes in LTC, assisted living, med-surg, psych.
Okay, I have a new problem. I am very proud of my RN, which is brand new, but many LPN's feel the need to OUT-SHINE me. Everything I learned in nursing school about this was that the RN was the boss, but in the real world it is so different (of course!) Are they jealous of my higher salary with so little experience? Is their a big salary difference? Any advice as to overcome this so I can learn my job the right way, and to avoid getting into trouble?

If the OP wants to "avoid getting into trouble", as she puts it, she would do well to lose the attitude and start seeing her co-workers as human beings, with their own places in the world and their own goals.

I've worked with LPNs who have forgotten more about basic bedside nursing than I'll ever learn in a lifetime. Their guidance also helped me avoid making some horrific mistakes back when I was a newly-minted RN, which not only saved MY butt but my patient's as well!

When the stuff hits the fan, NO ONE cares about the initials behind the name on the badge, what they're earning, or what degree they've obtained. The OP needs to get off the power trip STAT.......that, and she could use some lessons in teamwork.

Sorry to be harsh, but looking down one's nose at those with less 'education' is a particular peeve of mine, as it has no place in health care. I've got folks who DO work for me that never graduated from high school, but yesterday when one of my staff went into anaphylactic shock, it was a woman with a ninth-grade education---but who knew what to do---that helped me save his life. So let's not be having any more talk about 'jealousy' or 'the RN is the boss'........that's not the way to start a career, and the OP will have a VERY rough road ahead if she continues to think along these lines.:nono:

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