Being taken advantage of at work

[NurseLoveJoy88, ASN, RN]

i work in ltc and every shift has a nursing supervisor. well, recently our nursing supervisor have not been at work due to illness. therefore, every time i come to work i'm responsible for dealing with call outs, gathering supplies, and i'm basically the "go to " person if any of the nurses need help. every time i have this responsibility i get sick to my stomach. i feel like i'm running around like a chicken with my head cut off. my coworkers keeps telling me that i'm the nursing supervisor and i have to do x,y,z, i tell them that i'm not the supervisor and i'm just answering the call out phone. having my own assignment and having to deal with call-outs and being the go to person is too much for me. i'm wondering if i should refuse to take the keys and call out phone or whether i should just suck it up and do as i'm told. i really need my job and don't want to be put on the radar. i hate feeling that i'm being taken advantage of. i'm all about team work but why can't another nurse do it? what should i do?

[caliotter3]

If you feel you are in danger of losing your job, then don't refuse. Then, in some time, when the subject of promotion or a pay raise is in order, you will have ample ammunition for proving your worth. If they refuse to acknowledge your worth at that time, it would be time to start looking elsewhere. Turn it around to your advantage.

[NurseLoveJoy88, ASN, RN]

If you feel you are in danger of losing your job, then don't refuse. Then, in some time, when the subject of promotion or a pay raise is in order, you will have ample ammunition for proving your worth. If they refuse to acknowledge your worth at that time, it would be time to start looking elsewhere. Turn it around to your advantage.

Wow, I didn't look at it from that point of view. Thanks.

[caliotter3]

For that matter, if something bad like layoffs comes around, you will have ammunition to show why you should keep your job over the person who never went the extra mile!

[ckh23, BSN, RN]

Who is above the nursing supervisor position? Perhaps you can speak to them about the extra tasks and possibly dividing them up among the staff so everyone is contributing a little extra.

[Guttercat, ASN, RN]

From one of my coworkers the other day, "Nurses are doormats."

[NurseLoveJoy88, ASN, RN]

If I'm assigned to have to play supervisor tonight, I will ask if someone else can help with some of the tasks. Maybe someone could get supplies and I just hold the phone.