I've been a nurse for almost 8 years. That's not long in the grand scheme of things, but it's long enough to have experienced this profession. I've been known to say, "One of the greatest things about nursing is that there are so many different ways to be a nurse." And believe me, I've been a nurse in many different ways. I've tried hard to make this career into something that I enjoy. I worked in ER, med-surg, and home health before going back to get my master's degree in health care administration. I found patient care to be far too stressful for someone who truly cares about the quality of care that is being delivered. Either you settle for mediocrity or you drive yourself to the brink of insanity. I experienced the latter until I eventually decided that something had to change. I've found working in administration to be much more preferable, but it is still wrought with problems and it is far from being a career that I'm excited about. I'm finally ready to admit to myself that nursing is the problem. It's just not the career that I thought it would be or that I've tried so desperately to make it into. No matter what capacity of nursing work that you do, it is a thankless job. The mentality of "a nurse is a nurse is a nurse" is pervasive and there isn't an employer out there that truly values a nurse for the unique skills or knowledge that he/she may have. Anyway, I could go on and on about the many reasons why I want to get out of nursing, but the main point of this post is that I've finally made a decision. I struggled for years with this decision, but recently it seems so clear. I'm about to turn 30 years old and there is no way that I'm going to waste the rest of my life in this profession. I don't know exactly what I'm going to do yet (part of the reason why I've struggled for so long), but I know that I'm going to do it and I will be successful. I will get out. Best of luck to those of you who may be struggling with the same decision.
I've been a nurse for almost 8 years. That's not long in the grand scheme of things, but it's long enough to have experienced this profession. I've been known to say, "One of the greatest things about nursing is that there are so many different ways to be a nurse." And believe me, I've been a nurse in many different ways. I've tried hard to make this career into something that I enjoy. I worked in ER, med-surg, and home health before going back to get my master's degree in health care administration. I found patient care to be far too stressful for someone who truly cares about the quality of care that is being delivered. Either you settle for mediocrity or you drive yourself to the brink of insanity. I experienced the latter until I eventually decided that something had to change. I've found working in administration to be much more preferable, but it is still wrought with problems and it is far from being a career that I'm excited about. I'm finally ready to admit to myself that nursing is the problem. It's just not the career that I thought it would be or that I've tried so desperately to make it into. No matter what capacity of nursing work that you do, it is a thankless job. The mentality of "a nurse is a nurse is a nurse" is pervasive and there isn't an employer out there that truly values a nurse for the unique skills or knowledge that he/she may have. Anyway, I could go on and on about the many reasons why I want to get out of nursing, but the main point of this post is that I've finally made a decision. I struggled for years with this decision, but recently it seems so clear. I'm about to turn 30 years old and there is no way that I'm going to waste the rest of my life in this profession. I don't know exactly what I'm going to do yet (part of the reason why I've struggled for so long), but I know that I'm going to do it and I will be successful. I will get out. Best of luck to those of you who may be struggling with the same decision.
A "thankless profession." What were you looking for...endless praise? Seems to me you are more concerned about what you receive from nursing vs. the care you deliver. Nursing demands a heart of compassion without the attitude of "what's in it for me." Move on.
This kind of attitude is what keeps nursing in the toilet. What is wrong with having an expectation that one will have the resources and autonomy to do a professional job and to leave at the end of the day with a sense of pride and satisfaction. Nursing doesn't pay very well and without the intangibles, a feeling of making a difference etc, the only sensible option is to leave.
Nursing is a profession but it can't survive on the goodwill of individual nurses who will override their own needs and human dignity for others. It is simply unjust to expect them to.
Good luck and best wishes OP. I'm sure you have the smarts and transferable skills to find a great new career.
A thankless profession? I get thank you's and hugs and tears upon discharge from patients and family on a daily basis. Is the current state of nursing in a shambles? Yes. But thankless? Not in my experience....
The bottom line is this, the word healthcare and the word profit should never be used in the same sentence. Until such time that that changes we will be in stormy seas......
At my hospital the CFO calls all the shots and he does not know a mouth from an orifice......scary
OP you expressed my feelings exactly. I am only working as an RN for 3 years, and I love all the aspects of the job that made me choose this job in the first place, but beaurocratic nonsense won't let me do the work I want to do! I work in a very stressful high volume ER and encounter lots of patients with difficult personalities, but i can deal with all that. What I can't deal with is management and administration making ridiculous and unrealistic demands on us, piling on new responsibilities an policies weekly, and all this from people who haven't taken care of a patient in 10 years. I realized this scenario is not going to improve so I'm exploring other fields within nursing because I do still love being a nurse. Once I have my master's though, I'm so done.
As far as the ridiculous demands from management, the double and triple charting and all that nonsense...I told them I am not going to be doing it. I told them that when they tire of the way I conduct myself they can fire me.....I told them that the bulk of my time will be spent with my patients and not in front of the computer.....they have yet to fire me......
With the economy how it is - what career would one switch to? And is any other field of work any better? Spend thousands more on another degree? Not that exiting nursing doesn't cross my mind on a daily basis....
I just hope and pray there will be something better out there for my daughters.
I feel like you will get that anywhere. It's easy to think the grass is greener. I have invested a lot of time and energy into this profession and when I think about what I would rather be doing, I can't come up with anything that is comparable to nursing when it comes to pay and job satisfaction. I am currently pursuing my MSN in Leadership and Management, because I am sick of floor nursing. While I love the patients I work with most of the time, I am sick of working weekends, holidays and rotating shifts. I am 33 and have been doing this for 11 years. Going into nursing, I never planned on being a floor nurse until I retired though. I do get sick of the mentality of "ask nursing to do it." We wear a lot of hats. In my current job, we are asked to function in the capacity of a social worker frequently-assisting with disposition, assessing pts in the ER etc. I do get sick of that, but it's job security too because we can "do it all." I am not entirely sure what I will do with my MSN, but I have found niche in working behind the scenes in improving pt care on a more global scale through quality assurance and improvement. I find a lot of satisfaction in that. I may get into management or teaching because I enjoy mentoring new nurses. Fortunately I can do all this without leaving the field of nursing. :) Good luck in whatever career you pursue.
The OP is smart for realizing that nursing is not for her fairly early in her professional career. It would have been an absolute travesty if she had spent 20+ years drifting along in the profession before coming to this epiphany.
As I have done!!! Being of the mind that you can't teach an old dog (me) new tricks, I'm getting this BSN so that I can learn 'different' tricks of the same trade, and hopefully FINALLY find my way to the front door.
Congrats! I haven't been a nurse very long, and hated floor nursing. Love caring for patients, it was just everything else that goes along with it. However, I also have a useless BA degree and live in an economically depressed area, so I know there are just no jobs. At least with nursing there are more jobs available, even if I hate it.
Luckily I got a job as a school nurse and love it - so very different from all the BS at the hospital (and of course, much more of a desk type job so I'm not killing my body anymore either.) I wish you the very best, I am sure there are some potential jobs that would be a great fit with your education and past experience. I hope you find some professional happiness!
Good for you OP. People will suggest other areas of nursing to go into. For some people it doesn't matter what kind of nurse you are. Nursing isn't for everyone and I understand you completely. I'm working on a degree outside of nursing and I couldn't be happier.
Nursing really is a thankless job. Last year it stressed me out so much that I had a major breakdown, and I had to learn to not take life to seriously, or I'd collapse under the weight of the human suffering I'm exposed to every day. I feel like my personality itself has changed. I love my job now that I found a good one. Sometimes it comes down to whether or not you're lucky enough to find the nursing job you belong in, because if you don't you won't just be unhappy, you'll be miserable.
Being of the mind that you can't teach an old dog (me) new tricks, I'm getting this BSN so that I can learn 'different' tricks of the same trade, and hopefully FINALLY find my way to the front door.
gcupid
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Can I come with u?