Since I was a little girl, I have always wanted to be a nurse. I wanted to help people. I wanted to heal. Now 4 years out of nursing school, I HATE nursing with a passion. I am a med/surg nurse with a BSN.
Reasons I hate nurses (in no particular order)
1. Most days I feel like a pill-pusher. I don't feel like I make a difference.
2. Doctors feel they are perfect.
3. Patient satisfaction scores.
4. Patient sense of entitlement. (see #3)
5. Family at the bedside dictating what they want...like I am their personal servant. I have to comply (see #3).
6. Lack of appreciation mized with how much more work can they give us.
7. Nights, weekends, and holiday. I don't want to give everything I've got only to see no return in work satisfaction.
I don't want to be a case manager. I don't want home health nursing. I really want to be outside of the hospital. Quite honestly, I want to be away from people. I would be quite content to work on a computer and have email interactions. Preferably work from home. Any suggestions?
Would you consider working for an insurance company in a clinical review department? That is all computers and papers, no face to face contact. Most insurance companies also have triage nurses for their members to call...there is some patient contact (again, through the phone), but still a lot different than being a floor nurse.
All you fellow RNs there belittling, trashing medical-surging nursing, encouraging people to leave, praising nursing specialties with minimal patient/family interaction... so sad. How about when YOU or one of your DEAR ONES need to be admitted to a med surge unit? Who is gonna take care you?
Specializes in Clinical Research, Outpt Women's Health.
All you fellow RNs there belittling, trashing medical-surging nursing, encouraging people to leave, praising nursing specialties with minimal patient/family interaction... so sad. How about when YOU or one of your DEAR ONES need to be admitted to a med surge unit? Who is gonna take care you?
I think most people respect and treasure nurses who do that work and want to be there.
However, do you want a nurse who hates it caring for your loved ones? I don't.
All you fellow RNs there belittling, trashing medical-surging nursing, encouraging people to leave, praising nursing specialties with minimal patient/family interaction... so sad. How about when YOU or one of your DEAR ONES need to be admitted to a med surge unit? Who is gonna take care you?
I guess I'll be taking time off to ensure their safety- as I have seen the lack of experience that hospitals are so happy to hire so they can save a buck Experience means nothing to them
It's not the nurses fault that patients are not being cared for appropriately. That is what this post is about as well. It's about nurses who just want to be nurses but feel so overwhelm by the management that focuses on bottom lines that they are forced into positions that are unsafe. That is what is sad. I'm scared about being admitted or one of my dear ones being admitted because I know that nurse is trying her best and yet it will never be good enough in the environment in which she/he practices. When you make healthcare a commodity it is treated like one and nurses know better. I could have a patient who needs much more of my time after getting news about cancer and another who is a total care and 3 others whom are hanging tight to get results. All the tests and interruptions and the liability.... I would love to just have 3 to 4 patients to focus on all shift long. No revolving door discharges and admits. See, ratios are not just about how many you receive when you start work. It's how many you d/c and admit along with their core measures and allll the details. One slip and whoa. I would like to see realistic workloads that make me feel safe and my patient safe. If there are positions out there that are more protective of my patient and my practice then, yes, I would love to hear about them. I support the bill that has been presented recently. How can you just be ok with the environment that can hurt nurses and patients? Why bash when nurses are going through such environments? I would never trash med/surg, those nurses are taking on sooooo much right now! They are handling acuity equal to intermediate care. That is the nature of the beast right now and it's not right. Intermediate is handling patient ratios of med/surg and i hear icu is increasing ratios too. It's about safety and the future of nursing.
Some change maybe a different department or float pool, you have a lot invested it would be a shame to throw it all away. Sometimes it does suck, but I have been doing this for 17 years and strive just to make my pts happy and laugh, just to lighten their day, I end up having fun despite a overworked and undervalued position. If you are having trouble with Docs, they are only people, let them know that! Too few people stand up and demand respect from them.
"Many nursing assistances are downright hard to work with, lazy, expect you to do half their job (and tell the director of nursing on you if you don't, and you get in trouble), have an axe to grind against you because they feel bitter or something toward you because you have a degree (atleast it seems this way),"
Wow!! Bitterness! Take a vacation! People are usually not out to get you. My hospital is absolutely full of awesome aides!
"Pts are downright abusive and nasty and you just have to take it, on a daily basis too because there always seems to be atleast one rotten and mean pt on your set.
You get zero, nadda, respect as a registered nurse. "
Seriously?! I have found it to be the exact opposite the past 17 years! You may not be happy at anything you choose to do, a lot has to do with attitude!
I had a math professor that said if you change your attitude even math could be fun and easy, it was true, if you change your attitude even if your faking it, it will be so much better! Good luck!
We have 6 patients and are given phones that ring constantly. Good luck trying to pee in peace.
I couldn't care less what is going on in the unit. If have to pee I'm going to pee. I also ignore the phones for the most part. If I'm sitting by it I'll answer it, but I'm not making a special trip down the hallway for a phone. Logistically, it's easier for a male to urinate I suppose.
I'm always amazed by nurses being indoctrinated into putting everything else first. If you don't take care of yourself you can't effectively do anything else. We don't need to rescue the rescuer. Drink, eat, sit, rest, pee, poop, and do whatever you need to do to take care of yourself. You're more effective when you do. Everything else will wait. I commute to work. Some time during my first week back when I started I got there one morning and everyone was in a rush to go to briefing (or what they call "report"). I said I'll be there in a minute I have to use the restroom. The child/girl "orientating" me said, "You're a nurse. You don't have time to pee!" I have no idea if she was serious or not and have never cared.
People can object to this if they want. I don't care. It's my life not their's.
jan286
181 Posts
Would you consider working for an insurance company in a clinical review department? That is all computers and papers, no face to face contact. Most insurance companies also have triage nurses for their members to call...there is some patient contact (again, through the phone), but still a lot different than being a floor nurse.