Burnout?

[CNL2B]

I am pretty much sick of my job in a busy SICU. I'm beyond familiar with all the treatments and therapies. I feel like there is nothing left to learn (although I know that's not true -- point being, I feel like I know my job really well.) I do charge, I sit on committees. In the meantime, I watch my coworkers run in circles chasing after physician orders that the intern should have written, answering questions about the incident report that was filed on somebody somewhere, reorienting confused patients and dealing with their families, charting monsters of paperwork that nobody ever looks at except Joint Commission (and then, it's maybe one piece of paperwork out of 1000, if that), getting yelled at by staff doctors, trying to keep up with all the mandatory education, calling for supplies that were supposed to be delivered 4 hours ago, it goes on and on .... you get the picture. And me too. I do all of that too.

I try every day to give my patient kind, efficient, knowledgeable care to put them in the best position they can be in to heal, and, eventually leave the hospital. It just seems like this is getting harder and harder to do. All that other stuff gets in the way, and it is so mentally and physically draining, I don't feel that I am in the best place that I can be to give the patients what they need anymore.

What can I do about this? I am already back in school and am working towards a Master's. The thing is, I don't really want totally out. I love direct care -- just not all the garbage that goes along with it. The thing is, I fear I am going to have to get out, for myself ... and my patients.

[Orca, ADN, ASN, RN]

I am already back in school and am working towards a Master's.

Quite possibly you are taking on too much at once, and it is reducing your tolerance and your ability to cope. I doubt that your job has changed much, but your perception of it has. Be sure to give yourself some down time when you aren't thinking about either work or school.

[Doc Lori, R.N.]

You explain how you feel so eloquently! And if it is at all any comfort to you, you are not alone. Nurses are attracted to helping people heal, simply out of being compassionate, and compassionate caring means being unattached to the results of your care. Sort of like the feeling we get when we help an elderly person in the grocery store, or smiling at a crying baby just to make him happy. Things that simply brighten someone's day. We care about others. We all know however, that we must be attached to the care we provide in a professional healthcare setting. After all, we utilize the nursing process to identify and evaluate the care which we provide, so by default, we are attached to the results. Every day, every shift, we slog through the mud, knowing how much all of this other "stuff" interferes with our ability to give the compassionate care which we are driven to provide. It's almost as if it is nearly impossible to give from our compassionate selves as professionals. The solution, I found, is to adjust how I reacted to circumstances, what I allowed to rattle me, and what battles I chose to take on. Knowing that the externals will never change.

Don't allow negativity and frustration in the workplace to dampen your spirit of caring. Say a mantra or a prayer or meditate before your shift, a reminder that you are whole, worthy of joy, and are doing important work! Much success to you. You are valuable!

[wooh, BSN, RN]

You sound just like me on a bad day. Our hospital system puts out a magazine for employees, with a regular feature about "a day in the life of..." and I always say I'd like for them to do staff nurses. Except it would be: 7:00 call lab and ask them to do their job. 7:01 call radiology and ask them to do their job. 7:03 page doc and tell them why radiology refuses to do their job. 7:15 call lab and ask them to do their job. and so on....

Maybe it's time for a change? A new challenge would give you something to think about other than all the stupid stuff. :)

[llg, PhD, RN]

One important thing I noticed that is missing from your OP: What do you to take care of yourself? What are you doing to help you prevent burnout and/or compassion fatigue?

You sound busy ... with both work and school. That's a lot. You probably have a lot of demands on your shoulders. How do you manage all that stress?

Burnout and compassion fatigue are a regular part of our jobs. We never get past the point of needing to engage in stress management to maintain our mental health. A lot of people try to avoid it ... but end up adding to it ... by taking on more responsibility, adding more tasks to their already busy days, etc.

So ... what are you doing to "get away" from career-related demands on a regular basis? How much time do you get per week to just "chill out" and relax? That may be something important to think about.

[TDCHIM]

I have to agree with the previous poster - it sounds like you're trying to be all things to all people in all situations and have gone on overload as a result. Is there a way you can relax our load to catch a break? Maybe take a semester off at school (assuming it wouldn't blow your degree plan to bits) or drop to part-time hours? At least back off on the committees - you've done your share, let someone else take up that load for a while.

Oh, and I'm one of the geeks who'll probably be using some of that monstrous paperwork someday. Thanks for doing it. I know it has to be a royal pain. :)

[JessiekRN]

You sound just like me on a bad day. Our hospital system puts out a magazine for employees, with a regular feature about "a day in the life of..." and I always say I'd like for them to do staff nurses. Except it would be: 7:00 call lab and ask them to do their job. 7:01 call radiology and ask them to do their job. 7:03 page doc and tell them why radiology refuses to do their job. 7:15 call lab and ask them to do their job. and so on....

Maybe it's time for a change? A new challenge would give you something to think about other than all the stupid stuff. :)

o how true this is!!

[lkwashington]

I was in the same position you are in. I know how you feel. I used on a Tele unit for over 3 years. I got tired of it and made some changes. I decided to go to a new position Central Resource Pool. I work on different units. I dont have to worry about charge anymore. That is load off my back.

[Davey Do]

Well put, missbecky2006. And, you got a lot of good comments.

There's a quote from Richard Bach's book, Illusions that goes something like, "There is no such thing as a problem without the gift of a solution in your hands. You seek problems because you need their gifts."

I don't know if that helps, or if it's even fitting, but it came to mind and I thought I'd pass it along to you.

I sense you'll be fine. Just keep on keeping on.

[sissykim]

I went through exactly what you are going through. I became burned out with a job and thought the only way out was to go back for a masters degree in nursing. I studied while working full-time and caring for a family, which in essence left no time for me to care for me. So guess what? I lost my job, terminated for poor performance, was turned in to the board of nursing for mishandling and documentation of controled substances, later placed on probation by the board for a year. I was not able to use the masters degree. When I did get a job it was at the local jail which I love and remain employed. I am earning half of what I was making before termination at that miseralble job.

What I wished I had done was quit the job where I was burning alive and found this jail job. I should have applied my energy towards careing for the more important things of life. Not a job.

This is a lesson I pray to never repeat.

[General E. Speaking, RN, RN]

I hear ya! Think how much better we could take care of patients without all the other junk that goes with it?

I have been at my facility for 10 yrs. Med-surg staff nurse, then Tele staff nurse, to Tele charge nurse, took on the Unit Educator position (supplemental job in addition to charge duties) and finally moved to ICU staff nurse a couple of weeks ago. I moved mainly because of boredom. I, too, am on several committees.

Learning new things and being in a different enviroment with different coworkers has been a blessing. Of course, I have only been in ICU a short while but it has refreshed my spirit in nursing. I have been leaving tired but still with a smile on my face.

One of the docs asked my why I moved. I told him because I was bored. Then he asked me, "Where do ICU nurses go when they are bored?" Maybe that's where you are? I won't have to worry about that for a while....I hope. Is it possible for you to transfer to another unit?

[scoochy]

Have you given any thought to transferring to the PACU? It worked for me for 19 years. You would care for a different set of patients every day. Depending upon the size of the PACU, the work day goes by quickly; there is much to be learned re: the post-anesthesia patient.