Complaining about your employer, loudly, at nurses' station

Nurses Relations

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We received a memo that we should stop complaining about our hospital at work, especially where patients can hear, or in front of other employees. Our manager said that, if we hate our jobs so much, there are other options out there, and she'd rather us work elsewhere.

I have to say, I agree. For one thing, we should be careful what we say within earshot of patients. Also, it's a downer, a morale buster, to hear this constant kvetching, ********, moaning and groaning. As long as we work for an entity, we are their servants and we should not bite the hands that feed us. We should be thankful for our livelihoods, it feeds us and gives us shelter, we have it a lot better than many people in this world.

Merry Christmas everyone!

Specializes in Critical Care/Vascular Access.

One aspect no one has addressed yet is that people that openly whine about their jobs are really just belittling themselves. Seriously, if you can't either find a better job, or find a way to make your current job at least bearable, if not enjoyable, then you're just making yourself look incompetent. If you're unhappy with your job or any part of your life then either start actively trying to change it, or figure out the "greater reason" you're accepting that part of your life and learn to embrace it for the reason you are accepting it. Find the good in it and focus on that.

Whining about it accomplishes nothing and makes you look like a fool who sucks at life.

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Specializes in Psych.
You should be thankful you still have a job. I find it hard to believe that your management and those higher up aren't aware of what is being said to patients. Unbelievably unprofessional.

I'm not saying it's never ok to vent about the job or the facility. Heck, just yesterday my teammates and I were venting about how many surgeries were scheduled on Christmas Eve and how the call team basically wasn't going to have any time to enjoy the holiday. However, we had the brains to know not to do that in front of patients but instead talked in the break room during lunch. But as a professional, one needs to know when and in what areas it is ok to vent.

Using this logic there is nobody on this earth except one who has the right to complain. However, there is a time and place. We are all guilty of exercising poor judgment.

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Specializes in Med nurse in med-surg., float, HH, and PDN.

I agree with Gooselady about the patient being a captive audience.

I mean, think of a time when you politely asked someone, "How are you?" and then felt pinned down while they carried on at great length, emotionally pumped up about something, revealing excessive and embarrassing detail? You are totally bush-whacked and standing there with your mouth open, thinking, "uh, ....wow."

The patient can't use an excuse about a phone-call, or appt they have to get to; held hostage by their condition and reason for being in the hospital, they are at the mercy of a ranter of the first degree.

Have mercy on the patient and don't engage in that 'words-are-cheap' verbal diarrhea. Just because you feel a certain way or think something, don't feel obliged to share your opinion with everybody.

Consider they might have been making polite small-talk to ease the awkwardness they might be feeling due to their unwelcome circumstance of being in the hospital. Saying something polite and generic in response isn't lying.

If you REALLY want to be a truth-teller, picket the hospital with a sign. But do NOT 'unload' on a patient; they already have enough of their own stuff to deal with.

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Specializes in Psych.
I will agree with everything but the 'servant' part.

I am free born and not anyone's chattel.

You can employ me but you don't own me.

Happy Holidays.

I have to agree that the word servant is not really appropriate. I had a student who referred to a patient as a spinster in her history: English is her second language and she had used a dictionary to translate. I explained that the translation was correct but the usage outdated. Language evolves and over time and words like servant become dated and offensive.

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Specializes in OR, Nursing Professional Development.
Using this logic there is nobody on this earth except one who has the right to complain. However, there is a time and place. We are all guilty of exercising poor judgment.

I think you misread my post. Everyone has the right to vent, just not to patients.

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Specializes in Med-Surg, NICU.

You should never crap where you eat or bite the hand that feeds.

I only vent to my coworkers in private and out of ear shot of the patients. If a patient asks if I like my job, I say I do. And that is true. I say there are some parts about it that are challenging, but so does every other job. I like caring for my patients and they are all going through their own issues; they do not need to hear me complain about mine.

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Specializes in ER.

OK, I take back the word servant, already. I meant it in the more noble, Biblical sense, but apparently the word is taboo and offensive to many. Mea Culpa. Maybe we can move on from my egregious faux pas ?

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As to the OP; our manager sent out a very similar memo. Apparently nurses were complaining to the patients how busy they were. A patient would be upset they had to wait so long to be taken to the commode and the nurse would shoot back about how understaffed and busy they were.

While I agree that we should not do this in front of our patients, they know when we are understaffed, no one has to verify it for them. My mom was recently in the hospital, and she said she could tell by body language, the time it took to respond, and the overall anxiety on the floor and from the staff. They can also tell when your work phone is ringing every time you are in their room.

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As to the OP; our manager sent out a very similar memo. Apparently nurses were complaining to the patients how busy they were. A patient would be upset they had to wait so long to be taken to the commode and the nurse would shoot back about how understaffed and busy they were.

While I agree that we should not do this in front of our patients, they know when we are understaffed, no one has to verify it for them. My mom was recently in the hospital, and she said she could tell by body language, the time it took to respond, and the overall anxiety on the floor and from the staff. They can also tell when your work phone is ringing every time you are in their room.

Exactly. They're not stupid, everyone knows much about what's going on in healthcare. And they certainly already know that no one goes into nursing for the paperwork or bureaucracy. They would however like to hear that their nurses and physicians at least like patient care.

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I don't vent to my co-workers either. I have had too vent sessions come back to bite me. I either go to the charge nurse or I let crap go.

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Is there a place for employees to complain? Is there some type of nurse liason who will listen to nurses and not be biased? I think all of us need to purge what ever it is that angers us, but is there an avenue to do so at work?? I always try to remain professional at work, I tend to let loose at home and they really don't want to hear it either. I kind of use this site as my rambling/ranting purge. I think most employers should have a "free expression" regular meeting where employees can verbalize their complaints without feeling threatened by management. There might be some ideas that can be exchanged to help solve the issues.

I have had a few patients ask me if I like my work, and I tell them the truth. Most of my complaints are the same as theirs about the reimbursement process, feeling tethered to a computer all the time, some terrible shifts where we could have used extra staff but there were not any etc. They usually can relate in the same way only in their work situation and it does create a means of communication, of sharing which is really valuable for the patient-nurse exchange.

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Is there a place for employees to complain? Is there some type of nurse liason who will listen to nurses and not be biased? I think all of us need to purge what ever it is that angers us, but is there an avenue to do so at work?? I always try to remain professional at work, I tend to let loose at home and they really don't want to hear it either. I kind of use this site as my rambling/ranting purge. I think most employers should have a "free expression" regular meeting where employees can verbalize their complaints without feeling threatened by management. There might be some ideas that can be exchanged to help solve the issues.

I have had a few patients ask me if I like my work, and I tell them the truth. Most of my complaints are the same as theirs about the reimbursement process, feeling tethered to a computer all the time, some terrible shifts where we could have used extra staff but there were not any etc. They usually can relate in the same way only in their work situation and it does create a means of communication, of sharing which is really valuable for the patient-nurse exchange.

I think the issue is that there is a difference between venting/"purging" and attempting to effect positive change. I've never worked for an employer that wasn't interested in hearing and seriously considering suggestions for ways that work settings and processes could be improved. They are not interested in simply listening to people kvetch and complain, and not interested in providing processes for venues for employees to do that.

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