how to deal with management?

[takeiteasynyc]

ive been in my current ED for 8 months and have stepped on my charge nurses toes. she's a bully and i spoke back to her once. a couple of weeks after that i made a lab draw error (drew wrong bloods but never sent it out after catching it). they gave me a verbal warning but when I approached them about being rotated to other areas of the ED like trauma a couple of weeks after, my ed is level 1, they threaten to bring it to a written warning. i was told something like " first we need to have counseling, likely written then we'll set up a time frame for you to work in trauma". They never got back to me. it's been 2 months and I'm not going to push the issue bc it sounds like if I do, they will. I've seen plenty of new nurses go to trauma after orientation, even nurses who made worse mistakes after my incident get rotated to trauma. It's important to get exposure, and honestly depressing to see other new nurses get the proper training and exposure to other areas (trauma, fast track, observation) and me stuck in the same area-- main ed. ive been told by other nurses my work is good. no complaints from doctors and patients and frankly find it depressing that im being treated this way. ive been calling out more within the allotted allowance, and just plain not giving as much as i used too and just want to move on....actually called out today..

can i find work with less than a yrs experience, of course while still working here? if not, how do i deal with these people/management/working here..

[TLS1]

A lot going on in your post but the first thing I would look at is.. Calling out is hard on you and everyone you work with. It's hard on you because it's always tracked and will limit your options. I really don't think it's acceptable to have someone hold something over your head? It was an error that did not reach the patient. Always do an incident report on something like that and let it go. If you would have done that these people would have no power.. Guess I'm kinda confused who is threatening to make this s bigger issue? How exactly do they think that would go Nurse X made a mistake 8 weeks ago, she caught it and it didn't reach the pt. I think she should be watched because she's a risk? Ugh it's been 2 months. Identify your resources in the ER and ask advice. This could be an example of a nurse that should had zero leadership tasks... So sleepy!! Make a change find a

[Retired APRN, MSN, RN, APRN]

I understand that you're calling out because of the stress and unpleasantness, but if you're calling out more than the allowance, they may have more general concerns than the error two months ago.

When I was a unit manager (not in ED), if I had a new nurse who was calling out a great deal after little more than half a year, I would be concerned that she had physical or mental health problems that were interfering with her work or that she was finding the unit too stressful and might not be a good fit for that nursing specialty. I would definitely have first informal and then, if necessary, formal counseling meetings with her to discuss the problem and look for solutions together. I would not want to make lots of investments in her further training until I was relatively sure she would stay for a while.

That was my style. It sounds like your charge nurse is more brusque than I was. It will be tough, but you will almost surely need to talk to her about things. I strongly suggest working out the present issues before asking her for anything. You might want to be proactive and ask how much calling out so much is affecting your relationship with the charge and your progress on the unit.

I could be all wet, of course, but from reading your post that's what strikes me.

[SionainnRN]

Honestly it sounds like you're burning bridges. Even if you didn't have the issues with the manager and mistakes, calling out a lot when you've been there such a short time is bad. I know in my ED we seem to run short, so when someone calls out a lot we get screwed, which makes it dangerous for the pts. You're creating a lot of bad vibes and I wouldn't be surprised if this is the straw that breaks the camels back and they let you go. Pushing to go to trauma when they've had issues with your performance in the main ED may appear to them that you didn't take the issues seriously. I would really take a look at the whole picture and whether ED is the right fit for you.

[Sassy5d]

8 months you're still 'new' there. How many new ones have started after you?

You're hurting everyone by calling off just to be spiteful.

IMO, maybe you took things a little personal and now you're giving yourself a label as 'trouble'

If you still want to work there I would make some personal changes. If you don't, start looking for another job before you get fired

[Larry77, RN]

I'm used to promotions or opportunities (like working in trauma) coming after hard work, not after someone asks for it. If you put your head down, show up to work, and get along with your coworkers great opportunities will come. I was asked to apply to a charge position years ago, and asked to apply to management, I did not have to muscle my way in. I have promoted many a hard working nurse that didn't ask or insist on it.

Work hard, repair your relationship with the said charge nurse and see what happens in the next 4 months. If you still are unhappy there look at other options because you will have a year under your belt and will be a little more appealing to other dept's. Also I would look at yourself more than you seem to be looking at others. Instead of saying, "Suzy got to go to trauma and I didn't" say things like, "What can I do to prove myself and show I'm a great asset to this dept?"

Just my 2 cents...good luck.

[Emergent, RN]

Is calling out the same as calling off or calling in ie: calling in sick when you aren't? If you are doing that, I say Boo on you, it's totally unacceptable.

My advise is keep a low profile, be grateful you have a job, get the experience you can. It sounds like you've already gotten on someone's nerves. Don't bite the hand that feeds you!

[murphyle, BSN, RN]

So let me make sure I understand this: you got into it with a charge nurse, then made an error and didn't document it, for which you've already had a verbal counseling and are being threatened with Warning A, and now you're slacking at work, complaining about the "unfairness" of your assignments, and developing an absenteeism problem? And all this in an eight-month period?

In my shop you'd never have gotten off orientation.

I've seen nothing in your post that demonstrates that you have the maturity or the skills to work trauma/resus of any description, let alone Level I. You need to be able to demonstrate that you can come to work on time every time, do the work as you're ordered, and work effectively with fellow nurses as well as management. Based on what you've stated, I wouldn't train you for trauma either. Why would I spend the money and the resources, when you're already a net liability (forcing the department to use pull staff or work short every time you call in is a huge patient safety risk as well as a cost issue) and not likely to be here in six months or a year?

You need to sit down and have a good hard look at whether this is the right specialty or even the right profession for you. If you're insistent upon staying, then I'd request a meeting with the charge, your nurse manager and HR (plus or minus a union rep, if your shop is unionized). Make it very clear that you know you've screwed up royally and work with your managers to develop a performance improvement plan. Be prepared to keep your head down and eat low-rank assignments for however long as that plan entails. You will need to accept that you're going to be on the short end of the stick for a very long time while you repair all the damage you've done yourself. If that isn't something you can do, then get out before you're fired. In this day and age, a termination for cause (in any career) means you'll never work again.

Good luck. I hope it works out for you.

[takeiteasynyc]

wow, before anyone threatens to kick me out of their imaginary shop, prior to the mistake I caught which was filled out as an occurrence report I've done nothing but give a 110, and never felt support from management. Indifference at best. when I asked for the occasional training in trauma before the incident, which was encouraged by senior nurses in my facility, management would brush me off. NO ONE in management gave me any feedback regarding my performance or their decision. They just ignored me. It was only after the lab incident when I brought up not being considered that they said I was unconfident. when asked for specifics they couldn't give me any (time management, bad follow through, lack of prioritization- nothing). I am confident in the main ED or at least confident enough to know what I can and can't do, and to know to reach out to my resources when needed (pca, doctor, senior nurses etc). In the resus room Ive lost all confidence since this happened and can't stop thinking about it. I'm not spiteful. Just tired, and am well aware that calling out is a vicious destructive cycle. I just want to lay low at this point and push through the best I can.

I screwed up with the attendance but with the labs I caught it before it was sent. I understand some sort of counseling was needed but after giving me a verbal one, why threaten me with an written one 3 weeks later. Why intimidate me with the same occurrence in response to my request instead of saying we feel you're not there yet, we are still continuing to evaluate your performance..not first you need to get written up then we'll develop a time frame....its intimidation.

[Emergent, RN]

You asked for advise here, and now you are unhappy with it. I've been a nurse 20 years and in all that time I only called in twice when I wasn't really sick. On that fact alone, I lose respect for your position.

It sounds like you've rubbed people the wrong way. Yeah, I know all about bully charge nurses, I've had them too. I have one now I don't care for. But, I just try to get along when I have to work with her. I like my job, I'm not perfect myself, and I'm thankful for the days when I work with my favorite peeps.

You should take the advise here. Yes, when you are not liked, they will make a bigger deal about mistakes you make. When you are liked and accepted, they overlook things. I advise you to look at their baby pictures, friend them on Facebook and 'like' their status updates, bring food treats to share, listen to their boring stories with feigned interest.

[takeiteasynyc]

I was upset because my attendence seem to the issue that everyone focused on irrespective of how fair/unfair my current situation is. I should have mentioned in the original post I know and feel a lot of guilt about calling out. It reflects poorly on my work ethics and skills :/ I just want to push and stay SANE* by either laying low and staying quiet (no request, staying out of their way..etc) or doing as emergent suggested asking about the kids, liking the fb status..maybe bring in holiday treats

[Retired APRN, MSN, RN, APRN]

I think what most of us are saying is that from the way you described the situation, your attendance is the primary issue, not what you call the fairness/unfairness.

You seem to have some insight into that when you say "I know and feel a lot of guilt about calling out. It reflects poorly on my work ethics and skills", so I'm not sure what your asking about now. If it's how to improve your status among your colleagues and bosses, I suggest that being sure you carry your weight (i.e. suit up, show up, do your very best work all the time) is a good place to start. If you're caught up, look to see how you can help another nurse. Be the first to stand up and the last to sit down, figuratively speaking.

It's hard to catch up from a low place, but it can be done.