Does Nursing in LTC make RNs bitter and mean??

[Ling07]

I'm seriously asking. I work at a Nursing Home and I'm noticing that the older RNs are mean and bitter. I was talking to one of the older RNs and she said she saw herself becoming mean through the years. She said the job can make you that way. Is it the stress? The 40+ years of experience RNs are mean and bitter. How can you be mean and bitter and take care of people?? Sometimes I want to shout QUIT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[PAERRN20]

You can become mean and bitter in any nursing field. It is a CHOICE to become mean and bitter, not a consequence of working as a nurse.

[OriolesMagic]

I think it is more a consequence of dealing with management, back stabbing, gossip, etc. It takes a conscious effort not to become bitter and disillusioned. I've only been a nurse 2 years, but I can understand why nurses become burned out and bitter.

[Spritenurse1210, BSN, RN]

Not all long term RNs are bitter and mean. Just the ones who are burnt out and need to leave the proffession.

[JB2007, ASN, RN]

No, I do not think that working as a RN in LTC makes a person bitter and mean. I think that life in general can make a person who happens to work as a nurse bitter and mean. Some people can bounce back from life's trials better than others. Just because someone works as a nurse does not make a person automatically developes good coping methods.

I would have to agree with OP that stated that dealing with poor management, back stabbing and gossip can make someone bitter and mean also. You can only deal with an unsupportive environment for so long before you stop caring about your job/co-workers. Then it is only a small leap before all of the new nurses are saying what a mean old witch that old nurse is being.

[Ms.RN]

i've noticed some differences between hospital nurses and nursing home nurses. i think many nursing home nurses have attitude problems and they tend to talk down to each other. i had a nurse who saw few charts sitting at the desk and she yelled at the nurse who she is relieving about how messy desk is and she told everybody about it including the managers. many nurses tell other nurses that they have to do this or do that like she is her boss and everything has to be her way. there arent that much team work among nurses. but in the hospital setting, i've noticed that nurses talk to each other more with respect, less bullying and more team work. but this is only my observation

[SuesquatchRN, BSN, RN]

Being bitter and mean makes a person bitter and mean.

[PostOpPrincess, BSN, RN]

My mother, a retired nurse, NEVER became mean nor bitter. She is a great, charming and very energetic lady.

It is a choice. She chooses to be the complete opposite of "that type."

[SummerGarden, BSN, MSN, RN]

i have a friend who has no desire to work outside of ltc. she is a nurse working in ltc, a student working towards a np in geriatrics, and she loves her employers! so to answer your question, no, ltcs do not make rns "bitter and mean" (also known as burn-out). what makes a nurses burn-out is a bad work environment which is usually caused by poor managers. thus, while working in the hospital setting i have ran into many bitter and mean nurses because they worked on the poorly managed floors and were unable to transfer out. ***there is no nursing shortage.***

[tewdles, RN]

There are bitter and mean people everywhere, in all walks of life. Bitter and mean people work where they areallowed or tolerated. Unfortunately, that often means LTC in nursing. Please do not assume that all burned out nurses are bitter and mean. Some are just sad. Burnout is a psychological term for the experience of long-term exhaustion and diminished interest. It is true that many nurses end up in LTC when they experience burnout. They are trying to decrease their stress.

[roser13, ASN, RN]

Maybe you've got it bass-ackwards Maybe nurses with those character tendencies gravitate toward long-term care, where they might perceive themselves as queens of their domain?

[Ruby Vee, BSN]

not all long term rns are bitter and mean. just the ones who are burnt out and need to leave the proffession.

"bitter and mean" does not equate burn-out, nor does burn out equate "bitter and mean." in fact, "bitter" and "mean", like beauty, are in the eye of the beholder. nor does burn-out necessitate leaving the profession. sometimes all that is needed is a change of job, shift, specialty, facility or co-workers. (the ones who behold "bitter and mean."