Entitled Generation

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I am a DON in along-term care facility, and I am having a difficult time finding both nurses and CNA's who are willing to work the evening night shift/weekends/holidays etc. The new graduates who apply all want a day job with no weekends or holidays. They think that I am crazy to expect them to work these other shifts. I had one girl even ask the day nurse--(who had worked 10 years on nights, and 6 years on the evening shift before finally getting the day position) why she thought she should have the day job, and not her. She had just passed her boards. When I started in nursing 20+ years ago, it was known that we would be working the night shift, weekends, and holidays, etc. It seems that this is the general rule for the younger generation now entering the health care field, or am I the only one who is experiencing this?

I think that this phenomenon almost reflects a failure of nursing education more than anything else. Students need to be socialized to the demands of the job. If your clinicals are always during the day or late afternooon it does not set the reality of working off shifts in their heads.

in the UK student nurses must have experienced the 24 hr cycle of care including up to 50% of weekends in a clinical area and 150 hours of night duty (within the 6month program) our clinical exposure consist of weeks of working 37.5 hr weeks, within the nursing team.

We have public holidays off because Staff nurses have this leave written into their annual leave and we don't.

part of of this time i feel is to make people experiences the full effets of working as nurse, before i was a student nurses, my Nursing home has a student nurse asking if she would have to work evening nights and weekends once qualified the staff looked at her shocked, nursing is 24hr why would someone on the nursing course not know that.

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When I am through with school, I don't mind working holidays or weekends. I actually think I will enjoy working nights. But rotating shifts? No way... it is too hard on the body.

I think it is easy to assume that because you have trouble with some new nurses, we must all be this way. We aren't. And for the record, it has been my experience that a poor work ethic is not limited to any generational group.

do you mean rotating shifts as in Early's(7.30am-3.30pm), late's(1.30pm-9.00pm) and nights(8.30pm 8.00am) that is the norm in UK hospital nursing

however nights are either by internal rotation every 1 week in every 4-6 weeks or holiday/sickness cover and wards normally have some night duty only staff

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don't they prepare nsg students for this in school? (re working nocs, holidays, w/e's)

i know we were plenty warned.

leslie

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Specializes in ER/EHR Trainer.

It's common knowledge that any institutional nursing is 24/7....someone has to work. It is also common knowledge that depending on your experience, interview skills, and ability to adapt and learn, some people will be able to get the hours and conditions they need or want to work in. Of course all students are aware of the norms, but it doesn't mean that every nurse will "settle" for the status quo. There are other alternatives to working institutional settings....especially in the tri-state area.

Maisy;)

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Specializes in Community Health, Med-Surg, Home Health.

I work for a facility that granted me a full time, tuition paid leave with complete pay for 2 years to become an LPN. I worked in a clinic before when I was an aide. While I was in school, I mentally envisoned myself returning back to the clinic as a nurse, however, I was willing to 'pay my dues' by working the floors if need be. I didn't call in any favors to my old supervisors because I figured that if this job invested literally thousands of dollars to fund my paid leave of absence and my education, that they would expect me to pay my dues.

Shockingly, though, after I received my license, I was told that I would be returning to the same clinic, but as a nurse. I was happy, of course, because I have the weekends and holidays off. I show my appreciation by working as hard as I can, because many new nurses have had to work the weekends and holidays. While I admit that this was a blessing, I did expect the opposite and would not have balked had they told me that I had to work the floors on odd shifts. Heck, I was willing to ask to work nights so that I would be able to learn at a slower pace.

I say as a DON, you rule the roost. If these people cannot be accomodated due to the lack of seniority, and your needs, then, they have to hit the road. There are plenty of hungry people that WISH they had their opportunities to work AT ALL.

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Specializes in Bring on the babies!.

I am surprised by this post. Though I haven't read the whole threat I just wanted to say that I graduated in May & we were told NOT to expect a day shift! We were repeatedly told weekends, evenings & nights by the school and potential employers. They also told us not to expect any holidays off. I think it was a good way to set expectations. The majority of our clinicals were evenings & weekends too. Though 2-3 people did end up with dayshifts the rest of us did not. And no one escaped weekends. It just comes with working in a hospital that is open 24/7/365!! Also, despite the nursing "shortage" it is tough where I am to find a job as a new grad & therefore probably not a great idea to be to picky in the beginning. I figure I can do anything for a little while. It's more important to get my foot in the door! Anyway, to the OP, good luck finding new employees!

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It was every other weekend, every other holiday, and either the evening shift or night shift. these are the positions that were advertised for, interviewed for, and hired for. What I have found is the majority of the persons that I have interviewed, and/or hired for these positions have informed me themselves or made comments to other staff that they feel they should not have to work the evening or night shifts.

I don't think it's so much a matter of entitlement as it is sheer stupidity. Consider yourself lucky that their total lack of comprehension was exposed in this manner, rather than through an error resulting in harm to a patient.

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Specializes in Women's Health, Oncology.

I think every generation feels some sort of "entitlement" no matter the claim that they don't.

I'm a nurse in her 40's and I love that the younger generation is speaking up for what they want and not settling for any less. It's a different world in nursing than it was 20 years ago.

The shortage has brought opportunities to new grads that us older nurses would have never been given. Am I going to be ****** or hold that against them...NO! I say go for what you want and be prepared to work, whatever job you take.

With great opportunity comes great responsibilty. So if you are getting something that us older nurses could have only dreamed about 20 years ago, then the heat is on and you are going to be put under a microscope more.

Think of it this way...nursing as a profession has come a long way in a short amount of time. We have much further to go. The fact that the median age nurses is still age 43-47 should make us really ponder what the heck is going to happen in 20 years if we can't retain the younger generation.

The shortage has created a monster. One that has all hospitals and care facilities scrambling to come up with new and creative ideas to hire and retain nurses. This in itself is disasterous in the long term.

I've witnessed hospitals offering huge bonus cash to new grads to join the unit...a red flag in the eyes of more experienced nurses. Huge bonus = understaffed unit, desperate = more hours, more patient load = more frustration.

The argument can be made that it's not educators promising the moon to these new nurses (sure in the 1st semeser they are trying to "pump you up" and get you excited about your career choice), it's the hiring bodies. The hospitals that make everything look so great until you start there and realize the people that hired you haven't a clue about what is really going on.

I actually thought about quitting nursing after 14 years for the first time this year. Starbucks sometimes looks more appealing. Then I sat down and really thought about what it was that made me want to be a nurse.

I remembered...it was when I was a little girl and my grandmother was living with us and dying of ovarian cancer. I was 6 and she would let me put all sorts of lotions, powder and concoctions all over her back and rub her back. As a 6 year old I was constantly wanting to do whatever I could for her. She wrote me a letter before she died and asked my mom to give it to me when I turned 18.

She did and it's a letter that touched me more then anything. She told me how much I touched her life and made the time she had left better then any doctor could. She told me I had a gift and not to waste it.

So I didn't and I will continue to be a nurse thinking of my grandmother in every patient that is someones grandmother, mother or daughter.

That's what it's all about...the love for your fellow human beings and the need to see them not suffer. If we could all just channel the love for our patients back to each other as fellow medical professionals...then we would have it made.

Don't knock the younger generation....they could be taking care of us "oldies" some day.

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Specializes in ER, IICU, PCU, PACU, EMS.

Javajaydon, I understand your original post. This is not only in nursing, but in all professions and it is not to be insulting to any one particular generation.

My husband was promoted a couple of years ago and had to attend numerous management classes on how to effectively manage and communicate with different generations and personalities. He had one whole class dedicated to the entitled generation - how to motivate them, manage them, and the factors that contributed to how that particular generation views life and the workplace.

This is not saying that everyone in that generation acts the same way or has the same views: ex, Entitled Generation, Baby Boomers, Gen X. However, each generation had to deal with different experiences unique to the time period when they were growing up. Each generation will hold different views and priorities based upon those experiences.

You're not alone, there are many managers that have expressed the same concern.

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It will be very interesting to see what nursing will become in another 20 years or so, when "older" nurses will retire and "entitled" generation will take their place. Hospitals will really have to work hard to retain people who won't put up with many things that baby-boomers are putting up without questions.

It will be very interesting. It may bring about changes that finally will give power and respect to nursing, which is long overdue, and compensation that will make people work undesirable shifts without complaining.

To me right now, 1 more dollar an hour is not worth working weekends. My family time worth much more, however employers want to look at it.

Great thread though, enjoyed reading it.

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I read an article a while ago (I'v been searching to find it to post a link, but of course I can't find it again) that talked about the younger generation that is entering the work world now and how there is a feeling of entitelement. The author went on to explain that this is how we have raised our children- to believe they are worth the best, they deserve the best, not to put up with things that are sub par. We have taught them to find better jobs then we had. They have been told that family and friends are the most important things in this world, secondary to work. As a result, they don't want work to take up too much of their lives. They have been taught to say no to 60 hour work weeks and mandatory overtime. On top of that, there is also a feeling that parents can act as a safety net by allowing them to move back in if things really got bad. As a result, as this generation has been taught, don't be afraid to say no at your work, because if you loose your job you can move back in with Mom and Dad for a little while.

The article ended reinforcing that this is how we raised our kids, now they are working with us and we have to learn how to deal with how we raised them.

Or they go to an expensive, prestigious private college and major in women's studies or art history or medieval Russian literature with no provision as to what they want to do with that degree, and can't figure out why companies aren't standing in line to hire them as vice president and instead they're working at Starbucks with $100,000 in student loans - much of the money actually having been spent on alcohol and drugs.

We've hired some young adults as pharmacy technicians, and they need some guidance on how to act at work but usually, once they learn that you can't "Yes Ma'am" the pharmacist they do okay. Ever seen "The 40-year-old Virgin"? I wonder how many kids saw that movie and thought people really act that way at work. :bugeyes:

We have also hired several women who were close to retirement age, and they have actually caused considerably more problems than the young kids. Their attitude is, "So what? I'll be retiring in a few years."

Now, to read the rest of the thread.

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Specializes in NICU.

I am new, but I like working nights. Many of the new nurses have young children at home, and have difficulties working certain hours because of it. In nursing school we are told that we can work wherever and whenever we want. In the real world, that is not the case. It is rough balancing seniority with young families. Holidays should be shared/rotated as well as weekends. Maybe everyone should do the popular and unpopular shifts. I don't know. :pumpiron:

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