Had the WEIRDEST dream last night... yes this is nursing related, wait for it. =)

[NurseCard, ADN]

Okay, so I had this dream that I DESPERATELY wanted to get a job at the hospital that I first worked at, the one I worked for for 7 years. I dreamed that I went in to talk to HR and they told me that there was really only one position open, and that was in, I don't remember, housekeeping or something like that. :) I dreamed that, since I had left three years ago, the hospital had remodeled AND added many nice shops, restaurants; it actually kinda looked more like a small shopping mall than a hospital. There were people walking around, employees and patients/ family members, with HUGE smiles on their faces. Seemed like the greatest place in the world. I SO desperately wanted to work there again.

Here's the kicker though; at the end of the dream I talked to my old manager, who is now the DON, and I remember her saying something to the effect of "You need to look for happiness in the other parts of your life, and quit looking for the perfect job in order to be happy".

That's profound. :) Okay, now for some background info. I worked at that hospital, in Med/Surge, for seven years. It was, and still is, a pretty decent hospital to work for, but I left for several reasons. One, I was tired of the highly political and "clicky" atmosphere; every night that I went to work I felt like I was back in high school and I was not considered "cool" and I got tired of that feeling. Two... the hospital was trying to get Magnet status, and I was tired of feeling like I had to do SO much more than just go in, do my job, and go home. Nursing wasn't my life, you know? Three, this nurse that I could not stand became my manager after the wonderful manager that I had had for six years, got promoted to ADON. She made me feel like she, and the rest of the administration, were out to get me. Four, I was tired of the hospital atmosphere in general and really wanted to try Psych; had wanted to for quite some time... and we didn't have a psych unit there. So, after seven years I left, and went to work for a state Psych hospital.

Well, since leaving that hospital not even three years ago... I am now on my third nursing job. Liked the state hospital, but HAD to leave there due to mileage (too far to drive), and lousy insurance benefits. Went back to Med Surge at a hospital that had a psych unit; figured I'd go back to "the nitty gritty" for a while but eventually I'd go back to Psych. Left that hospital after a year and a half; again, just wasn't happy there for several reasons.

NOW, I'm working at a private Psych hospital... working on a children's unit. I went to work at this hospital with the idea that I would **STAY**, no matter what. Was tired of job hopping, really tired of it. I chose this hospital because 1), it's a psych hospital 2), I would get the opportunity to work with troubled children, which I love, and 3), one of my very best friends in the world also works there.

I wish I had done a BIT more research though; maybe thought it through a bit more. Because I've again, found that there are a LOT of things about this hospital that make me unhappy and uneasy. One, turnover rate is ridiculous. Two, people CONSTANTLY complain, the people who still work there. Three, night shift seems to get picked on quite a bit by management, who micro-manage everything and seem to LOOK for things to complain about and say that we are doing wrong (think "TPS report cover sheets" from _Office Space_).

I LIKE the work that I am doing there though. I like working with the kids. I do rather like my coworkers. But lately, I'm regretting... and this goes back to the dream =)... I'm regretting leaving that first hospital in the first place. During hospital week, they had a big ad in the local paper saluting there employees, and featured a list of ALL of their employees... and I realized HOW MANY people are still working there, how low their turnover rate is! It has really been making me feel like I made a mistake by leaving there. On the other hand, like I said, I really do like the work that I'm doing at my current job. I'm just really irritated by the administration, and truthfully the overall atmosphere of the place. I've always thought of psych as being laid back, but this place has such an uptight feel to it. Oh, and they work with a skeleton crew there too.

So... I guess what I'm wanting to know is, HOW do you stay happy in a place like the one that I'm working, if you basically like the work that you are doing?

I'm also curious as to how many of you have job hopped like I have? =) How many jobs did you have before you found THE JOB. =)