Hate floor nursing but reasonable to get DNP?

[inthesky]

i am a 5 month new grad bsn rn and i am really disappointed in floor nursing. i knew that it was going to be hard and i was prepared to be overworked, but this is seriously ridiculous. i recently left my psych night job due to circadian rhythm disaster to a new job as a psych daytime med nurse. i have 15 patients. the dr. writes 7 now orders in 30 minutes and the patients follow me and demand their meds now, when pharmacy is understaffed as well and will not have the order ready for ages..ie..2 hours +. i have one patient getting rude and stalking me about giving her im dilaudid versus po as it is ordered. all of this and if i don't finish our silly pain flow sheets for even tylenol, i might get written up. i am very thorough and can keep a lot in my mind at once, but i am not fast. i literally cannot complete the ridiculous amount of work that the job demands. i also know that this is pretty much what daytime psych nurses jobs and probably most floor nursing jobs in general are like in this city. anyways, i'm rambling.

i've been seriously considering leaving the field due to these bad working conditions, but i love some aspects of nursing so much that i'm not sure anything else could replace it.

what i really like about nursing:

-anything behavioral health

-patient education

-physiology

-when patients feel they are important and feel encouragement to participate in their own health care

-patient advocacy

what i don't like/hate about nursing:

-not enough time to give good patient care

-med jockeying

-patients who think medication solves everything without effort and patience

-cleaning up after people

-disrespect

-workplace crap

-dementia patients (i feel bad for saying it but.. as bad as i feel for these patients and their families, they annoy me greatly)

-trachs, vents, immobile patients

-keeping 90 year old critically ill patients alive

the big question:

would it be ridiculous for me to get a psych dnp when i didn't even make it as a floor nurse?

any wisdom is much appreciated :redbeathe

*posted here (for a larger response pool) and np forum*

[RN1989]

They told me that they have lost seasoned nurses to this workload >_<. i not sure how this bodes for me that seasoned nurses walk out because it is too much work src="%7B___base_url___%7D/uploads/emoticons/eek.png.d5b0f01500ede3939b07f3c3a607b07c.png" alt=":eek:">

I can't believe that they actually told you this. That situation is really a "duh" situation but normally supervisors are not allowed to admit it.

The problem is that they admitted it yet they obviously have been unable to fix the problem to prevent it from continuing.

Such is how most of nursing, at least clinical nursing goes.

One of the problems that I currently fight is that employers import foreign nurses to work under these types of conditions. That undermines nursing's ability as a unit to make sweeping changes that are desperately needed. Your situation is just one of many that is played out numerous times a day throughout the country.

Until all nurses will unite and fight against situations like this, nursing has little hope of change. I've got a lot more experience than you do and over the years it has gotten worse, not better.

Good luck as you continue this arduous journey called nursing.

[inthesky]

I do like the managers. I know that they would hire more nurses in a heartbeat if they could. I heard from another nurse that the unit went over budget last month even with this skeleton crew. I think one of their interests in me is the new grad crappy pay i get vs experienced nurse pay. =P The budget must be ridiculously small as we don't even have safety needles; we have to recap used needles >_<. it does make you wonder how little power nurses are using for themselves. at least we don have vs that can get extremely ugly and i avoided the most part.>

Arizona is a right-to-work state with no nurses union. The ANA is pretty useless here. At least they succeeded in striking down mandatory overtime.

Thanks for your support :redbeathe

I am definitely tempted to hang up my stethoscope

[Jo Dirt]

Inthesky, I am in a similar dilemma. I'm very restless and dissatisfied in my nursing position (LTC med nurse, which is basically in a geriatric/psych dumping ground) and have found my fuse getting shorter when dealing with med/attention-seeking patients. I can't stand that kind of neediness. We have a woman (60ish) who wants to be babied and treated like a poor little invalid and will sit in her recliner by the nurse's station watching the clock so she can whine (on time) for her next Xanax and Lortab. It's to the point I cringe when she talks to me (she is not my patient.)

The only dementia patients I can't stand are the demanding, hateful and uncooperative ones, though I know it gets tiring to with people who couldn't understand where or who they are if you stood there reminding them all day and feeding them Remeron. You are in a losing situation with A/D patients, defeated before you ever start.

Like you, I find it extremely objectionable to keep these ancient, worn out people hanging on and on long after there is hope they could ever have any kind of quality of life, especially considering there are younger people who could be helped but don't have the funds or resources.

So, I decided to start back to school and have planned on trying to get enrolled in an NP program maybe next year. I was getting a head start on my entrance essay and goal statement and I started writing about my love for nursing and desire to continue helping to benefit my fellow man and improve their quality of life. Then, I looked at what I wrote and realized I was full of it.

Maybe I'm just too cynical for this, anymore.

I'm very interested in psychology and think I would love to be a grief counselor and specialize in EMDR therapy, maybe teach a few classes at the local CC. I have an AS in psychology so a BS wouldn't take long, then of course I'd go to graduate school awhile, but I worry the money isn't there. I need to start making about 80K or better a year. I believe that is doable in nursing but I don't know about psychology.

Decisions, decisions...

[inthesky]

it sounds like you are like me and not a geripsych person =P I don't see it as you not liking nursing. I see it more as your job sucks :trout: Some people really find these confused, moody people delightful and full of stories and I'm glad they do, but i get aggravated when people don't know who they are, get hostile for no reason, and need to be wiped and watched like children.

how do you feel when you talked to one of your patients about a drug and the patient felt better about taking the drug and appreciated your caring and attention? Or how you feel when a patient looks forward to med pass just to talk to you? Or when you discover something medically wrong and the patient gets the extra care they need? Are those moments very fulfilling for you?

Reading your essay, are you truly 'full of it' or is that what you would truly like to do with your life, but feel like you cannot accomplish it within the constructs of your job? also, those essays have to be somewhat idealistic and enthusiastic. Are you looking into being a psych NP? I wonder if those with psych NPs can overlap certain jobs with psych graduates. I'm sure that clinical psychologists make 80K+..probably not therapists. for right now, it sounds like it is time to get a new job.. I am more stuck as I only have 4 months of nursing experience.

I wish you the best and thanks for sharing. :)

[Patti 2nd gen RN]

Go to a different state!!! I am in Maryland now--not wonderful, but we have needle bxes in all the rooms for Pete's sake!!! NY even pays better, and they have unions--I grew up watching my mom go on strike 3x---it's amazing what happens when nurses stand together!!! Patients get better care and people still want to be nurses....

[becembrie]

My Mom is currently dealing with the effects of Lewey Body Disease. As she slowly slips into dementia, I can only pray we can keep her home with us. I would never be able to work daily with dementia patients and can only imagine how difficult it is. I applaud anyone who chooses to take on that task and do it with care and sensitivity.

I agree with some others that maybe trying another type of nursing may help you to see that there is something that maybe you haven't thought of previously. What about a clinic setting? Or an outpatient treatment facility where you could be more involved in therapy rather than passing meds.

Good luck.

[inthesky]

becembrie, I wish your family the best and don't forget that you will need support as well. and thank you for your input =) I'm currently experimenting with the 3-11pm shift which is actually quite an improvement.

[birdgardner]

Do you need the DNP and not just a masters NP? I know a psych. NP who is independent with a one-woman practice, and very nominal oversight by an MD, a couple others who work in a psychiatry practice seeing patients in alternation with the MD.

Would you like an office-type practice.

[inthesky]

Unfortunately, the NP programs have been discontinued and replaced with DNP programs in Arizona. I'm definitely not thrilled about it. I'm not sure exactly what I would want to do with it, but I definitely can't do what I'm doing now. An office would be nice =). I really don't need to make a lot of money; I just want to practice psych nursing without being a floor nurse. Arizona is actually one of the best states to be a NP.

[Jonnyangel]

I think that a psych DNP program would be the way to go. I am not a floor nurse beause of the same reasons you expressed. I am requesting info and checking into Brandman University's 2 year full time psych DNP program, most are 3 years full time so it sounds good to me. I think the program starts in Jan. 2012 Anyway, good luck with your decision.