HATE Peds Nursing??

Pediatric Critical Care Columnist · Dec 24, 2008

Quality work environments usually have less to do with the type of patients cared for and more to do with culture on the unit. I work with peds in a large urban teaching hospital. The morale, interdisciplinary respect, collaboration, communication and management styles on our unit are very different than on any of the other peds units in our facility. Our work environment is quite unhealthy at this time and the staff are leaving in droves. But for the most part, they aren't leaving peds, they're leaving our unit. When I talk to nurses on the other peds units in our hospital about morale and the other measures I've listed, they most often tell me that they love their unit, they love their work, they love their manager and so on. Even when the workloads are unbearably heavy, even when the kids are sicker than usual, even when they've had a ton of overtime, they still are happy in their jobs. That cannot be said of our unit. It hasn't always been this way, either. When I started on the unit several years ago, it was a great place to work and everybody was happy. Then we had a change in management and things started to change. In six years we've had four different patient care managers; in that some time we've had 17 different people rotate through our 4 unit manager positions and 10 of those have left the unit altogether. Of the management team that was in place when I started, there is only ONE person who remains in a management role. Turnover on the front lines is even higher. So what I'm trying to say is that it really doesn't matter whether you care for adults, kids, babies or animals if the workplace isn't healthy.

If you want to be a peds nurse, be a peds nurse but be selective about where you work.

kessadawn, BSN, RN · Dec 26, 2008

i agree with jan, it's not the patient, it's the work environment. of the people who are unhappy in our picu, i believe their unhappiness stems from co-worker issues, or management, but not the pediatric patient population. i have my crabby days as well, but it always stems from something political in the hospital, like who floats where, overtime compensations, etc. morale can make or break a unit, as well as strong leadership, no matter if every patient you care for is a "dream" assignment or not. :twocents:

TexasPediRN · Dec 26, 2008

ditto to all of the above.

i love my job, i love my patients, i love the experience i am getting and all that i am learning..

i hate the political bs that goes on at my hospital. we are not properly managed, and there is no accountability for ones job.

however, i will always work pedi, i will never work any other atmosphere. i too, will never work adults. i hated it in nursing school.

even though the morale is low on my unit, and we dont feel respected at times, my patients will never suffer, because my patients are what i love most - pediatrics is a great speciality, and there is nothing like a a smile from a child that you just gave a shot to, b/c you gave them a sticker afterwards.

if your heart is in pedi, go for it. you will never go back. :heartbeat

ArtisticAthlete · Dec 26, 2008

Hey you guys, thank you for your responses.

So, here's my next question: Why do most nurses seem to have co-worker issues, management issues, political issues, etc? Every career has their problems but it seems like most nurses have all of these problems. What's up w/ the nursing community?

Also, what's the deal w/ nurses being hard to work w/? I hear a lot of people saying most nurses have a chip on their shoulder; what gives? :confused:

kessadawn, BSN, RN · Dec 26, 2008

hey you guys, thank you for your responses.
so, here's my next question: why do most nurses seem to have co-worker issues, management issues, political issues, etc? every career has their problems but it seems like most nurses have all of these problems. what's up w/ the nursing community?
also, what's the deal w/ nurses being hard to work w/? i hear a lot of people saying most nurses have a chip on their shoulder; what gives?

i think co-worker issues are everywhere. in my picu, you have a large group of strong and assertive personalities, so there's bound to be tension at times. luckily, my unit is a good work envrionment, so it's not a big problem. maybe as nurses, being as we are taught to advocate so strongly, it's that we are just more vocal about what bothers us?

TexasPediRN · Dec 26, 2008

hey you guys, thank you for your responses.
so, here's my next question: why do most nurses seem to have co-worker issues, management issues, political issues, etc? every career has their problems but it seems like most nurses have all of these problems. what's up w/ the nursing community?
also, what's the deal w/ nurses being hard to work w/? i hear a lot of people saying most nurses have a chip on their shoulder; what gives?

well..

as for coworker issues..well.. i guess i'm anal. i have high standards. if you cant meet my standards for patient care, i have an issue.

i have coworkers who come out of a babies room, and call the tech to change the diaper. i have issues completely with that. actually, i have issues with laziness, and not caring about ones unit. i am proud of where i work, and i want that to show. now if thats by going the extra mile doing something for the unit, or changing something for the better, well, thats just me and thats what im going to do.

some people are in nursing for the money, and you will find some nurses who do the bare minimum possible to get through their shift.

you will also find with management (almost anywhere) that they will also get by with the bare minimum - least amount of staff possible to staff the unit, even when you need more nurses. its all about money- which is the bottom line. its the budget.

i think i could ramble on for hours..but i shouldnt..

nursing is a great job, a great career, and you can make a difference in someones life each and every day..

no matter all of the bs that we nurses deal with, nothing can equate to the feeling of pride and accomplishment you get after a hard days work, knowing that you made a difference..

gofast! · Jan 8, 2009

well..
as for coworker issues..well.. i guess i'm anal. i have high standards. if you cant meet my standards for patient care, i have an issue.
i have coworkers who come out of a babies room, and call the tech to change the diaper. i have issues completely with that. actually, i have issues with laziness, and not caring about ones unit. i am proud of where i work, and i want that to show. now if thats by going the extra mile doing something for the unit, or changing something for the better, well, thats just me and thats what im going to do.
some people are in nursing for the money, and you will find some nurses who do the bare minimum possible to get through their shift.
you will also find with management (almost anywhere) that they will also get by with the bare minimum - least amount of staff possible to staff the unit, even when you need more nurses. its all about money- which is the bottom line. its the budget.
i think i could ramble on for hours..but i shouldnt..
nursing is a great job, a great career, and you can make a difference in someones life each and every day..
no matter all of the bs that we nurses deal with, nothing can equate to the feeling of pride and accomplishment you get after a hard days work, knowing that you made a difference..

are you sure we're not related?????????

i always say that i don't expect anymore from my co-workers than i expect from myself! my previous manager said that my standards were "too high"!!! i can go into b---- mode when i get paired for the day with a slacker. i've been doing this for 25 years and still love what i do but they(who ever they are) can take the bs,politics, and lazy staff and place them somewhere. :yeah:

KayleighTravelNurse, RN · Jun 17, 2011

I loves peds nurses!

jdsmom, RN · Jul 22, 2011

After reading through the posts, I have a couple of thoughts...

1. High standards are AWESOME! They can never be too high...however, approach is EVERYTHING. There is an RN on my floor that scares me to death, intimidates me, and rolls her eyes at me all the time. The thing is, I get she is an awesome and experienced nurse, but why do you have to treat other people like that? She does this to everyone! You can get your point across better by not being rude, mean, or short. You know?

2. My 2nd thought is that we all have heard that "health care changes rapidly." Are we so tired of that or what??? The problem is we can't change policies and ways of thinking to keep up with "health care changing rapidly!" I think that is where the overworked part comes from...too many different people thinking their way is the best way to run a shift, but no consistency whatsoever. Sometimes it seems like organized chaos!

3. I agree with another post, some RN's went into this thinking good money, good schedule, and that's it. This is a job you have to really understand, want, and have a passion for. Nursing school is COMPLETELY different from being on your own on the floor, and everybody expects probably more from an RN than is reasonable. That is just part of the job, and you have to be willing to work through that. I would love to see nursing schools institute more preceptorship time at the end of the program, similar to that of student teaching. This would only happen AFTER you get your license so that your preceptor RN does not hold all the risk.

All in all, things need to change in nursing, but the fact is that there is little money to make changes and a lot of resistance because of the complexity of it all. The best thing you can have is have a great attitude and treat others with respect...demand that of others as well, don't be a door mat and don't let people treat you like dirt. Being positive can be contagious...it just takes one person to start!

BTW, I LOVE MY JOB! RN for a year, starting in peds periop next month!

1adb10 · May 24, 2012

Follow your heart!! Do what you Love to do... and you'll always enjoy it!1

Pug RN · Jul 9, 2012

I worked with a nurse manager once that had the policy, "I'd rather have three ok nurses with good attitudes than one phenomenal nurse with a bad attitude."

Skills, time management, etc. can be learned with a little nurturing and positive work environment. A bad attitude is nearly impossible to break and is unfortunately contagious.

Pediatrics has always been good to me. I have been blessed with mostly excellent managers. Even if you are faced with ineffective managers and coworkers with crappy attitudes, try to be positive and upbeat. Offer solutions rather than complaining. It's infectious and many times can make a difference.

I think peds attracts good people in general and that is why I have done it for over 16 years.