Have you ever disliked a nursing job so much that you quit without notice?

Jules A, MSN · Mar 16, 2015

I haven't been in that position before so I have always given notice.

OP, if it is so terrible that you are thinking of quitting without notice when you get another job imo it would be the decent thing to just give notice now.

Here.I.Stand, BSN, RN · Mar 16, 2015

Picking my jaw up off the floor... Good for you!!!!

Yep. I was assaulted by a patient on the job. He kicked me in the chest and sprained my wrist. Security was called and never showed up. The patient continued to assault other staff, and I called the cops. My supervisor came back from a meeting to see the patient being dragged screaming from the unit. She wanted to *write me up* for calling the cops because it wasn't "protocol." She showed zero concern for or even asked us 3 injured nurses anything. A huge argument in her office ensued - the manager agreed and wanted to write all of us up for calling the police.
A resident doctor, another RN and I handed over our badges and keys and walked out of that place right then and there. The resident had tried to restrain the patient as well and gotten his head bashed against a wall. The other nurse had a door opened forcefully over her shoes that broke 6 bones in one foot.
I had no problem finding 2 jobs after that. I just say the job wasn't a good fit and I left to pursue other opportunities. The HR office there only provides my dates of service. I think lots of nurses have walked off at least one bad job in their career.

SmilingBluEyes · Mar 16, 2015

Yes, when I realized that there was an agency nurse who was working nights and clearly stealing narcotics right and left. So many of us reported him, but nothing was ever done. Then, one day on my day off, he must have pulled a doozy, cause the cops were called in and the place locked down while they did an investigation. All those who had carried narc keys during that time frame were called in, pee tested and were questioned up and down.

I was fortunate in that I had not been working during the timeframes they were concerned with. So I never was called in.

I was out of there that same week. I hear their DON and ADON were canned. Too little too late to me.

DANGEROUS.

SmilingBluEyes · Mar 16, 2015

Those who say "never", well ya know, "never say never". If things are bad enough, leaving w/o notice is self-preserving and indicated.

ChellyFutureNP · Mar 16, 2015

Resign now but make sure you have given them 2 weeks to maintain a good reputation. However, At the end of the day, u have to do whatever makes you happy. Good luck!

bluegeegoo2, LPN · Mar 16, 2015

I had a manager try to call me in at a facility that I loathed. (Was actively looking for another job.) I declined to come in, and she proceeded to yell at me and demanded I come in and stated "You have no choice. You WILL come in!!!" I told her that she was mistaken and that I indeed have choices and I will NOT come in. I quit. She started yelling and cussing and I hung up. It was not the way I had intended to end employment there, but when push comes to shove...

Angeljho, MSN, NP · Mar 16, 2015

My first job was in a LTC facility. It was already too crazy caring for 40 residents and never having time to do anything. However, I stayed for a year and a half. After they started adding more duties to our already heavy workload, we started having an influx of errors. I politely wrote a resignation letter announcing that my last shift would be that very day.

f1j1nurse · Mar 16, 2015

Yes. I also handed my badge to a manager at the end of my shift and said I'm not coming back. The acuity and workload were ridiculous and the doctors were shmucks. It was unsafe. This was at a very prestigious medical system and it has not affected my career at all.

Yep I did the same at one job and it has not affected my career in anyway.

imintrouble, BSN, RN · Mar 16, 2015

I've never quit without notice. It violates a personal code of conduct. It's not about rehire or resume. It's not about repercussions if I just walk away. It has nothing to do with how my lousy employer treats me, but how I respond.

I'm very old school.

I pass no judgment on another's choices. We all do what we have to do.

Deepinthegame · Mar 16, 2015

Use to do it all the time -back in the "90's" . Matter of fact , at the end of the year I would have so many W2s. I mean, I don't know about you guys but I have worked in some 5 Star dumps in my time. Most of those places just wanted a nurse in title only, and a few I could have stayed on and just showed up. Besides , I always keep two jobs . Heck ,use one job to get another.

Vishwamitr · Mar 17, 2015

Dear Nola,

It's unclear from your post as to what it is that you don't like about your current job that you are so revulsed by it and feel "nauseaus". Is it the work-load, long shifts, nursing leadership, your coworkers, or plain attitude issue on your part?

There is no guarantee that you'll love the new job. Who knows, you might find it worse than the current one. I'd figure out what it is that I do not like about my current job and work on that.

Just a thought.

PG2018 · Mar 17, 2015

My first nursing job resulted in my turning in my notice one year to the day that I started working at the hospital. In a retaliatory effort, I was "called off" for the subsequent shift. I had never (not once) been told not to come to work due to census. However, NO ONE CALLED ME. I drove to work (40 minutes), clocked in, and saw the staffing sheet. My name wasn't anywhere on it. I immediately turned around and drove home without saying a word to anyone. The next morning at 9:00 I called the nursing administrator, and knowingly interrupted a meeting in doing so, and inquired of the event. She replied something to the effect, "Yeah, I don't know how that happen." I told her I KNEW "how that happened" and assured her that upon receipt of my final paycheck she would receive my name tag and keys in the mail, addressed to her, with requisite signature, and I would in no other way ever show up at that hospital again. It worked. I got my money, and I mailed their stuff.