Have you quit in disgust?

medsurgrnco, BSN, RN · Apr 26, 2008

I've read that there's an average 20% yearly turnover of nurses in hospitals. So if a hospital is much higher, that indicates there's probably a problem with management.

Itshamrtym · Apr 26, 2008

Don't give up nursing!!!!! Please try another hospital or specialty. There is so much that you could do. I bet that you find something that you love. Good luck to you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

sfn2008, RN · Apr 26, 2008

Your simplifying a situation that may/has become critical for the public. When 89% of nurses on one unit quit annually, what kind of care do you think is being provided. And why is mgmt not held to task? This is way out of line with provincial/state norms of retention. Why are people not questioning this?

What people? Who? The nurses at allnurses? The BON? The community where your hospital is located? WHOM are you expecting to stand up and take notice?

Hospitals have a Board of Directors. Do nurses attend the meetings? As an employee of a hospital I have never attended a Board Meeting, but maybe I should have.

Toquay · Apr 26, 2008

Nurses are in roles of providing care and caring. Management and hospital boards are all about the bottom line "money". Hospitals are businesses and while they may love the PR part of us going the extra mile or giving a little TLC it does not capture any revenue. Unless a hospital is going for magnet they could care less about turn over... longevity in a hospital means higher wages on the pay scale and its alot cheaper to chew up and spit out the new grad nurses that will work for less.

We can't even agree among ourselves.. how many subjects here on All Nurses are about those who "love" nursing vs those who "work for the money", one department against another, one shift vs another shift? The management must LOVE this because nursing as a whole will never stand united for the respect it deserves. We are one of the largest most needed workforces in society and wield no power. I feel like I could start with MLK's "I have a dream..." speech.

Toq

sfn2008, RN · Apr 26, 2008

Nurses are in roles of providing care and caring. Management and hospital boards are all about the bottom line "money". Hospitals are businesses and while they may love the PR part of us going the extra mile or giving a little TLC it does not capture any revenue. Unless a hospital is going for magnet they could care less about turn over... longevity in a hospital means higher wages on the pay scale and its alot cheaper to chew up and spit out the new grad nurses that will work for less.
We can't even agree among ourselves.. how many subjects here on All Nurses are about those who "love" nursing vs those who "work for the money", one department against another, one shift vs another shift? The management must LOVE this because nursing as a whole will never stand united for the respect it deserves. We are one of the largest most needed workforces in society and wield no power. I feel like I could start with MLK's "I have a dream..." speech.
Toq

You are sooooooooooo Right! :yeah:

Ginger45 · Apr 26, 2008

Well, I always said that nurses talk with their feet. Please don't give up on nursing from one bad job. It takes time to find the right fit for you. You will find it though. I have found that when I am really stressed and burned out. I go to work in psych for a while. It is not quite as stressful and I love it.

NurseCherlove · Apr 26, 2008

Im going back to school for perioperative nursing. Hope it will be better. Just couldn't handle senior staff telling junior staff how stupid they were all the time. They even alienated a minority nurse who worked with us (she was very nice) they refused to sit at the same table for lunch etc, etc blah blah blah...now thats a caring profession!!!!!

Man...how ignorant!

You need to be saying "Good riddance" to that place! That's right, just shake the dust off your feet and keep moving on to better places (they're out there - far and few in between, but they are).

RN1982 · Apr 27, 2008

Same here. I had actually been looking for a new job since July. My unit was a progressive care stepdown. Staffing was always short. Management didn't seem to care and hid out in their office. They always favored the day shift. Nights always got shafted. They started a whole new review process called pay for performance. I had worked a lot in the summer, mainly because they asked me to and I needed the money and they knew it.

Anyhow, final straw was when I got my evaluation according to this new review process. I was rated "developing" which is second from the lowest score you could possibly get. Mind you, I always had my work done. No med errors, no patient complaints. Actually had families request me to take care of their family member. When someone needed help, I helped. I was part of a team or so I thought. Nurses who were newer got better ratings than me.There's a saying that no good deed goes unpunished and thats how I felt. When I got my eval, I cried and cried. My manager didn't understand why.

Found a great job, at an inner-city teaching hospital in the SICU. I put in my resignation and all my manager could say was that it's "different" down there. What's different is that I'm much happier now at that inner-city hospital than I was at a suburban elitist hospital such as the one I had worked at for five years.

I still work at that hospital on the same unit that I was unhappy on. But guess what, I think I sparked a movement because as soon as I quit about 7 other people have also.

Ginger45 · Apr 28, 2008

Hi again Flygirl,

I am about to walk away in disgust again. It is a hard thing to do but when you wake up with this huge feeling of dread and feel like you are sufficating everyday, it's time. I was hired with the impression that I was going to allowed to identify problems and assist in getting this place in shape. I had thought that if it worked out it could be something I would finish my career at. I started in full force like I normally do. The administrator took everything personally and I was unable to make any changes. She even talks nasty to you. I am not used to anyone speaking to me that way and even though everyone says, "Thats just the way she is." I am not tolerating it. Then we had a major infection control issue. I took immediate action. The Director is a new DON, she doesn't know what to do alot of times and I quide her. The administrator just jumped all over me for what I did and called the physician. He stated the exact things that I had done. He was aware by the way. Then it was "Ok." Not to me. I got physically ill. I cannot walk in there, see things and have to fight to get anything done or nothing be done. I can't do it. It's a huge risk, I need the money but I always following my instincts and my instincts are to leave. I will end up getting fired anyway because I will not stop, and I don't need that stress. Maybe she will learn a lesson ans listen to the next person. I am trying not to put too much info into this because you never know who is reading it.

Sometimes you just have to do what you have to do for your own health. :banghead:

Sue Damonas, BSN · Apr 28, 2008

I quit at the hospital I worked at for 25 years. The first 10 years I worked there it was a good work environment but over the next 15 years it deteriorated into a hostile work environment. Everybody was backstabbing one another thanks to our "management" and I was upset for years. I went to work on the IV Team and was saddened over the state of the whole hospital and then I thought to myself "Why do I need to put up with this?". Plus they were doing absolutely nothing to retain nurses only to recruit, so I went home one day and went over to the computer, typed up my resignation letter with my 2 week notice and submitted it the next day. I immediately felt better. And when I walked out of there for the last time, instead of feeling sad and nostalgic I felt this huge weight lifted off my shoulders and never looked back. I did find a less hostile work environment so sometimes the grass is greener on the other side!