How to overcome stress when you are in-charge of the department.

[uniquenurse, BSN, RN]

I am a well experienced E.D. nurse however I don't have much experience in being in-charge of the department. Lots of my colleagues are encouraging me to apply for a higher post because of my long experience in E.D. however, I refused many times because I have this "FEAR" in my mind that I may not be able to cope with stress when I am in-charge. I think I need some advise.

[RN1989]

The stress is going to be completely different from the stress you have now as a staff nurse.

The people that are your friends now, will become your adversaries once you are the boss.

Take a look at your motives behind the thought of applying. Is it because you are flattered that the staff think highly of your abilities or is it because you truly want to manage a department?

Honestly, if you don't have experience being the boss, I don't recommend advancing from within the same department. People that used to be your friends become resistant to change and either expect favors from you or think that every decision you make should please them. People just don't understand the balancing act of being a good nurse manager and trying to keep the staff happy while working within the narrow confines of the position that the admin imposes on you.

If you decide that you really would like to do this, take some supervisor CE courses. Some of the best ones that I have taken were generic management courses about how to manage people and do it legally but had nothing to do with nursing specific stuff.

[mmutk, BSN, RN, EMT-I]

There is too much risk in my ER for me to do charge, when one RN goes down you can expect to go down with em'.