I hate my Med surg position

JKL33 · Oct 13, 2021

Two basic options are:

1. Find a way to survive it by following the important principles of what you were taught in school, consulting your resources and doing the best job you can. Avoiding negativity and just going in and going your job/learning all you can is also important.

2. Satisfy the penalty for early resignation - such as paying a financial penalty if your contract includes that or paying back a sign-on bonus if one was tied to a certain length of employment, and accept the company's consequences of early resignation (such as being marked "not eligible for rehire," for example).

A third option would be to consult an attorney to see if there is a legal way to exit without the above consequences.

Your choice depends upon your view of the circumstances and your tolerance for those. Personally I would try to stay unless things were abjectly unsafe or I felt very threatened in some other realistic way.

Hopeful RN · Oct 14, 2021

On 10/13/2021 at 1:01 AM, futrnursenickii said:

How do I get through a year of working in a unit that I hate? Everyone is so negative and unhappy with their jobs, so it makes it very difficult to learn and get the tools I need as a bee nurse. The problem is that I signed a contract for a year. A year is a long time to be in a place that I already can’t stand. My dream job is a labor and delivery nurse. I’ve only been on Med surg for 2 mos and I want to quit..what should I do?

Sorry to hear that! I can only imagine how you must feel. I accepted a med-surg residency, but later declined. I hated med-surg for so many reasons during my clinicals. I was only taking the residency because I wanted a foot in door & to gain experience, but I knew I would be miserable. I empathize because I know that if I were working in med-surg, I would have your same problem.

Some questions I would ask myself:

1. Is the position bad enough that it's affecting other areas of my life?

2. Is this feeling temporary since I'm new?

3. Is the job worth the stress?

4. Plan B? If I quit, what am I going to do next?

Unfortunately it's so hard to jumpstart a nursing career without a residency. I'm learning that not too many places will hire a new nurse without experience. For me, my mental health was more important. I couldn't sacrifice so much like working nights for a job I was not interested in. Good luck to you in whatever you decide to do! Keep us posted!

MT Fun_Dips · Oct 24, 2021

Don't make patients suffer due to your poor attitude. They pay good money to be there and if you hate it to the point where you can't stand it, I guarantee that it's having an affect on the patient's care, be it directly and/or indirectly (not to mention how it affects other workers).

I love the ER nurses, but you medsurg nurses (80%) treat the lab techs like trash. Your negatively ruins the work environment.

futrnursenickii, BSN, CNA, RN · Oct 24, 2021

Yeah well unfortunately I have to work in Med surg for at least a year due to a contract. I tried to get into the area I wanted but a lot of times the new grads always get stuck in med surg. there’s such a high turnover I know I’m not the only one that doesn’t like Med surg. The ratios suck for both RNs and CNAs. This is not a fault of mine nor does it reflect the care my patients get. I love being a nurse but I don’t like the unit I’m on, but I’m going to learn what I need to and move on. Thanks for the comment though

MT Fun_Dips · Oct 24, 2021

On 10/14/2021 at 2:24 PM, Hopeful RN said:

I'm learning that not too many places will hire a new nurse without experience. For me, my mental health was more important. I couldn't sacrifice so much like working nights for a job I was not interested in. Good luck to you in whatever you decide to do! Keep us posted!

I would look into working at a rural hospital (trama 3+). They tend to be more lenient when it comes to lack of experience. At mine, due to staffing shortages (thanks covid), they've accepted multiple new nurses as a rotating ER medsurg. If you're able to tolerate working nights I'm sure there's a hospital that will take you on in ER if you look at smaller hospitals. Nights, both in medsurg and ER, tend to be much more laid back than days as well

MT Fun_Dips · Oct 24, 2021

7 minutes ago, futrnursenickii said:

Yeah well unfortunately I have to work in Med surg for at least a year due to a contract. I tried to get into the area I wanted but a lot of times the new grads always get stuck in med surg. there’s such a high turnover I know I’m not the only one that doesn’t like Med surg. The ratios suck for both RNs and CNAs. This is not a fault of mine nor does it reflect the care my patients get. I love being a nurse but I don’t like the unit I’m on, but I’m going to learn what I need to and move on. Thanks for the comment though

Was the contact a condition of a sign on bonus? If so, you may be able to get out of it, although at the cost of forfeiting the bonus.

Regardless, quitting so soon will not look good on your experience/resumé, so I think your best bet is to stick it out and stay strong. At the very least you could think of it as an experience that builds character.

Maybe even look into working nights there if you gotta stay. The sleep schedule isn't ideal, but you usually get a 3rd shift diff pay, and the night tends to be less hectic

Vectrexevo · Jan 5, 2023

I'm late responding, but yea medsurg sucks. All the nurses I work with just ignore happiness. It's like being at a funeral on the floor. I would like to go to labor and delivery, I hear it's a cushy spot to be in

allnurses Guide · Jan 5, 2023

Vectrexevo said:

I'm late responding, but yea medsurg sucks. All the nurses I work with just ignore happiness. It's like being at a funeral on the floor. I would like to go to labor and delivery, I hear it's a cushy spot to be in

I did L&D for two years back in the day when a New Grad had their choice of units, I never did the year in med surge that seems to be the rule these days.

L&D can be a fun and happy specialty until it's not I had a night when we had two fetal demises and on of the mothers died as well. So no it's not cushy.

Hppy