ICU Burnout

CrunchRN, ADN, RN · Sep 25, 2015

There are tons of non-hospital options. Try one and i think you will be amazed.

HouTx, BSN, MSN, EdD · Sep 25, 2015

I am so sorry that you find yourself in such a disheartening situation. Critical Care can be an emotionally draining environment, but with adequate support and skilled leadership, it can also be enormously rewarding. It sounds as though your current job is seriously lacking in those areas. I believe that you may discover that a working in a different organization could turn out to be a much more positive environment. With a year of ICU experience, you are very marketable.

BiotoBSNtoFNP · Sep 25, 2015

despite you sacrificing your health and sanity your hardwork will never be quite good enough, there will always be a push for you to do MORE, despite being pushed to your absolute limits, you will always be the scapegoat, your pay will in no way reflect what you do, and you'll likely need a second job (just ask any nurse:80% of the ones I work with have one).
In short, I'm really depressed, I'm burned out, my body hurts and I'm always tired. I dread work, I spend my off days recovering from my shifts, (the no eating no drinking I'm physically sick all the time). Our patients are such high acuity and it's all hands on deck, most nights there is no one available to watch my people for me to eat or get a break. This isn't living. I have no balance in my life. I've read that nurses who go into this for the purpose of "helping others" are the first to burn out and that's me. The only days I feel like I can make it is when a family member or patient just simply says thank you. To feel the hell I put myself through is noticed by someone... But that is a rarity.

This is how i felt on my floor. I Was not living. I got up, went to work (unhappy), came home and slept all day (nightshift), sometimes all night, and during my days off. I wasnt living. I wasnt happy. I was depressed. It wasnt something an SSRI or counseling would fix (although im sure it would have helped). I knew it was the job. So I left the hospital! I love my urgent care job. Although sometimes I feel like I am not utilizing my full nursing skillset, Patients here are thankful, respectful (usually), and overall pleasant. It has made a great difference in my attitude and living.

I knew I made the right decision when last Christmas day, we were open our usual hours and were very busy (everyone seems to wake up christmas morning w URIs!)-i had multiple patients that day take the time to thank me for being there on Christmas and said that they appreciate my help. ::what!:: i never had a patient truly thank me for working on christmas! It was

wonderful to hear!

Start looking at other career options and figure out where you would like to go next! Maybe that will help how youre feeling?

nealiiih · Sep 27, 2015

amen, thank you for saying this- I feel the exact same way. I was going to create a thread just like this.

I put myself into serious debt to become an RN and regret it every day. I am so sick of the abuse emotional and sometimes physical from patients their families. I had a doctor shake her fist in my face the other day, death threats from patients etc. it really doesn't matter what floor you work on, I feel like if you work in a hospital it's terrible. charge nurses don't back us when patients threaten and scream at us -they go into their room to kiss ass and do "service recovery" to try to bring up the patients satisfaction scores because it's not about good medicine anymore it's about getting paid. hospitalists are abused just as much , I will never let my child become a nurse or doctor. we (nurses) complain about these things all the time and nothing ever changes -it doesn't matter because we are looked at as cheap labor by the 'higher-ups.' every day I go to work i try to be positive and I make sure not to take that stuff home with me, but I definitely have a chip on my shoulder. I'm just angry with the whole nursing profession in general as in what's it's become, I'm angry with what it is to be a nurse in 2015- the demands, the stress, physical stress, and being treated like a servant. the patient does not know best. however, I never take these things out on my patient I bend over backwards for my patients, and I always give the best care possible. I think this is why I'm internally so upset because I try so hard to give the best care possible and it's a thankless job dealing with people at their worst. I am going to start going to counseling about this, my employee health department offers this service to nurses and I would advise you to do the same. also apply for non-hospital bedside positions -that is what I am doing. best of luck and stay strong! you are not the only one that feels like this.

Ruby Vee, BSN · Sep 27, 2015

The first year of nursing is extremely difficult. You come up against the dichotomy of what you expected vs. the reality of nursing, you suddenly assume the enormous burden of responsibility than RNs carry (which you knew was coming, but didn't know would be so heavy) and you haven't yet become competent. Your time management skills are still developing. Competence takes about two years. Don't make any decisions about the workload or whether or not ICU is for you until you become fully competent in your job . . . about two years in. In the meantime, the first year of nursing is incredibly difficult; the second is only somewhat easier. We've all been through it, and the only way to GET through it is to GO through it. Good luck.

allnurses Guide · Sep 27, 2015

I wanna know where you guys work. Those of you in the hell-holes you describe.

I've had many experiences with nurses who work our local ICU's and some are friends of mine who I went through school with during ADN and BSN times.

Friends and relatives have been in these ICU's and I've never seen the kinds of circumstances you all are describing. Everyone works together as a team from what I can see when I sit bedside all day with a relative. The ICU is a big circle so I can see most of what is going on. I did hear a patient who had a psych history lose it with the nurse and the whole staff moved to help in a calm manner. The docs seemed respectful of the nurses as well.

My nephew was in the ICU for 3 months after he got a TBI after driving drunk. (Fortunately he didn't hurt anyone else). None of my family complained about care there and we all thanked the staff.

My mom has dementia and fell a couple of years ago and was sent to UC Davis where she spent two days on the ortho ward. She is combative and pretty darn sneaky so they had one-on-one staff for her. I spent 3 days down there and gave the staff time off for breaks and lunch and sat with her to keep her busy and out of trouble. The last day I visited she was no longer on the ortho ward and had been moved to the ICU Step-Down Unit. I thought she's gotten worse; pneumonia or something. But no, the ortho ward filled up and the ICU had an empty bed where a nurse could be with her all the time until discharge that day. The nurse was a pretty redhead as I remember who sat chatting with my mom who looked prim and proper sitting at the end of the bed. My mom really doesn't talk - she does the "word salad" stuff. I introduced myself to the nurse, thanked her, and told her I could sit with mom if she needed to get something done. She thanked me and stepped outside the room to chart.

My mom's physician came in to talk to me about discharge. As he was talking my mom said my name and I looked over at her and she nodded her head towards the doc and said "He's cute" and laughed. I laughed too. My demented mom still flirts! The doc turned red. The nurse laughed.

I'm not saying that nursing isn't a tough job. I'm not saying that some places don't treat their employees well.

I'm just saying, maybe you guys are working in the wrong hospital!

NurseOnAMotorcycle, ASN, RN · Sep 30, 2015

Also, as an experienced ICU nurse (which you are now) you have more options for transfer to another department.

When end I was new I was told it takes 3 tries to find your perfect specialty. I lucked out and got it on my 2nd (unless you count CNA during school.)

Maybe you are not an ICU kind of person. Maybe Rapid Response or ER? How about PACU or cath lab?

AGACNPTX · Sep 30, 2015

If you don't feel supported and staffing is dangerous change hospitals. I actually changed states and found a dramatic increase in pay, quality of management and staffing. Not all ICUs are like the one you describe.

guest464345 · Oct 2, 2015

I just told my husband over dinner this evening (dinner that we were having like normal people, at a normal hour, because I had plenty of energy after work to put on nice clothes and go linger over food for two hours) that I plan to stay in my job for a long time. I work in public health as an RN - before that I was a hospital RN, and before that I was a hospital social worker.

I've switched jobs a lot, and so he asked why I planned to stay. I said, "because I've been there seven months and never ONCE has anyone treated me with anything but respect. No one has denigrated me once. It's so easy to go to work every day." And I get to eat whenever I want, and I can run out for personal appointments if I need to, I added.

I don't know if that's the saddest thing I've ever said, or the happiest. But I can tell you, getting out of the hospital radically changed my worldview. You might want to try it.

BeachNurse321 · Oct 20, 2015

I left ICU in a FL hospital in May 2015 after over 5 years there. I have been a nurse for 15 years and I went back and forth from wanting the clinical bedside interaction to having to leave bedside and do other things like education and now Nurse Navigator because the treatment at bedside is just not right! Our 6:45 shift started with a break room huddle where we basically got reamed for anything that went wrong in our ICU. Patient gets an infection? Your fault. UTI? Your fault. Confused patient takes out NG, ETT, anything? Your fault. Here's one of their brilliant ideas..."Let's give ICU nurses 3 patients (and put a couple nurses on call)" and then they wonder why the patient satisfaction scores went down? It is always "do more with less, you're a wimp if you can't handle 3 ICU patients, go to MRI with your patient for 3 hours and get totally behind, why are you here so late?, this is your fault, why didn't you take a lunch break?, don't come to work sick, but really you should or you'll be written up and given a guilt trip". It's a very strange healthcare environment. I felt like I was suffering from post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) when I first left and started doing my Acute Care NP clinicals prior to starting my current job. People are actually nice to me, I can go to the restroom when I need to, lunch is a given (and often provided), people value me and my experience. The things that have made a huge difference to me and have decreased my level of anxiety, depression, and self doubt have been leaving my previous facility and furthering my education. I LOVE the critically ill patients but no bedside nurse should be treated so poorly when patients lives hang in the balance. My friends in western states seem to have it best at bedside with staffing ratios and relief nurses to ensure breaks so keep that in mind too if you're not ready to give up ICU bedside nursing.