I started my job as a delegating RN two years ago. My patients are physically/mentally disabled adults and children. When I started my position, it was a pretty straight forward job- triage, assessments, and supervising/training medication techs. I really enjoyed it! Since I started, the non-profit I work for has expanded A LOT. We ended up increasing nursing caseloads considerably, mine the most. I took on a lot of administrative and management duties that weren't in my original job description, simply because they needed to be done. I like to stay busy, and since I got stuff done, management kept putting more stuff on my plate.
6 months into my current job, I was told I was getting promoted due to all the additional duties they were asking me to do. I was so excited! I finally thought I had found the job for me. It never happened, no matter how many times I inquired about my promotion I was continually told it was in progress.†I was told I would get a review and raise annually, but I never got a single review in over 2 years. I was working for very low pay, and they continued to dump patients and duties on me.
I finally had enough. I told my boss I couldn't take anymore. I was working overtime every week (unpaid, I'm salaried), and something needed to change. Every time I complained, I was told I need to prioritize better†and delegate more work to other nurses who are also overwhelmed and struggling. We joked about striking but there's only 6 nurses in my company- We're not exactly traditional bedside nurses.
This spring I got into nurse practitioner school! I start this fall, and I can't wait. I told my boss in June I needed to discuss how my schedule would change, I was continually blown off. Finally push comes to shove and now I was told they could not make my job more flexible, and that I would have to suck it up and work full time 4 days a week while attending school full time. I asked about hiring another part time nurse to take on some of the stuff I do. I was told there wasn't enough money in the budget for this.
I told my boss no, and gave my one month notice. AN ENTIRE MONTH. My boss told me that this was unfair, that I was going to cause distress to my coworkers, to my already vulnerable patients, because there was no way they would find a nurse and train them to do what I do for such little pay in that amount of time. Apparently, this is my fault. I should have complained more. My boss then asked me to reconsider while she Thinks about what she can do for meâ€. The same boss that told me my promotion was in the works for 1 year and 6 months.
Why do administrators (In general) think it's acceptable to overwork nurses? Is it our fault because we take this abuse? What has anyone else done when faced with similar problems? How did it work out for you?
