Is it ever okay to quit a nursing job without notice?

How do you feel about the ethics of quitting a nursing job without notice. Add a comment if you so choose.

[Valerie Salva, BSN, RN]

You can't quit mid shift- that's abandonment- a whole different issue.

[FireStarterRN, BSN, RN]

Is this quitting mid shift, or at the end of the shift?

I didn't include mid-shift at all. That would be patient abandonment undoubtedly. I'm talking quitting suddenly, either at the end of the day, or just calling in and quitting without any notice whatsoever.

[bollweevil]

I quit a job after two shifts. I called from home and said I would not be back. So, I guess I gave one day notice.

I also quit a job at the end of my shift after several weeks orientation.

In both cases, the units were very disfunctional, pts didn't have a chance of getting good care, and mgmt didn't give a crap.

Not very professional of me, I know.

But, the situations were intolerable to me, and I chose not to tolerate them any longer.

I love your quote about the nurse being ever vigilant, ever on duty.

[bollweevil]

I quit with only 2 days notice and I'd do it again for the same reason if faced with the same problem.

I am not Christian, so most of the holidays do not matter to me. I placed on my application that I will work every holiday except Thanksgiving.

I was hired in December. I worked 16 hours on Christmas. I worked every single holiday through the year. When the schedule came out for November, I was off on Thanksgiving.

On November 16th, a revised schedule was posted, and I was scheduled to work 16 hours on Thanksgiving! I immediately went to the DON and told her I could not work that day. She insisted that I must. I quit on the spot.

My family makes a huge deal out of Thanksgiving. We are descended from 2 different Mayflower pilgrims. We re-enact the whole scene the best we know how. We even dress up and only serve food that we have grown or raised ourselves. I spend all spring, summer, and fall getting ready for this. It's like Thanksgiving, Christmas, and a family reunion all rolled into one.

Sorry, but I do make it very clear that I cannot and will not work on Thanksgiving.

You were totally justified. Did she freak out? Who wound up working? Maybe she did. I love it. How dare these people think they can do this kind of stuff to us. :argue: I really applaud you for standing up to her.

[oramar]

mjlrn97 said:

Now, as a manager myself, I pay attention to signs that my staff is burning out.......I've given leaves of absence, changed schedules, gone to upper management to increase staffing, even worked the floor myself to give someone a break. It doesn't always work. But it's always worth trying---sometimes all an employee needs is to know that their feelings matter and that their manager sees them as a human being, not a machine. I think there'd be a lot fewer people who suddenly walk off the job, call in and quit, or just never show up for work again.

You my kinda of boss.

[Plagueis]

After working at the same facility for 2 years, I recently quit without notice. This job is listed on all my employment applications and resumes, and I have not encountered any problems finding work. In fact, I have had multiple job offers recently.

If you don't mind me asking, don't potential employers ask about where you worked last, and why you left? I have been asked myself in job interviews. (Not nursing related jobs.)

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

If you don't mind me asking, don't potential employers ask about where you worked last, and why you left? I have been asked myself in job interviews. (Not nursing related jobs.)

They sometimes ask. If they do ask, I always tell the truth. I tell them that I was unhappy about being involuntarily transferred to the rehabilitation unit without notice. I tell them that I stuck it out at this job for 2 years, and that it is time to search for greener pastures.

The truth will set you free.

[Valanda]

I have worked mostly weekend night shifts since I was 17 years old. I have no desire to move into day shift and I prefer to work on nights when my children do not have school the next day. Holidays are perfect for me. I hope to continue working this schedule for years to come. My only condition is that I will not work on Thanksgiving.

For me, at least, it was not "career suicide". I had a few job offers within 2 days just by word of mouth. Seems the DON was trying to complain to other DON's about what I did. Instead of getting the sympathetic ear she was hoping to find, they looked me up in the phone book and offered jobs swearing they would never schedule me on Thanksgiving! :)

[CHATSDALE]

i worked at a place once where the nurses who gave notice were invaribly let go before the notice was worked out

the head nurse was at the report table with oncoming shift when she remarked that she just had a nurse quit w/o notice and she said to us that this was so unprofessional and that she would never give a good reccommendation to annyone who 'JUST WALKED AWAY'

some big mouth person [don't ask who] remined her of the nurses who tried to give notice and were cut off at the knees

it took a long time to get off of drop dead list

[Tampa121]

Hi, I did. I worked for the same facility for 2 yrs. Written up for minor infractions>lousy attitude abrupt behavior. No errors, clinical skills excellent. People skills need improvement. Got a good review last yr with raise, from a manager who respected me. This new one didn't, and she didn't like me. The first time she wrote me up, she recommended termination if she wrote me up again. Well, guess what, yep, she terminated me. I asked HR if I could resign instead having never been fired before. Also, asked to see my file. The next day I went back and they allowed me to resign without notice , for personal reasons. Looked at my file>4 written warnings with only 2 of them signed by me!! I thought we were supposed to be aware of any discipline action that was being taken against us! Oh well, I am glad they let me resign and the unit was toxic for me. My question> HR said they were not allowed to write, not available for rehire, that my former manager could not respond to a reference, just refer them back to HR. HR can only verify pay and dates of employment. There are nurses who I worked with who said I could use them as a reference. And, I have several gd ones from former supers. Do you think I am OK.

Thankyou!

[Fusilli_girl]

I'm currently contemplating quitting after just a week. I had one day orientation and they expect me to already know the ins and outs. I dread coming into work and feel like I cannot properly and, most importantly, safely care for my patients. Ive been reading all these posts saying that you shouldnt put the job on your resume but most hospitals do a background check anyway so how do you explain away you omitting that info on your resume? I plan on sticking out the last two weeks just to remain professional. Please advise.

[EarthwormRN]

I am planning to leave my job without notice. I'm still on the "unsure" side of things. Whether to write a notice and stick it out or just call and say sorry I won't be coming in anymore. I definitely want to quit. The last night I worked, I was placed on the subacute rehab side of what was formerly just a nursing home, and had issues with a poorly functioning IV, always beeping for something and frustrating both me and the patient and on top of that, it seemed like every patient was awake and wanted something, all in the middle of my 6am med pass and blood sugars.. The facility added the rehab several years ago due to closure of the rehab wing at our local hospital. Recently the hospital wing reopened and we have lost a HUGE percentage of our census. Also we have had several assisted living homes open up in the area as well. Due to our decreased census, the facility is doing major budget cuts, and blaming the staff as a whole for the low census, like its our fault.. and has NOTHING to do with management.. Some areas of budget cutting include: deciding not to upgrade old equipment that needs upgrading, decreasing staffing, etc... What used to be 3 seperate ereas have turned into two. There is a 20 bed South wing rehab, and what used to be a 20 bed East wing rehab. The censes for the long term care has decreased as well, and I believe there are 50 something residents. When I started, there were 3 nurses working night shift. One on LTC with 50 something {stable} residents, one for South rehab which usually between 15-20 patients, and East rehab with between 15-20 patients as well. Since the drop of the census and the loss of income that followed, they decided it would be a good idea to "get rid of" East wing. So now they only need two nurses for nights. South wing is ALWAYS full with 20, which is usually pretty easy. But since they are always full and they aren't going to turn away admits, they overflow into the LTC. So now the LTC nurse, who used to have 50 something {stable} residents now has 50 residents plus 8-9 not so stable fresh out of the hospital always asking for PRN pain meds and nothings ever perfect.. king of patients. I, thankfully, have only been working on the rehab unit, because I am an RN and the other full time night nurse is an LPN. I feel SOOOOO horrible for that nurse because I know she is working so hard. And the other shifts are always like "its just nightshift". I am afraid that one of these days I will be scheduled with another RN and will be put on the LTC wing. And as far as the "just night shift" bull... I work evening shift at another facility and I LOVE IT! Its so much nicer to see all of your patients while they are awake, and your not the bully who wakes them up all the time. Anyways, I better stop now since I've typed a novel. haha. Long story short, I'm at my wits end, afraid to work there.. Also, I have learned that night shift is not my thing. I've thought about requesting to switch to evening shift.. but I'm pretty sure the request will be denied because they hardly have any nurses willing to work nights.