Is the nursing experience better or worse than when you started?

gettingbsn2msn, MSN, RN · May 24, 2011

Much worse than when I started 3 years ago. I was never late, never called in and took very good care of my patients. I was let go last week because of a charting error. I have a separate thread going of my experience. Nursing is not treated well by administrators. As a matter of fact, I believe some administrators believe the hospital could run better without nurses! They were very cruel in how they let me go but I have received alot of support on this website. I have now joined the ranks of the unemployed. I think that is why I have concern about individuals who are racking up student loan debt.

eriksoln, BSN, RN · May 24, 2011

No change, totally status que which in and of itself is not a good thing in a lot of ways, but also a good thing.

When I started, I worked for a VERY large for profit hospital. The patient ratios and general set up of the place was out of control...........on the good days. Since then, I've gotten better at managing my time and better at dealing with irrate patients/family so a lot of my early year's stresses are diminished.

Also, I've moved on from the corporate giant to a smaller hospital (with 2 years of travel nursing between) and things are better. When the recession hit, I assumed things were going to get much much worse everywhere. Its still much better here, where I am at now, despite the recession, than it was at the larger hospital.

KimAydelotte · May 24, 2011

Well, I guess I'm one you were asking about. I began my career in 1978 in an Labor & Delivery Unit. (In case you are thinking I'm an "old" nurse & visualize an old lady with grey hair, I am not.) I have seen immense changes! I went from a L&D unit to an Ortho. to a major Surgical unit. (This was in the first year of my career.) Then I transferred to a step down unit and was in the ICU within 1 month. No mentor, no shadowing, just taking 1 patient and when I was more comfortable, (within 2 weeks) picked up a second patient. Wow, were those stressful days. I ended up taking every outside class I could, and paid for them, to learn more about what I didn't know. (The hospital offered very limited classes & I wanted to be the best ICU RN I could be and needed more knowledge.) I was blessed with a couple of experienced RN's to fall back on, but mostly did a lot of on the job learning. Scarey, as I look back. But Nursing school doesn't teach you to BE a nurse. It gives you a structure to fill in and build on as your career progresses. Seems this is still true, and like it was for me, school also stresses you to the breaking point emotionally and intellectually. This DOES build character, as a RN is pushed hard out of 'her/his box'. Especially in Critical Care. Families and patients are under so much stress when they end up in the unit that they can react in really dysfunctional manners. TV shows and internet has done a great job of educating people, but also have filled them with miscomprehensions of the reality of illness/trauma/surgical recovery- or lack of.

Then you have the huge advances in technology, and believe youo me, I have seen mind boggling changes!! From horrible, crippling MI's to PTCA and home the next day. Open Heart recovery and home in 3 days. CVS's with almost 100% recovery post TPA, Brain trauma's that seemed destined for nursing homes, come back to visit- looking so deifferent to us from the body in the bed with drains and moniters attached to every orifice. Sepsis witha 98% mortality to recovery within a short time due to sepsis protocols deveolped that halt it by breaking the cascade that kills. Seeing people on deaths door and pulling them back, thrilling. Tubes, pumps, medications, constant education and upgrades, including computerized charting!!

Yet not all works. There are the cases that break your heart, child abuse that makes you cry. A lovely patient you can't help, except to make more comfortable. Things that are painful to see, to feel, and yet you must.

All of this can be horribly overwhelming to staff. Guess I've been blessed with some great nurses that I've worked with who walked the road with me. I've also developed a philosophy of life and death, I've had to to keep my own sense of balance. And I guess that's what it boils down to. That and having an organization that values it's staff as well as the clientele. I have worked at places where they did, and places where they didnt'. Staff morale suffers greatly at the latter and you get a lot of 'everyone for themselves' mentality. Not a fun place to work. But this is true for all careers and at the end of the day, it's the players mentality, his sense of self worth and work ethic that determines how 'happy' he/she is in his/her career. They don't teach this in school, nor really in the world around us. But it's truth, take it or leave it.

I LOVE nursing. It's what I always wanted to do, and I thrive in the CCC. I have mostly great staff to work with, and get along with the others. I look for the good in everyone, and try to set a good example and keep myself available to 'mentor' the new ones. I have my rough days, days I'd like to tell people off, days I feel overwhelmed and exhausted. but the joy of making a difference in someones life more then compensates me for this. Technology both has enhanced nursing, and made it more difficult. Liability and the fact no one wants to take responsibility for their health problems, and the fact that despite excellent care, (from MD's, technicians, and nurses), "**** happens". it's a fact of life, Murphys' law and all. The fear of liability has added so much paperwork & contributed to administrations actions due to fear of ligation that 'we', the nurses, pay a big price in stress.

Then you throw in the governments' "health care Act". that's supposed to offer universal care to all, yet wants to pay for the bare minimum. People are going to be very upset when they see how the decision for their health care is going to not be theirs after all. In addition, if you don't jump through all the hoops, cross your T's and dot your I's they won't pay the bill either. And if you have a non-compliant patient who gets ill a lot due to his habits, they won't pay. And if someone who has CHF gets admitted after he was discharged previously that month, they won't pay. Obviously, we didn't 'fix' the problem of this person with an ejection fraction of anywhere from 10-35%. Ah......so many frustrations, why do I so love my job??

I guess because despite the frustrations, the aggravations I face, I still do it for the same reason I always did. I like 'helping' someone get better, or face not getting better, or help the family deal with the undealable. Fear, pain, struggles faced everyday by my patients, someone needs to be there to help light their path- no matter where it leads. There are new nurses to teach, to mentor and support as they grow. So, is it better. Yes, in many ways. And HARD, in many ways. Always has been and probably always will be. Worth it, absolutely!! Hang in there. This forum is a good place to vent, question and listen to others with experience to help build your own experience base. Try not to let the world 'jade' you too much, when it's tough, tell yourself "THIS too shall pass". It will. We're here right there with you. ust look around.

Horseshoe, BSN, RN · May 24, 2011

Nursing has not gotten worse for me personally, but reading many of the experiences of other nurses on this forum has me just shaking my head about the direction it has taken in the last several years.

Rntr · May 24, 2011

I have been nursing for 36 yrs and yes, I am grey and feel like it has taken a toll on my body... but besides that, I think nursing as a profession has gone down the toilet fast... doesn't seem to matter what unit in the hospital or outside. I have worked in all of them... last 10 yrs traveling. But, Love nursing, no, enjoyed nursing once early on when I felt appreciated and had help. But, in today's world nursing is such a business... managers could care less about patient care unless it's to get a score to get a better bonus...

It's the business end of it all that is going to kill us.. would I recommend nursing to anyone, NO..

deftonez188 · May 24, 2011

Well, I guess I'm one you were asking about. I began my career in 1978 in an Labor & Delivery Unit. (In case you are thinking I'm an "old" nurse & visualize an old lady with grey hair, I am not.) I have seen immense changes! I went from a L&D unit to an Ortho. to a major Surgical unit. (This was in the first year of my career.) Then I transferred to a step down unit and was in the ICU within 1 month. No mentor, no shadowing, just taking 1 patient and when I was more comfortable, (within 2 weeks) picked up a second patient. Wow, were those stressful days. I ended up taking every outside class I could, and paid for them, to learn more about what I didn't know. (The hospital offered very limited classes & I wanted to be the best ICU RN I could be and needed more knowledge.) I was blessed with a couple of experienced RN's to fall back on, but mostly did a lot of on the job learning. Scarey, as I look back. But Nursing school doesn't teach you to BE a nurse. It gives you a structure to fill in and build on as your career progresses. Seems this is still true, and like it was for me, school also stresses you to the breaking point emotionally and intellectually. This DOES build character, as a RN is pushed hard out of 'her/his box'. Especially in Critical Care. Families and patients are under so much stress when they end up in the unit that they can react in really dysfunctional manners. TV shows and internet has done a great job of educating people, but also have filled them with miscomprehensions of the reality of illness/trauma/surgical recovery- or lack of.
Then you have the huge advances in technology, and believe youo me, I have seen mind boggling changes!! From horrible, crippling MI's to PTCA and home the next day. Open Heart recovery and home in 3 days. CVS's with almost 100% recovery post TPA, Brain trauma's that seemed destined for nursing homes, come back to visit- looking so deifferent to us from the body in the bed with drains and moniters attached to every orifice. Sepsis witha 98% mortality to recovery within a short time due to sepsis protocols deveolped that halt it by breaking the cascade that kills. Seeing people on deaths door and pulling them back, thrilling. Tubes, pumps, medications, constant education and upgrades, including computerized charting!!
Yet not all works. There are the cases that break your heart, child abuse that makes you cry. A lovely patient you can't help, except to make more comfortable. Things that are painful to see, to feel, and yet you must.
All of this can be horribly overwhelming to staff. Guess I've been blessed with some great nurses that I've worked with who walked the road with me. I've also developed a philosophy of life and death, I've had to to keep my own sense of balance. And I guess that's what it boils down to. That and having an organization that values it's staff as well as the clientele. I have worked at places where they did, and places where they didnt'. Staff morale suffers greatly at the latter and you get a lot of 'everyone for themselves' mentality. Not a fun place to work. But this is true for all careers and at the end of the day, it's the players mentality, his sense of self worth and work ethic that determines how 'happy' he/she is in his/her career. They don't teach this in school, nor really in the world around us. But it's truth, take it or leave it.
I LOVE nursing. It's what I always wanted to do, and I thrive in the CCC. I have mostly great staff to work with, and get along with the others. I look for the good in everyone, and try to set a good example and keep myself available to 'mentor' the new ones. I have my rough days, days I'd like to tell people off, days I feel overwhelmed and exhausted. but the joy of making a difference in someones life more then compensates me for this. Technology both has enhanced nursing, and made it more difficult. Liability and the fact no one wants to take responsibility for their health problems, and the fact that despite excellent care, (from MD's, technicians, and nurses), "**** happens". it's a fact of life, Murphys' law and all. The fear of liability has added so much paperwork & contributed to administrations actions due to fear of ligation that 'we', the nurses, pay a big price in stress.
Then you throw in the governments' "health care Act". that's supposed to offer universal care to all, yet wants to pay for the bare minimum. People are going to be very upset when they see how the decision for their health care is going to not be theirs after all. In addition, if you don't jump through all the hoops, cross your T's and dot your I's they won't pay the bill either. And if you have a non-compliant patient who gets ill a lot due to his habits, they won't pay. And if someone who has CHF gets admitted after he was discharged previously that month, they won't pay. Obviously, we didn't 'fix' the problem of this person with an ejection fraction of anywhere from 10-35%. Ah......so many frustrations, why do I so love my job??
I guess because despite the frustrations, the aggravations I face, I still do it for the same reason I always did. I like 'helping' someone get better, or face not getting better, or help the family deal with the undealable. Fear, pain, struggles faced everyday by my patients, someone needs to be there to help light their path- no matter where it leads. There are new nurses to teach, to mentor and support as they grow. So, is it better. Yes, in many ways. And HARD, in many ways. Always has been and probably always will be. Worth it, absolutely!! Hang in there. This forum is a good place to vent, question and listen to others with experience to help build your own experience base. Try not to let the world 'jade' you too much, when it's tough, tell yourself "THIS too shall pass". It will. We're here right there with you. ust look around.

Thank you so much for sharing - this is truly an inspiring, illuminating, and educating post. I sincerely enjoy your wisdom.

deemalt, BSN, RN · May 24, 2011

Sometimes I wonder too if this site has a skewed view of nursing. Most of the nurses that are blogging and posting are likely to be of a younger generation. This is not to say that "older" and experienced nurses are not tech savvy. It's just good to keep an open mind to the fact that a website may represent a certain slice of the nursing demographic.

Rntr · May 24, 2011

Be careful now....some of us "old" girls are reading this.....haha

celticcare · May 24, 2011

I used to get an amazing rush every shift when I put on my uniform, pinned on my medal and smiled in the mirror prior to going to work. I used to get the warm fuzzies when I was asked what did I do for a job or whats it like to be a nurse. Then the reality of working for places that push only for profits or impose unrealistic ideals (well ok, they can be realistic, but when you are six nurses down in an ER at the start of a 12 and no replacement, cover or anything like that, how can you meet the corporate ideals whilst not compromising patient care?) sets in and your body gets worn out. I get told off for being to happy and smiley, and so when you try to tone it to suit their standards you then get told off for being grey and dismal. There is no winning in this world, as well as the extra copious amounts of paperwork to cope with the extra ownus on your own practice. There is a lack of senior staff out there to help guide anyone through and some of the seniors left are close to burning out or retiring that they don't want to teach or teach the short cuts.

I love that moment that you get when you know you made a difference in someones life, but it doesn't overshadow the other political crap associated with the career.

I love being a nurse, but is my world view of the industry changed, most definately. I had a true thought and guide inside towards nursing as a student, then became an RN, got my BN and look out at the world now and think, ***** But I keep one little hope inside... that it will change, maybe enough of us will make it so. But to be one little voice in a world of thousands, its not easy.

Rntr · May 24, 2011

Yes, I have much of those feelings or used to have. But, I am told I am "too" bitter.... think the realism of nursing has set in. It's not the nursing or the care that I can give when allowed it's the business end! All the BS that goes with it..

LouisVRN, RN · May 24, 2011

I feel i have been jaded by all the incompetence that runs on the floor by my co-workers. I feel like I spend half my shift picking up things left undone and finding the same mistakes day in and day out. That being said I'm also much more confident in my patient care/patient assessment.