Leaving management and happily going back to the floor

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Specializes in ICU, Education, Peri-op.

My goodness, what a difference a few years makes! I am just about to give notice that I am leaving my current position of managing an Inpatient Rehab floor and going back to bedside care on a Neuro/Ortho floor. In my 15 years of nursing I have done med/surg, ICU, education and now management. Well, 10 months of being a manager has done something that 11 years of ICU could not do----burned me OUT! I absolutely hate, hate, hate it! The pressure is unbelievable. To be what the staff wants, you have to be available 24/7 to come in and help if they are short, solve their personal problems, make sure they have optimal staffing (which I agree with, but sometimes it's just impossible) and basically have no life outside of work. To be what the executives want, you have to do all of that with no money, and absolutely have no life outside of work. And of course, half the nurses I supervise are making more money than I am! UGHHH, eeee-nough!

I took this job to get the hours, you know, 8-5, M-F, no holidays. Well it's not 8-5 (more like 7-6) and I covered the floor last Forth of July. By Friday, I am usually working for free since I am salaried for 40 hrs a week. I am now going to be working Sun/Mon/Thurs one week and Mon/Tues/Thurs the next and making more money that I make now due to all the differentials. It's been 2 1/2 years since I left 12 hr shifts and I still hate working 5 days a week, so it will be such a relief to get back to working three a week.

I have a new appreciation for what pressure the managers are under. Let me tell you, patient care is like a vacation compared to management. I am so looking forward to coming in, doing my job and going home---no more politics. My wonderful, supportive husband has asked me if I will feel weird, like it's a step down, but I truly believe that what we do is very noble and my ego is not tied up in having an office and wearing nice clothes to work.

Gosh, I am just almost giddy with relief!!!:D

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i've been offered managerial positions sev'l times.

you couldn't pay me enough.

congratulations on your new demotion.:chuckle

leslie

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Specializes in OB/Neonatal, Med/Surg, Instructor.

Welcome back! Having been a manager and an educator I totally understand what you are talking about. I make more money now as a staff nurse than I did teaching nursing. In fact, our new grads working night shift (with the diffs) typically made more money than their instructors (and they wondered why they couldn't recruit nursing instructors). Some friends and family have asked why I'm still a staff nurse working nights, like it is something to be ashamed of, but once I explain that I make more and work less than the managers they understand. Congrats!:yeah:

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:up: Good for you!

As a former salaried worker who is now an LPN working on her RN I get where you are coming from. I love doing shifts...I get to make a decent living and since I can't take my residents home I have no choice but to leave the job at work.:specs:

I will NEVER go back to any salaried position regardless of whether it's nursing, teaching, whatever.

Congrats on your 'demotion'!

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Hello,

I hear what you saying i was a charge RN in a M-F job and was pursuing BSN at that time. And exactly as you said on the thread it became more than an 8 hour job, staying extra hours, doing staffing and solving all the problems. i left after 1 1/2 years there and decided to not even continue pursuing further educationg anymore. I went back to the floor med-surg, and noticed that there are other Master's even Nurse Pratictioners, who on my floor as well.

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Specializes in medical.

I work as a staff nurse, and there are few nurses who used to be our nursing supervisors but they went back to floor nursing. They said, that they were so stressed out and there was so much pressure. As a staff nurse, you do your job and leave and that's it, you don't bring your work home. I don't think they made that much more money, either. So I totally understand you and there is nothing to be ashamed of. I wouldn't even consider any management position in the hospital.

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My goodness, what a difference a few years makes! I am just about to give notice that I am leaving my current position of managing an Inpatient Rehab floor and going back to bedside care on a Neuro/Ortho floor. In my 15 years of nursing I have done med/surg, ICU, education and now management. Well, 10 months of being a manager has done something that 11 years of ICU could not do----burned me OUT! I absolutely hate, hate, hate it! The pressure is unbelievable. To be what the staff wants, you have to be available 24/7 to come in and help if they are short, solve their personal problems, make sure they have optimal staffing (which I agree with, but sometimes it's just impossible) and basically have no life outside of work. To be what the executives want, you have to do all of that with no money, and absolutely have no life outside of work. And of course, half the nurses I supervise are making more money than I am! UGHHH, eeee-nough!

I took this job to get the hours, you know, 8-5, M-F, no holidays. Well it's not 8-5 (more like 7-6) and I covered the floor last Forth of July. By Friday, I am usually working for free since I am salaried for 40 hrs a week. I am now going to be working Sun/Mon/Thurs one week and Mon/Tues/Thurs the next and making more money that I make now due to all the differentials. It's been 2 1/2 years since I left 12 hr shifts and I still hate working 5 days a week, so it will be such a relief to get back to working three a week.

I have a new appreciation for what pressure the managers are under. Let me tell you, patient care is like a vacation compared to management. I am so looking forward to coming in, doing my job and going home---no more politics. My wonderful, supportive husband has asked me if I will feel weird, like it's a step down, but I truly believe that what we do is very noble and my ego is not tied up in having an office and wearing nice clothes to work.

Gosh, I am just almost giddy with relief!!!:D

Good for you, I feel the same way, I became Asst Nurse Manager Last August, I'm hanging in there 1 yr from this week. I work in Internal Medicine in charge of Medical Assistant, and Nurses. I have to make sure everyone is in and how I have to cover for Nurses and staff who call in, and no extra staff on hand to work with. always in a deficit. I am in the process of looking for a new job. I can't wait until I just go to work and worry about just going to work and not worry about everything.

I hope you love it. good luck

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Congrats! Been there, done that myself. I loved management but it was the hardest work I've ever done. After a while, you just can't do it anymore. Especially if you keep your integrity intact despite what the admin may ask you to do.

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Specializes in ED, ICU, PSYCH, PP, CEN.

Sadly because of the ridiculous demands on managers we lose the good ones and are stuck with the inept ones that only take the job because they dig being called "boss"

kinda like the situation with us presidents. the good ones are too smart to take the job

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Specializes in Case Management, Home Health, UM.
i've been offered managerial positions sev'l times.

you couldn't pay me enough.

leslie

I was in Management for over 20 years and I wouldn't do it again, if they paid me $50 an hour.

I got weary of taking the blame for everyone else's mistakes....including Upper Management's.

NO way, Jose'!

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Specializes in Community, Renal, OR.

Congratulations,

I too have been in a very senior management position and after being laid off from my last position (due to company merger & restructure) I made a conscious decision to abandon management due to all the reasons you mentioned and got a job doing disease management. I love my job. I go to work, I talk to patients' and I go home. Nothing comes home with me. I have joined a tennis club and play once a week. I found I was talking to my husband of 25 years, instead of just being ships that passed in the night (due to the amount of work I did at home after work). We went on a holiday and found our passion reignited.

I have a life and I love my life.

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Specializes in GERIATRICS, DEMENTIA CARE, MED-SURG.

You can't imagine how grateful I am for this post!

I was in a management position which I was enjoying despite all the things you mentioned. I guess enjoying isn't really the right word, but I was able to make some positive changes at our facility and I am proud of that.

I had to work the floor many times and each time I found myself thinking what a great idea take care of patients and go home at the end of the shift. Much easier than the 12 hour days I was putting in as a manager. Weekends it was the oncall phone ring ring ringing off the hook. Can you believe people call on Saturday to ask you if they have to work on Monday? And at 11:30 at night!

Well due to budget cuts my postition as ADON was eliminated last week and I will now be returning to the floor.

I must say it was a big shot to my ego and I was feeling rather odd and embarrassed about returning to the floor. Now after reading this I think I will be able to march in there with my held held high, my intergrity intact (man did I learn some things!) and my mind at peace.

Thank-you all for your posts. You never know when what you write is just the thing someone else needs to hear.

Blessings,

Emme

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