Leaving work at work

PedsER-RN, BSN, RN · Mar 17, 2006

i'll be the first to admit i'm usually terrible at separating work from everything else. i'm always thinking of what's happened, did i chart _____, how's so & so doing, etc.

since i work nights, in the am there's usually not a lot left over for the day shift to do, but i am the type of person who doesn't like to leave something incomplete. i've stayed over many times to start iv's and finish traumas b/c i don't like to feel as if i'm dumping on the oncoming nurse (yes, they're there to work, and yes, i get dumped on all the time, but i still do it).

if there's a patient i'm particularly concerned about, if i work the next night i'll usually check and see how they're doing if they've been admitted to the floor or unit.

so, as for how to leave work issues at work........i'm also interested to learn how b/c i'm miserable at it!!!! :uhoh3:

NewEastCoastRN · Mar 17, 2006

I have the same problem, especially when work is particularly stressful. I find myself either not able to sleep because my mind keeps running over the things you described, or I dream about work. If anyone has any suggestions on how to avoid this, I am more than open to them!

erjulie · Mar 17, 2006

you're taking the first step down the burn-out road, one which I know well! The nurse following you is there to continue your work. Work is never done in the ER, as you know. I'm better about this once I realized that. You've got to trust yourself and the nurse following you. I have stayed with a particularly bad trauma to ease the transition for the on-coming RN and family. I have called back in to see how someone is doing, much less now than before. I think once you realize that obsessing about something makes no difference in the outcome, you start letting that go. ER is so chaotic, and we think that if we can control something, we can change the outcome. I have given exquisite care to patients who then die, and conversely just by sheer luck I've saved someone's life. I learned to open a door in my mind, shove work into it and close the door and not re-visit it! Takes some practice, but it really does work, and you are not so exhausted mentally rehashing your day. It helps when you understand that some things just are going to happen no matter what you do or do not do...and that just takes some time and a comfort level. Good luck!

johnson0424 · Mar 18, 2006

i had the same feeling when i did an internship in the ED i needed to know what happened to those patients. I then went into med surg and that is a whole different story..thinking geez i need to please the patient plus the nurse relieving me. To be honest, I think all of us nurses care so much. My therapy" so to speak was going into long term care. I got to know the patients, see them on a daily basis and could tell right away if they were different from the day before. It helped my "what happened" to them anxiety. Not saying you have to go to LTC but this worked for me...i still worry about the patients but find more satisfaction in worrying b/c i am more in control. I get to know their families, I visit them in the hospital, I go to the funeral etc. Funerals are a big "closure" for me. You will never be so much appreciated by families etc as you are in LTC. We have had many familes come back after their loved one died just to see the staff and see the other patients. It really is the "circle of life"...

scrmblr · Mar 19, 2006

I feel exactly this way!

I woke up at 0300 last night unable to sleep because a pt I transfered to another hospital was "sweaty" when he left...

I had a panic attack at 3 am that I sent a guy out with either low bg or having a big MI...

I pray that this ends soon.

MomNRN, BSN, RN · Mar 19, 2006

I am grateful that I can leave my work at the door when I walk out. I do occasionally wonder what happens with my patients that I admitted out of the ER.

Since I only work 3 days a week, most of the time I never know how it turns out. By the time I get back to work, part of the crew I worked with that day is not on and nobody knows who I am talking about. You do get used to it.

I have found that a nice long walk the next day with my IPOD on really loud helps to relieve the stress of a busy ER.

Don't let it eat you up. The work in the ER is never done. You do what you can while you are there. Good luck!

Trauma Columnist · Mar 20, 2006

Please learn to deal with this stress constructively. I've been in a very busy ER for almost 10 yrs and believe me I don't always leave my work at work, but for the most part, I have to. Otherwise, it affects your entire life.

teeituptom, BSN, RN · Mar 26, 2006

I never take my work home with me. I leave work and head straight to Lifetimes Health club for a good 2 hr workout every day I work. Thank God they are open 24/7/52.

By the time I get home, Im relaxed, Im tired, and ready for a good sleep.

Its also good for my golf game, priorities here right

grentea · Mar 26, 2006

i'm a new grad (on a med surg floor) so i'm not too good at leaving work at work. i try to stop myself from going over what happened during the day in my head. the other night i thought i might have forgotten to give an iv antibiotic, and i got all worried about it and couldn't sleep well. turns out i took the order a few days ago for it to be given q12 hours and then i didn't remember giving it the next night but it was because the order got changed to qday as i found the next day. like all that worrying really made a difference. exercising after work is an awesome idea. i'm looking for a regular activity to keep me busy like joining an orchestra, or taking an art class or doing yoga a couple times a week. i think it would help if i did something else regular other than work all the time. i'm getting a little better at leaving work at work. i guess i'm starting to realize that worrying about what's going to happen tomorrow or what happened during the day is kind of pointless and the only thing is really does is get me all upset.

mawlvn · Mar 26, 2006

I think it is just the nature of our job to be concernede after we leave. If it has been a very busy day there is that feeling of leaving something undone. We have to make a habit of finishing a task as sonn as possible and feeling satisfied with that. Some things do go with you. It is inevitable

azerrn · Apr 2, 2006

I love working in the ER. That's the first step to being able to go home at "night" and sleep. The 2nd step is to do the best you can at work and accept yourself and your limitations. The 3rd step is to have a life outside of work...have active hobbies that reaffirm life and all its joy.

I can't fix the world, I can't do everything, I can't change the bad that is happening to people. But I can do the best I can and leave the rest to God.