I worked on a tele med surg unit for almost 2 years. The last several months at my job the unit had been going through extensive changes. Many of these changes were not benefiting patients or nursing staff. It was only benefiting the bottom line of the hospital. Patient ratios were increasing, single rooms were becoming double, and we were being held more accountable than ever for patient satisfaction. How can this be possible when you are making the situations we are caring for these patients worse? To top it off we were being fed more work to do and they were pulling our unit secretaries.
The icing on the cake is that 75% of the nursing assistants were of no help/burnt out and spent 90% of the shift hiding and taking extensive breaks. I am a strong delegator and I felt the frustration from personnel every time I was delegating; the spirit of team work was gone. I was working my *** off and getting lip every time I asked for help. I did not care and continued to delegate, but the effect of constant lip accumulated in my soul. All the changes on the unit, essentially my burn out too, lead to me not sleeping.
Lack of sleep had a huge impact on my physical, mental, and spiritual well being. I had already called out several times recently, because of no sleep before work. Going to work a 12 hour shifts with absolutely no sleep is pure torture. Especially when you are continually walking into shifts and picking up tons of slack and have stubborn or little to no support. It came to the point where I was not going to call out again when my shift was starting in several hours. That day I had not slept for more then 5 minutes and knew there was no way I was going to get a lick of sleep. I tossed and turned and could not find a drop of comfort for many hours. I called up my unit and let them know I was not showing up. I then explained to my unit manager that I was having personal issues which were requiring me to need to immediately leave my position. She seemed to somewhat understand and still honored paying me the rest of my ETO. She could of refused doing this because I did not give 2 weeks.
I was extremely well liked on the unit. I have an odd personality, I think, which has made me loved by other nurses in a brotherly and interesting way. My phone and email blew up with people wondering if I was ok and offering to be there. I was very vauge with them on why I left, some what ashamed and saddened, but I really feel that now a few weeks later I have healed up quite a bit and that I made the right choice for myself at the time.
I did not seek any medical help for what I was going through. I have a personal disbelief in taking medications to help cope with stress. Although I would argue that I did leave my job for reasons that are medical; my health had been destroyed from the job.
I have applied to several jobs now. I hadve already been contacted by several other companies/recruiters looking to interview me. I m just waiting to hear back to arrange date/times. My concerns focus around the fact that I did not leave with 2 weeks notice. Other than my immediate departure from my previous employer I have an immaculate standing with them. Management has even went into patient rooms, after my shift, and I have been cited numerous times for being an EXCELLENT nurse. How am I going to explain /and/or handle my job history when interviewing with future employeers? Should I call up HR at my previous job and ask them what information is on my employee record for when other companies call? Please offer advice, and please be considerate before you RIP on me for not giving two weeks. I truly could not have made it another two weeks in the state I was in.
It might help if you worked in an 'at will' state? You know, the no reason necessary kind. Employers terminate abruptly all the time.
I do like Cola89's response re emergent family crisis.
I don't know if it would behoove you to write a SIMPLE belated letter of resignation to just REPORT (not elaborate) 'an emergency family crisis with personal reasons'. That you do REGRET the abruptness but you had positives yada, yada, yada. Just like if you were resigning the usual way.
amoLucia
7,736 Posts
It might help if you worked in an 'at will' state? You know, the no reason necessary kind. Employers terminate abruptly all the time.
I do like Cola89's response re emergent family crisis.
I don't know if it would behoove you to write a SIMPLE belated letter of resignation to just REPORT (not elaborate) 'an emergency family crisis with personal reasons'. That you do REGRET the abruptness but you had positives yada, yada, yada. Just like if you were resigning the usual way.
What can they do - toss the letter?