Love it, hate it...

[montinurse]

There are days that I absolutely love my job. Lately I haven't been able to handle the nasty moods from co-workers... It's been like this for a month or so, or I'm just noticing now? I am always respectful (pleasant) and try my best to be helpful with everyone I work with. I try not to boss, and always try to work as a team. Maybe I'm just being overly sensitive. I know this is LTC, and this is the attitude much of the time. But why can't it change? Are all places like this?

[ellen 12]

. If they're really whiny I sometimes tell them that no matter how bad their day is, at least THEY get to go home....most of our residents never get to go home.

Good point.

I think the key is management. If management treat their staff with respect this attitude of respect tends to follow on down and into the coal face where the work is done.

[southernbeegirl, BSN, RN]

the only thing you can control is your own behavior and attitude. even if there are people around that are negative, you can choose not to let them affect your day.

(i can hear yall moaning at me now, lol. but i swear, it is true! and it works!)

in the past year at my work, the mood of many people has soured. so much negative energy in our building. we were purchased by a for profit company. our prior owners had been a not for profit, faith based, company. the difference in going from patient based to budget/profit based has really been hard for most of us to comprehend. the result is many, many of us are feeling as if we are red headed stepkids to the new owners.

i found myself right down in the mud with everyone else. whining and moaning all the time, talking about my coworkers like a little old gossiping hag. i was truly considering turning in my notice.

when i truly opened my eyes and looked at what was making me so miserable, it was me. i realized i had to make the decision of did i really want to stay at my job or not. once i made the decision that yes, i did...i really like my schedule, my salary, my coworkers, then i had to resign to change myself in accordance with my new decision. so i rededicated myself to my job and my patients. i remembered what i became a nurse for and concentrated on that, on caring for my patients.

i cant tell you how much it helped me! i got my spunk back, started enjoying my job again. started walking away when the complaining and backbiting started. it was like starting a new job!

dont get me wrong, i am no saint! i still catch myself gossiping CONSTANTLY. it's something i'm working on inside me. but i still do it. but sometimes when i'm gossiping and complaining i catch myself and it's at those times i make the choice to shut up and walk away and stop my childish behaviors. i'm getting better at it little by little. progress not perfection, right?

so thats it, thats how i rededicated myself to my career and my patients. and i'm happy again! still ******, but a happy ******, lol.

[Not_A_Hat_Person, RN]

At my job, two former residents died at nursing homes over the weekend. One woman's obituary was in yesterday's paper. The obit included a sentence thanking employees of my current job, my new job (I start in 2 weeks) and the local VNA hospice for caring for her. Moments like that make me glad to work in LTC.