Love OB/GYN--Hate coworkers

trmr · Jan 21, 2008

Oh boy have I ever been where you are!!! I loved my L/D OB, Nursery job but it was short lived. The people I worked with were horrible. I would cry in the bathroom everytime I went in, right before I had to clock in because I knew what it was going to be like. I don't consider myself to be a weak person, but that place took its toll on me. After 10 agonizing long months I had to quit. I miss the job but not the people. They were a lot like what you describe, back stabbers. And I was a new nurse back then and needed some guidance but they would just tell me "its your patient, deal with it". No joke. One nurse handed me a baby in severe distress and said "here this is yours to take care of not mine" and she walked away. All I could do was pray, cry and do what I knew to save that baby. Right then I knew this was not the place for me. Now I work in a small community hospital and the people I work with are GREAT. They are just like family to me. Although the job isn't what I really dreamed of doing ( its a medsurg floor with mostly geriatrics ), its where I belong in this part of my life. I wish you the best of luck with your job. Hope you can find people like I finally did, the ones that are like family. :redpinkhe

Vroom · Jan 21, 2008

Thanks, trmr. :redpinkhe I really feel like sometimes I'm losing it as I never used to feel this way. In fact, I've never felt so out of place in my whole life. So, basically you're happy you quit and made the change? I've given this 2 yrs. now and things just haven't improved so I feel like it's time to move on. Unfortunately, in a small hospital, there aren't always openings where I'd like to go. The head of the float pool said she'd make a position for me at the hrs. I want if I want to come back. But the OB head nurse, when I've talked to her about my unhappiness on her unit, has said, "I only have a .5 position in the float pool for you now", even though I don't think she is the one who hires/fires for the float pool. I know she appreciates me but that doesn't help much when I have to work so closely when the people who are downright nasty.

Thanks again for your support. I'll have to do some real soul searching now. I would even take a pay cut just to be someplace where people enjoy their work and are supportive to others.

P.S. I reread my original post and should clarify that I went to do the computer charting (in the pt.'s room) only after I recognized that the baby was stabilized and we were just waiting for the MD to do her assessment and decide what to do next.

trmr · Jan 21, 2008

Basically, yes I am happy with the decision I made to make the change. I am no longer miserable. I don't go to the bathroom to cry before work, and I feel like I have a good group of people who've got my back. They have already been there for me through so much. Of course, this decision came with sacrifice too, as I no longer get to work with newborns and new moms ( which I loved ). The hospital I am at now does not even have an OB unit! That's how small it is. But I guess peace of mind was worth it. Good luck to you again!

queenjean · Jan 21, 2008

I am 4 months into a mother/babe/peds job, and while I love my coworkers, and the work is fine, I am really, really missing the excitement of the medical floor. I am slowly realizing that I am just not happy here. I also come from an outof hospital, natural childbirth setting, and the hospital setting for birth is just not working for me.

I'm so bummed. I emailed my former director and asked for my job back. If I can't get it, I'll go somewhere else. I'm looking at ER and tele/medical floor positions.

I'm so sad that I'mnot happy there--I really thought I would be. I work with a great group of gals (for the most part, there are always one or two in any bunch who are grumpy) and I feel like I am letting them and my current floor down. But I just can't keep convinicing myself that I like what I am doing. I need more stimulation and challenge.

Sorry, just commiserating with you. Though our situations are a bit different, the disappointment of not liking a work environment unexpectedly is similar. I came to the forum to vent about my disappointment, hope I didn't take over your thread.

Good luck, I'm feeling for you.

Vroom · Jan 21, 2008

Thanks for the reply, Queenjean,

I can SO relate to how you're feeling. I thought this was going to be my dream job--my "niche". But it sure has turned into a nightmare. I've given it 2 yrs. and keep thinking it will get better but it just gets worse.

Good luck on getting your job back. I'm sure your former boss will be more than happy to have you back.

cnovice · Jan 22, 2008

Hi Vroom, I totally understand what you are saying, and it is vital to have a good working enviornment. Every thing counts if you will work at your best. I have two questions?

1. In the situation with the nurse you were assisting after the birth- do you think she may have been offended when you walked up and started deep suctioning? Did you offer the suggestion (seeing the baby was stable) that the baby would really benifit from deep suction first instead of blow-by? I would not just let it go I would ask her in private about it (find out if you offended her). Good relationships are often started this way even though it may not feel good to deal with it at the time.

2. Have you tried looking at another hospital close by with an OB unit so you would not have to leave this area which you love so?

Vroom · Jan 23, 2008

Thanks for the ideas, Cnovice,

The nurse that was doing the talking about me was the charge nurse who just walked into the room afterwards. The other nurse was still doing the blowby and I had already done the deep suctioning several mins. before she entered the room. I had done the deep suctioning after the MD had asked somebody to try that, and the nurse doing the blowby didn't feel comfortable doing it. So I don't think that is what bugged her. But I hope to get a chance to speak w/ her in private and find out if there was something that offended her.

As far as another job, I live in a rural area and the next nearest hospital w/ OB would be a 60 mile drive, one-way, so it's not really an option right now. But thanks for the suggestions. :up:

jhhrn68 · Jan 28, 2008

I switched to OB after 28 years in geriatrics. I really needed a change. I heard alot about how awful the nurses were on OB, but I didn't find it to be true. I love the people I work with and I feel that I am appreciated. But I have been in other jobs where I spent more time in the bathroom crying than I did doing my job. It just isn't worth it! No job is worth that kind of misery.

Vroom · Jan 29, 2008

Thanks for the info, jhhrn. I really need to do some soul-searching and decide where I need to go from here. I really do enjoy my work but most of my coworkers just make it miserable to be around them. They are so critical of EVERYBODY! But they are so non-confrontational that they just continually trash everybody behind their backs. It's so childish and so what I don't want to have to deal w/ anymore! :nono:

magz53 · Feb 1, 2008

I am in a small hospital as well. Our ICU and OR are units as you describe........they are vicious to one another and other units. The hospital has spent a fortune trying to rectify the problem with new managers and even paying for a psychologist meeting with the staff for over 2 years. It is obvious even to outsiders exactly who the trouble-makers are and no one can see why they are not fired. We are an "at will " facility which means we can be fired at any time for no reason. Thankfully, OB is not such a place. We support one another, we function as a team and as friends. There are so many stressors, I would not be able to stand it if I did not have a good working relationship with my peers. I would leave a situation such as yours.........know that there are places where the staff works well together. In our case, it has always been in spite of management, not because of it unfortunately. Our ages span over 40 years, our education levels differ. Don't spend your time crying in the bathroom when you could enjoy your job. Just my 2 cents as I approach retirement.

BlueRidgeHomeRN · Feb 1, 2008

"no job is worth that kind of misery."

:saint:amen and ditto!!