Management Criticism: "We see you care a great deal…"

[KalipsoRed21, BSN, RN]

So in 15 years of nursing I've had many evaluations of my abilities as a nurse. What has kind of just started making me laugh is that when it gets to the critique part this is constantly what I get told (other than my constant bad habit of being 1-3 minutes late), "We can see that you care a great deal about your position and your patients, but..,,,1) try to focus on small goals. 2) be willing to let others help you more. 3) ensure that you ask for help when you are overwhelmed. 4) try to delegate more often.

My inner voice just laughs. Um, isn't caring what you pay me to do? Are you trying to say my constant complaints about the lack of organization in your organization are "caring too much"?! Well the boo *** hoo, that's on you dumb butts. 1) I WOULD LOVE TO FOCUS On SMALL GOALS! But when you come to work and 30 minutes in you already have people telling you all the alarms that are going off, small goals go out the window...it is just me constantly trying to put out fires, there are no goals other than hopefully no one gets killed or hurt.

2) I would LOVE it if other people helped me. But when their vwrsion of "help" is to see me drowning and to walk up to while I'm overwhelmed to see what they can do...well not super helpful. I can read orders and just start doing them...why can't other people? Just getting in there and helping is helpful....asking if you can is just a time suck.

3) Asking for help when I am overwhelmed....well I have. And the charge is usually "to busy to get to it just then (or ever)” "I can try to help in awhile if YOU haven't managed to get to it before then.” So why do I even ask. Or I ask a CNA that "hasn't been shown how to do that yet". (Good CNAs deserve nurse pay.) So why even waste my time asking?

4) Try to delegate....see my answer #3.

It just cracks me up! So your criticism of me is that I care and I'm tired of being abused? Huh, such a bad nurse I am (eye roll like a teenager.) Just shut up and give me a decent raise.

[delrionurse]

Just like the time management excuse. You're blamed for lack of time management when the patient load gets overwhelming. Managers will happily let you drown so they don't have to pick up the slack (without offering help) which is their job to make sure things run smoothly. It's amazing to see that these managers have enough time to ask staff to pick up extra shifts, but they don't  pick extra themselves when they are able and capable with an RN behind their name. 

[mdsRN2005, ASN, BSN, RN]

delrionurse said:

Just like the time management excuse. You're blamed for lack of time management when the patient load gets overwhelming. Managers will happily let you drown so they don't have to pick up the slack (without offering help) which is their job to make sure things run smoothly. It's amazing to see that these managers have enough time to ask staff to pick up extra shifts, but they don't  pick extra themselves when they are able and capable with an RN behind their name. 

A good manager should look to see if ALL the nurses are drowning.  If it's just one but the others are keeping up, then perhaps it is a time management issue, especially if it's a inexperienced nurse.  Even so, it should be addressed in a constructive way that helps them improve.  However if all the nurses are drowning, the manager has failed to staff their department appropriately!  This is one of their primary job functions and it boggles my mind how they can just fail to do it and get away with it.  Although realistically the reason they get away with it is because upper admin hasn't given them the budget to do it.  So of course they can't hold their feet to the fire for not doing it.  Lastly, I agree that a manager should be able and willing to pitch in and help if it's a crazy busy day or there's a call in.  But as a rule, if they staff their department appropriately they shouldn't have to regularly. 

[esrun2015, MSN, RN]

every word true

[TonyaMarie, MSN]

I dare anyone with courage to go into leadership, see how dumb they are and come back here and let us know your experience. It's a different point of view from the top. ? 

 

[KalipsoRed21, BSN, RN]

TonyaMarie said:

I dare anyone with courage to go into leadership, see how dumb they are and come back here and let us know your experience. It's a different point of view from the top. ? 

 

I haven't gone into management because I'm sure I'd be frustrated to pieces. I don't particularly think ill of most of my mangers. Two of them sucked real bad, the one I have right now is green, but she is trying; so I'm trying to give some grace. However, both my co-workers put in vacations this past May for over lapping time off next week. She is trying to tell them this week they can't do that. To little to late sister sue, if you ask me. My manager is overwhelmed; has to much to do to focus on to do anything well, it is easy to see. 

I just honestly think it ironic?....horrifyingly hilarious?..,that the main criticism I have received over my career is that I am "to passionate" "to aggressive". Well if "we" didn't *** up all the time by understaffing, over promising, and under preforming....I wouldn't have to be a passionate aggressive ***. I'd probably still be the optimistic happy person I was 15 years ago before I started. 

Come up with something better. Tell me how my aggression and passion impede my patient care? Oh! It doesn't...it make YOU worker harder because I fill out a report for every dumb effing thing that happens....on PURPOSE! Because dumb things lead to death. 

[TonyaMarie, MSN]

KalipsoRed21 said:

I haven't gone into management because I'm sure I'd be frustrated to pieces. I don't particularly think ill of most of my mangers. Two of them sucked real bad, the one I have right now is green, but she is trying; so I'm trying to give some grace. However, both my co-workers put in vacations this past May for over lapping time off next week. She is trying to tell them this week they can't do that. To little to late sister sue, if you ask me. My manager is overwhelmed; has to much to do to focus on to do anything well, it is easy to see. 

I just honestly think it ironic?....horrifyingly hilarious?..,that the main criticism I have received over my career is that I am "to passionate" "to aggressive". Well if "we" didn't *** up all the time by understaffing, over promising, and under preforming....I wouldn't have to be a passionate aggressive ***. I'd probably still be the optimistic happy person I was 15 years ago before I started. 

Come up with something better. Tell me how my aggression and passion impede my patient care? Oh! It doesn't...it make YOU worker harder because I fill out a report for every dumb effing thing that happens....on PURPOSE! Because dumb things lead to death. 

I bet you would do well as a leader. Yes you'd probably be frustrated having to juggle different moods, attitudes, and requests. I've been a manager before and the most difficult part was trying to balance numerous staff requests with the needs and responsibilities of the job. Leadership is a thankless job. Then you have the regulatory agencies (Joint Commission, etc.), quality improvement projects, metrics, and other demands from upper management.

Frontline management is particularly hard because they get staff complaints, patient complaints, and doctor complaints. Many are on call 24 hrs. Leaders are people too. They have sick spouses, sick kids, sick parents, their own health problems but they check all that in at the door, put on the big girl/big boy draws and go to work and they hope the staff will do the same. They know that there are staffing problems. They know how hard the job is. I've been in healthcare 31 years and have only had one bad manager who was fired by the director. I may not have liked all of my leaders (personality wise), and I disagreed with some of their decisions, but I had good work BFFs at all of my jobs and we got the job done. 

[33Weeker]

I guess I see some things differently.

I'm a nurse who feels I haven't done a good job with time management if I have to delegate. I often fall into the trap of feeling like I have to figure everything out and accomplish it all myself. I have to remind myself that asking for help and delegating when I really need to is okay. I've had to take the same advice you were given and apply it.  

If you are hearing the same feedback over and over, maybe it's worth listening to. 

Why not set your clock 5 or 10 minutes earlier so you can get to work on time? The few times a year I walk in late, I feel like I'm behind rest of the shift. 

I disagree that other nurses should just jump in, read orders, and do things without checking with you. Not only is that disrespectful of your autonomy and your relationship with that patient, IMO, it could cause errors, like a med or treatment getting done twice because you two didn't communicate. Also, the other nurse didn't get report on the patient, so they may not have the necessary clinical info to make sound decisions.

If you ask for help and are met with resistance, then go to your manager and tell her that.

 

[brandy1017, ASN, RN]

So did your eval result in a raise?  Was it a fair point system in the end if that was what was used?  Did the mgr if she is new think she was giving you constructive criticism?

When I was a nurse I had the habit of being late by a few minutes, but I was able to end that after they made one minute late 1/2 a sick day.  I suddenly made sure to be on time as I needed to be able to take sick days for actually being sick or needing a mental health day.  Don't know how severely they count being late at your current employer, but most hospitals have no grace period.

I would not constantly complain about the lack of organization at the place.  It won't endear you to anyone and unless you have a solution I would just let it go, rather than get management mad at me.  I'm sure there are enough important safety issues you already write up as you said as it is.

As to the competing vacation requests who knows if both those staff will still be there next year.  People do quit and if one is denied that might just happen sooner than later.  One time I and another nurse requested Easter week off but I did first and had seniority and the Supervisor was mad because she would only approve one and she didn't want to approve me as I wasn't a pet.  In that situation she really could have approved both and I even suggested it as the other nurse was PT as it was, but she wouldn't bend and we had so much staff back then before Descension as I call them took over!  Don't remember if that is when that nurse went to pool, but it may have been and then she wouldn't have been required to work Easter as it wasn't an official holiday.

[TonyaMarie, MSN]

33Weeker said:

I guess I see some things differently.

I'm a nurse who feels I haven't done a good job with time management if I have to delegate. I often fall into the trap of feeling like I have to figure everything out and accomplish it all myself. I have to remind myself that asking for help and delegating when I really need to is okay. I've had to take the same advice you were given and apply it.  

If you are hearing the same feedback over and over, maybe it's worth listening to. 

Why not set your clock 5 or 10 minutes earlier so you can get to work on time? The few times a year I walk in late, I feel like I'm behind rest of the shift. 

I disagree that other nurses should just jump in, read orders, and do things without checking with you. Not only is that disrespectful of your autonomy and your relationship with that patient, IMO, it could cause errors, like a med or treatment getting done twice because you two didn't communicate. Also, the other nurse didn't get report on the patient, so they may not have the necessary clinical info to make sound decisions.

If you ask for help and are met with resistance, then go to your manager and tell her that.

 

Absolutely ? 

[lcmills, ADN, BSN, MSN]

I LOVED this! "Just getting in there and helping is helpful....asking if you can is just a time suck."

I work in occupational health in a factory, and I am the only nurse. No one understand what I do and how stressful and mentally taxing it usually is.  I got the worst evaluation this year due to "not being more in the group" I work under safety and my 1st aid office is not near the cube farm. But it is my responsibly to engage with the group -but they do not come to my office to engage with me. I do not come to work to hold hands and sing over campfires since I do not have time for all that. 

[brandy1017, ASN, RN]

lcmills said:

I LOVED this! "Just getting in there and helping is helpful....asking if you can is just a time suck."

I work in occupational health in a factory, and I am the only nurse. No one understand what I do and how stressful and mentally taxing it usually is.  I got the worst evaluation this year due to "not being more in the group" I work under safety and my 1st aid office is not near the cube farm. But it is my responsibly to engage with the group -but they do not come to my office to engage with me. I do not come to work to hold hands and sing over campfires since I do not have time for all that. 

So who are the group members and what are their jobs and where do they work?  How long have you been at this job?  Any problems before with your eval?  New management?  What do they want you to do with the group?  Sounds like there are unclear expectations for your role.