Is med/surg really that bad?

hopefulwhoop · Oct 16, 2011

I can't speak for all nurses, but personally, I have never gone home crying or even close to it. I have gone home exhausted, which is to be expected, especially when working night shift. The people you work with play a great role in how well your work day/night goes. Patients, of course, also play a great role. But, there's nothing like having a strong support system. So, with that said, I don't think med/surg is that bad. I don't even think it's bad at all, at least not where I work. There are horrible days, of course, but most days are good. It is not normal to be on edge all the time at work.

That Guy, BSN, RN, EMT-B · Oct 16, 2011

Some nights are better than others. Right now I am at the point I will take people crashing vs crazy old people. They are way more taxing than a person circling the drain.

LouisVRN, RN · Oct 16, 2011

I've worked med/surg for 3 years and honestly I can say 90% of the time I look forward to going to work. I don't think that is a bad percentage for any job. Granted there are nights that make you never want to go back if you let them get to you, but I know I can survive 12 hours of anything. I will say it has a lot to do with attitude. If you go into thinking you're not going to be able to cope or that its going to be a horrible night because I have X (pt), 3 new post-ops or 3 admits, you're setting yourself up for disaster. Working with good people and fostering relationships at work will make a huge difference as well. There have been times I've cried on their shoulders, and times I've been their shoulder to cry on. I count some of my co-workers to be among my best friends. I can honestly say I've cried at work once. It was father's day, a couple of months after I lost my dad to lung cancer and was assigned 3 cancer patients (we almost never have cancer patients on our floor) one of whom was very close to the end and one of whom was circling the drain for an unknown reason post-operatively, a very "brittle" diabetic pt who was receiving a lot of pain meds and ativan and a brand new post-op patient. I think I started crying before the shift started then again when I "lost" the diabetic pt's tubex of IV ativan. I let everyone know and my co-workers stopped what they were doing (it was the start of shift chaos) to help me find it. Needless to say one of my co-workers found it in the microwave :uhoh3: I had been stopped by a family member to heat food while I was getting a snack for the diabetic patient and when I had finished heating it must have placed the Ativan in there and closed the door. Granted that night still probably ranks among my worst, but in three years, its not that bad.

tishluvnc · Oct 16, 2011

I still can't get over the circling the drain thing. I'ts not funny, but then it is! Good to hear you all like your jobs.

RNperdiem, RN · Oct 16, 2011

It is hard to separate the feelings of being a new grad from my feelings for med-surg nursing.

A lot of us start there. No matter where you go, your first year is going to be a stressful adjustment; it is part of being a new nurse.

tokmom, BSN, RN · Oct 16, 2011

No, it isn't that bad. Yeah, it can be busy and even nutty, but it usually calms back down again, sort of an ebb and flow thing.

Every department has it's pros and cons

33762FL · Oct 16, 2011

It's not bad. It's busy and can be stressful, but you'd better be up for "busy & stressful" if you're going to have a successful career in acute care. Most new grads start in med-surg, you need that foundation in order to move into a specialty. Don't be afraid of hard work and long hours.

carolmaccas66, BSN, RN · Oct 16, 2011

Med/surg is busy but u learn a lot. Don't expect to come into it and not work hard. Your feet will ache, you will be very tired & you will probably get a lot of patients.

If you don't think u can handle it, and you're young, I suggest that you find a different career now, b4 u get stuck in a rut. I personally don't recommend nursing to anyone now who is young. Do another degree then nursing later.

It it's what u want to do, then go for it, but it's not easy doing clinicals etc. There is a lot to learn, I'm not going to sugar coat it like some people do.

VICEDRN, BSN, RN · Oct 16, 2011

Yeah, uh, nursing is a busy job. There is lots of walking, very little down time and lots of dealing with people. If you like keeping busy then welcome to our club. If you need a breather/smoke break or freak out under pressure, you might want to consider something else for work. Sorry. Just being honest.

anotherone, BSN, RN · Oct 17, 2011

Yes, sometimes it is that bad. I have spent 13 hours on edge and seen co workers with DECADES of expereince on edge due to the stress and poor staffing for me at least, it has improved a little bit since i started. since you get faster with tasks and your knowledge base improves. worrying about making a mistake or getting fired as you mentioned you would feel this way in any area of nursing i am sure. it wouldn't be any less stressful in icu, tele, er, l&d, etc

juzme · Oct 17, 2011

Well I will say my 1st time i was on a med/surg unit I was so nervous. Really beyond nervous, but I soon gained some confidence and learned so much, but I worked with some really great nurses also. There is nothing, IMHO, like a busy M/S unit to teach you how to prioritize, the different pt's dx and so on...if you can navigate a thru m/s unit, I think it gives one such a great foundation in nursing.