...and pretty soon there will be no experienced nurses left! (It's been a long time since I've posted, although I visit this board pretty regularly, and I've changed my screen name so maybe I won't be recognized.)
I've worked here part-time for a little over 4 years. When I was hired there technically weren't any openings, but the NM was a little short on weekends and I wanted to work weekend option, so he hired me. It was THE intensive care unit to work in at our hospital (MICU, NeuroTraumaICU, and CCU were considered second tier by most of the doctors). Not anymore. We expanded by 5 beds about 3 years ago and things have gone downhill since.
I don't know if when our NM left the interim NM or the ANMs became less selective on who they hired or if they just really didn't have anyone to choose from. But I've watched the quality of the new nurses they've hired continually fall. For every good nurse they've hired in the past 2 years, they've hired 3 or 4 incompetent ones. SICU has always been the breeding ground for CRNA school (and our hospital has one) so there's always been a lot of turnover. People work there for 2 or 3 years and move on to CRNA. But now, nurses who never thought about CRNA school are preparing to go, some nurses have transferred to other floors and units in the hospital, and people I thought would NEVER leave until they retired are moving elsewhere. Morale is the lowest I've seen (and it was pretty low when we went for over a year with no NM and our interim NM grudgingly took the position on top of the unit he was already over).
I've seen two good male RNs fired for trumped up charges of sexual harassment. We've recently had a mass exodus of RNs from nights and now nearly all the experienced people on nights are gone. A lot of the "middle experienced" RNs on days are gone too and we even have some nurses with only a year or two of experience on days now. I'm thankful I was able to move into a day shift position because I'd fear for my license working nights with these kids. You really can't tell them anything...they know it all, they think. It's a wonder no one's died (or maybe they have and I'm just not aware of it). Now it's gotten to the point where I dread coming in the few days I do work because whoever I follow will have left such a mess that it will take the first 3 or 4 hours of the shift to straighten out (and longer if it's a weekday and doctors are making rounds as soon as I get report). And I don't mean a messy room or the care path not being filled out either. I mean orders not taken off, incompatible drips running together, high risk vesicant drugs running to peripheral sites with central lines heplocked, piggybacks running with TPN (as a secondary on the pump with the TPN!!!) and that's just the past couple of days I've worked. And since I don't work very much anymore, I don't see the nurse I've gotten report from again for awhile to even be able to say anything to them. I hate to be the mean old ***** who tattles to the boss but these things just aren't safe and I have to point them out. I dragged the NM in a room a few weeks ago and said "What's wrong with this picture?" He asked who I took report from but I'm beginning to wonder if it will make any difference.
So here's my question...have you been through this? Did you stick it out or did you leave? If you left, what was the straw that broke the camel's back, so to speak? If you stayed, how did you stay sane? I'm so torn right now; I like a lot of the people I work with and I need the extra job (I work full-time at another hospital in town in a non-patient care capacity and I like keeping my skills at the bedside). Most of the hospitals around here don't use agency so if I go that route I'm looking to drive at least 45 minutes to an hour one way to work (or more). I have three kids and I can't afford not to have the extra income but I don't want to lose precious time with them either by driving so much. I already don't see them on days I work a 12 (thankfully only every other week).
