New job

[Najone]

So I am a new nurse who works in a nursing home in upstate New York. I have been on my job for 3 months and have noticed how miserable some of my coworkers are. Some of them have been LPN's for years and because of their burn out, have caused me to think so negatively about nursing. I loved the idea of nursing while I was in nursing school and have even started more nursing classes online but I never expected to deal with such negative people. Someone please give me advice as to how to make my work environment a little more welcoming, this is rediculous.

[SuzieVN]

If the pressure to do so much, without making a single error, in so little time, with so many threats for failure to do it all, were not so overwhelming, then those people would not be so unhappy. Fact is, in LTC, the regulatory and financial pressures are also so great (nursing homes average a profit of only 3%, yet are more regulated than many industries), that the only real solution is to almost dehumanize the patients in order to 'get through the shift'. It's sad, that there is not time really to simply chat them up. Their histories are often fascinating (I've met many Nazi camp survivors, as an example).

In addition- the politics involved in nursing, and long term care, causes rifts that do nothing but make the job more arduous. If people stopped the nonsense and focused on cleaning the place up, streamlining the work, and maybe even having a little FUN with the old peeps? Well...then LTC would be a different sort of 'horse'.

[ybanurse]

You just started in nursing. Get back to me in 2 yrs, if it takes that long for the rose colored glasses to break LOL Hilarious! We're miserable for a reason.