Hi all. I just need to vent about the current situation at the LTC facility that I work at:scrying:. First of all, I am a new LPN. I graduated in July 07' and got my license, first try, in October 07'. I started out working at an urgent care clinic. The pay was on the lower end and one of the physicians was extremely rude to all staff. So obviously I found a new job. Now I'm working the NOC shift at a LTC facility. I've been there about 3 mos and I've already had just about enough! When I came in for my first shift, I was informed that I would have 2 days of orientation and then I would be on my own to care for 40 people, by myself with the assistance of 2 CNAs:eek:. The only other nurse in the building is on the other end of the facility, caring for the remaining 40 or so Res. Talk about overwhelming! The first 3-4 weeks were really hard and I was scared to death. Of course I know how to do the nursing skills I learned in school, but that doesnt mean that I've actually done all of them on a real pt before, and even some of the skills I have performed I havent done since school. So, as I'm sure many of you can imagine, I still get nervous when faced with certain tasks or situations. As I stated before, I'm still pretty new at this, I'm only 3 mos into this whole LTC experience. Anyway, at this point I'm begining to feel that I know the Res, there routines, DX, crush or whole, alarms?, etc. Some of the paper work and as I said before certain tasks still present a challenge, but I'm getting there. Well pretty much from day one, I have had to receive and give report to one of the most two-faced, s#%* stirring nurses I have ever met. I never thought in a million years that anyone that becomes a nurse would be so awful. This woman has been a nurse for 9 years. She talks about everyone behind their back and I know of 3 nurses that work there now in addition to myself that she tries to belittle and gossip about all the time. Lately she has been focusing in on me:argue:. I'm not sure why but she really seems to want to bring me down. She leaves important things out of report; will get orders to d/c txs (alarms) and will put the order in the pt's chart but wont d/c it in the TARS. She has holes in the MAR almost everytime she works, she always chats with other people while giving me report, making it take forever, which puts me behind before I ever get started:banghead:. Last weekend when I was coming on the floor we did the narc count and she was off. She had popped 2 tabs out of one Res' card and gave one to a Res that had the same med same dose and the other to another Res who was supposed to receive the same med, but a higher dose. She makes these mistakes and well, we all make mistakes so I have noted that they have been made and move on, (the narc error was reported to the ADON but nothing was done because the ADON and this mean nurse are 'buddies'). Well, if I make a mistake; (dont sign off on a med, or dont get a transfer packet completed) she talks major crap about me. She has told people that she thinks Im a dimwit and that she doesnt like me. I dont really care if she likes me or not, esp c as little as I have to work with her, but dragging me into this nasty gossip circle, making me look bad and hurting my self esteem is really stressing me out:banghead:! I feel like I give 100% everytime I go to work. I'm not perfect, Im new and inexperienced, so my share of mistakes are going to be made, but there is no compassion from her even though she makes plenty of mistakes and has been a nurse alot longer. In the a.m. when she gets to work she will barely speak to me but if someone else is at the station or if someone else walks up she is super nice to them, almost like she wants to make a point to be extra nice to others in front of me just to reinforce how unfriendly she is to me. I sat at work the other night and no matter how hard I tried I couldnt keep from tearing up. I know that Im where I should be based on my experience as a nurse. I know I'm not a dimwit. I just dont know why she is making me look bad to others and trying to turn others against me? It really hurts my feelings and makes me mad. I saw other threads talking about nurses 'eating' their young. I'm not experienced enough to tell you whether it's common or not, but this nurse I'm dealing with has fangs. If anyone has any advise for me I am all ears. I havent had to deal with anyone like this since JR high! I just want to do a good job, learn, help others and come home tired but in a good mood. There arent many jobs open for LPNs in my area and I really need the money. Please help me cope:sniff:! Thanks:confused:
do you want to work midnight shift? i think midnight shift is pretty quiet shift where not much things are going on and frankly i dont think nurses use lot of skills. i think its good idea to start with morning or afternoon shift where you have more managements around and you work with more nurses so if you have questions you can ask questions or get help. when i was a brand new nurse my boss asked me to work midnights because they couldnt find anybody to work and they needed a body to fill in the shift. i refused of course because its like i"m on my own during midnight shift and i didnt know what to do if there was any emergency and i wasnt going to lose my license.
i think you need a support from other nurses. do you have a supervisor in the building? dont put up with behaviors of other nurses you have described. talk to managers or supervisor, it makes me so mad to hear things like that from brand new nurses.:trout::angryfire:flmngmd::scrm:
What a bummer. Unfortunetly I think we all have worked with this type of nurse before. In my experience, and I'm pretty sensitive as well, I found it to be a case of low self-esteem, jelousy, or fear in the wicked ones. Don't know why. I never understood that type of intential behaviour.
What I did do though was to keep doing my best, utilizing the experience to my benefit, and used diligent kindness. As afraid as I was to say anything I learned to address the problem by asking to speak to them alone.
Now I know not everyone would do this, some would quit, but I really feel you have the advantage of being a new grad and newly licensed. You are up on skills, thinking about your patients and all of that good SOLID stuff.
If it gets totally unbearable or UNSAFE to your license of course look for another job, but I'd try to hang in there and get the experience. What would you say to a patient that was unbearable? This nurse is another human being with an obvious problem.
Congratulations and best of luck with your career.
She's probably ugly to you because she feels threatened. So you are new? You're probably doing a fantastic job moreso than she does her job. I mean if she leaves a million things undone and wrong and you do the best you can do and have minimal errors/omissions...all that says is she is upset that a new nurse has better skills, critical thinking techniques, and time management than she does.
Otherwise, why would she bother to say a thing? Generally when people make such a big stink over small things for days and days it all boils down to jealousy and their own lack of self-confidence.
Now as far as the two days and 30(?) patient thing goes, I would find another job. If you like LTC stick with it, just stick with it elsewhere.
Good luck as you start your new job search. This experience will teach you what things to ask about at your future interviews. Just continue to be professional and do the best you can with what you're given.
Specializes in Medical-Surgical-Ortho-Neuro-Agency.
compassionate 1,
This nurse is a cold mean person. People like her exist everywere. As far, as you being a new grad two weeks of orientation would have made me think twice about this workplace. It is a disgrace to see nasty attitudes on the units,and nursing managers encouraging such behaviors. Be careful, and protect yourself, your patients, and your license, nursing scool was ard enough and stressful.
Dont let other nurses put you down. They are the ones with low self esteem issues, do your best, and pray everyday!!! Nursing sould be caring, helpful, teamplayers, supporters, and have good work ethics, some people lacked those qualities, I wonder what drove them to becoming nurses.
I have been bullied like this more than once. I was too afraid to say anything and put up with it for a long time. Slowly I came to see that you must nip it in the bud, but I was afraid to for a long time.
Finally I got up my nerve and back bone and spoke up and said I would no longer take the abuse. I said it in front of many people and found out that lots of other people were afraid of these bullies too.
Bullies always back down when told that their behavior is not acceptable.
Stand up for yourself and put an end to it now.
What do you have to lose. If you don't stand up for yourself you will continue to feel like sh.....
You have nothing to lose in this case because if you don't stand up to her you are going to quietly and slowly lose your mind.
When I finally stood up to the bullies they all backed down, and one got fired.
After what I have slowly and painfully learned from experience is to not allow people to treat you like this.
Don't yell at them, just slowly and softly tell them that the behavior is not acceptable and that it will immediately stop.
It sounds like you are in an extremely toxic environment and that you are being bullied by someone who is either threatened by you or just enjoys taking her own frustrations with work and life in general out on you. She may perceive you as vulnerable, possibly due to the fact that you are new. What type of facility only gives two days of orientation? Anyhow I suggest that you take this issue with her first without being accusatory. If it continues it is then time to go up the chain of command. I was in a situation similar to yours for a very long time and always wish I had left sooner than later...and there was more than one nurse bullying me. I have been through horizontal violence from preceptors/coworkers and bullying from so called leadership. The people you work with can make or break your days at work. Also it may be to your benefit to be employed in a facility where you have an extensive orientation that attends to the needs of a new nurse. Learning or doing a skill in lab is simply not enough these days.
If anyone has any advise for me I am all ears. I havent had to deal with anyone like this since JR high! I just want to do a good job, learn, help others and come home tired but in a good mood. There arent many jobs open for LPNs in my area and I really need the money. Please help me cope:sniff:! Thanks:confused:
Ms.RN
917 Posts
do you want to work midnight shift? i think midnight shift is pretty quiet shift where not much things are going on and frankly i dont think nurses use lot of skills. i think its good idea to start with morning or afternoon shift where you have more managements around and you work with more nurses so if you have questions you can ask questions or get help. when i was a brand new nurse my boss asked me to work midnights because they couldnt find anybody to work and they needed a body to fill in the shift. i refused of course because its like i"m on my own during midnight shift and i didnt know what to do if there was any emergency and i wasnt going to lose my license.
i think you need a support from other nurses. do you have a supervisor in the building? dont put up with behaviors of other nurses you have described. talk to managers or supervisor, it makes me so mad to hear things like that from brand new nurses.:trout::angryfire:flmngmd::scrm: