Why are nurses so angry?

Nurses Relations

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Reading the forum in the past few months, a common thread I have seen is the anger. It does not seem to matter what the discussion is about or the level of nurses discussing it,anger is a common denominator. All of us have random days of extremes,anger,disillusionment,panic,sadness,and a host of other feelings. But anger sticks out and the need to place this anger on others.We need to vent,but why is anger a constant?

In a recent thread, nurses discuss the dealings with combative pts with drug/etoh backrounds. So much fault placed on the pt. I am more then understanding of the difficulties in dealing with these people,but do ya think they do it on purpose?

When a professional nurse becomes so immersed in anger, it is time to change your specialty or take a break. We are not a perfect group by no means, but we get paid to deal with the best of the best and worst of the worst. It is not always easy,fun, or safe. We should not be abused or taken advantage of by our clients. We should be protected by our employers. We need to be proactive in getting our needs met and the needs of those in our care met.

When I see such young professionals so angry and disillusioned already, I have to wonder at the future of our profession.

It is not a profession one should enter to get rich, have great hours,vacations or benifits. It is one that is entered to care for others, teach and mentor. We have come such a long,long way in the past few decades, and we have far to go.

So, I guess my question to the population here, is how do we grow as a profession without all the constant anger towards each other, our clients and employers? Or can we?

Christine

If we were to express our feelings at work, toward the people that deserve our negative comments, none of us would have jobs. Unfortunately, customer service is the name of the game now. We have to bend over and take it without the lube in order to keep our jobs. How else do nurses have to deal with the strong emotions of keeping people alive and safe while they themselves are screwed by the very people they are saving? And lets not forget the admin that puts us in the line of fire with the short staffing, no supplies, etc. If everyone bottled up their emotions there wouldn't be any nurses left. They'd all have stroked out due to their HTN from keeping it all in. Or they would be leaving the profession at an even faster rate. Maybe that is what SHOULD happen. No nurses anywhere and then see what people think. I think venting frustration on a forum is preferable to "going postal" at work. I can't count the number of times I used to go to an arcade and play "whack a gator" pretending that the gator was actually people at work.

I'm not one of the angry nurses. When you only work 32 hours a month, you can handle anything. If I stayed full time at my first job however, I would have been a burnt-out, frustrated, and irritable.

People also become angry when reality does not match what they have been led to expect. I doubt my grandparents asked themselves if they were happy or fulfilled in their work, they farmed because they needed to make a living. You worked hard, and expected little in the way of fulfillment, joy. Nowadays, people expect more from work than they used to, so people are more likely to be dissappointed and angry.

while getting rich is a subjective term the nurses who fall into this catagory is probably few

howevr many have accepable hours, vacations and benefits are usually on par with most other professions

it is the way we are vizulized by tptb..we say we are nurses i can get a job in any part of the country or in another facility if i am not happy where i am or if i need for family reasons to move

.however tptb view us as the same way..an experienced nurse can be hired, oriented in a short while and they don't remember the last one they had to replace

this attitude hurts the whole nusing field..how many times have you gone to work and and you knew that you would be working with competent, intelligent nurses who would do thier work and kick in when needed

too many of the nurses are warm bodies who have been kicked out of other facilities and will soon be going away to fill in a place somewhere they can get away with incompetence and being down right lazy

the one who thought up getting rid of or cutting back on transporters, cna, ward clerk is patted on the back by colleagues and the ads will broadcast 'WHEN YOU COME TO OUR HOSPITAL YOU WILL BE CARE FOR BY OUR ALL RN STAFF'

Specializes in mostly in the basement.

While i completely understand your point--and agree that there is some sort of generational shift going on--and not necessarily for the bad--I don't think the situations or life choices you mentioned are analogous.

I can only speak for myself when I say that I don't necessarily need to be fulfilled or filled with joy by my workplace, either. It would be a nice bonus, sure, but not expected. What I don't think is simply yearning for happiness is ducking assaults on a nightly basis, living with an innate stress re. losing your license, not because you are careless or bad but simply because you PHYSICALLY cannot be in three places at once--which you kinda have to with three critically ill patients on various drips/conditions. There should be more nurses there. Not me running keeping people alive DESPITE he conditions. A big crash is coming because our employers want to keep their heads in the sand and the money flowing upstairs. Okay. OF COURSE the smart ones aren't gonna be around for the fall.

It's not necessarily disillusionment although there definitely is some for anyone out in the "real" nursing world. I could hoe the fields every day too because I need a job but I'm guessing if grandpa had feces thrown at him, knives pulled, constant verbal abuse and someone hiding (well, whatever critical piece you need when tilling fields) just for fun or for "budgetary" needs, I'm guessing he would have found something different too.

Specializes in Utilization Management.
I'm not one of the angry nurses. When you only work 32 hours a month, you can handle anything. If I stayed full time at my first job however, I would have been a burnt-out, frustrated, and irritable.

People also become angry when reality does not match what they have been led to expect. I doubt my grandparents asked themselves if they were happy or fulfilled in their work, they farmed because they needed to make a living. You worked hard, and expected little in the way of fulfillment, joy. Nowadays, people expect more from work than they used to, so people are more likely to be dissappointed and angry.

Great. Now nurses are supposed to adopt Grandpa's values in order to maintain the status quo of the broken healthcare system that we find ourselves in.

I'll say this gently: I'm not a maid, not a waitress, not a customer service rep, not a farmer. I'm a nurse.

I shouldn't have to suck it up and give my patients less competent care because of the poor working conditions created by facilities intent to run lean and mean operations.

My patient's life has been packaged into a unit of dollars and cents, and I can't take proper care of him because it costs too much to hire the appropiate numbers of nurses and I'm not supposed to be angry?

Did it ever occur to you that because the working conditions for nurses are so bad that all we really could hope to look forward to was the fulfillment of knowing we did our job well?

But we cannot do our job well any more.

Instead of toileting people, we insert Foleys. Instead of walking postops, we give them medications. Instead of giving a backrub or or a good bath -- nonmedicinal interventions for pain -- we're shooting them full of analgesics. Instead of encouraging po fluids, we insert an IV when regular po fluid offers could've been just as effective.

"Customer service" -- the do-whatever-they-want mentality -- has replaced good nursing because we no longer have time to teach our patients what they need to know.

When's the last time you could sit with a patient for 45 minutes to feed that patient? No, now we insert NG tubes or PEG because we no longer have time to coax the FTT patient into eating.

Nursing has changed and some things are for the better, I admit. But some things are not better. It makes me fearful and angry for my patients that proven nursing methodology has been thrown out in favor of cost containment.

OK, sorry for the rant. But you asked what made us angry. This is another part of the picture.

Specializes in ICU, ER, EP,.

while your post elicits many excellent responses. It's too broad to come to a solution. perhaps you can choose one dimension that is truly troublesome and we can focus better to find resolution.

That said, I'll tackle what whims me as the questions are plenty...

I believe ANGER is a very powerful tool, it motivates for change. With anger, placed in our patients best interest we feel compelled to place ourselves, our jobs, our positions, our safety and our lively hood in jepardy to create an environment of CHANGE. To me, it seems we have to get angry to act, and then ; we get involved with the process, strike, move on, quit and buck the system... however we choose.

The problem is organization to create change with our anger. We let our skilled peers slip away to other positions because we're stone walled or lack the ability to join forces to fight. And sadly we're stonewalled by management to make the changes when grouped as a team.

My benefits to me are separate compensation from the value I bring home from patient care.... my financial $$ is one part.... the changes I bring ... bring another value to me service in patient care. I HAVE TO HAVE BOTH. When one lacks, the other doesn't compensate enough.

So I fight BOTH battles, because I need it BOTH ways... and I NEED my peers to help make it so.

Specializes in ICU, ER, EP,.
i'm not one of the angry nurses. when you only work 32 hours a month, you can handle anything. if i stayed full time at my first job however, i would have been a burnt-out, frustrated, and irritable.

people also become angry when reality does not match what they have been led to expect. i doubt my grandparents asked themselves if they were happy or fulfilled in their work, they farmed because they needed to make a living. you worked hard, and expected little in the way of fulfillment, joy. nowadays, people expect more from work than they used to, so people are more likely to be dissappointed and angry.

sadly, i feel that this is why we are "wrong", and i respectfully disagree with you. this is not the job, the menial labor of my grandparents, i'm not putting in hours to collect a paycheck. i'm caring for you're grandparents in the icu. they are more to me than a paycheck, same as they are more to you.

i don't expect anything but my pay after hours worked... but i damn well will fight for adequate training for nurses, supplies staff ratio to take the best care of the people you love... and i will loose my job over it.... because the people you love, i love as my patients... and they are more to me, than a days labor. pray, you have a nurse with a different 'tude... when a family member is in the icu.... because i bet you'll expect and demand better than you see as a normal days wage in grandmas day. that is no longer acceptable. you and your family deserve more... that's what were fighting for..... for you.;)

Specializes in Med/Surge, Private Duty Peds.

:owhy doe we get angry as nurses? how about a night like last night at least 3 nights a week;

a 36 bed med/surge floor

25 pts on the floor

2 waiting to be admitted( as soon as we come out of report)

only 1 tech for 27 pts now

only 5 nurses ( one is an icu nurse that got floated to our unit and by policy can only take a pt load of 4)

8 pts each for 2 lpn's

8 pts for the rn

charge nurse/ unit secretary/admit nurse

admissions calling wanting beds for 7 pts during the shift

15 total care pt's on the floor

5 with pegs that need flushing q 4 and feedings

1 cva on the floor

about 15 totally confused pts that are major fall risks

med/supply carts empty( from previous shift)

no iv start kits on the floor

i had to pick up 2 of the admissions( now up 10 pts)

blood sugars out the yazoo!!

dr getting pissed caused i had to call for a bs >450( policy)

the whole floor wanting asst to the bathroom/bedpan at once( only 22 or so incontient and can't wait)

no linen on the linen cart

2 pts to prep for heart caths

asking the the house super for more help, get the reply" don't have any one to send so suck it up ":trout:

survived the night, only to have a doc come in get majorly pissed because at 2pm on day shift a pt's v-scan came back + for pe and day shift didn't call him.:nono:

i or the other 4 nurses didn't have a chance to go pee:o much less go through charts to see if anythiny major was missed.:uhoh21:

so yes! i have a right to be angry, pissed, frustrated, ect, ect, because i can not take care of 10 pts and provide the care they need because mngt does not care and will not give us enough help:devil: the numbers don't add up according to their stupid accuity:angryfire

oh by the way did i forget to mention that the very first pt i went to assess, cursed me:angryfire out because her pain meds were not given at 8pm on the dot even though it wasn't time for them:o

so now that you know my story, at least i can come here and vent, pout, cry or whatever i need to do and get support because others know what i go through as a nurse.

:thankya::thankya: letting me get this off my chest!!

you guys here are great

Give me a break! Everyone is venting..It's called frustration not anger.........

Specializes in ER, ICU, L&D, OR.

I dont see any anger

of course I dont have my reading glasses on

But no anger

and certainly not from me

as long as I can GOLF you wont see any anger either

Specializes in Community, OB, Nursery.

I don't live with a large amount of anger r/t nursing, mostly because like Tweety said, we can come here, vent and be anonymous. This is a safe place.

I am fortunate to work in a place with mostly adequate staffing and supportive management. I realize not everyone is so fortunate and so supported.

But I do work with a few nurses - not on my shift - who seem to be perpetually angry with the world in and out of the hospital. I agree with you that they need to get the heck out of nursing. I'm sure that the stresses of nursing exacerbate their issues, but I really think that they would be angry people if they were butchers, bakers, or candlestick makers (thanks, Mercy).

Specializes in Public Health, DEI.
I don't live with a large amount of anger r/t nursing, mostly because like Tweety said, we can come here, vent and be anonymous. This is a safe place.

I am fortunate to work in a place with mostly adequate staffing and supportive management. I realize not everyone is so fortunate and so supported.

But I do work with a few nurses - not on my shift - who seem to be perpetually angry with the world in and out of the hospital. I agree with you that they need to get the heck out of nursing. I'm sure that the stresses of nursing exacerbate their issues, but I really think that they would be angry people if they were butchers, bakers, or candlestick makers (thanks, Mercy).

No... thank you! I knew barber didn't sound right, but I couldn't think of another profession that started with the letter "b"! Butcher! That's it!

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