nursing career is looking grim!!!!!!!!!!!

[lildebbie-RN]

My husband posted a few times on here about what had happened and asked for some advice. I just thought I would make a post and tell everyone what has happened.

I graduated on December 12th. I was supposed to start on the 15th however my physical showed a hernia. I had to have this repaired before I could start. I had the surgery on december 22nd and went home Christmas day. After 3 trips to the doctor and surgeon and 2 trips to the ER I was admitted again. I had surgery a second time and the next day I was told that I had MRSA. The following day I was told that I also had Pseudomonas. I had surgery again this time to remove the mesh that was put in to help prevent any future hernia's. I have been home for almost 3 weeks now and my incision is almost completly closed. I am still on IV antibiotics and 2 oral anitbiotics. My most recent visit to the surgeon was devistating as he stated he was not going to release me because he does not want me lifting anything over 30 lbs and that is not for at least 6 months. When I asked if I will be able to work he asked if I could get a desk job. I know there are other avenues to try and pursue however I did not go to nursing school to work behind a desk or be a secretary( no disrespect to the nurses that do work behind a desk) this is not what I intendid when I started the program.

Just thought I would get some thoughts from other nurses.

Even though I hate the sue word we are in a law suite against the doctors and hospital.

It is not even just about being a nurse(that is a big part though) I can't even pick up my children, help my husband, go anywhere and my damn doctor laughs about it and says that infections happen!!!! Sorry i am venting now, maybe hearing from some of you will help me out some.

thanks

[NICU_RNwantsFL]

Matt's Mom - I know what you mean about NICU. Most nurses I know have VERY strong opinions on it - they either LOVE it or HATE it.

Thank goodness we all are drawn to different areas of nursing - see, I could never do geriatrics because it hits too close to home (elderly parent) - it would kill me. And if I had to do ANY adult floor, they would need to wrap me up in a straight-jacket before the shift was over. My hat is off to all you nurses out there that can handle these areas - y'all are better folks than I am! I couldn't handle it.

That is the cool thing about nursing - there are so many different areas, and if you think you cannot stand one more day where you are currently working, there are always other units and areas of practice to consider.

[SmilingBluEyes]

Time to get creative then.

If you can not lift, look into nursing jobs that involve little or none of it.

yes, they do exist, but most of them are NOT in a hospital so LOOK elsewhere!

[ceecel.dee, MSN, RN]

I have been in many many OR cases where the OR team knows something has been contaminated but use it anyway and laughingly say"that's what antibiotic's are for"

Wow! Rough comment! :stone

[littleun]

:uhoh21: Yikes! So sorry to hear about the problems with starting out in your career and terribly sorry that some of the replies were so negative. I think you are searching for the same answers that I am. Was injured in a fall at work some time ago and can no longer work in the capacity that I have been working in for the last 13 years. Employment was curtailed due to excessive sick leave usage for pain related to injuries and now have extreme limitations to what I can or cannot do. Have been in here "lurking" to see what other options there are that will not take me away from a career that I love so much and miss so terribly. Hope that all gets better for you and yours and that we all find the answers that we so desparately need. Oh, guess I should say that I am an RN and have been working in geratrics for most of my career. Anyway, my prayers are with you

[ascnbe, ADN, RN]

Another area that requires no lifting and can be very rewarding is case management. You get the satisfaction of helping people and it is becoming a very important area of nursing. As we move more towards managing patients with a better coordinated multidisciplinary approach it is going to be the nurse case managers that will be needed to advocate for the patients. I personally work as an ER nurse, but a close friend switched from ER to CM and he really enjoys it.

[mattsmom81]

Good luck to you and other nurses (there are lots of us) who have been injured. Facilities tend NOT to be kind to us, despite their lipservice to 'caring for human beings', it stops with their own nurses. We are often seen as a risk once we are injured or develop chronic health problems. It has been a real challenge staying a bedside nurse as long as I have, and injuries almost forced me to retire. I was lucky, many of my sick and injured coworkers have not been so fortunate. I hope you feel better soon and good luck finding a light duty position...sometimes injured nurses do get lucky. I know in my neck of the woods though, even nurse case managers must meet the lifting requirement of the facility. And many desk type jobs or specialty areas (like NICU) require basic experience of a year or more. Again in my area. Perhaps other areas are not this way. All you can do is ask around, do some research anonymously.

Also, you may eventually have some luck doing contract/agency work...they are not as strict on the physicals as facilities it seems. But please take your doctor's warnings into consideration for your health and wellbeing. If he says you shouldn't lift he may be right. Nurses who tell you 'there are LOTS of nonlifting nursing positions ' are likely those who haven't tried to get them; there is a whole lotta competition for those jobs. Not surprising due to the heavy lifting involved in floor nursing.