Nursing is slavery Period!!!

tictac · Jun 25, 2012

I can't argue with you. I felt the same way when I worked in the hospital. I now work 2 jobs -- one at a Pedi's office, and the other as a school nurse. I love BOTH jobs, and I no longer dread going to work.

I also worked in a hospital my first 2 years out of nursing school and was miserable after a year. I luckily got a job as a school nurse and it is a perfect fit. I have time for family and friends and very little stress. For those of you that think it's boring, yes, there are those slow days, but the crazy ones make up for it. And who doesn't love a slow day every now and then?! I have so much autonomy and actually learn a lot! If you can afford the cut in pay, perhaps you should look into school nursing. I've simply learned to cut back on my spending and I love my job and lifestyle now.

Just wanted to add that at the moment, I am working summer school (not required) and am getting $30/hr to take care of the occasional stomachache, nosebleed, etc. Not too shabby.

pnut8377 · Jun 25, 2012

With your experience you could go into travel nursing, probably would work your butt off there too but at least you get to see and go places that may make up for it. Plus you get to work out your own contract in advance. Also get out of the hospital. Look in doctor offices or become a school nurse. My CNA instructor was a school nurse and loves it!! Being an RN gives you so many options, don't let this bad experience make you throw in the towel!

docomo · Jun 25, 2012

I'm going to make a bold statement that many won't like. You are 100% correct about how bad the conditions are for nurses overall. I'm a new nurse, but I've been in healthcare for more than 20 years and I've seen a lot of what goes on. Things you forgot to mention are the ridiculous physical demands and very high risk to occupational injury and the constant threat of litigation or losing your license. The reason nursing is this way, is because nursing is a predominantly female profession, and women are used to taking a beating and saying thank you sir. Just look at the board of nursing. They are feared and loathed. It's really little more than a revenge tool to ruin peoples careers. People say nurses eat their young. OMG did I ever learn that lesson in nursing school. I was mommied like a 9 year old the whole 3 years and if anyone did the slightest thing wrong the professors would pounce like lions on a gazelle. Anyone who thinks I'm full of bull, I ask you, where is our woman president of the united states? Women have been voting since the 20's and in all that time there hasn't been a single woman worthy of leading this nation? Baloney! Nursing is the way it is because more often then not, women in nursing leadership positions are still taking a beating and saying thank you sir, can I get you anything else with that?

My advice for you is to take advantage of the fact that nurses can work anywhere, and in many types of jobs. Don't stay a single day more if you are sick of where you work. Have the courage to leave and go somewhere else. There are lots of good nursing jobs, but lots of bad ones as well.

Susie2310 · Jun 26, 2012

As much as bedside nursing sucks at times it seems that someone who would write this has no passion for truly helping people. Yes, families, docs, patients and bosses can all be demanding and downright cruel at times but the reward that you feel when you know you've helped save another's life makes it all worth it. We have to remember that we are with our patients at the worst moments in their lives so if the families and patients are on edge it would be expected. The people that we help will remember us for a lifetime, they will remember that warm tea you brought them after being up all night worried if their husband will survive to see his children again. They will remember your hug or touch when they found out thier cancer has spread. They will remember the extra time you spent making sure their mom was comfortable at her last breath. They remember everything you do for them so if waiting a little longer to eat your lunch or take a bathroom break seems like the end of the world you have your priorites all wrong. People that find only the negative in nursing are not truly nurses and they should find a different career path because I sure as hell would rather have a nurse that puts all my priorities ahead of their own in my time of desperation. That's what a real nurse does and they don't think twice about complaining about it. We dont do this job for recognition or money we do it because it is what we were put on this earth to do.

Thank you for expressing your concern and caring for both your patients and their families. I am an RN. My husband has been hospitalized several times with serious medical problems, and we have both greatly appreciated the nurses who managed to take the time to show caring and consideration towards both of us, in addition to providing very good care. You are absolutely right that those thoughtful words and deeds are remembered and appreciated greatly, even years later.

nursejenna1986 · Jun 26, 2012

Completely agree!!! It is a hell profession.

lilyserene · Jul 3, 2012

I definitely think you are at the wrong job but that doesn't mean you can't make it in nursing. If you love bedside nursing, then find a job/hospital/unit/clinic/office, etc., that puts an emphasis on and gives you enough time to do bedside nursing. **DO NOT SETTLE FOR THE FIRST JOB YOU CAN GET YOUR HANDS ON**...Save some money, quit your job, take a Much Needed break, and then start interviewing for what you want.

Nurses--along with other high-demand workers--need to realize the importance of being happy on the job, and stop looking at the dollar amount they make. When going on interviews, WE are the ones who should be interviewing the job: what is the character of your manager; what kind of co-workers will you work with; what is the rn to patient ratio; get a job description of the CNAs/unit clerks, along with your job description, etc. Don't wait until after you take the job to find all this out, because then you will be at the mercy of the job, and Yes, you can feel mentally trapped, like a slave. You might feel there is no way out, and if you wanted to leave, you might feel like nobody else will take you. BUT you must remember that you are NOT a physical slave. There are good nursing jobs out there, ones for you. Go find them. Even if you have to relocate.

lovedijah · Jul 3, 2012

I don't know. Every job I've had that I didn't like, I found a way to get out. Even if it meant sacrificing financially. I realize this is a luxury some people don't have, but some people just complain and complain. If I felt like a "slave", I would be looking for either a new job or new career.

Daqueengene · Jul 10, 2012

I am probably going to offend some of you and I apologize in advance for that.
However I really need a safe place to vent my frustrations about nursing and
this is the place.
A little background:
I have a Bachelors in Business. I worked in that field for just under 8 years. I liked it but it was starting to get boring and I felt I needed a challenge. I got my BSN and started working as a nurse for a big hospital. I didn't expect it to be all roses however I have to say what I have found in this profession has quickly turned me negative. I have been in this profession for over 2 years now and while I know that isn't long I have to be HONEST and say that I don't feel that I can honestly make it in this job.
Here is what I have noticed about the roles a nurse plays:
to administration: cogs (yet they don't want to pay the price required to keep us
so they keep increasing our task list, Responsibilites, documentation requirements,
etc while not increasing our pay)
to Dr: waitress/slave
to families: waitress/slave
Every job I have done went by satisfactory meaning I have never been written up or even had a verbal warning given. In this job people get written up for stupid stuff and no one thinks to give verbal warnings. The amount of demoralization that takes place on new grads is profound and now I understand why the smiles on new grad faces quickly turn sour. Every Dr I have s/w told me the same thing which is "get out of nursing or go higher fast . . . but do not stay in it"
Thus the message is clear that this profession needs a Major rehaul. Policies change on a daily basis (No Joke) and there is no effective means of getting the information across to all employees such that NO ONE has any idea what is the proper way of doing anything anymore. Everyone I've asked has a different idea and the new policy is not always on the intranet. The more nurses I talk to the more I realize they are not leaving this profession only because they do not have another option. The ones that do take it QUICK!
I keep hearing people tell me that nurses make such great money at the bedside but I have to say Nurses earn every single $ they make NO JOKE. We are expected to work tirelessly without taking bathroom breaks, lunches, etc. There is no regard for our healthy while all focus is given to patient safety. Now I know why nurses burn out at the rate that they do.
And after all is said and done the amount of responsibility and liability that a nurse carries is starting to increase. We live in such an age of Entitlement where people want the best care and they do NOT understand the stressors that are forged upon nurses such that if you don't bring them their cup of tea on time they get upset with you. I thought about pursuing my MSN in the clinical arena however after much deliberation I realized despite the fact that my desire to help people is strong I don't want the amount of liability that comes with it. I am working on getting out of it. Although I do feel like a failure because I will always remember that I wasn't able to make it in nursing.
I have spoken to other new grads about this and they feel the same way in fact a lot of them didn't even finish 1 year bedside nursing before they turned around and enrolled themselves in NP programs to get out of this dreary profession.
Please feel free to comment on this post. . .

It is so hard these days to find the balance in Nursing. It is true that times have changed and there are many different responsibilities and pressures to handle. I feel bad for nursing right now but I feel worse for the patients we serve. We are loosing the focus of patient first. I have fallen in the abyss of more computer entry, more responsibilities, and less time for actual patient care at times. I have been burned out and crispy over the years but have always found my way back by concentrating on the care that I can give. If there are questions or things that I need to know I have sought them out through study, research of standards, clinical practice articles, books and professional certification in my specialties. This gives you more credibility and helps develop a stronger sense of professionalism. It also gives you a credible and factual platform from which to affect change in your work place. You are still so new to the profession and are really in the place where it is the hardest. Give yourself some time and focus on the people you are charged to care for. I have been a working RN for 29 years now. There have been many times that I have thought of giving up and walking away from the profession. I have stayed because I know that through my actions I can help someone in there time of need. I can make there stressful and scary time of illness or physical change easier. I have a professional responsibility to be practicing from a place of true knowledge and care. Be the best you can be. We have a grand opportunity now to merge the highly technical side of nursing with the softer and very important side of caring. When we can do that we elevate our profession. Don't give up on yourself. Remember each person you touch you give them a part of yourself but they also give you a part of them selves too. We are so lucky to be able to actually take the hands, the heart and the knowledge we have and use it for healing.

nursedidi · Jul 10, 2012

How sad to hear that! I have a Bachelor in Business too and I am going to start the Prerequisites and go for

a BSN. My husband have been warning me how miserable life is for those who choose a nursing career ( his best friend

is a nurse for 30 years on ER and he says she is as bitter as she can be).He tried to make me change my mind several

times but the only thing I can think about is become a nurse and help people. My grandpa and uncle are doctors in Brazil,

maybe that s why I have a 'thing' for the medical field. But honestly, I am so so so disappointed to read this post..

Havin' A Party!, ASN, RN · Jul 10, 2012

A lot of what Sonia writes is right on.

Change will only happen when market forces re-align. Right now nurses are stuck... managers don't understand, care or have no power to institute change. Execs are pretty much focused on dollars. And patients and government are accepting of the status quo.

Sorry... sad but true.

Nola009 · Jan 5, 2015

I find nursing dreary and demeaning. I have only been a nurse since'13, and I'm lookin to get up and out too!!

Tenebrae, BSN, RN · Jan 6, 2015

I'm doing bedside nursing at the moment. Working in a SNF. I love the work. What I hate is the ongoing chronic short staffing. I worked three weeks ago with a temperature of 38.5 degrees C, simply because I was told there was no one else to take my place. I made a med error and while no negative effect was experienced by the patient, that was good luck more than anything else IMO. And ended up spending almost a week in hospital which management also ******* about because apparently I cant have been that bad. Doctors dont keep people in hospital any longer than they have to these days due to the increased risk of nosocomial infections, and they certainly dont keep someone in for 6 days unless they really have to

I put my foot down two weekends ago when I ended up not having an enrolled nurse on my shift. Just me to do all the nursing care for 40 odd residents including 1 palliative and 1 patient who was admitted to acute care with a UTI. I told them if they couldnt find me an enrolled nurse they would have to give me a registered nurse, because I wasnt prepared to work in such unsafe conditions.

Funnily enough I got the most hard time from the other nurses. Why the hell should a nurse that speaks up against unsafe staffing levels be vilified. The blame should clearly lie with management who never have us adequately staffed.

Like I said, I love the actual work, its all the excess ******** that does my head in. OP can understand where you are coming from