am i crazy?

Specialties Ob/Gyn

Published

I was just wondering if others think i am crazy for making the following decision.

I was offered a job as Director of maternal child unit at another local hospital about 10 minutes further away from my house than current hospital, pay was approx 10,000 more a year, working 5 days a week, supposedly flexible hours, but on call almost all the time. benefits were about the same.

I decide to stay where I am at because i enjoy what i do and where I work, I have been in management positions before and did not really enjoy it. friends and family think i am crazy to have turned it down.

but my thinking is, It's not all about money to me. I prefer to be happy and enjoy what i do. and to work with and for people I like. besides I love caring for my patients and am sure i would miss that badly.

well let me know what you think:)

hey your patients are very grateful i am sure. you are a really rare gem in your current position. i think these days management is a no-win thing. not about making it better for pt's or staff nurses, but about complying w/ corporate and governmental policies. DO WHAT YOU DO BEST!!!

You are not crazy. You made the right choice if you love what you do. The grass isn't always greener.

Specializes in Oncology, Cardiology, ER, L/D.

Mark, after reading many of your posts about how much you genuinely love your job and where you are at, I definitely think you made the right decision. I hope to either go into Labor and Delivery or ER after I graduate and from what I have read, I can only hope to be HALF the nurse that you are! We need caring, compassionate nurses like you at the bedside not behind a desk making up schedules and enforcing bogus policies. No amount of money is worth the satisfaction of getting up and going to a job you love everyday. Kudos to you for making the right decision!

Really respect the fact that you chose to do stay with something you love to do, even though offered more money. I would agree with you and others. I have been in a management position before...hated it.

Specializes in NICU, L&D, OB, Home Health, Management.

Mark,

Been there, done that, bought the Tshirt.

When I moved tomy current location there was a management opening - many people questioned why I wouldn't even apply - now the new manager talks to me on a regular basis and understands VERY well why I stay at the bedside.

Congrats on having the courage to know yourself and do what you do best.

Linda

Hi Mark,

It sounds like you really enjoy your patient care very much. Unless you are willing to give up bedside care (to some degree), family life and money, then management is not for you.

I am an OB/Nursery manager in a small hospital. We do about 350 to 400 deliveries per year. I went from staff to manager about a year and a half ago. Why did I do it? I wanted to be more involved in making improvements in the department on a larger scale. I also have a great staff! :-) I am also fortunate enough that the hospital is small and that I get to work as staff about once a week...so, I have the best of both worlds. :-) I am currently spreading my wings and orienting to house supervision.

As far as money....there is a big difference between being an hourly staff RN and a salaried manager. If you are the type of person that I think you are, your salary would not reflect the amount of hours that you actually put into the job. I tend to put in about 45-50 hours a week now (was 60 hours per week for the first year). All this considered, the staff nurses make more per hour than I do every paycheck.

Management is also a different "way of life". As a staff RN, you punch in and punch out for your shift and leave the workplace behind. It is totally not like that in management. I am lucky that my family and husband are supportive of the interruptions in our lives on my days off due to staff calling my house with questions, problems etc...and having to change our schedules at the last minute due to a sick call that cannot be replaced or other last minute holes in the schedule that the staff will not/cannot pick up etc. It is a huge responsibility to make sure that your unit is staffed and appropriately supported.

So...why do I stay in it? I like the "global" aspect of being involved and the challenges of the governmental/professional regulations and guidelines. I enjoy working with all of my OB colleagues instead of just a few. There is also a certain degree of flexibility with your schedule when staffing permits and I am also learning a ton from the fellow area OB managers that I currently network with. I believe that I have grown tremendously personally and professionally in the last year and a half...more so than if I had stayed as a staff member.

I like the last line in Linda's post. All of us need to have the courage to know ourselves and know what we do best. I want to add that it is important to also know where you want to go on your journey and if you have the tools to travel there.

Best of luck, Mark. I have the feeling that you will shine on whatever path you take in your career.

Specializes in ER,Neurology, Endocrinology, Pulmonology.

I agree with others! If you are happy where you are, why look for something better? :)

The phrase 'on call all the time' sends shivers up my spine. STAY PUT.

THANKS EVERYONE!

For all the support and kind words I was beginning to doubt my decesion to stay. it was hard to do especially after they up the offer a good bit. I felt I could do a good job as Manager but that my heart is really in taking care of my patients hands on.

Layna I know what you are talking about I was in management positions before and I found myself staying late,having to come in at a moments notice, all the phone calls for petty little problems. and my bad habit of taking my work home with me. i spent so many hours doing paperwork and stuff at home i had no time for anything else. and the bad thing is I would probably do the same thing again if i were in management.

I personally feel you need to do what you love not do something for the money. after alll thats why i became a nurse in the first place. my extended family could not understand why i left a good paying goverment job to become a nurse and make 50% less. and still can not understand why i would turn down this job:)

oh well they will get it one day i guess:)

thanks again everyone for all the support and kind words. it means an awful lot to me:)

Specializes in Everything but psych!.

You did the right thing. It's like selling your soul to the devil. It looks good, but if you go with it, it's pretty hard to go back. I was in management. Hated it. Even have my MSN in nursing administration. Don't ever want to go into management again. Besides, OB needs good nurses. Don't regret your decision. But, how flattering to be offered the job.

It was quite flattering especially being I never applied for it ,they just remebered me from a while back i worked there as charge nurse at night:)

i am happy to be where I am :)

Specializes in obstetrics(high risk antepartum, L/D,etc.

The only way I would call a decision on this question crazy would be if you decided to become management. I also did that, and it was one of the worst moves I have ever made. I went back to staff, not an easy move in the same department! I love my moms and their babies, as well as the dads (I could do without the neighbors and the dog, etc) The management misses all of that! Stay sane, stay where you are:wink2:

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