Orientation and Job NOT what was promised, want to quit!

MBrnbsnmha/ed · Aug 20, 2011

Hello,

First, congrats on landing a RN job. Secondly, when the facility extended you a offer letter what where the terms of the offer letter? Did it say critical care or med surge? Have you spoke to your manager or director about your concerns? Do they want you to hone in on your RN skills prior to transitioning to critical care? These are questions that arose in mind? However since you are unhappy try to job hunt for something you will like in the mean time to move from this facility to another.

Mgrn123 · Aug 20, 2011

Good job on becoming an RN. Having worked many specialties etc.... I would say

Your correct into thinking this place is not good. Advice resign , resign ASAP better

Yet RUN!!!! That place sounds like a step away from lawsuits if that has not happened yet. Try private duty home health take a g button case till you find a better job. Try the agencies around your area. Forgive my typing as it's from an iPhone. Goodluck !

divine-guidance · Aug 20, 2011

hi there

i have found myself in this situation once or twice in my life. ive learned to just do whats best for me and my kids cus who is will do it? if the nurses there have already given you a heads up on the working conditions, BELIEVE THEM. i would quit and no i would definitely not use this on my resume. it would be a waste of space.

gonzo1, ASN, RN · Aug 20, 2011

You do not have to list it on your resume. You tried working there and found out it was not up to your standards and you quit. You have a right to decide where to work and under what conditions.

This is never going to show up on your history anywhere after 1 day. I would however quit in the traditional, professional way.

Write a letter saying that you are no longer available to accept the job (do not say why), thank them for the opportunity and give them 2 weeks notice. Always be polite, but private about your reasons, etc (it will only get you in trouble if you tell them why)

I have no doubt they will simply walk you off premises when they get your letter, so chances are you won't have to work those 2 weeks

You are right for leaving. No one can do this job with so liitle staff.

magnum68 · Aug 20, 2011

Is this facility in Florida? That's how it is here in South Florida.

pixie120 · Aug 20, 2011

Hello all!
I'm not sure if I'm posting this in the right place, so please forgive me in advance.
I'm a relatively new RN grad. Dec. 2010. I had been unable to find a decent job for months. I have been LPN since 2003, but not worked steadily the whole time.
I had always been interested in LD nursing/OB and potentially community health/psych/prison nursing, etc.
I do not enjoy bedside nursing/med-surg as it is WAY understaffed in my opinion.
Anyway, before I get off track. After a few months of not finding anything, i got hired for what I thought was an ICU job, so I assumed i'd have 1-2 critical patients, multiple drips/vents, etc.. and a chance to really LEARN and spend time with my patients..
Reality is....it is more or less a med-surg unit and not really an ICU, and on my first night of orientation, my preceptor barely knew that she had to have an orientee... She had no time to show me much of the equipment (iV pumps, monitor screens) or how to do any of the paperwork and whatnot.
It was horrible....we got 6 admissions, and it was just her and one LPN, and 2 of us new RN grads....
all the nurses on the floor when I had my tour had quietly hinted that the staffing was horrible, and they hated their jobs, and that they had went through 5 new grads recently and NONE stayed. That should have been a RED FLAG to me.
So, I just don't feel like this floor is going to work out for me. i went into nursing wanting to provide SAFE nursing CARE... but it seems that even the experienced nurses (my preceptor has been there 20 years) can't even keep their heads above water, so what hope do I have? It seems like there is barely enough time to assess the patients, let alone give meds, chart vitals, and other numerous things....
there is no unit secretary, NO tele tech, even though most of the patients are on tele, and there is no pharmacy personnel after hours..... basically, there is not enough support to safely take care of the patients, IMO.
I do not want to risk my license just for the sake of having a 'job'.... I want to quit so bad, yes even after one shift, but how would I go about obtaining a new job? Would i have to list this one on my resume?? If so, how would I explain leaving this job to a potential new employer during an interview?
Sorry if this post is disjointed and jumps from thought to thought. My brain is fried, my heart is aching, and I feel there may be no hope for me to find my 'niche'.. I don't think I can survive the requisite '1 YEAR' requirement in med-surg/floor nursing.... I want to specialize. I'd rather work home health/community/dr office/psych/prison....
Hospitals care more about the bottom line and don't care how short staffed the nurses have to work.
I don't know how y'all do it, but I CANNOT be in 6 patient rooms at once!!! How can I safely assess/care for patients on tele/drips when we constantly get new admissions, no secretary, and way too many forms to fill out. There is not enough time and not enough ME to get everything done!!!! am I just a terrible nurse, or what??
I want to quit this job, I know it's not gonna get any better, but then how do I explain it on my work history??
What do you guys think? similar experiences anyone can share? Advice? HELP!!!
I'm a mother of 4 children and want to provide for my family. I worked hard to go from LPN to RN, had a 4.0 GPA at graduation, and I love learning and love nursing theory, but in reality it is impossible to practice the type of nursing that goes by 'textbook'.. I don't like the idea of taking shortcuts and being unsafe. but it seems all the floor nurses are doing it, otherwise they won't get their work done in time before they have to start their next shift!!!!!!
I could go on and on, but you all know what I mean..
My first night,,on orientation, I did not get a lunch break, and I only got to pee once........ i'm sorry, but I can't live like that..
maybe you all are martyrs and have bladders of steel and stomachs that can go without food, but I just can't survive like that... I get lightheaded and just feel horrible if I don't get regular sustenance.
ARe there any jobs out there that don't require inhuman suffering, being pulled in twenty directions at once? I don't want to give up on nursing as I have invested time and money in this, but I do not want to risk my patients or my license...... if i cant' find another area of nursing, I'm thinking of going into ultrasound sonography or something........

WHat kind of experience do you have previously as an LPN? Ask for more orientation, learn as much on your own as you can. Are you not already familiar with the IV pumps, Tele machines etc? It does take time to learn the documents, but it's all nursing process. Assess your patients, write it down, keep a "brain" with you at all times to write down everything. All nurses get pulled in all directions, have to learn to block out white noise, focus and triage. Its all about critical thinking, triage most important to least important, take your breaks, eat and get enough sleep. Not a martyr, very focuses, never let (well almost never, lol) let others derail me from my purpose, and keep my eye on the prize (the patient).

netglow, ASN, RN · Aug 20, 2011

OP, just quit. Write a letter, short and sweet. Make sure you quit when you are not scheduled to work, eg. don't walk in 15 minutes before your shift and quit!

What is so unfortunate Op, is that you are also suffering from the stress of being unemployed for so long as so many are. This is making it difficult for you to think clearly. EVERY UNEMPLOYED NURSE in this economy looks twice now and considers a very dangerous situation just to work. If you were not so over a barrel, you would not have ever walked into that place.

For those of you who want to be hard on the OP and nurses like her, just wait, your turn is now coming at you fast as karma is a "B". Be blessed that you are working and your job is a good one. Don't even think of taking a leave for anything as you might be in the same shoes the OP is in experienced or not.

NurseSnarky · Aug 20, 2011

BTDT too...I was not a new grad, but hired ICU and it was not as stated. Nurse patient ratio was not as stated and the ICU was run like a tele/med/surg unit. Nurse was expected on nights to be a tele tech for the tele floor as the nurses and techs on the actual tele floor did not monitor. All done in ICU. So it was explained to me after hire, after two weeks of classroom critical care classes that I would be expected to monitor alone at night unless we received an admission or more then call the on-call person. No...I did not sign on to be a tele tech. The kinds of patients I saw on tele when I worked there for a different hospital. I worked ICU before...NOT the same type of patients. When we did have critical patients it was as if the nursing staff didn't know what to do (and several were new grads who were stressed beyond the max). The majority were cath patients - again that I cared for on a tele unit in the past. I was just livid and I completely understand your concerns. The staffing was also baloney from what was told to me in the interview (I always ask)...I was lied to. I stayed longer than you did, but finally gave notice. I was not looking for a tele unit again otherwise I would have stayed there. I also am not a med/surg nurse and I was told I may have to float there. That was not discussed in the interview, and I had no interest period.

Good luck to you...you may think things through and decide to take a different approach with management too. Consider all options and make an informed decision.

#1ME · Aug 20, 2011

for those of you who want to be hard on the op and nurses like her, just wait, your turn is now coming at you fast as karma is a "b". be blessed that you are working and your job is a good one. don't even think of taking a leave for anything as you might be in the same shoes the op is in experienced or not.

i didn't notice anyone being hard on the op. if anything i agree with the advice that has been given. initially, i thought it was a step down unit, since the pts are between med-surg and icu, but a step down usually only has a ratio of 1:3. it is apparent that the working conditions are not safe for pt or for op's license. i think the best thing is to quit with a 2 wks notice. i understand, there are a shortage of jobs and it is hard to be without a paycheck, but imagine how much harder it would be if you were sued and had your license taken away due to the shenanigans at that hospital. and, i doubt the facility would back you up, in the case of a law suit. op, stick with your gut instinct and give them the boot. good luck!

tokmom, BSN, RN · Aug 20, 2011

who in the heck answers the phone and checks the tele monitors? :eek:

I agree with the others. Don't even mention this place on your resume.

applewhitern, BSN, RN · Aug 21, 2011

This sounds like a couple hospitals I have worked at also. One ICU I worked in did not have a unit secretary, and we had to watch monitors for the med-surg floor, too. To make it even worse, it was staffed with just one RN and one LPN, so the RN had to do all the push drugs, critical drips, blood, etc. Another ICU I worked in had only one person, period. You took 3 ICU patients, and did not get another nurse until your census was up to 4 patients. That left you alone to turn, bathe, clean poop, etc., a ventilated patient by yourself. Fortunately, I was an experienced nurse so really didn't have a problem in either unit, but for a "new RN" I think that is very risky. I am now in a hospital that staffs us very well, actually, sometimes we are "over-staffed." I wish you the best and hope you find your niche.