Placed on Performance Improvement Plan - What should I do?

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Specializes in Rural, Midwifery, CCU, Ortho, Telemedicin.

Amen. I worked for the worst most bullying and "my territory -I'll eat you before I let you near it" places in the state (even if no one wanted their swamp ridden territory) They bullied another nurse to the point of her being taken by ambulance to an ER with possible MI. It sounds like we went thru the same nasties, I too had in multiple "centuries". But you do survive and realize that the horrors of having endured was not worth it - unless your last patient whose life you saved would not have been saved sans yourself. Give yourself a hug - :yes:

I am a manager and have placed staff on performance improvement plans. Some have been highly successful and others rapidly spiraled downhill. If you truly love your job, I would consider sticking it out but if the weekly meetings with the manager go poorly, bail quickly (after the first or second meeting at most). You have two clinical performance issues and the last one with the missed fetal heart rate is a seriously significant patient safety issue. That alone could have caused termination. I have never fired for attitude, it is a loser in labor courts and I won't touch it with a 10 foot pole. If you work for healthcare system, termination from one hospital could prevent employment at the other hospitals in the system. Know your HR policies. Some places refuse to allow transfers if you are on written disciplinary action so you may not be able to stay at your current employment but could work in OB in other hospitals IF your HR file isn't reviewed ahead of time between the hospital groups.

As one of the posters commented, do NOT go around asking how you were offensive. Everyone will deny the issue because they don't want to deal with it. . . they have already turfed it to the manager and this will be yet another example of 'attitude'.

The only thing I might add during the meeting with the manager is to ask "what are you doing well and what improvements have you noticed" since I am trying hard to live up the standards and expectations? If you get nothing in reply, it is obvious what you need to do. If your manager is willing to share what has been noticed as doing well and provides positive comments it is a more favorable long term outcome.

Good luck and your heart and critical thinking will tell you the next steps to take.

They say silence is golden. Yes, I would keep my head down, my mouth shut, and document, document, document. If the fetal heart rate was the only issue that was brought up, that is one thing. But when the manager starts in on this attitude thing, it can become a harassment issue. I know of someone who is being given a hard time because the manager does not like her hair and makeup. C'mon. Ridiculous. She is suing for harassment and will likely win. The only way to win with this type of manager is to sue them.
I have found that toxic managers are not generally the rule across organizations, but tend to aggregate in some organizations. Most places either work to eliminate toxic managers, or have such a toxic culture that these type of managers become endemic.
Yes I recently worked for a toxic workplace. The union knows all about it, other facilities know all about it. They have been sued a few times, but the toxicity remains. The building is full of toxic mold, both in the walls and in the people. I wish nursing was not this kind of profession but it is. It took me a long time to figure it out, unfortunately. Had I known sooner, I would have made a very rapid exit from the profession. I see no hope for it. The toxicity is at the top and it gets rewarded. It is like the cycle of abuse. It goes on and on. Until somebody outs them as they did with the clergy abuse in the churches.
Specializes in L&D, Mother/Baby.

I recently went through the same thing. I am a new grad RN recently approaching my 1 year anniversary as an RN and in L&D. 30 days before my anniversary I was called into the manager's office on my day off. I was placed on a 30 day PIP. Most of the areas cited as needing improvement, I disagreed with. I was told that I can't do a delivery on my own, I can't circulate a section on my own, I'm not comfortable attending deliveries as baby nurse, freeze during emergencies and that I'm not a team player. The majority of that list is pure BS. I have been circulating sections and doing vag. deliveries on my own for 7 months. The only thing even close is emergencies....I don't freeze but there is plenty I haven't seen yet and need help on something new to me. I'm a new nurse....this isn't unexpected or unusual.

Anyway, I left her office devastated and humiliated. Until that point I thought I was doing a good job. I felt like I couldn't trust anyone I was working with. I felt unsure of myself. Not a good way to work. I made it my goal to work my butt off so none could dispute that I can do it. I did exactly that. I worked my butt off.

At my first weekly meeting I was told that now patients are complaining about my exams and lack of knowledge. I found that interesting since in a year I have never had a complaint and have had many patients compliment me on my bedside manner and knowledgable explanations when they have questions. Never was I told what I am doing right...it just felt like nitpicking.

At that point I started looking for a new job. I was called in for my final weekly meeting and told that they wanted to transfer me to post partum. I submitted my resignation as I was offered a job at another hospital in L&D making better money. I had to do what I had to do. They were never going to see me as a competent nurse. It was time to move on. I gave 3 weeks notice leaving myself a needed 2 week break before starting my new job.

It sounds like you're getting the same song and dance. It's time to move on. Leave on your terms not theirs.

I never hear about this level of bullying in other fields. I really do not want to sound misogynistic, but I suspect it may be related to the female dominated nature of the profession. I hear a lot of women that believe the same. Having said that, I have definitely known men in nursing that were bullies as well, and female managers that were the salt of the earth. It is not universally women, or men, on either side of the aisle.

Very few do honest exit interviews for fear of retaliation. Toxic managers often extend their bullying to include bad references. If given the op I do them. Have some classics. Wish I could be a fly on the wall of those places. I have seen toxic managers removed from positions so they can no longer harm.

If you like the job and want to keep it, suck it up and make nicer. I think keeping track of your day and interactions is perfect and keeps you accountable to yourself, sort of like keeping track of what you eat while on a diet. My other suggestions forget about confronting the techs. Assume it was all of them and say to them XYZ I just want to make sure you feel comfortable coming to me if you need assistance or guidance, if I have ever seemed rude my apology its important that you know I am here to support you as well as my patients. Kill them with kindness. Thrust me I have been through this. You are not in a position as I was, I told my nurse manager unless she can give me an example or make up one similiar please do not approach me in this manner any more, for if I don't have an example I can't make the necessary improvements. If you could take the job or leave it I start looking for another job, signing up with an agency is a good back up plan while you look for permanent employment it pays very well and easier mentally to do sense you don't have a threat over your performance all the time. You are on a unit that requires constant monitoring of your patients, chart as you go or chart in 10 minute increments so that you can monitor your patient properly. thats why I am a psych nurse. I only have one organ to keep an eye on and that is the brain and its mentality. In ob you always have 2 patients to 1 which includes the fetus.

Plan 1: Six months in L&D will get you a sweet deal anywhere with a sign on bonus. Find a recruiter now. You can start travelling while you look. Beat them to the resignation and remain eligible for rehire.

Plan 2: Talk to your old manager at PP and try to get a transfer back. Citing incompatibility with unit needs. I would not go back to postpartum if I have 6 months of L & D.

Remember, in any nursing job, the first 3 years are crucial. They gang up against you and try to get you fired. If you survive 3 years, you can stay forever.

A new manager can also mean people trying to negotiate power.

It happened to me. Six months after my old manager left, I beat them to the resignation.

I know that the advice here doesn't sound very encouraging, and nobody wants to feel like they are whipped. I have been fired from a few Nursing Jobs and have walked away from a few, because frankly, sometimes work environments are just toxic, plain and simple. You will find another job, it will be a better job, and your life will end up being far improved when you bite bullet, face the inevitable, and take charge of your own destiny. There are essentially no commentators here who are encouraging you to stay around that place. Try to learn from your mistakes, get to a place where you can start off with a clean slate, and make yourself indispensable. Great things await, and a wonderful nursing career is just a decision away. Moving on can be a liberating act opening up a thousand possibilities that you never imagined. I think everybody here is rooting for you.

Specializes in Oncology; medical specialty website.

I was in a different situation. I was being bullied (and I mean the true definition of "bullied). It turned out that three nurses (who up until that point I thought were my friends) started ganging up on me. The one nurse was someone I considered a friend. It got really ugly and petty. I was called down to the CNO's office where I was given an action plan and told that I had to sign it. I got up and said "I'm not signing." LOL...CNO sputtered, "You, you have to sign it." I said "No I don't."

The stress was so bad that I wound up going on FMLA. When I came back, I figured out what was going on, so I put my head down, went to work day in, day out and socialized with no one. I spoke only when I needed to. I did my job diligently, was kind and polite to patients and physicians. Eventually some of my co-workers tried to get me to talk. I would just say I was fine, and that was it.

Meanwhile I worked on my resume. I took a course that put me in a position to get out of that job. I told no one what my plans were. The minute (and I mean the minute) I found out I had the job I wanted, I submitted my resignation. I told no one where I was going...I was that paranoid about them trying to scotch my plans. I only told one of the residents who was doing a rotation on our unit, and I swore him to secrecy. The funny thing is the nurse who I had thought was my friend tried to cozy up to me and find out where I was going. When she couldn't get it out of me, she walked around acting all b***h*** because I wouldn't tell her. She was one of those people who always had to be in the know.

That was the only time I ever filled out an exit interview's questions with exactly what I thought of the place. I knew that there was no way I would ever be going back to that h*******.

I am reading this thread with interest but somewhat dismayed that the content has moved from heartfelt advice to bashing of management (and other off topic areas) in general.

Yes, there are managers/ leadership that are toxic but I honestly don't believe that is the norm in leadership, yet many of the posters seem to indicate this is their norm. I am saddened to read of those experiences.

Yes, the goal should be frequent meetings and positive coaching with clearly written goals to know if it is working and if that is not going to happen, the original poster needs to look for other areas of work. There really are managers who will work with employees to turn around performance issues. Others don't want to take the time. In a specialty area, after time has been invested in orientation, I would hope that the manager is willing to invest some more in this employee.

I am not going to blame the victim, either as I write the next sentence. In critical care areas (esp. L&D, ED, and other critical care units) it does happen that breaks and meals get delayed. Those babies and ambulances have schedules of their own! Did it come across as whiney or 'testy' ? I don't know. There were some concerning care issues, some resolved over time. At times, the manager might resort to written action to get an employee "to pay attention" to what the concerns are. I have had employees with performance issues turn it around after they saw I was serious about holding everyone to similar standards. Two turned into the best employees on the unit and we worked hard together to change what was going to be a downhill track unless change was made. Both of us had to work together and I will admit the employees had to work hard and sustain it to have me believe the change was holding. Yes, as part of that coaching (PIP) contract I had to be VERY aware of the employee's work. How else could I give both positive feedback and constructive feedback? I have also had employees who refused to believe that they needed to adhere to patient care standards and were resistant to any discussion around performance improvement, including refusal to help their peers. They self-selected out of the unit.

The question that was asked was "do I need to look for another job". My answer was and still is 'maybe' but it depends on how open both parties are to working together to resolve issues & change performance concerns. "Attitude" is perception. Lack of teamwork (attitude?) CAN affect the unit as a whole and impact patient care. None of us were there to hear or see that aspect and only the poster can identify how she might have come across over time.

I hope the poster will share the resolution of her issues!

Try not to be dismayed. Be proud that you are one of the ones who are supportive and honest! It's who you are as a person that determines who you are as a manager. I believe someone else made that point as well. Thanks for that whoever you were. That is so true.

You sound like you may be a manager who would actually work together with your employees and respect them and their devotion to patient care and skills.

It's just that she is being bashed by management at work which tends to affect one's whole life. Then us others who've been bashed like that feel the need to tell their stories which may be horrifyingly ugly and not pleasant to hear considering what some managers have put them through or in the end what we put ourselves through for staying.

It is very hurtful, especially when someone is trying with all their heart and soul and the team won't cooperate. No man is an island. Not all managers are like you. So please don't be dismayed.

It is traumatic. Yes, traumatic to be bullied at work. Management is not encouraging teamwork at these places like you apparently do. Thanks for posting maybe somehow you can have a positive influence on these other destructive types of managers if they care enough to be on this site voicing their concerns in the first place. So thank you for coming on and saying something.

Try to understand also though, really and truly there are very bad managers out there. They are not all like you! There are so many variances in people and work environments but regardless of either if the team is encouraged to not work with someone that is to isolate someone it's not right. That's why it's called teamwork, right? Not to team up against! It's just time to leave if you are being bullied by a manager if she won't help support but yet encourage further bullying with her "team".

It would be a beautiful world if all managers were like yourself and would work together and make all equally accountable , to really support their nurses and staff, even if the managers were not nurses themselves. They just are not all like you!

Teamwork is fun. Isolation is torture. It really kills someone's spirit and drive. It changes who they are if they stay too long and let it. Have you ever asked another employee to write someone else up for rude behavior? Just curious? Is that politically/morally correct to ask of someone? To ask multiple people/coworkers?

Also is it right to tell an employee they should leave your/their work area before you write them up again? anywhere but especially at a 1 on 1 in a PIC meeting where the employee is getting off that day? after like 6 months being passed over by raises even? I'm asking please because you are a manager and this is an open forum and I would value your professional opinion.

Oh my thanks again. I better go get some things done for Thanksgiving coming up! :)

I take my work seriously because I worked so hard to get there/here like I know we all did. Thank you. We need laws for ZERO tolerance for bullying at the workplace! Please share.

Thanks for taking the time to post.:nurse::blink::barefoot: :nurse::cool:

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