NurseEcho

On the other hand, if they kick you out the next day, you are eligible for unemployment benefits, at least in the state where I live. It never ceases to amaze me that we, as professionals, are required to give at *least* 2 weeks notice. But it is just fine for an employer (at least in a "right-to-work" state) to let someone go on the spot, with no notice and no recourse, for no clearly stated reason. I'd be OK with it either way, as long as employer and employee were bound by the same rules. But it just does not work that way. That's my vent on the topic :angryfire

Wow, Agent99, I could have written your post a little under a year ago. I was in a similarly toxic job, was sick all the time, and went per diem to give myself a breather and figure things out. Bless my hubby for bearing with the income cut and covering our health benefits. When I cut my hours and was able to think straight, I started looking for other options and wound up taking a job in a doctor's office. It saved my health. It's not stress-free, and it was a small (but smaller than I thought) pay cut. It was well worth it, though -- I work 8-5, no weekends/nights/holidays/call. I get a lunch break every day. No one bothers me on my days off. I feel like a normal person. And I *really* enjoy getting to know patients. I have the time to do more teaching and preventative care. I'm in an adult cardiology practice, but I would imagine there is plenty of demand in peds since so much of that is OP and clinic based. Just something to think about! Please, though, take care of yourself. You are fortunate that you have a spouse who is supportive and can pick up the slack for now. Let us know how it works out for you.

I'm coming from the opposite perspective -- Yankee born and raised, now living in the South where my accent (not to mention my unusual ethnic last name) instantly pegs me as "not from around here." It's no big deal. I have fun with it; sometimes it opens up interesting conversations with patients and families. Once in a great while, I catch some "Yankee go home" attitude, but I just shrug it off. As long as you're giving great care, nobody with any sense is going to mind your accent. I only wish I could pick some of it up; I love the way Southerners speak but it never sounds right coming from me.

As one who also just quit my job (albeit under well-deserved duress from my MD), I urge you to take some time; step back and plan your next step. If you are still living with your parents you at least have the luxury of being able to take some time. I'm sorry, unless your father is a med-surg nurse he has no business judging you. If you are wishing harm on yourself, such as wishing to get in a car accident, I urge you to seek out your employers EAP. Even a session or two can have a profound effect on your outlook. Do NOT hurt yourself; if you feel you are in imminent danger of doing so get thee to an ER. It is a job. It does not define your life or your identity. You are very young; you have not "wasted" your money on an education. Feel free to PM me and I will share some more thoughts. But just by being where you are at your age, you have a lot going for you. Don't give up now.

I don't just come out and announce it unsolicited, but I will work it into the conversation. it usually becomes pretty clear that I have some sort of professional background because of the terminology I use, precise drug names and dosages, medical history, etc. I have (respectfully) requested that tests be ordered because I think there is a problem there. I am usually right. I know my body and am not afraid to advocate for myself. When I can tell the staff at an office is having a rough day, I recognize and acknowledge it. In no way am I trying to intimidate anyone; I am just trying to send the message that I have more than a passing knowledge of nursing, I empathize, and would like to be spoken to on a peer level. To me, it makes a huge difference in teaching if I know the client's professional background and I would like to afford them the same respect. If I encounter a specialty that is Greek to me (e.g. my DH had spinal surgery; I am a cardiac nurse; I was lost), I am not afraid to speak up there either and say please explain this to me in the simplest possible terms; it's not my area and I am freaked out to start with. What I hate is when a patient comes to me full of complicated questions, seemingly wanting me to take hir questions to the cellular level and projecting that "Let's see how smart you really are" attitude. I mean, really, just go ahead and tell me you're a Harvard-educated whatever-ologist and you're worried about your mom. I may not be able to answer your every question, but I still feel compassion for you and your mom and if at all possible I will put you in touch with someone who can meet you on your level and set you at ease, take it to the next level, whatever.

Well, the inevitable finally happened today -- I had to give up my job. I have been working on CCU for 6 months and was really enjoying it -- I just love cardiology, and there's always so much to learn! Even though I don't think I could have kept up the pace and the stress forever, I was really hoping to give it a good couple or three years. I had an awesome manager and a lot of good supportive co-workers. But, the position was night shift, and despite my best efforts, my body would not let me do it. I wound up with major depression, a 22-lb weight loss, iron deficiency anemia, and recurrent sinus infections. I tried cutting back my hours but even that was not enough. My doctor wrote me the letter today saying that I needed to get off nights effective immediately. My manager was (and has been) very understanding about it, but there is simply nothing available on day shift and in fact a few people are waiting for positions to come up. It is a large organization and I do have another PRN job there for now (I am also an echo tech). So I am not completely high and dry, and there may be other options in other departments. My performance was never a problem. For heaven's sake, I'm an experienced nurse, something will come up either here or in some other facility. Still ... it is just hard. I really wanted to do this. I feel like a failure. My husband does not understand why I'm crying -- "You were always so sick, you should be relieved!" If you've read this far, thank you for listening to my vent. Hopefully there is a happy ending somewhere, but right now I am just sad, sad, sad. Stories with happy endings -- or just a little prayer/good thought -welcome if you can spare it

Salary and benefits aside, the first thing I'd want to know is the nurse-patient staffing ratio. Also, how many (if any) agency/temp nurses does the unit use and how much turnover is there? No amount of pay or benefits is worth being put in an unsafe situation night after night because there is simply not enough staff to provide good care. If the hyper-educated suits could just grasp this simple fact, there would be no "nursing shortage" and I'll bet the bottom line would improve as well.

When I graduated, you needed several years of experience and a battering ram to get into Labor and Delivery. If you have been offered a job, and this is what you really want to do, go for it! As a CCU nurse who is scared to death of all things mother-baby, I salute you

I have been working on CCU (nights, 7P - 7A) and generally like it a lot. But I am curious as to how other CCU's handle baths. There is a lot of pressure on my unit to get most or all baths done on night shift, and it continues to be a sore spot with me. It's not that I don't want to bathe my patients. Certainly, if they are ventilated and sedated and don't know the difference between night and day, it is a great opportunity to do a full assessment of every square inch and catch/treat skin breakdown problems early. But, I also get a fair number of patients who are alert and oriented and TIRED. It's bad enough that there is sound and light pollution, round-the-clock meds, labs to be drawn, etc ... it seems downright cruel to me to wake someone from a halfway-decent sleep at 3:30 am and go through the whole bath routine for basically no other reason than day shift's convenience. Also, we are always short-staffed on nights. Everyone will pitch in and help out with the most critical folks who require multiple assists, but there are only so many hours in the shift. And I only have one back -- I am not going to sacrifice it, or my pt's safety, for lack of assistance. As it is, I do almost always get at least one of my pts bathed. If they are responsive and able to tell me they're just not up for it, I chart it. Still, I get dirty looks in report for saying a pt has not been bathed. Is this common? How does your unit do baths?

Well, I'm happy to say it all worked out. I set up the meeting and my manager seemed pleased that I took the initiative to address my recent excessive absences. She was open to letting me reduce my hours rather than leave altogether. I will have to change status to PRN, thus losing my PTO and benefits and putting myself at risk of having shifts cancelled if the census declines (haha -- not something that seems likely!) I still have the other PRN job (at the same hospital) -- given the pay increase (now that they don't have to subsidize benefits) I will make about the same $$ while working fewer hours. And I still have medical, dental, and vision insurance through my DH. I am very blessed to have that to fall back on. Right now, some sacrifices in benefits seem a small price to pay for having a schedule that will allow me to maintain a decent income without compromising my health further. If I am not well, I can't care for patients well. It's too bad it's come to a choice like this, but I plan to do my best to make it work.

I agree. I have 5 pairs of Crocs in different colors. They are the best work shoes I've ever had, as well as the best gardening shoes and walking shoes. And when they get nasty, I just throw them in the washer with some Clorox Cleanup and an old towel, and they come out like new.

"The Carolinas" is an awfully big region and I can't speak for it all. But in the part of NC where I work ... YES!

I've been in CCU for 5 months now and really love the job. I was not a brand-new grad but pretty close -- only a few months of experience on a tele unit. If they are used to having new grads and have a solid, structured orientation program, you will probably be fine. 16 weeks -- wow, I'm jealous; I only got 8 and am still trying to get into some of the classes I was promised. As for fainting -- well, if you've made it through nursing school without fainting, that's a good start :) I fainted once on the job, about a month ago, and it was because I did not take care of myself. I was helping with a dressing change. The wound was extensive, but far from the worst I've seen, and I'd had the pt before. Suddenly everything turned to yellow spots, my fingers began to tingle, and a perceptive fellow nurse managed to hurl me onto a nearby recliner before I hit the floor. VERY embarrassing! The reason I'd passed out is that I hadn't eaten in over 24 hours. I'm having major problems adapting to night shift (I've mentioned it in other posts and won't belabor it here.) The previous day, I'd decided I would rather sleep than eat, drink, shower, or anything else. I'd come home that a.m., took an Ambien, and literally just woke up in time to throw on scrubs and run out the door. Moral: take care of yourself! It's stressful! I hope you remain free of sleep issues -- most people do just fine. But remember to eat regularly -- even when there seems to be no time -- and stay hydrated. I now have a power bar on me at all times for when there's no time for a decent meal, and I keep a big cup of ice water at my desk to sip every time I'm charting. Congrats on the new position and good luck!

Lori, my DH had a lumbar laminectomy 3 years ago at age 41, and it was a success. His pain was better immediately after waking up, although it is a long recovery and the rehab takes a lot of patience. He'd been having sciatica pain for several months. His doc ordered an MRI, stingy insurance company deemed it unnecessary and refused to pay. His doctor just kept prescribing Vicodin (which he rarely took -- he is very stoic) and stretching exercises. One day, he woke up and the bed was wet. He'd lost bowel and bladder control and had numbness down his right leg with some paralysis in his foot. Finally got the MRI; turned out he had cauda equina syndrome. His doc got him hooked up with a neurosurgeon who took one look at him and admitted him for an emergent lumbar laminectomy. The surgery was successful, but it was a long road. He was in rehab for over a year, and thanks to a wonderful incontinence center and some very patient and skilled nurses was able to regain enough bowel and bladder control to live a normal life, though with lots of bathroom breaks. He was in Depends for a few months and that was really devastating to him as a young, athletic man. In addition, his first urologist (who we promptly fired) told him he would never regain sexual function. Also, of course, devastating -- and DH proved him wrong. He still has accidents, but they are rare, and he has some residual numbness in his foot. He still has some pain that is eased with stretching, water therapy, and occasionally steriod injections. But he has always had a very positive attitude, refuses to sit around and feel sorry for himself. He works full time, plays golf, gardens, swims, and has a full life. The neurosurgeon later told him that in fact he'd had mild spina bifida that was never diagnosed, and the disk had been a ticking time bomb all his life. As far as recovery time, he was back at work part-time six weeks after the surgery, but he has a desk job. He continued to have improvement in function over about a year, when things leveled off and remained what they are. I wish you all the best with your surgery. It can help tremendously, and I will pray that yours does. {{{Hugs}}} to you. :flowersfo