N7NP

Exactly my thought. Unless you are working as a recruiter for Vandy's MSN program? If your sitch is so rosy, with all expense paid ride and an SO willing to pay all your other expenses...what os the problem?

If anybody actually believes (nobody in MN does) that "wage collusion " didn't and doesnt happen between the MNA and the hospital association in MN? Please. That other big world renowned system gave EXACTLY 6% after giving their normal 3% last January. Out of the blue. Just from the goodness of their hearts. NO collusion here. Nope. Uh uh no way would a world renowned hospital system sink to controlling wages while they reap record profits. NOPE.

Pro-union nurse here. That said. MNA secured 18% over 3 years. That's 6% each year. Inflation this past year was at almost 10% and is now "down" to 7.1%. First year of raises is now erased and in negative territory. If inflation isn't tamed to historic 2% YOY....those raises aren't even keeping up with inflation. Second. That other huge system in the state? Already gave their nurses across the board....6% raises this year. Not union and did this at least a month ago to start Jan1. NO collusion? Uh huh. The announced "we will strike for 3 days and then come back, promise " really? That isn't how striking power is used to actually enact meaningful change. Striking is to make the employer aware keenly that workers have value, and therefore will effect the employers' bottome line severely because of the skills needed to do the job and the expense of temps covering the holes. We chuckled at how the MNA is quick to reassure everyone "there is absolutely no wage collusion" and a yearlong forwarning that a whole 3 days will be sacrificed if the employers don't listen. We likened it to a kid warning he was gonna hold his breath until mom and dad gave him what he wants. Look. Unions are effective when employers have respect for them and fear what kind of disruption will happen if true negotiating doesnt occur. I worked for the CNA and they mean business. They walk out and it all stops dead and they don't return until they get a good contract. MNA gave unions a real black eye, especially to the nurses that work under them and to the rest of the nurses in MN. I am glad I don't work in MN anymore and am NP. This nonsense needs to stop with employers playing shell games with what they "give" to nurses. They GAVE NOTHING to these nurses, in fact, insultingly kept those raises to BELOW INFLATION.

What your implication is....is that these Nurses were behaving in such an unethical manner as a reaction to how poorly Emory treats them. Personal accountability. Professional ethics. Nobody forced these nurses to get on their phones, nor does short staffing force a Nurse to sit on their phone for hours on end during a shift.

I suppose my point here is.....we are discussing yet ANOTHER lack of judgement and professionalism using....social media. Draconian management techniques in our industry are directed at patient to staff ratios being insane, mandatory overtime, etc. I do not believe that nurses acting in suuuch an unprofessional manner is a "reaction" to mandatory overtime. I see this with senior nurses as well as new grads. It has to do with ETHICS, personal and professional ethics .....OF THE NURSE, not the facility.

Well my best advice would be, then, to behave as professionals and we as employers and providers and customers of the service of nursing will treat as such. Just a thought?

Just read an extremely well written POLITICAL commentary on Salon from a guy named Chauncey Vega. I am not gonna debate politics. My point to mentioning this opinion piece is the content regarding how 50% of Americans can't read at a 6th grade level, unable to think critically because of.....SOCIAL MEDIA exposure which effects young minds and their basic ability to focus or think critically. Yes. The article is about politics. My point is what the author is saying about who we are raising in this age of social media and what effect this has on our society. don't care whether you're red or blue. This type of behavior is being cultivated and social media is the main driver. Go read it if you like. Critical thinking cap engaged.

Um....they had a pulse? I worked at the #1 "clinic" in the world---and this was rampant. New grad nurses everywhere, all on their phones, nowhere to be found---yet the patients put up with it (sometimes) because of "where" they were a patient. The problem isn't why didn't the hospitals "notice" how immature the nurses were----it's that there is no floor anymore for the "quality" other than being licensed. I know, right now, someone who is a convicted FELON, who diverted patients' meds (and that's worse, in my opinion, than stealing from a pyxis or not wasting after administering the pt meds. Just outright didn't give the patient their meds and then used them herself)---who simply moved away from that state (AZ) and to another---and the new state just bent over backwards to find a way to make it so she could work as a nurse. Yeah....there's a problem here. Tik Tok and other social media sites---gotta say---it does separate the wheat from the chaff. The scum rises to the top so that people can skim that crap off and dispose of it appropriately---and yeah, that's what I think of these 4 "nurses". They need to go back to working at Hooters where maybe they'll feel a bit more at home in that classy environment. Take the phones away. Period. The phones must be left at the NMs desk when on shift. Emergency calls can be made to OTHER phones than the staffers' own cell....(a very common lie nurses use to keep their phones with them). If you need your phone, you go and see the NM. Think this is draconian and treating nurses like children? How many times do we have to see this sort of nonsense before we realize that yeah....some people just cannot and will not act like an adult and be responsible/professional in their behavior. A friend just told me a story about an ICU Nurse at this same "major clinic" that wanted out of the constant hard work of being under the watchful eye of very discriminating patients (some from very wealthy Gulf States)...so she decided to transfer to IV Infusion....first thing she was reprimanded for.....standing in a corner while patients were assigned to her for IV access....checking her phone for hours on end. Yes. A rule has to be made that cell phones are to be left with managers. Because we're raising a whole batch of perpetual children who have zero self control.

Exactly this. Working with human beings, especially ones that are inherently "ill" in some way, shape or form whether real or imagined (and this last type is the root of some of this angst)---is just stressful in and of itself. The entitlement of this society, that IRL nurses and doctors behave like those on teevee and there is this absolute expectation that their problems are the most important of all. What I like about NP is that I can (and do) "fire" people as patients all the time when I run up against that intractible attitude that their time is more important than mine. I appreciate that Nursing used to be a vocation of sacrifice and dedication----but just like everything else, it became monetized---and therefore, we are no longer under the same belief system as yesteryear. We need to evolve with the place society is headed---and leave behind this sacrifical lamb thing. It's WHY employers are able to exploit us to the degree that they literally drive some into suicide, depression, alcoholism, divorce---and just post your job before the corpse is cold when you fall. Think about what is right for you. Not what you're "used to" (co dependency is rampant in nursing. it's akin to trauma bonding. very very very much like what the military does with their "break them down, build them back into what you need" system. if you don't believe me, take a long look at why Nurses and Doctors are either prohibited from or discouraged from, seeking professional mental health assistance. Because it would shine a light on what employers are doing to the workforce in healthcare in the name of investors' profits). Case Management? Still working with/for physicians or insurers that have a profit based model. Stress galore. AND you get the kick of having a truly destitute or needful patient that deserves better, yet you can't make that happen. School Nursing? Have you SEEN the parent/teacher conferences where these nutjob parents are threatening admins because someone on staff dares to be LGBTQ? Yeah, not for me....parents are NUTSO and can be dangerous. Nope. Spa nursing? Injectables? Um...okay...heard this from maybe.....a thousand different nurses who are convinced this would be a thing to do. again....you're working for/with people who have serious image/confidence issues----again with the personality disorders and the hand holding and the soul sucking. Nope. I do suggest looking into remote work though, if you insist on Nursing and only nursing. But no matter what you choose, Nursing will always have a "people" component. Unless you do legal stuff, which....its a very small and cut throat world there too. If I hadn't done NP----and I did this because I was where you are right now---hitting a brick wall with the crazy patients, doctors, employers and colleagues---I would have left and gone into IT. Computers are much nicer than people are, they don't crap the bed, they don't call in sick 5 minutes before you're going home---and people are grateful....truly, honestly, unabashedly THANKFUL that you have the expertise to keep their machines running, whether it's a college campus IT department or Mr. Fixit in the neighborhhood. I would never have gone into nursing had I known then what I know now. And YES---I also was prevented from saying ANYTHING to the "incoming classes" at orientations. I got to attend 3 and we were warned in no uncertain terms----you do not talk negatively about this profession. Ever. you encourage them to continue and even if you know what's coming, you don't ever let them know about it. ever. I quit assisting with new student orientations or info sessions for possible candidates---because I won't lie. Students asked and I gave an honest answer about what the daily life of a nurse looks like in a hospital. ANY UNIT.

What I find interesting is that people don't include themselves as a "supportive boss". I don't work for anybody anymore. I am an IP NP. If I make money that money, that's on me. If I don't, that's on me. I don't answer to anyone except my patients----and it's not hard to be good and decent to people who shell out hard earned cash (if their insurance doesn't cover it) to see me as a Practitioner. Yes. Agreed. 12 hr days with 8 semi to critical patients (that was my assignment in the trauma unit)....and no lunch, no pee breaks, lazy and nasty co workers on their phones....yeah....it's a bad place to be for anybody. Her husband doesn't HAVE to work, folks. He already did his time, breaking his back as a mason. Ever tried that whole manual labor thingie? Not for sissies. She wants a lead on something that can make the transition smoother. So yes. Sacrifice for a year or two---scrimp and save for a bit---come out with another degree....whether it's continuing on to NP or it's something like Paralegal or even Law School. Have any interest in IT? My husband does this....he went to a Community College, graduated with an AS in "Computer Engineering" (very fancy term, but it's just a stepping stone). NOBODY knows how to even use their computers----let alone what to do when something goes wrong, software companies pay big bux because these pencil pushers don't know jack about how a computer works either. It's like Nursing in a way. Once they realized that they had a skill that these muckity mucks can't even fathom and can't run their businesses without....they get BANK and treated well. Nurses? Well....you can see here from some of the responses why Nurses are treated the way that they are. No respect for each other, or for themselves in a lot of ways. If you don't like how hospitals run nurses into the ground....and you really have hit the end of your tether....you will do what you need to do in order to get what you believe you want. Fair warning though....you WILL have to sacrifice for a bit in order to reset.

I have read some of your postings, Davey Don't. Always someone else's fault that something went wrong in your career. Some BAD NURSE who just couldn't appreciate you or "had it out" for you. Always pointing the finger at others. This poster wants advice from NURSES who have experience in the same boat---and you just cannot bring yourself to add any value. First, this isn't your personal club. ANYBODY can come here and look for advice. It's not a "rando" website. It's a site for Nurses to support Nurses. It's YOU that has a problem with everything and everyone, coming here and wanting "validation" for what you've done in your own career....so the nasty snark has to be directed at people genuinely seeking advice.

Wow. No. They don't all want "validation for their own viewpoint" or are "attention seekers". I think maybe YOU need to stand back and evaluate what you are actually offering here to ANYONE. This isn't "some random website". This poster came her becuase it's a NURSING WEBSITE WITH.....OH........NURSES. Wow. I think maybe you need to retire or something. This poster wants an honest answer. Has anybody got ideas as to what ELSE she can do with her life (or his) that will afford them the same FINANCIAL stability. So. Yes. I worked for NP and now do telehealth, consults and some legal work. It's not glam, I don't have to commute, I don't have to pay for or find parking, I don't have to put up with ***ahem** nasty co workers with nothing good to say because maybe they've just squandered their own careers and are mad you are willing to change your life to better yours. I know a few people who have done travel ER for 2 solid years---took the jobs no matter where they were, as long as they were over a certain amount (usually 4K a week)....then retired to a job (or not) that they actually like. Painting adobe houses in the desert or whatever. Not being sarcastic. Wow. Just wow. And these new nurses wonder why they loathe this profession. Davey....really....just knock it off with the negative commentary. Like my mother says...."you got nothing good to say, keep your mouth closed". Or....Mark Twain... "It is better to keep your mouth closed and let people think you are a fool than to open it and remove all doubt."

^^^THIS. Plus. It's easy for someone like me to say this---someone who planned meticulously, arduously and ruthlessly to be financially stable enough to stop working altogether for a whole year---"just go PT or PRN!". It's not that simple for many. Some are single earners or have debt mountains so high that anything less than 1.0FTE is impossible. My process was to do whatever I needed to do in order to succeed. I knew I wanted to become an NP---I knew what the workload was going to be like (we all did, clearly, graduate from nursing school....so it's not a different calculation)---and I decided failure was simply not an option. It's about what your priorities are. What are you willing to do in order to achieve your goal? During nursing school, I worked PT, I stopped seeing friends and family, I stopped spending any money unless it had to do with eating or a roof over my head. This "social life" thing and extras....great....terrific....but tell me....is that movie night out or vacation for a week in the Bahamas going to get you to graduation? What is your successful graduation worth to you? Yepper....I was that girl. I was laser focused on nursing school and now NP. So...I took a job as a Travel ED Nurse in one of the most horrendous hospitals I've ever seen (pretty much describes all of them at this point)...because they were offering $5500 a week after tax and a 6 month contract. I lived in a crap Residence Inn, away from family and friends, went to work---came home from work---studied and wrote papers---and THEN did my clinical. I was financially set as I did not spend a dime I couldn't justify. When clinicals rode around....I quit working. Scary? Nope. Because if I failed school or boards because I was trying to "have it all"...instead of sacrificing for the brass ring for what....a year?....landing me........oh....right back in the ER where I desperately wanted to escape from with a whole mountain of new debt and a whole lot of crushed dreams. Decide what is worth it to you more.....and do that.

@myoglobin I see you haven't posted in over a year. I signed up SPECIFICALLY to speak to you about PMHNP. I have read your postings for several years and it inspired me to start PMHNP even in my "advanced stage" of my career. Our backgrounds are almost exactly the same---and with this being a second career in healthcare, I am well aware of the realities and have ZERO illusions about what or how this new chapter will unfold----I simply would like to start a PRIVATE conversation with you about your experiences (BTW---I have pointed 2 other RNs to your postings and BOTH are now in PMHNP school with me---and we all love it. Thanks, TO YOU) and how you navigate. I can't PM you at this time, as I simply signed up in order to speak to you directly. I would appreciate the opportunity to speak to you if you have the time. stfsgt(dot)michael(dot)bonnett @ gmail