monicanurse

I do regret it at times. I hate several things about it: doctors that are complete jerks to you just because they feel entitiled to. You have nurses that will want to know most of your business , women are just noisy as hell. Dont wait for anyone to back you up on anything. Nurses will backstab you at the drop of a hat. Over the years, the one thing Ive seen is there is a lack of respect for nurses and it is growing; Ive seen a lack of professionalism in the profession in general. You will work immensely hard for your money...and the money in my opinion is average but not great if you consider the stress, fatigue after work. If you still want to help people, there are other avenues ....speech therapy, occupational therapy , physical therapy. I agree with the poster that you should volunteer at a hospital and try to become friends with nurses. Ask them for advice. You will get mixed reactions. At the end of the day, know what you are getting into.. Do your homework. I wish I had.

I have been in a similar situation until now. I finally found something else and it is great. You have to be persistent and start looking now. Anything nearby that you can think of. Think outside the box too. Some of the best nursing jobs are not in LTC or hospitals. You are right. Life is too short to be miserable every day. It carries over to your home life as well. It is truly not worth it. We didnt become nurses to be abused and overworked but to help those that cant be helped. It sounds to me , your manager needs to do the quitting first! You are worth much more than that. Just make sure you have a back up before you quit since right now , you do have a paycheck and want to keep the paycheck coming. As far the husband, he is just being practical. I think if he knows you have something lined up, it will ease his concern.

I have been in healthcare for 7 years and Im already tired and burned out. I have the same conflict you do. I have a good heart and want to help but it is almost impossible to deliver good care in the way they structure things for nurses in the hospital. I am stepping away from the hospital and moving into working as an occupational nurse for a large fortune 500 company. I am so much happier in this environment. What is good about nursing, even in this rough economy, is that you can absolutely change where you work , your role, ect. to suit your values and needs. Just be patient. Dont be restricted to the hospital walls. If you do choose to work there, arm yourself with patience, acceptance and flexibility. I agree with the above poster, dont be the "grumpy" nurse. That never helps. Even though Ive been sick and tired of policies , regulations, back stabbing, Ive never let that show at work. Ive always just taken action for myself. Griping doesnt do much good.

Ive never done charge on this floor but I really thought I was being taken advantage of. I think being in charge though is not the easiest job but I also agree with the above opinions that sometimes you have to use those legs that god gave you to take an admit if it relieves the other nurse from taking all of them because she has the empty rooms.

Hi all, I was at work the other day ( and I havent been working there for very long) and I had gotten one new admit . 20 minutes later , I get a call from the charge nurse saying "you are getting another admit." I asked her if any of the other nurses had gotten admits and her answers was "you have all the empty rooms." In my opinion , this is a crazy way of doing admissions. One of the other nurses only had 4 patients. She could have taken the admit so I spoke up and finally she gave it to her. I find this a little ridiculous that one person gets stuck with all the admits. What are some ways your hospital unit does "fair" admits? Is there such a thing anymore?

You are probably in the wrong branch of nursing. Have you considered ICU? You can actually think more with ICU nursing versus just "doing" ...if that makes any sense. The patient load is less....but it is still stressful. I would make a list of what your ideal job qualities would be and then try to find areas of nursing that meet at least 1/2 of your list (being realistic).

I would be very interested in knowing what has worked in other units as far as teamwork improvement and overall nurse morale ....something that I think is so hard to do these days because of the extra work that every nurse is asked to carry around with them throughout the day....please share some good feedback on what has worked in your particular unit. Thanks!

Trusting another coworker to take care of your patients is not something some nurses are willing to risk. Half the time, if they said they will take care of it, it means that they will only go to that room if called. What if one of the patients is a high fall risk and they fall because that nurse is not looking out for "your patients" Unfortunately, in nursing, we have established a culture of "that is not my patient" , that is not my assigment , therefore I am not going to answer the call light, I wont help that patient. That is up to the nurse assigned to that patient. Until we dont foster a different culture , Im afraid most nurses will take on this attitude. Sometimes I dont feel comfortable taking a break because Im afraid I'll miss something because the other nurse ultimately does not care that much about my assignment, and only "her patients"

When Im in a situation like this, I always ask myself....what will happen to my license if I take this patient on and the rest of my patients? what is the chance of me doing something that will put my care at jeorpardy of losing my licence? Im not surprised they were mad at you. Its a shame that you get this kind of treatment when they are nurses themselves and should understand this. They should be commending you for wanting to be a safe nurse. Did they not think of that? In this case, it is what the masses do that can put you in trouble. I applaud you for standing up to your conviction. IT takes bravery to say no....funny thing is ....you have every right to! There is so much unsafe assignments that nurses accept these days...it boggles my mind. I have had better responses when Ive stood up for myself. That, plus alot more respect from fellow nurses. Some have been irritated....but so what??? They wont be defending you the day you lose your license.

RNperdiem: To answer your question, Im applying for a job right now that I have a high chance of getting. Yet, Im smart about that kind of thing. .I wont quit this job until I have my job secured at another place. I have savings for at least 6 months.

What absolutely irritates me is when you work in a unit that has a staffing crisis, where everyone is stressed, yet the nurse after you expects you to get everything done perfectly! Sometimes I work without a nursing assistant, yet I hear the night shift always complains about this and that. You are so right! Helping eachother would reduce the stress by so much! You wouldnt be stressed at the end of your shift to remember everything. I know by the end of 12 hours.....I forget things! it is called being human.

Do I have to put this Job on my resume? Im not planning on even putting it on my resume since it wouldnt be beneficial to list an employer where I had such a short placement.

Hi all, I started a job almost 3 months ago. I interviewed initially and was told almost every lie in the book to get me in. Now, after seeing how things are, I truly know I dont want to work there and dont see myself being there for more than a few months. I know most people hack it out for a year. I just dont see the point of this . Being miserable for another year doesnt appeal to me. Im honest with myself and I want to work and enjoy my job. Im having anxiety though about talking to my supervisor. How is the best way to break things to her while still showing some respect for the opportunity given to me? I thought of giving 30 day notice instead of two weeks, that way she would have enough time to look for someone else. Any suggestions? Ive never had to do this before. I feel horrible with the situation but I just know this is not the place for me.

I dont think anyone on this board can adequately judge your marriage except for you....so maybe airing things out here is not the best idea. Sounds like you need to just vent, which is fine, but dont replace the advice here for sound advice. The only advice is what you are telling yourself about your situation. As far as school, Im also in NP school with a very supportive husband. If he wasnt supportive about me, i wouldnt have ever married him. I dont see myself with a partner who doesnt support my goals and dreams. My own definition of a good relationship is one in which you personally shine to your best ability because of what the other person brings to you. Again, that is just my own experience though. I also support his goals and we both work and we play hard. Life is too short to not follow your dreams.

I would hate to think Im spending all this money on NP school to be making what Im making now as an RN in the near future. Yet, I did not get into NP school for the money but more for the role it allows me to play. I guess in a weird way, it might attract people that truly are doing it for the right reasons instead of just money. Food for thought? ( this is assuming the overall reimbursement for services will go down and salaries will decrease as well)

Somedays I honestly do! Somedays...I remind myself of the fact that I do help people, it is an extremely flexible job and it allows me to have security in a rough economy. On the other hand, I am starting to hate "hospital" nursing more and more, to the point where it has led me to go back to school for an advanced degree. Nurses dont get half the respect they used to. It is a sad state of affairs. I also see alot of unprofessional behaviour from the part of nurses, mostly I think from the stress they endure every day. They end up venting in front of patients or saying things to patients that are completely inappropriate. Some days....I just feel like a robot...doing my job and not really enjoying it. So far , Im not impressed with my manager at all...I went up to her the other day to express some concerns ....and she gave me a big speech ....but didnt really listen to a word I was saying. I think some managers like their office view and forget to care about the "floor work" that nurses endure day in and day out. Ive only had one manager step up in my 7 years as a nurse. She would put on scrubs and work with the rest of us. Now....that is a manager! But they are hard to find. I think im getting close to being done with hospital nursing. Hopefully , I'll be happier outside the hospitals walls.

thanks guys...that helps. I just need to work on the assertiveness part. Oh...and you are right Sparrow...sometimes nursing (especially these days) is a great diet! You end up eating your lunch on the way to doing something else for a patient. My job though is big on taking a break...because they deduct it from your paycheck anyhow. So you might as well. :)

Hi guys, Ive managed to lose a total of 50 lbs on my own after my baby was born 6 months ago. Im very proud of that. Im choosing to live a healthy lifestyle. Yet, since I started my new job....they constantly have pizza parties, cookies, .....plus...plenty of job stress to top it off. How do you guys deal with this? I have told them Im wanting to keep the weight off...yet, they constantly offer me cookies, ect? What is a girl to do? I know I have to be firm...yet, I find myself giving in to the temptation and Im already gaining weight. I dont want my job to sabotage my weight loss , any suggestions?

I have been a nurse for a little over 7 years and I have seen the responsibility of nurses becoming greater and greater, to the point where everything is left for the nurse to do. Hospitals will eat you right up if you let them. I am lucky enough right now that I can work part time , but I just found out my manager wants me to work two days on call ( which usually does not mean on call...you always have to come in) a month. I work part time, but with these on call days, I will be working full time and that is not what I want so I have stood my ground and just told them I will only do it temporarily. It has gotten to the point where for me, it is not worth it to work full time. If you guys need a break, you might want to teach in community colleges...and just do one shift in the hospital once a month. Many community colleges are looking for nurses to teach future nurses. Or you can get an office job at a doctors office, work in pharmaceutical research....or for insurance companies. There are other options. Although I like taking care of people, it seems more and more these days, they are making it impossible for us to do our job. This is something that has led me to think I dont want to work in hospitals anymore. If I do, I just cut my hours drastically. It is not worth it to me! You have to really ask yourselves , is it worth it at the end of the day? If the answer is no, then you have your answer. You should enjoy your job! If it doesnt add to your life, I would say, be patient and look for other options. I know with this economy, it is hard , but keep on looking for something that will make you happy. after all, the patients pick that up. They know if you are unhappy with your job. It doesnt do anyone any favors. As far as time off from work, yes.....I can relate. It takes me two full days to recover from 2 / 15 hour days ( 12 hour shifts have become 15 hour shifts will all the charting and patient load). First day, I want to sleep most of the day and I allow myself to rest half the day if I can. The second day is much better but I have no energy to go to the gym . I try to eat right and exercise on the days I do have off. I try to go out once a week with my hubby on date night. YOU are the Most Important ! Nurses ( or caregivers) forget that! Take care of YOU!

I always stand out because I always help , I even volunteer to help. What gets me.....is ....dont these nurses remember they were the new person on the block once? In my honest opinion, I see nurses who act so unprofessional , and this is just one example. What kind of example are you setting for future nurses or new nurses? we have to pay special attention to the message we are sending to new nurses. It is our responsibility. Whoever works with me always know I am more than willing to share my expertise. It is called the act of being selfless, something nurses should know about.

Many of you say to delegate....unfortunately, I work on a floor where we have one nursing assistant on the floor for 30 something patients....Everyone is stressed. Even the charge nurse ( who doesnt take patients but takes care of all the orders) is swamped sometimes. She has helped with IV sticks , which I am not so great at. In the hospital where I work, we have no IV team, we often have to transport our patients outside when they get discharged, we sometimes have to do accuchecks, give baths...depeding on whether we have an NA for the weekends ( sometimes we dont). IT is literally impossible for me to do all this tasks.....That is why I thought maybe some of you have innovative ways of accomplishing things. THanks for all the advice. All I can do is my best.

I have the same problem as the above thread. I find that I can do assessments and meds ( meds sometimes takes me almost 3 hours with all the interruptions in between) that I dont have time for charting until close to 1 pm. Then I get pulled away by a patient needing pain meds, ...ect...ect...Sometimes I stay 1.5 to 2 hours past my time at work just to finish all this paperwork.

Hi all, I was wondering if you guys would like to share what you do to help you with time management at work. It seems the charting situation in my hospital is off the charts! The program they have is extremely cumbersome to navigate through. I feel like it takes me just 3 hours to do charting in addition to my 6 patients. I didnt have lunch the other day till 4 pm, because I was so far behind. We also use computer scanning for meds. It seems like more and more responsibility is being placed on the nurse these days. What are some of your own "personal style" choices that you have found helpful in finishing work tasks in a timely fashion.....any help is appreciated. Thanks!

Thanks for all the advice. I actually went up to my supervisor and gave her specifics of some things Ive observed and provided possible solutions. This didnt go over very well. Maybe because Im the new person on the block. My manager tried to address things by talking at me and not to "me" necessarily.

Thanks marielina! You too! I think hospitals , especially right now, are all in crisis. Unfortunately, they are cutting back on nurses and wanting nurses to do more work than they are capable. It makes me want to get out of bedside nursing, eventhough I truly care for people and want to make a difference in my so called life.