emhkirkpatrick

After 23 years I have worked an interseting combinations of all sorts of shifts. I too found that different shifts have worked better at different times and situations in may life. When my 3 girls were real little I found that the 12 hour shifts or a combination of 2--12 and 2--8 worked best. My husband had more slack to pick up when I worked but the extra time off meant that the house was cleaner we actually had good meals at least 3 days a work instead of soup and sandwiches, carry out or those special 20 minute meals all working moms have in the cupboard and freezer-mine was chicken parmesan using bottled spaghetti sauce and tyson chicken patties. It was easier to get to the doctor dentist etc and my husband discovered he still had a wife cause instead of falling a sleep as soon as the kids were in bed I was better rested and able to stay awake a little longer at least a few nites aweek. I just left a job that was Monday thru Friday 8-4:30 with call on the nite shift and weekends This meant several 50-60 hour weeks and working with no sleep after being there all nite. This was getting more difficult to do as I have gotten older. I am back to 12 hour shifts 3 days a week--One daughter is married and the other 2 in high school and I am sort of looking forward to having the extra time off during the week--it has already paid off in easier to make dentist, doctor and orthodonist appointments. So I have mixed feelings about all shifts they all have their advantages and disadvantages and you have to look at your own situation to decide what is better for you.

Boy do we sound like a bunch of BOB's--That's bitter old bitches. Unfortunatley the profession suffers from a lack of cohesiveness among it's members. And I am just as guilty as everyone else of compalining and not doing anything about it. What is the solution? I'm not sure there is one. I do make good money compared to a lot of other people but am I paid for what I 'm worth? No. Hospital costs whether for profit or non are driven by government regualtions and insurance compaies......And that means both the unsafe situations we are asked to work and the money they pay us....are here to stay. On this bulletin board is a petition that can be signed and will be sent to George Bush and Al Gore to call attention to our plight ......will it help.....I doubt it. (Look for the petition under Unsafe in the bulletin board list) Our solution may be to report thes situations to the head of the hospital board in writing to our state and federal legislators. Did I help this discussion find answers and solutions? No ! But it felt good to vent.

I agree with Becky--I have been a nurse for 23 years mostly in critical care areas--there are some wonderful doctors and some real stinkers out there. But I have been blessed by working with some of the best. The medical director of one unit I worked in told every resident going through our service the first time "Trust these nurses--They are experienced, knowledgeable and are with the patient 24 hours a day we only are here for short period of time each day." How can you not love a doctor like that? Matter of fact he told one resident one time that most of us could and did function like interns in most settings because of the actuity of our patients and the standing protocols that left us with a lot of autonomy in patient care decisions. And the biggest baddest doctors in most hospitals at that one were ***** cats-The open heart surgeons. They always listened to our opinions and though they did not always agree with us frequently they would say "You know you might be right and that sounds like a good idea let's try it." I have worked with some physicians who do not respect nurses no matter how often the nurses have saved their a**. But on the whole I have found that those doctors frequently have no respect for their own colleagues or any one else. But respect must be earned and that is the biggest problem nurses have. If the doctor keeps getting stupid phone calls at 2 am from you he is apt not to listen to you when you really have a problem at 2 am. One way to combat this whole situation is to study and question and learn your job. I have found over the years that when I have questioned doctors about a particular therapy and the reasons they are using it three things happen: first I learn something new to apply to my practice; second I learn something that I can help to instruct other nurses and the patients and his family; and third and most important I earn that doctor's respect because I have asked intelligent questions about his patient's care--He or she knows that I am interseted in his patient and interested in learning. Actually in several years of nursing I have found that I frequently am instructing even attendings in new modalties of treatment for things that are not in their specialty. That also earns you respect.