pensivern

I'm almost 10 mths in and very glad I made the change! I wonder how I survived 39 yrs of med surg..... Since I've become comfortable in pre and post op I've been training in lasers and corneal treatments- so there is some variety. The patients for the most part are pleasant and the hours are ideal- no call, no holidays. We actually have breaks and lunch time everyday! Change is always tough but after a few months, it feels like home.

Thank you- I’m in the middle of my second week- the people are very helpful-I just feel like a fish out of water. My previous job was so much more stressful and complex but I didn’t have to focus so hard mentally as I’m doing now- paper charting and a crazy assembly line pace- it’s fast yet time seems to drag because I’m nervous all the time. My previous job flew by. I’m trying to take one day at a time and hoping in a few months something will click and this out of place element I’m experiencing will vanish.

Thank you, helps to know I’m not alone in these feelings.

Thank you Toomuchbaloney!

True, I was expecting to be majorly disrupted, just wondering from other long term nurses about how long it’s take before everything feels routine. 3 months??

I've been a med surg RN for nearly 40 yrs and have recently started a new position in an outpatient eye surgery center. While my former job was extremely stressful, I felt completely competent, was the "go to" person for everyone and the time flowed very quickly. The 12 hr shifts were become exhausting however and I'd been looking for a job with less stress that would carry me into retirement (in 3 years.)- no holidays, weekends and closed Fridays. Day one was yesterday and I felt like a fish out of water- all paper charting, and although a fast pace I felt like time dragged because I'm not used to the work flow..... or Staff or facility. I'm just curious how long it's taken for such a role change to become comfortable- I'm an anxious person to begin with who dislikes change so this new job is causing some major dread and remorse for leaving my comfort zone. For those people who've made a job change after a few decades - how long did it take to adapt and feel like "one of the team" and not the "new girl"?

Does anyone work in an outpatient eye surgery center? After 39 yrs of bedside nursing on a very busy stressful med- surg unit, I decided to look for an easier job to transition to as poor staffing, (new nurses leaving in droves), management changes and 12 hr shifts are slowly killing my 61 yr old body. I feel fortunate that I landed a pre/PACU job in an outpatient eye surgery center open M->Th. Finally no weekends or holidays. Everyone seems nice and relaxed and they actually get 3 uninterrupted breaks per 9 hr shift! While I feel relieved to be escaping hospital madness, I’m finding myself very anxious about the transition. I’m fearful I’ll miss being the competent, experienced problem solver on the floor….and just not jiving with the limited patient contact other than some teaching and applying eye drops…. For those “ mature nurses” who wound down to a much less complex job, was it a difficult adjustment ? I’m hoping I’ll hear that I’ll regret not making the move much sooner!

Wheaties, just curious if you ever adapted to your job in corrections or eventually left?

Just curious if you took the eye surgery position and if you like it? I’m starting in a similar position soon and anxious about the transition although only 3 years away from retirement.

Does anyone work in an outpatient eye surgery center? After 39 yrs of bedside nursing on a very busy stressful med- surg unit, I decided to look for an easier job to transition to as poor staffing, (new nurses leaving in droves), management changes and 12 hr shifts are slowly killing my 61 yr old body. I feel fortunate that I landed a pre/PACU job in an outpatient eye surgery center open M->Th. Finally no weekends or holidays. Everyone seems nice and relaxed and they actually get 3 uninterrupted breaks per 9 hr shift! While I feel relieved to be escaping hospital madness, I’m finding myself very anxious about the transition. I’m fearful I’ll miss being the competent, experienced problem solver on the floor….and just not jiving with the limited patient contact other than some teaching and applying eye drops…. For those “ mature nurses” who wound down to a much less complex job, was it a difficult adjustment ? I’m hoping I’ll hear that I’ll regret not making the move much sooner!

59 and 37 years as an RN

WOW!, I was hoping I’d be feeling pretty good at 6 weeks, not 6 months post-op. How long did you try PT before undergoing the procedure?

I’m 59 yrs old and work on a busy med- surg floor- 12 hr shifts. A few weeks ago I injured my knee doing yard work- heard a big “ pop” , knee gave in and have experienced pain ever since with walking. I‘ve had similar knee pain before but never to this degree. I went to work anyway for 3 shifts and wound up limping an hour or 2 into the shift. I had an MRI which showed a medial meniscus tear- I’m not sure if it’s new or further tearing from an old tear. Anyway, the ortho I saw wants to do a trim. All the DPTs I know say “ don’t do it- PT is just as effective and it’ll lead to needing a TKR eventually”. I’ve been out of work now for 5 weeks doing PT and it still hurts with walking. I can’t take off an indefinite period of time for it to resolve non surgically so I’m leaning toward having the procedure. Can anyone who’s been through this tell me your experience with the procedure? How was the recovery? Was it successful? Thanks for any feedback!

I'm a big fan of ASMR, for some reason it only helps me drift off during the day for short naps, never at bedtime.

That's what happened to us, they allowed a few to do a combo or straight 8s, but as those people left, and new hires only being 12 hr shifts, they want to convert everything to 12s. No, it's not fair, but either is freezing our pensions or taking away a week of vacation from me since we merged with a bigger healthcare; we've never been unionized. I Cant fight it so I'm trying to roll with it. The only 8 HR person mixed with 12s has disadvantages anyway- coming in at 3p is the busiest time and I often have to give up a patient 4 hrs into a shift to take a new one so the night girls coming in at 7 pm don't get the first admit, plus there's a lack of commaraderie when you don't have a crew beside you who work the same hours.