kickme

In the summer I posted about my plan to leave my visiting nursing job and pursue my foot care business full time. The foot care plan has unfortunately not panned out and I have been unable to leave my job. I am at the point where I just want out of the profession completely, but am having difficulty finding other employment, and believe me I am not fussy! I think my nursing credentials/experience is actually hindering me - why would an experienced nurse want to work retail/customer service, etc? I really think I would have better luck leaving it off my resume altogether. I have made a couple of changes. An email was sent out a couple of months ago that if we were assigned a client for which we did not have the skills to provide their care it was our responsibility to find another nurse working that day who would be able to do a joint visit and "train" us in the skill. So, for example, I have no IV skills, and am assigned an IV client. I have to put out a blanket email begging my already overscheduled colleagues to meet me at my client's home at a specific time and teach me a complex skill in under 30 minutes. Unbelievable. Unreasonable. Unsafe. Disrespectful to clients and nurses. All to save the managers the duty of actually matching skilled visits to appropriate nurses - in other words, from doing their jobs. They also put out a list of administrative-type duties they would like the nurses to complete ON THEIR DAYS OFF, without pay, "because we are a team"! So, at that time an email went out that an RPN was required three days a week for a shift care client. I took it to save my sanity and keep the pay coming. It's working for now but I will only keep it until I find another job...ANY other job. I am sad that it has come to this, but it is what it is. Our company is slowly circling the bowl and I can't see them being in business a year from now. Maybe that is a good thing.

I remember having that fear...you are not alone. I have to tell you that I learned more in that first year on the job than I did in school. I was lucky to have supportive co-workers who encouraged me to ask questions and if I felt I was in over my head at any point I said so. The first step is the hardest, but in a year this fear will be a distant memory! You can do it!

That would be amazing if my biz became successful enough that I could provide the opportunity for other nurses as well!

Thanks - it seems fitting some day! I want out of homecare completely - I would rather do just about anything than that.

We had one CEO who would leave semi-threatening group messages to the nursing staff. The union rep would call her up and within an hour of the first message she would leave another, telling us all how we misunderstood the first one and grudgingly recanting, coming just short of an apology. You could actually time the whole process. Would have been funny if we all weren't working under the monster.

Thanks for your support, and I am sorry that you experienced what you did. It is a shame that so many employers take advantage of the already giving nature of their nurses and drive them to the brink

I have been nursing for about 12 years as an LPN in homecare, and to be honest, I have hated it most of that time. The only things that have kept me from walking away a hundred times are the (mostly) wonderful people who are my patients and the need for a steady paycheck. Two years ago I took a four month medical leave due to depression and anxiety. It made things crystal clear to me - that I needed to get out of this job but needed to be realistic and practical about it. I dropped to part time in order to cope with the stress, and amped up my side business in foot care that I have had for almost nine years (There is another story there, lol). This has been effective until recently. In twelve years I have seen many managers, CEO's etc. come and go and have watched each of them tear down existing, working policies/programs in order to make their mark. The most recent plan has seen the hiring of 5 new managers and the disposing of 14 lower level employees. We had a nurses meeting this week to tell us of all the additional responsibilities we will have to take on as a result. There is NO time in our day for any added work. We already get attitude when we insist on a lunch break (nurses shouldn't expect breaks you know). Many nurses, some there for over 20 years, flat-out told management they would be leaving. They were met with blank stares and silence. I try to support my fellow nurses when I can but we have many new nurses, both new grads and experienced, and I am getting very tired of cleaning up "messes", finishing others' paperwork, placing urgent supply orders because others neglected to do it, calming irate case managers over situations not of my making, etc. I have had clients tell me that other nurses have told them they "don't order supplies, etc", which IS all of our jobs. I am sick of getting no support from management. The list of my complaints go on and on My anxiety and panic attacks are slowly returning and I refuse to fall back into a depression over this job. Today I decided to call a local service agency that showed interest in having me do foot care for them on contract, and will quit dabbling in my business and make a go of it. A month from now I plan to be GONE from this agency, and the thought is so gratifying! Sad that we nurses so often put ourselves last, when life is so darn short!