I love my job on a good day. A good day being we have excellent staffing, a pct, all the supplies i need, pharmacy bringing meds on time or even close etc. As time goes on Im finding less good days and more bad days and I struggle with going back to get my masters degree.
I hate management lecturing everyone on VAP when I don't even have anything to clean my patients mouth with or how to take care of a central line when I don't even have a flush to use. Often there is no PCT and the nursing staffing is bare bones I can barely find someone to help me turn my patient (i really need 3 people to turn them) but then we have to sit through in-services about pressure ulcers. Then a high risk patient falls (shocking) but the nursing supervisor wouldn't staff a sitter even though they know the patient is high risk for falls and then we have to sit through a fall reduction plan. An important medication is ordered and I have to harass and stalk the pharmacy and still wait hours to receive the medication. The overarching theme is you have to do everyones job on top of yours and that is frustrating and a burden.
I love the high acuity of where I work; constantly being challenged. I love the relationship we have with our doctors and how we manage our patients. I love my coworkers and management.
If I knew my job would be mostly good days for the rest of my career I would not go back to school and I would continue to work in ICU until retirement because I really love it, Im constantly challenged and learn new things every day.
