Seaofclouds

It can't hurt to ask. We are technically contracted for rotating shifts. We have several that want straight nights, so they get to stay on straight nights and the rest of us (that would prefer straight days) have to occasionally do nights as there aren't enough people that want straight nights for the rest of us to have straight days. It ends up being about 2-3 schedules a year when we have to flip (instead of every other as we are contracted).

You should ask again for the information. It varies from place to place. I've worked some places that shift differential is for 7p-7a and others that have a 3-11p differential and then a different amount for 11-7a . I've worked some places that have weekend differential and some places that do not.

What are the responsibilities of the PCAs on that floor? Do they obtain the BS's before meals? Sounds like some of the tasks could have been delegated to your PCA and that may be something you need to work on/address. Did you ask your preceptor their thoughts on how you handled your day?

If you are referring to Case #14C-4972 (4.5 million), it wasn't Vande. Here's the settlement information from that case: http://www.juryverdicts.net/YebuahVerdict.pdf

I took a counter offer once. I wasn't really looking for change, just decided to put my resume out to a few places to see what came up. I got offered a job with a raise and when I discussed it with my manager at the time, she asked what she could do to keep me. I asked if she could match the pay increase and she did so I stayed. I was there for a few years after that and only left because we moved out of state.

@Idiosyncratic Have you tried room darkening curtains, eye masks, white noise, etc to help you sleep during the day during your stretch of nights? Have you tried talking to the director to see if day shift may be a possibility? If it's not, you may have no other choice if your doctor really thinks you need to be on day shift than to look for another position.

Working with healthy children is very different from working with sick children and their worried parents. I'm not saying you can't do it, but if you lost your motivation for nursing before and are only considering it because of the possibility of being a pediatric nurse, you may want to do some more research. See if you can shadow a nurse in a pediatric unit and go from there. Also, know that pediatric units can be very hard to get into, so you may have to work in another area of nursing before you get to that.

@kbrn2002 That sounds like an amazing experience. I had the opportunity to speak with someone a while ago that use to write questions for the NCLEX and the little bit she was able to share about the processes sounded pretty intense. The trips to Chicago definitely sound like an added bonus.

Not much to share for me either. I use to have big ideas of where I would go with my nursing career, but after trying some of those things, I quickly learned those aren't the areas for me. I will most likely be a bedside RN for life and I'm okay with that.

What did your doctor say/recommend? What is your current schedule? Are your nights clumped together or spread apart? Have you tried switching things up with your schedule a bit to see if anything helps? What seems to make it hard for you to sleep during the day? Is it the light, noise, or something else? What do you do during your time off from work? Are you being sure to take time for you when you aren't at work? As for your unit and how it functions, what issues seem to make it not function well? What do you think could be done to fix those issues? You mention not having a manager, but is there someone else watching over and handling the unit?

The one year in med-surg is a great way to develop and master your nursing skills. Does everyone do their one year before doing something else? No, they don't. Some get other positions right away. The thing is, no matter where they go, they are still new and that first year is still tough. You are finding your way now (instead of the nursing instructors or preceptors way). It gets better. That being said, do you already have ideas of what you think you want to do aside from bedside nursing? Is it all bedside nursing that you think is too much or just specifically your current unit? All areas of nursing have their pros and cons. I would highly recommend trying to stick this out and give it a chance. If you can't do that, then try to shadow areas you think you are interested in. If you do that, be sure to ask the nurses about their worst days and how often those days occur. Ask about their staffing, patient acuity, and how often they get lunch or get out on time. You might be surprised by how many other areas don't have it better than your current area.

You sound must more enthusiastic about the UM position. I personally have never done that, so I can't really say much there. I have been a Nurse Manager before and it was not for me. I was on call all the time though and had to go in frequently for call offs. The M-F day shift sounds great, until you find yourself covering call offs on evenings, nights, weekends, and holidays without extra compensation. I would see how the second interview goes and maybe dig deeper into things like how often the manager has to go in to cover staffing call outs. Do you know why the current manager is leaving? If they make you an offer and you haven't heard anything about the UM position, you could always ask for time to consider their offer and follow up with the UM manager at that time.

Have you reached out to anyone at your state BON to discuss this situation with them? I have heard of similar happening to others and some have had positive outcomes by getting the BON involved.

You are the only one that can really decide which one is going to be best for your situation. I would look at pay, benefits, staffing ratios, scheduling, weather issues (such as having to drive that hour is snow storms/hurricanes/etc), and the wear/tear on your vehicle. I have done short drives and long drives (and some in between). I'm at a point now where I have no desire to ever do a long drive to work again. Being a nurse has some great advantages when it comes to job portability related to military moves. My husband just retired after 22 years. I was always able to find a job where ever we went, but sometimes it wasn't the job I really wants. We've been in places where the area was saturated with nurses and areas that were in desperate need of nurses. Good luck with your move and which ever position you choose!

I'm kind of jealous too. I still have a long ways to go, but my husband is already retired (military), so we talk a lot about my retirement already. I can understand the bittersweet side of things. I hope you can find ways to enjoy more of the sweet side of the retirement.