NRS86

I completely agree with you. I'm only roughly 5 yrs in which is sad. I loved school, love making a difference and making pts happy. It's the best feeling when they say thank you or gave me a hug even just for the littlest things, it filled my heart. But once the reality of it set in with upper managements unrealistic expectations especially with a skeleton crew nursing chewed me up and spit me out. I became very depressed and anxious. I tried changing floors, same crap different setting. I went on antidepressants, would walk into work having panic attacks. What kind of life is that to live, for what? My patients lives are important but so is mine. I think same as you I got waaaay too attached and personally invested. I can't help it thpugh. It's not a switch I can just turn off. So I left the hospital setting, I've lost a lot of my skills but I'm alot happier. I'm just trying to figure out where to go from here. Is nursing even for me? Not with the direction it's headed, kudos to you nurses who stay in it! It's funny you say that about Costco, I would fantasize about working at coffee shops lol.

I fully think they are competent, my point was that in my experience I have NEVER seen or heard of them accessing ports. Its the legal aspect of it that I am worried about, especially when they want me to write up the policy and procedure for their company, I do not want my name all over something that implies they can access ports if in fact they cannot. I've been searching all online and have only found they can insert peripheral IVs. The other day I had another CT tech ask me to flush a pt's picc since she cannot do that, so why in the heck would they be able to access a port if they cannot even flush a picc?! Also, the NM tech asked me "so which way is the line facing" and she was pointing the catheter all sorts of different directions. So after that I feel validated that I should question their legal ability to access them. I didn't mean to come off egotistical, I truly was curious if other nurses on here have come across this in their experience and if anyone could point me in the right direction, thank you to those who provided links! I know it varies state to state too, I just wanted a general idea of whats out there.

100% agree. Any place that offers sign up agreements like that, stay FAR away from. They have those agreements for a reason, and its not usually a good one.

I too started my career on an ortho m/s unit. I hated every minute of it. Not one day did I walk in feeling good. I did that for about 2.5 years b/c you hear the same bs "give it a year". Well I did and then some, and my anxiety got out of control that has now turned into depression that I now am on medication for. A job shouldn't make you feel so horrible mentally you need medication (in my opinion). I then moved to the er thinking maybe I need to build my confidence and experience up and then I will feel better about how I'm doing. I couldn't last 6 months there lol. And I just don't have the personality to work in an atmosphere like that. I finally built up courage to leave the hospital for good, such a hard decision but my health was being affected and I knew it was time to leave. I now work in an outpatient center and LOVE it. Don't get me wrong, the hospital experience helps tremendously, but it is NOT for everyone. And don't feel bad if its not. Unfortunately, you will at least want that year of hospital experience to market yourself for a position elsewhere. But don't settle for something that you are so miserable in! life is too short!!

I'm in Arizona. I don't know their exact credentials which I should figure that out. I completely agree with you about it not just being about sticking someone with a needle. It'd be like me (rn) trying to scan their patients, that's not in my scope so I don't understand why they are thinking its in theirs to access ports???

I hated it!!! until I left the hospital, now I love it :). I'm kinda bored now but I'll take bored over being overstressed and overworked with little pay! I did not like what I was seeing in the hospital, and the situations upper management puts you in to save a buck.

So does anyone know of or heard of ct,mri, or nm techs accessing ports?? I've never seen this in my experience but at an imaging center I work at they are discussing training a few of their techs to access ports. I know they can use them once accessed but I don't feel comfortable having them actually accessing it. I feel like they are working out of their scope doing this. But maybe I'm wrong and this is a new thing I have not seen yet.. hopefully not though...

yep, I should have took it as a sign when I dreaded clinical's during nursing school!! But same here, I didn't want to quit and always was told "It'll get better", NO! it doesn't, it never gets better! LOL. I love the field of medicine but I like the non-clinical side of it. It also doesn't help where I work in my unit most nurses haven't been there longer than a year, hmmm if turn over is that bad its not just me!! I was a nice, happy, and confident person before entering the world of bedside nursing. Now I am bitter, short-tempered, beaten down, and depressed. I literally feel this job sucking the years out of my life! Life is already too short to be utterly miserable. I'm not saying I expect to have a job I skip to in joy everyday, work is called work for a reason. But I never EVER had a job that made me so unhappy in my short 15 years of working.

I'm feeling the same way as you and still do after 3 years! Med-surg is awful but there are few who love it and God bless them for it! I'm trying to get out into clinic type jobs, insurance, or outpatient surgical centers. I don't mind patient interaction, I HATE bedside! I think if we had more support and help it would be better but its not going to get better. A nurse said to me the other day how she likes bedside and actually likes (or doesn't mind) changing briefs! I guess some people really do love it, not all of us do and that's okay. I've stuck it out because I didn't want to let down my family and wanted them to be proud of me. I went to ER and thought it would be great experience and how my family would be proud of me but I'm miserable still and I'm learning I need to stop doing what I think other people want me to do or care about what they think about me. I go into work almost having anxiety attacks and am dealing with depression that I've never felt before because of my work situation. Do what makes YOU happy! Whatever that is, who cares what anyone says what you should do. Your not them and they are not you. Everyone has their own path they need to follow.

IMO, this seems to be an issue everywhere and getting worse. Patients are sicker while staff is being spread more thin. It's scary and dangerous for both patient and nurse! I left floor nursing thinking that ED would not necessarily be easier but that I would have a lot more help since there are techs, docs, and better staffing. Or so I thought. Well I was wrong! Very very wrong. I was also told by management that they won't put me with critically ill patients for weeks until I start to feel more comfortable. hahaha what a joke that was. I feel like I mean nothing more to my hospital than just a warm body to fill gaps in the staffing hole. I'm ready to just walk away. It's not worth it to me any more.

Ive been a nurse for about 3 yrs now and just moved from medsurg to er for the experience but am learning maybe im just mot cut out for bedside at all. I would love to wah, i have a baby but i could figure out daycare for her so i could wah. Im just terrified of stepping out of my comfort zone into the unknown. I just know i am miserable right now and need to build the courage to make a change. Anyone make that leap and regret it or not? Just looking for other similar experiences and encouragement. Thanks!

Wow ive been feeling the same way lately. I just started in er and im just overwhelmed with the ****** snd horrible things i see. And not just at work but on the news as well. I cant handle it anymore. Its almost putting me in a deep depression that its affecting my physical and mental health. Im just heart broken when i hear or see anything that happens to children especially. Im thinking about quitting my job even. I just dont feel as strong as other nurses are, i feel like im gonna snap one day.

So I currently have a few years of med/surg experience and am very interested in nicu but I also have an interested in er. So long story short I know have interviews for both floors at the same time! So I know neither floor can choose me but I'm curious if there are any previous ER nurses on here that moved to nicu. What is your opinion and experience of each.

I know how you feel about being miserable and taking your frustrations home with you. I've been on med/surg for 2.5 years now and I still hate it, just not for me. I rarely have good days. And it is not that I don't like being busy because I do, but the load that the hospital puts on us is ridiculous and at times not safe. For example, getting 2 post op patients back to back while having a confused total care patient and another patient who needs pain meds literally around the clock or even getting a new admit on top of this. Its too much sometimes. While precepting, I clicked better with some over others. Also, in nursing you deal with an enormous diversity of personalities and egos. It is not easy. I have a charge nurse who in the beginning of my career would yell at me for the dumbest **** like one time I got an admit that I honestly barely got report on and they were on their way up. So I got them settled in and had another patient to deal with, so my CN went in to help him to the restroom and I didn't have his new patient "box of goodies" (toothbrush, socks, hand sanitizer, ect…) in his room yet. Not that he needed anything from it at that moment but she had to go on her ***** rant and pulled me out of my other patients room to yell at me about this. At the time I took it so personal and would cry at home about it and anything else she yelled at me about. Fastforward 2 years, I learned she's just a ***** and has zero people skills!! lol. Thats just her personality and she really has difficulty talking to people. So now I just brush it off. Anyways, sorry to go off topic a bit but my point was we can't be expected to love everyone we work with, we just have to learn how to work with each other. I also want to say that just because med/surg isn't for you (and me) doesn't mean we shouldn't be nurses!! There are nurses who LOVE med/surg and good for them but just because you don't doesn't mean your a bad nurse or that you shouldn't be one. Maybe bedside isn't your thing so you can look into non-clinical areas. I'm trying to figure this out myself right now also. But like you I can't let this take over my life any more, I need to move on. I think you should give it a year and get that experience then move on.

Wow, this is exactly the dilemma im facing now. I have a 3 month old but i only work part time nights on med/surg. HATE IT!! I honestly would rather work full time in a job i love than part time in a job i hate. I have so much anxiety going into work that its hard for me to enjoy my days off with my baby. Im considering going prn at my current job and maybe doing private duty nursing prn also until i can get a position in post partum or nicu at my work. I just can't decide what to do, i wish i could stay home while my kids are little but we can't afford that. All i know is im very depressed in the position im currently in and its taking a toll on my health but its still hard for me to decide what to do also lol. I agree with previous posts, they are babies for such a short time and work will always be there (especially medsurg if your desperate enough lol). I think spending that time with your family is more important. And then when they are busy in school you can focus on your self and your career again.