wswigert

I am a new RN and I was hired right away at our community hospital. Shortly after I was hired we had a HUGE exodus of experienced, good nurses. I would say that maybe half of the nurses hired after this mass exodus are still there (last November I was hired). We seem to be hiring non-stop, and most are new grads with no experience (or LPN-ADN nurses like myself with LTC/homecare experience). It is very overwhelming to be put on a med/surg floor with 4-6 patients and almost all the staff has 2 yrs or less experience(the almost blind leading the blind). I agree that there is a shortage of experienced nurses. Nursing is a dynamic field, it is ever-changing so there may be a shortage today and an overage tomorrow. I choose to be thankful for the job I have, and smart enough to not leave one job before having another lined up. To the ones who state that younger nurses aren't willing to stay for the long-haul, that may be true. I'm not a youngster, but nursing is my second career and I have never seen a more bitter bunch of people than hospital administration. They seem to expect employees to give up their lives in order to work there. They are unforgiving and inflexible. When I became a nurse I had no idea that it was supposed to BE my life. NO. It's my JOB. My life is what happens outside of work and if it makes me a "bad nurse" because I refuse to sacrifice my home life for over-time then so be it. Money is not what drove me into nursing. I became a nurse to "do good and help people" not to make a huge sum of money. Also, I refuse to be taken advantage of by my employer and I refuse to sacrifice patient safety because "management" thinks it's ok for 2 nurses to care for 12 patients without a tech or a unit clerk. Unsafe, unfair working conditions may, I dare say, be one of the driving factors of this "nursing shortage" because we refuse to work in unsafe conditions.

Our nursing instructor just replaced a clinical instructor for that same reason. I would think that you were talking about her, but I'm from Ohio.

Sounds like you have a pinched nerve in your cervical spine. A massage therapist may be able to get the muscles in your neck and shoulder to relax enough to relieve the pressure on the nerve. I see a chiropractor about 1-2 times a month for my lower back(3 bulging discs and some arthritis). It seems to help--along with lots of quality time with my beloved ice pack!! Best of luck to you.

I know exactly what you're going through. I got my LPN in 2011 and worked for about 18 months. I have been working as a massage therapist(I've been licensed 12 years) for about 16 months now. I am currently in my 2nd semester of the LPN-RN transition. I'm hoping that being an RN will open up more opportunities for me. I worked at 2 different nursing homes and I have vowed not to go back. As an RN you have so many options. Just follow your heart. When I left nursing in April 2013 I didn't plan on going back, yet here I am.

I almost hyperventilated when I looked at my Intro to Adult health syllabus. The Transition class was a snooze and this class is a kick in the teeth. I am also working part time and I have 3 children and a husband who is doing his student teaching. Feeling overwhelmed.

I've been a Licensed Massage Therapist for 12 years and I left that career to pursue nursing. I received my LPN license in 2011 and worked for almost 2 years in that field. I never felt like a competent nurse, although my fellow nurses and aides all said that I was doing a great job. I felt like there was so much that I didn't know and worried that I would make a life-threatening mistake. This worry translated to me getting diarrhea during every shift. So, I quit and went back to massage therapy. I am currently in a transition program to obtain my ADN. I just wonder if anyone else out there has been where I am and can offer me some words of advice, encouragement, etc. How long does it take to feel confident in your abilities? There were moments that I thought I was really "getting the hang" of this thing called nursing, then all hell would break loose and I felt like a chicken with it's head cut off. Please tell me it gets better with experience.