Quitting time?

[nurse lala, BSN, RN]

What is common to all nurses? Our jobs are difficult. At least for the early years, our profession challenges us on levels we never reckoned with when we signed on. We have to deal with irritants all day (unless we work off tours when administration is gone), our crazy colleagues, the ever loving MH patients and their crazy families, short-staffing, short supplies, and what ever new tiding the day brings.

Truly our work is not all that horrible all the time. The rewards are not measurable in terms others can understand. Over time most of us adjust to the expectations. But every day there is usually one or two constant sources of irritation, or maybe a new irritant.

Reading the posts on ALLNURSES, my favorite Nurse blog, one thing is evident. Many nurses have valid issues that bear discussion. What bugs me is the number of posts that recommend quitting rather than providing functional guidance. This has perplexed me. Quit? Things have to be pretty rotten to quit without even trying. RNs are trained to problem solve.. To develop communication skills. We know about theories of development and motivation. Why not apply these skills that work so well in nursing, and apply them to the work place?

Nurses are are one of those fields in which we can readily transition to other fields because of our critical thinking skills. Our training make un great managers and leaders. So I am confounded by the posts that do not help explore the problem or assist in problem solving.

Are jobs that easy to get? I wonder if nurses are more mobile these days and can just move to another city or state? Even if one has many hospitals in the neighborhood, one gets a reputation in the field. Not working gets expensive. And the resume doesn't look good when one doesn't have any length of time in any facility.

There're times I have hated my job, still are episodes, I had to take a look at myself and adjust my attitude. By focusing on the bad stuff I fed the negativity. This just reinforces a bad attitude. No pity pot for this groovy chick. My goal is to figure out how to address the things that cause me stress. To grow as a professional by having the crucial conversations to help motivate change. To act upon what I know to be right, not just for me' but for my clients and my colleagues. But quit? Not likely.