So unhappy with my career

JQGRN · Jul 15, 2011

WOW! I feel the same way!! I am preganant with my second child and recently went from hospital nursing to community health. I feel like I am wasting my career but my husband was really struggling with our 2 1/2 year old, strong-willed:) son while I had to work every other weekend, so I got a 9-5 m-f. It does not pay well and I hate leaving my son so much. My husband works and is in school so I feel like I need to make his life easier, but I am truely unhappy with my schedule and career right now.

Annaiya, NP · Jul 15, 2011

I find it unbelievable that HR would say that to you. Do they not value an employee that they have hired? If they were a decent organization they would encourage growth and retention of their current staff instead of seeing them as easily replaceable. You may not have been working inpatient, but you have skills that a new grad will not possess. Can you make some contacts with managers on floor you're interested on your own? I would just e-mail the managers of where you want to work, let them know you are in the clinic now but really want to work on their floor and see if you can meet them for coffee or something. Or, e-mail the educator of the floor you want to work on and ask if you can shadow one of the nurses for a shift, because you think the floor sounds like an ideal place to work, but you'd love to get a first hand view. Then while you're there network like crazy! If HR wants to be bad, fine, just make your own opportunities then. Since you are already an employee you should be welcomed, not turned away.

merlee · Jul 15, 2011

JQGRN - - you changed jobs because your husband hasn't developed good parenting skills??!! Wow - - seems like you already have enough children, and I am referring to the adult there. It's too late for your job, maybe, but you all may benefit from some networking/support systems on dealing with strong-willed children. These are not easy children for ANYONE, but letting one parent off the hook doesn't solve the problem. Best wishes!!!

NIRE83 - - I agree with the idea about contacting managers of units you might like to work on. Don't take the HR person completely seriously. Forge ahead, keep looking. People make these changes all the time. Best wishes to you, too!!

strength4unityRN · Jul 15, 2011

Oh no no no, stop right there. Don't be so hard on yourself. I know you are a driven person I mean you were evidently a mom during school, and we all know nursing school is no easy walk in the park, let alone being a parent while in school.

They say the the first year of nursing is the toughest, and it's harder on us than most of us realize. I know you want to do more with your career, but don't think this first job has ruined any future chances of you getting into a hospital or working where you really want to.

The market may be stuck right now, but I don't believe your career is going to be stuck forever at a doctors office. Don't think that. My advice is to not give up, keep working towards that position in a hospital. In fact, any positions you see available be a little open minded about. You might have to try med-surg/ortho/neuro, etc, for a while before you get a position in peds. What I am saying is the buck doesn't have to stop here. Keep applying, visit managers, don't let somebody from HR make you think you just ruined all your chances, you didn't.

Don't give up on yourself, things in life happen for a reason, we don't always know why, but eventually when all is said in done it will make sense to us. Take the experiences you have now, and grow from them (both good and bad). What doesn't break us, will only make us stronger.

I wish you luck, and I hope to hear that you found yourself a job where you really want, and don't stop applying.

HouTx, BSN, MSN, EdD · Jul 15, 2011

Hang on a sec --- the OP was "screamed at" by the physician????? :eek: And HR is not taking any steps to remediate this situation??? They must be confident that the OP does not realize that this situation is 'actionable' from a legal standpoint -it meets all legal definitions of a hostile workplace. They have a duty to not only discipline the guilty party, but also to help OP move to a better working environment. What a bunch of A-clowns.

interleukin · Jul 15, 2011

You need to decide what life priorities you want to focus on right now.

Katie5 · Jul 15, 2011

Hang on a sec --- the OP was "screamed at" by the physician????? And HR is not taking any steps to remediate this situation??? They must be confident that the OP does not realize that this situation is 'actionable' from a legal standpoint -it meets all legal definitions of a hostile workplace. They have a duty to not only discipline the guilty party, but also to help OP move to a better working environment. What a bunch of A-clowns.

Unless there was a witness, completely subjective.

Plus she's pregnant.

But that's beside the point. I always tell my friends, nothing kills the soul more than emotional unhappiness or distress. Physical, you can bear( up to a certain point of course). Emotional eats at you from within.

I'm never one to advocate a person leave their jobs but if you have financial stability, then you should do that. Regroup and start again.

Otherwise, stay in this and start searching( which I am sure, you're already doing). Best of wishes to you.

Nire83 · Jul 15, 2011

unless there was a witness, completely subjective.
quote]
oh no, there were plenty of witnesses, and one of the interactions has actually been video taped by the medical assistant. it's awful, and i have gone to hr and met with upper management and the heads of the hospital. long story short their hands are tied and i honestly think there is something else going on making them unable to fire him.
thank you everyone for your thoughts and insight. i'm just really in a bad place right now and needed to move on, move forward, and the idea that this isn't possible just tears me apart.
yesterday the hospital actually came out with an official statement that no new grads would be hired in outpatient, because there is lack of training and support. i love how this is the solution....not that they should maybe develop rn outpatient support system and training/continuing education resources.
i just called the nurse manager from pedi and she suggested having me in to shadow next week, so i'm hoping that they will give me a chance. how is it possible that the system allows no room for growth, and how the heck would i ever get inpatient if i need inpatient experience to be inpatient? so stupid!
thanks for letting me vent! i know others share my frustration; but in the midst of it, it's easy to feel very alone.

Annaiya, NP · Jul 15, 2011

That is awesome that you can get a chance to shadow! If you are really miserable where you are at now, make sure that doesn't come through when you are shadowing. Just be very enthusiastic and positive and tell everyone how much you want to work there. If everyone likes you and want to work with you they will tell the manager and that is your best way to get hired. It might be a little overwhelming since it will be different from what you're used to, but it should be exciting and fun. Hopefully that will help you to not feel so trapped. That is the worst feeling in the world!

ICU, RN, BSN, B.S. · Jul 15, 2011

i'm having a really really bad day and feeling like i will never be able to break in to nursing and find a job i will enjoy.
i am 18 months out of school, with my bsn, and took a job at the pediatrics office i had worked at during school. i wanted a hospital position, but am in an extremely saturated part of the country and there is just nothing. i have literally applied to thousands of jobs.
i was at the peds office for a year and then switched to a specialty pediatric office which is part of a large hospital. i did this thinking i could suck it up for a year, make some connections, and then transfer in patient.
i have 2 kids and am pregnant, we recently moved to a new home and i am working 40 hours a week....and i hate my job!
the doctors don't get along, there are no other nurses here, i have no clinical support and one of the doctors is completely negligent. i had no formal training and do absolutely no clinical skills at all. i finally broke down the other day when one of the doctors screamed at me and told my manager that i couldn't do this anymore. i literally feel like i am wasting my life, and it kills me to leave my babies every day to come to a job that i hate.
my manager is very understanding and said that she would allow me to transfer before my 1 year contract is up. however, i just met with hr and because i have no hospital experience as an rn (i do as a nursing aid and emt) that i am unable to transfer to inpatient. i have already pigeon-holed my career and am stuck. i make less than 20 dollars an hour, and i am absolutely miserable. i should have just stayed part time as a freakin medical assistant and never have gone to nursing school to begin with.

where do you live?? i'm sure you'd be able to try to apply for a hospital job after 1 1/2 years of being an rn.

lsk40 · Jul 16, 2011

Merlee I was thinking the same thing