Stop complaining about your job - It could be worse.

bebbercorn · Mar 16, 2013

Ain't that the truth.

eatmysoxRN, ASN, RN · Mar 16, 2013

Yeah. This site is especially useful in making me appreciate my job. When reading other's horror stories I feel simultaneously bad for them but relieved that my job is enjoyable most of the time. Especially my coworkers.

~ No One Can Make You Feel Inferior Without Your Consent -Eleanor Roosevelt ~

Nurse_ · Mar 16, 2013

In this economy, beggars can't be choosers.

There are days when I want to pull my hair out, walk out of the unit and quit nursing for good. But as dramatic as that may be, the hospital will continue on without me, they'll get another nurse and take my spot... while I go fish for a job.

So no... I won't give them the satisfaction of running me down. Because in the end, I have responsibilities, bills to pay and today's shift will soon be over and all of drama will soon be behind me.

Tomorrow, at 0700, is a new day and it has all the makings of a great day.

blackvans1234 · Mar 16, 2013

God, even more for nursing students.

We've spent two years doing per-requisites just to get into this dang ADN program, and people are whining and whining.

There's probably 500 students waiting to take your place

Geslina, BSN, RN · Mar 16, 2013

even if I hated my job, with the way things are with nursing right now, and all the nurses out of and looking for work, I am ECSTATIC to have it!!

PMFB-RN, RN · Mar 16, 2013

It breaks my heart to see how the poor economy is used as an excuse by managment to treat nurses poorly and reduce our wages and/or benifits. I don't buy into the whole "you are lucky to have a job and if you don't like (insert lastest stupid nursing fad, Magnet, scripting, reduction in benifits, wage freezes etc) there's the door" attitude many hospitals have nowdays.

I call BS. The hospital is lucky that I have decided to work for them. I save them money with my qualiety nursing care, show up to work on time when I am supposed to and work very hard for them. I have personaly prevented a number of people from having to bounce back to ICU by noticing changes and intervening early. I have the data to prove it. A number of times I have manages to sooth irate patients and families who otherwise might have files suit aginst the hospital. My bedside manner and good care have improved patient satisfaction scores. Becuase I am a good and diligent nurse I have prevented untold nubers of nosicomial infections. My bet is that most of the nurses reading this could say exactly the same. Any employer who doesn't realize this and treats me poorly will find themselves without my services. Lucky for me, inspite of the manufactured glut of nurses, I have many oppertunities for employment and have had the abiliety to walk away from poor treatment. I have now found a good, non-Magnet, union hopsital that is greatful to have me and demonstrates this by treating me failry and decently. In return I work hard for them.

I am so sad that, due to the cynical, false and self serving "nursing shortage" propaganda other nurses don't have the same oppertunity to walk away from a bad employment situation.

PMFB-RN, RN · Mar 16, 2013

God, even more for nursing students.
We've spent two years doing per-requisites just to get into this dang ADN program, and people are whining and whining.
There's probably 500 students waiting to take your place

*** Yes there very likely is. That siuation is ruining the very reason all those people want to be nurses. The glut of nurses means by the time all those students are ready, the jobs they find, if they find a job, will not be the same kind of job they went into nursing to get.

The false "nursing shortage" propaganda have encouraged people who otherwise would have never considered nursing to become nurses. This was done deliberatly by those who stand to gain financialy from a glut of nurses.

LadyFree28, BSN, LPN, RN · Mar 17, 2013

There are people who are genuinely unhappy...as well as a really bad economy at this time, too.

:facepalm:

I'm a person who can sometimes appear aloof, yet I'm logical based in reality. I have been content as a nurse, even when I entered healthcare, I saw the corporate takeover of patient care. It takes a lot after someone to deal with changes, especially if it affects patient care. I have been able to continue to give excellent patient care in plenty of settings which deserved and have been shut down, as well as contribute what I could in making a facility work by having a voice on committees and making sure we are accountable to giving excellent care...80% of the time, it has been victorious.

As long as I can advocate, provide safe effective care, back it up with the nursing talent and if needed EBP, I will continue to give it, even when I worked for places that were shut down, to the ones that with nursing having a seat at the table.

I hope that we all have a seat and position that can go back to those fundamentals...for the "happiness" of our profession...

sneeds · Mar 17, 2013

I totally agree! It's a total shame we're reduced to this treatment. That propaganda definitely bit me and the ceo's are building new buildings or increasing their salaries while increasing patient ratios and pushing nurses back and yanking them in when needed - and you feel lucky? Let's aim higher. It's happening to the md's too - for that matter most workers in the U.S. I don't think I want to become an APRN now because I see how worked to death they are. I love working hard but not to the point where it breaks my body down and keeps me from properly caring for ALL my patients. Having an income that can support your family shouldn't equate to being worked to death in an unsafe environment.

hiddencatRN, BSN, RN · Mar 17, 2013

This is one of the tactics employers use to silence complaints and to discourage unionizing. They've been hiring a lot on my floor and using the extra staffing essentially as pool nurses with more frequent than usual pulls to other units....without having to pay the nurses at the much-higher pool rate. We recently had large layoffs and our floor wasn't affected and we were told to stop whining about getting pulled now. So the company gets cheap and scared-to-rock-the-boat labor and we know that just because we didn't have layoff this cut, doesn't mean we are at all safe from the next one.

I am grateful to have a job and to have a fair amount of comfort and stability in this economy. I'm even more grateful to have a job doing the kind of nursing I LIKE to do. But that doesn't mean I'm required to turn a blind eye to poor working conditions or questionable labor practices (many of the layoffs were longer-term employees this round at the higher end of the pay grade, folks who had chronic medical issues, mid-level managers who had developed a reputation for advocating for staff, etc).

So, "Stop Complaining About Your Job - It Could Be Worse"? That is some anti-labor, anti-nurse male cow poop for sure. Thumbs down and Dislike.

Mijourney · Mar 17, 2013

In my nursing career, I have been through trials and tribulations as no doubt many of us have. I do think that attitude plays a huge part in how we approach our jobs and how we respond to the environment. Our maturity level is equally impactful. I am grateful for having a job, but at the same time I don't believe for one minute I should roll over and play dead when the rolling gets tough.