Perhaps this should be moved to the nursing career advice section, but I was browsing and found this written by an ex nurse. I take most of it as bitterness and griping, but the part about NO JOBS without a year of experience bothers me beyond words considering I am going for my adn in f05. Thoughts, please!?????
Luckily, I've put this career mistake/ nightmare behind me.
My career mistake was choosing to become a nurse. I was lied to from the beginning. I was falsely made to believe that there was a plethora of jobs waiting for me after graduating nursing school. On the contrary, every job I found wanted nurses with at least a year of experience.
A year after graduating, I found one agency that sent me out to work in various nursing homes. That was a nightmare in itself!! I wouldn't send my dog to a nursing home let alone a human being! I quit that job fast enough but I left very frustrated and angry.
A year after that, I managed to land a hospital job on a fluke. There are no words to express how absolutely horrible and unbearable I found that job to be. I hated it beyond the meaning of the word.
The worst part of it all was that they were in the middle of downsizing and the nurses were being given the additional work of taking over the duties of others. Many times I would find myself so busy that I would leave work two sometimes three hours after my shift ended, doing what else but paperwork. This was overtime I was never paid for.
I wouldn't recommend nursing to anyone. It's a thankless job with long hours, is seriously short-staffed, and the workload is astronomical. Many nurses who worked at that hospital often complained of back pain, various health problems, and psychological stress. I didn't want to end up like them so I got out quick.
Needless to say, my mother wasn't overly happy about that. She can no longer brag to her friends and relatives about my being in the medical professsion. You couldn't pay me to go back to that occupation. It was so hard to find work and what I found left me feeling so unhappy. Whenever I would finish my shift for the day, I would just sit at home and cry for hours. I got so depressed. Whenever I knew I had to go to work, I felt so miserable. Whenever I arrived at work, I felt like this lead weight was sitting on my back, I found it hard to breathe, and I had to fight to keep down the panic. When I took that job I was only in my twenties. After only a few weeks into that job, I started feeling like an old woman. I started having back pains and feeling just so unwell practically everyday. I was so aghausted all of the time. I've never in my life had a job that left me feeling so awful and I hope I never will again. I repeat, I wouldn't recommend the nursing field for anyone. I made a bad career choice, I just hope that anyone reading this won't make the same mistake I did.
Some folks just find out that they chose poorly. It happens. I once thought I wanted to be a Lab tech with no interaction with people as I was a science major. 6 weeks in a MT program it took me a year to get into made me realize I loved people and missed that aspect of my future plans and I really was not very good at lab stuff;-) Some people do not take this realization well. It's hard to some times say, I made a mistake and I am not really suited to this.
I've worked with nurses who hated nursing, I mean loathed every second. I often wondered what nurisng had to be to make them happy. They complained about bedside care as menial,
were always the victims of admin,patient families, doctors, other depts...I mean what did they want to do when they came to work as a nurse I wondered? Biggest problem with them is they are toxic and their bitterness can spread through a unit like wild fire. I always used to tell nurses, get out if it's that bad, there is other work in the world.
If a hospital requires a year of experience, pay attention to it....as it is NOT a place where a new grad wishes to be!! They are admitting they are not set up to nurture you; be glad they are upfront about it.
New grads today do well to find a place with a dedicated new grad internship program and a strong education dept! I have said this before and I will say it again. Honestly ?? today I would probably relocate as a new grad to get that year in somewhere that WILL be supportive..a big city hospital with a dedicated program 'just for me' as a new grad.
I understand not all areas have these big hospitals available to support new grads, nor do all areas have 'nursing shortages'. Forewarned is forearmed in my opinion as so far as the realities of nursing today. Its not for everyone. those of us who have done this for decades and lasted have found a 'niche' where we can thrive. Nursing is a career that takes intelligence, tenacity, and cajones.
Even the ANA gets it...if caring were enough, anyone could be a nurse.
Nurses, we can be our own worst enemies. Personally, as a nurse for 15 yrs, I love my job, in fact love both my jobs. I have been a critical care nurse for 9 yrs and and am now a treatment coordinator for a research company. I love working with patients and their families. I live in NC and there are at times a ton of jobs here, but anyone who has been a nurse for more than 5 years knows that jobs are cyclical just like the nursing shortage is.
For 2 yrs you might not have any new positions in an institution, but then bam.. there they are.. people move around, get bored etc.
That is why nursing is so wonderful. The type of work we can do is always portable. People always need health care.
I will tell you though, if you are getting into nursing for the money... forget it.
You have to like people, even on their bad days. Be patient with yourself and others. Above being care givers, we are humans too who have families and issues in our own personal lives. But lets try not to take it to work. Unless of course you have a wonderful crew to work with who can support you through tough times.
I dont know what life is like for an LPN, the woman who wrote the article was an LPN, they have some difficulty getting a hospital jobs, most hospitals prefer RN's no matter now much or how little experience they have.
Good luck with your career choice.
Like I said, I love my job.... :balloons: :balloons:
If a hospital requires a year of experience, pay attention to it....as it is NOT a place where a new grad wishes to be!! They are admitting they are not set up to nurture you; be glad they are upfront about it.
New grads today do well to find a place with a dedicated new grad internship program and a strong education dept! I have said this before and I will say it again. Honestly ?? today I would probably relocate as a new grad to get that year in somewhere that WILL be supportive..a big city hospital with a dedicated program 'just for me' as a new grad.
I understand not all areas have these big hospitals available to support new grads, nor do all areas have 'nursing shortages'. Forewarned is forearmed in my opinion as so far as the realities of nursing today. Its not for everyone. those of us who have done this for decades and lasted have found a 'niche' where we can thrive. Nursing is a career that takes intelligence, tenacity, and cajones.
Even the ANA gets it...if caring were enough, anyone could be a nurse.
Perhaps this should be moved to the nursing career advice section, but I was browsing and found this written by an ex nurse. I take most of it as bitterness and griping, but the part about NO JOBS without a year of experience bothers me beyond words considering I am going for my adn in f05. Thoughts, please!?????
Luckily, I've put this career mistake/ nightmare behind me.
My career mistake was choosing to become a nurse. I was lied to from the beginning. I was falsely made to believe that there was a plethora of jobs waiting for me after graduating nursing school. On the contrary, every job I found wanted nurses with at least a year of experience.
A year after graduating, I found one agency that sent me out to work in various nursing homes. That was a nightmare in itself!! I wouldn't send my dog to a nursing home let alone a human being! I quit that job fast enough but I left very frustrated and angry.
A year after that, I managed to land a hospital job on a fluke. There are no words to express how absolutely horrible and unbearable I found that job to be. I hated it beyond the meaning of the word.
The worst part of it all was that they were in the middle of downsizing and the nurses were being given the additional work of taking over the duties of others. Many times I would find myself so busy that I would leave work two sometimes three hours after my shift ended, doing what else but paperwork. This was overtime I was never paid for.
I wouldn't recommend nursing to anyone. It's a thankless job with long hours, is seriously short-staffed, and the workload is astronomical. Many nurses who worked at that hospital often complained of back pain, various health problems, and psychological stress. I didn't want to end up like them so I got out quick.
Needless to say, my mother wasn't overly happy about that. She can no longer brag to her friends and relatives about my being in the medical professsion. You couldn't pay me to go back to that occupation. It was so hard to find work and what I found left me feeling so unhappy. Whenever I would finish my shift for the day, I would just sit at home and cry for hours. I got so depressed. Whenever I knew I had to go to work, I felt so miserable. Whenever I arrived at work, I felt like this lead weight was sitting on my back, I found it hard to breathe, and I had to fight to keep down the panic. When I took that job I was only in my twenties. After only a few weeks into that job, I started feeling like an old woman. I started having back pains and feeling just so unwell practically everyday. I was so aghausted all of the time. I've never in my life had a job that left me feeling so awful and I hope I never will again. I repeat, I wouldn't recommend the nursing field for anyone. I made a bad career choice, I just hope that anyone reading this won't make the same mistake I did.
Hello
You did not state what type of nurse that you are so I am going to assume that you are an LPN; LPN's are pretty limited in job opportunities. And having been a LPN for ten years I can say that. You also sound like you would be unhappy in any type of work that you do, maybe you need to look into what is really making you unhappy in your life. It is not nursing. I think that you would be unhappy in any occupation. Remember no matter where you go, you still take you with you.
You have to enjoy taking care of people to be a nurse.
You know, maybe the problem is the PERSON, not the job...from the tone of the writing, maybe it's her attitude, not her skills, that keeps her unemployed.
I know if the job I have today goes away (and it might, it's research and grant supported), I can find a job within a week, if not sooner. Of course, your area may be different...but I doubt it. :)
ITA!!! I think it's safe to say that the author is clearly a little biased. Maybe you (OP) should do some 1st hand investigating in your area before taking the word of someone you've never met before. If there isn't a shortage in your area, come on down to D.C., we have more jobs than you can shake a stick at! I am a new grad in SICU at WHC and I LUUUUUUV my job.
dmp135
27 Posts
Some folks just find out that they chose poorly. It happens. I once thought I wanted to be a Lab tech with no interaction with people as I was a science major. 6 weeks in a MT program it took me a year to get into made me realize I loved people and missed that aspect of my future plans and I really was not very good at lab stuff;-) Some people do not take this realization well. It's hard to some times say, I made a mistake and I am not really suited to this.
I've worked with nurses who hated nursing, I mean loathed every second. I often wondered what nurisng had to be to make them happy. They complained about bedside care as menial,
were always the victims of admin,patient families, doctors, other depts...I mean what did they want to do when they came to work as a nurse I wondered? Biggest problem with them is they are toxic and their bitterness can spread through a unit like wild fire. I always used to tell nurses, get out if it's that bad, there is other work in the world.
Dorothy