This is a question for all nurses - both new and old: What would motivate you to keep working for the same healthcare organization?
I am an analyst for a multi-hospital system and my job is to help reduce employee turnover.
Nearly 1 in 5 nurses leave their job in the first year. Because hiring a new employee can cost almost an entire year's salary (and training takes a significant amount of time), it is in the best interest of hospitals, communities, and patients to have nurses stay around longer.
Of course, many people leave their job within a year because of a lack of connection with the company culture, a dislike for their boss, or another life change. Some of this will never change. However, I believe that many things can change - and I would like to figure out what exactly it is that should be changed.
What are things that you wish your organization, managers, and peers did to help you enjoy your workplace? What makes your job challenging, and what would make it more enjoyable for you?
If you have left a job (particularly after less than 2 years), what was your reason for leaving? Is there anything that could have been done differently that would have motivated you to stay?
Again, thank you for your time and responses! Maybe together we can make the workplace more enjoyable for nurses.
I think that when new hires come along and ask to work in Unit A,B, or C, then the powers of be put them in D or E this is a big mistake. We usually find our niches while in nursing school. Why would I want to work in L & D if I really liked Rehab. Just an example. Some are told that there are no jobs in A, B, or C. In this day and age the younger generation are on top of every website that post jobs. Of course, we all need to work so they take the job offered in the units that they have no interest to work. They get their foot in the door and as soon as a job comes open in the unit they wanted they will transfer or leave for another company that will accomommodate them. So Rehab or whatever unit paid to train them has to start all over. Now they have a years experience. Some even leave and come back to the same place and negoitate a higher pay as an experienced nurse. I still think this is a management problem. If you interview someone and they say what makes you want to work here and they say oh this is where HR sent me I really want ... but you hire them. I feel it is your own fault. Sorry, I got on a tangent.
I think I would love my job more if I didn't notice so much favoritism. It is hard to avoid seeing it. My manager favors a particular nurse because they are from the same country. Ever so often they break off into their own language, the favoritism comes in when it comes to patient assignments, schedules, and getting days off. This nurse quickly passes difficult patients to the other nurses because the patient doesn't want her as a nurse, and she is backed up by the manager. The manager will ask other nurses to take the patient from her. This nurse gets days off, even if other nurses requested the same day off. She gets the best schedule. She even makes comments at work saying "today I want an easy day." Or she will let other nurses know that her and the manager are close and that they " talk". I do believe this nurse is intimidating even to the manager, so she gives in, however it seems unfair to others who on a regular basis work hard and give it their all.
Adequate staffing with nurses and CNA's. Last night we had 6 nurses and 6 CNA's. I thought I was dreaming. Not only did the night go smoothly, but I was able to bathe every single pt who needed to be. You can really dive into each pt's chart, answer call bells right away, etc etc. It was heaven
I just wish I could be a free charge nurse. I almost always have 3-6 patients. I do enjoy patient care, but I hate not being able to adequately help the rest of the staff. With so many new (a year or less experience) nurses, they need lots of help that I'm not always able to give. I hate having choose between caring for my patients and helping the other nurses care for theirs. It's unfair to me and even more unfair to them. We have many new grads starting and hear about how we're to guide them. I want to know how?? I don't blame this on my director--she is good and fair. I get the impression she's just middle management and doing the best she can. It just angers me that this is what healthcare has been reduced to.
I wish people really new what happens in hospitals/healthcare.
I'm making plans to get away from the bedside as quickly as I can. I don't see the situation getting any better.
Wow I could not have said this better....nurses pay on the front and back end if it isnt over working us it's under paying us. I beleive nursing salaries are being reduced as well im starting to wonder if the nurses in california are happy since its regulated better there?
Something else--I wish there were more of an effort to retain experienced Med Surg nurses. I know we're seen as feeder units for specialties, but we need experienced nurses too. Two of our most experienced nurses have 2 and 3 years. That's insane to me and unsafe . I don't understand why management just shrugs and says "oh well, that's just Med Surg."
Ive seen many nurses that have worked for years and work like they are new nurses. I am frustrated because I care about what I'm doing, I get no credit for it, no one sees....I'm not doing my job to get accomodations...but some one else comes along and he gets an award for doing a great job. I want to work in a place where people care. I'm a fairly new nurse but I feel disillusioned by what I have wanted to do since I was12years old. I want to be a specific type of nurse and can't get hired. I know I am a nurse that cares about what I do. Why can't I get hired? You say you're unit gets all new nurses and it scares you. Well, I would love to have that opportunity and can't get it.
I wonder if it's because I'm a too chunky, not pretty enough, not young enough...what is it? Just call me frustrated!!!! Not nurse penelope.
We have a saying "The more things change the more they stay the same"
Patient ratio depends on what hospital I work. Some are 1:6 others 1:4. My past position in orthopaedics could go up to 1:7 post op. It was poorly managed with an incharge with no communication skills whatsoever which lead to endless poor decisions between all staff members.
I note that nobody has mentioned international staff with poor English skills and not being unable to be understood by patients, families and other staff members.
We have a very multicultural nursing industry in the Asia Pacific area which in many ways is good, however it can also be dangerous.
I worked on a ward with 75% internationals who would support their own nationality on the ward but not be easily persuaded to help turn other patients etc. They were very friendly otherwise and mostly respected other staff.
To give an example I worked a nightshift with a Japanese staff member and a Chinese staff member. Neither could understand each other and I had no hope. I was an agency nurse and prayed no one would that night would become unwell or die. Given the fact I was an LPN with 8 months experience it was a nightmare.
I know other countries experience the same problems but for me personally decent managers who support/protect their staff from upper management - who generally have never set foot in a health facility, earn far too much money for sitting in their glass offices demanding we kiss each patients feet (not literally) on arrival each shift.
A lot of this is echo, but I still feel that it is worth being said. I honestly don't know why some of these questions continue to be asked by the analysts in organizations because the answers really are straightforward.
1) STAFFING: as I have watched my own ratios change unfavorably a few times over the past couple of years I have definitely realized that nothing kills morale, teamwork, energy levels, and patient safety faster than cuts in this area. And if you're going to increase the number of patients to each nurse, then for heaven's sake don't take away even more nurse techs at the same time.
2) Raises: don't promise them and then take them away. Not giving them for years on end is obviously going to make nurses look elsewhere.
3) Vacation/educational benefits: a part of me understands that these cannot always be forever maintained at the same level, but if they must be cut it needs to be in a gradual way that affects as few existing or at least longer-term employees as possible. It creates resentment when this doesn't happen.
I think many nurses tend to forget that nursing is an applied science. Yes one can be taught the in's and outs to pass boards but can these same individuals apply what they have learned effectively? Again no one wants to dedicate the time needed to mold and grow good nurses. As far as experienced nurses practising like new nurses, maybe no one took the time to correct them or bothered to tell them there was even a problem? Maybe they are just let go after the 90 day period and are left to keep trying to practice what they've worked so hard for until they get it right? We never know what ones experience has been we just know that at some point your paths met up.....
kmclark
13 Posts
I think that when new hires come along and ask to work in Unit A,B, or C, then the powers of be put them in D or E this is a big mistake. We usually find our niches while in nursing school. Why would I want to work in L & D if I really liked Rehab. Just an example. Some are told that there are no jobs in A, B, or C. In this day and age the younger generation are on top of every website that post jobs. Of course, we all need to work so they take the job offered in the units that they have no interest to work. They get their foot in the door and as soon as a job comes open in the unit they wanted they will transfer or leave for another company that will accomommodate them. So Rehab or whatever unit paid to train them has to start all over. Now they have a years experience. Some even leave and come back to the same place and negoitate a higher pay as an experienced nurse. I still think this is a management problem. If you interview someone and they say what makes you want to work here and they say oh this is where HR sent me I really want ... but you hire them. I feel it is your own fault. Sorry, I got on a tangent.