What would help you love your job?

[rlerich]

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.

[itskaren]

I work as a bank nurse. However, I have just left one organisation as I was continually working overtime without the pay. I totally understand if an emergency crops up etc. but it was normal practice to worl 30 to 45 minutes over your time. No thanks at all. And management wonder why it can't recruit!

[xxMichelleJxx]

Ive been a LPN for almost 2 years. Worked for 1.5 years thus far. I'm in college and my majors nursing..going for my ADN-RN. I honestly don't know if nursing is for me. Im going to be a junior in college in the fall. I feel like in school they paint a lovely picture of what nursings like.. then you get into the work force and are just like with is THIS. Its nothing like I thought it would be. A lot of people say the hospital is a way different environment than LTC. Hope its true. But even if I wanna work in a hospital once I'm a RN, I'm going to have to get my bachelors first. So Im pretty much in school getting degrees that I don't even know if I want. Idk if I even like the workforce.

My main complaints:

We are only human. I feel like we are so overworked. There is so much that is expected of us. I can't name a shift where its been calm and stress free. Even after work at home Im still stressed. Its like the stress carries over.

Staffing needs to improve. The amount of work expected of nurses to do is unrealistic in my opinion. Lower the # of pts to a nurse. Make the work expectations realistic. Make the nurse-patient ratio reasonable.

Its like after every shift I second guess my career choice. I hope I'm not the only one that feels like this.. Or am I?

I feel like backing out now.. but everyones persuading me to finish (I have a yr left to get my ADN)

[NotMyProblem MSN, ASN, BSN, MSN, LPN, RN]

I spent nearly 20 yrs at one hospital on the med-surg floor. My biggest complaint is that the hospital started punishing nurses for issues that patients got upset with. One had her hair with a different tint in it. Not ugly or anything. But this idea of the patient and his family being always right. that has to go. I used to make sure that a family member who complained that rounds were not made , was awakened every hour. I would turn full lights on, bump into their cot accidently, etc. Hourly. All it took was one night and they quit their complaining. They knew they had lied. But when you are not backed up by the supervisors, it makes it hard to do your best or stay at a hospital. Where I worker, they had a really cool Christmas/ Holiday party , a company picnic in the summer, and used to make it mandatory for you to attend an off site inservice of your choice, which was paid for in full. All of that went by the way side. When I left 6 years ago due to health issues, we were lucky to get pizza, of sub shop sandwiches. Gifts of items that are used for advertising instead of a real item that has not marks on it. A gift that you can write off as advertising sucks. Some of the items have use, but most do not. I would rather you hand me the $5 or so in cash. Also do not treat an assult on staff as something that can be brushed off. I am still suffering from mouth damage of 6 yrs ago when I was hit by a patient. Never hit before in all my years. This patient was known to be roaming and being inapproiate. But physical attack was new. I was told that I should know that my job is dangerous. If so then I need a body guard.

Anyway, the over work, never enough time to really be with your patient. One that I had promised to return and sit with,died alone during that short time I was away from him giving a medication. It bothers me. I did return to do the post care. Would have rather been there in his time of need.

The same multi-system hospital that I worked for called me into the office because I received NO complaints. No one mentioned my name at all, and I prefer to keep it that way....in and out by flying under the radar. Mind you, one of the questions on the pre-hire survey (yes, nurses are surveyed to death!) asked "how do you like to be recognized for a job well-done". I chose the option that indicated that I prefer no recognition. (All of you would be hard-pressed to find JUST ONE thread or post on this site where I'm complaining about no one saying 'thank you' for the work I've done). I'm that type of nurse that if I hear a pump beeping due to an empty IV bag, I check the MAR to see if it is continuous and hang a new bag or disconnect and flush if piggybacks are done, and none will ever know who did it unless I'm asked specifically or they dusted for fingerprints. That's just a snippet of the type of co-worker I am. I also do the 'dirty work' on another's patients also if I stumble upon it. The only time I was called in for something bad was in a case of mistaken identity with another nurse having the same first name as mine.

Fortunately for me, the grapevine shared reports of that nurse's numerous complaints, so I kept records of days and caseloads of room numbers on the days that we were on schedule together and showed proof that the patient in question was not a room that I entered. It was very tedious work for me but had to be done because that nurse had been with the facility for a long time and they didn't want to address the issue there. Unfortunately for them, although I had not been at the facility for a long period, I had been a nurse for a long time and was familiar with the games people play and how to cover myself.

That being said, I was called into the office because I had no reports of going above and beyond the call of duty. How's that for boosting morale and job satisfaction. They want me to be one of those people who go around saying hey, look what I did for Sam; I did this for Nancy. Really??? I will NEVER be like that....personally OR professionally!

[Stalirris]

The focus of hospitals is less patient driven then ever. It's all about the bottom line and bizarre, off the wall, items. I work at a large Magnet hospital and they insist everything they do is "evidenced based practice" and then don't provide the studies to back up their rationales. I'm CCRN'd and a member of the AACN. I keep up to date with what's going on with research. The bullcrap of requiring a BSN for new hires and then increasing nurse/pt ratios make no sense, but that is what they are doing. They seem to follow what they want when it comes to research. This year my manager made it a requirement for us to document 4 "Acts of Random Kindness" that we did for our co-workers.... waste of time and ridiculous beyond belief. No one has time for this.

No one is happy at my hospital, especially in my unit. They cut back on shift diff, benefits, took away people's basic time they earned, and I haven't had a raise in 7 years. Unfortunately, this is one of the best healthcare systems to work for in the area, so its worse at other hospitals!

I've been a nurse for 22 years. I tell everyone the facts of working in a hospital and warn them when they tell me they are in nursing school. I suggest other options, such as pharmacy, PA school and even radiology. I certainly don't want my kids to go to work and get hit by a patient because hospital policy is not to medicate them appropriately due to "medical restraint" issues. I don't want them to get treated the way I've been treated by patient's families, rude doctors and administration who continually tell you you're lucky to have a job, so suck it up.

TLDR: improved nurse/pt ratios, improved benefits and pay, respect and recognition from administration (not a WaWa card), a manager who truly is helpful in getting what their employees require instead of a brick wall and a mouth piece for administration.

[MuzzleSnuzzler]

I left the ER (which I LOVE) due to unsafe pt/nurse ratios. I was scared for our patients and also my license. I can understand the occasional short staffed shift but when it becomes the rule instead of the exception it's time to go. In addition to a short staffed hospital, administration is constantly adding "one more thing" to the list of nursing responsibilities. This could be transporting pts to the front door after they are DC'd, finding time during your shift to call back 3-10 pt's that were DC'd the day before to 'check on them' and mainly to remind them to complete the Press-Gainey Survey they may receive. In my opinion, the only ones that benefit from Press-Gainey is Press-Gainey. They are making a fortune by encouraging hospitals to cater to drug seekers, non-compliants, etc. all in the name of a good score. Good/responsible care will sometimes equal a lower score. While catering to the uneducated whims of a pt will equal a higher score. Who wins in that situation besides Press-Gainey?

[Esme12, ASN, BSN, RN]

OP...I see an overwhelming response here about safe staffing. Nurses are increasingly concerned about patient safety. It has been well documented that patient outcomes and a decrease of complication is directly tied to increased nurse patient ratios.

This is our concern how would you see this addressed? About 135,000 results (0.13 sec) Google Scholar

Scholarly articles for nurse patient ratios and outcome

[ja77501]

I was much happier as a nurse in California. Say what you will about the union, they have at least facilitated some positive work environments for nurses

[jcbhappy]

Not working every other weekend because we have the staff to do every third or fourth weekend and getting called off during those weekends d/t low census. Not acting as a charge nurse with a full load of patients ranging from 4-12 at a time depending on surgeries and discharges etc. Not acting as a clerk while doing all of the above... I am only a "baby" nurse by industry standards and work in a larger hospital and do all of the above. I just shake my head and say it is an awesome resume builder... Right?

[Anna S, RN]

I am impressed the the OP is actually asking us, nurses, how to retain us!

How often have you seen that happen?

[icuRNmaggie, BSN, RN]

to relrich

It is probably too late now but please consider editing your survey to read:

unsafe working conditions due to impossible nurse patient ratios.

Overworked is too subjective

[melmarie23, MSN, RN]

-better pay/salary

-better staffing

-working every third weekend v every other

-

[Raviepoo]

I want to be treated like a professional adult. I have nursing resources on my cell phone - Davis Drug Guide, a lab test reference, a medical dictionary. I can't use them because there is a strict no cell phones policy. I am enough of an adult to work during working hours and socialize during hours when I am not on the clock. Why can't I be trusted to use a cell phone?

I have other examples.