Where are all the happy nurses?

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Specializes in Psychiatric NP.

So I was wondering where in America are the happy nurses? If you are happy with your work environment, please share with us what hospital system you work for and what state. And tell us what you love and hate about your hospital.:D

I'll get us started by saying, I visited Meriter Hospital in Madison, WI. The weather is terrible, but the hospital itself is well organized. 0.7 is considered full time and any extra shifts are overtime pay. There's computer charting outside the room, a locker room for you to shower after work, and they wash your scrubs for you. It is unionized though(not sure if that's a good or bad thing)

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Even in the same hospital unit there will be happy and unhappy people. It is human nature.

I am happy where I work.

I am also per diem working 12 hours a week. Who couldn't be happy working so little?

I work in North Carolina at a large hospital ICU. 1:1 or 1:2 staffing.

We have a charge nurse without an assignment, a CNA or 2 on days and evenings, 1-2 unit secretaries, an IV team, and at times a transport nurse for patient transport to CT, MRI, etc.

Most importantly, the unit has nurses that work well together. All of the above listed numbers and ratios will not help you much in a tense, unfriendly workplace.

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Specializes in CMSRN.

I am happy. I got off of work late this morning and am still up since going in at 1900 last night. Maybe that's just goofiness from fatigue. I don't know.

I am still new as a nurse but I like where I work and take life with a grain of salt. (I used to be uptight till I realized that life is REALLY TOO SHORT) My unit is not perfect and some other nurses are a big pain in the hiny but I deal and accept the punches and love the challenges.

I love especially the pt who is defiant. Keeps me awake. I had two of them last night. They were sweet in my eyes. One dementia and the other "i can't even begin to explain"

ON the flip side, charting makes my eyes glaze over. But charting is just that. It is not nursing. Part of the job, yes. but nothing more.

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Specializes in Home Care, Hospice, OB.
and tell us what you love and hate about your hospital.:D

quote]

i am a very happy nurse, but do not work for any hospital!

i know most nurses are in the hospitals, but speaking only for myself, imho, many of the really happy nurses work in other settings. i am in home care, two great nurse friends thriving in hospice, another in occupational health nursing, and one semi-happy friend in ccu.

i am not saying this is good for all of us who will sooner or later be inpatients ourselves; but is likely a reflection of the combination of autonomy and better pay in other settings.

bless every one of you bedside nurses..you are the rocks of nursing:bowingpur--but i'd bag at walmart before i went back to the under-staffed, over-worked, under-appreciated hospital bedside.

:icon_hug:

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Specializes in L&D, PACU.

It sometimes depends on the day. In general, I'm happy with my job, happy with my unit, happy with my co-workers. I work in a high risk L&D unit. I work 3 12s, and the ANM worked hard to get me a schedule that I was happy with, even as a brand new grad. My co-workers are fun and supportive (usually). The doc's are for the most part okay. Again, there's a bad apple or two in the bunch, but the ratio is pretty good.

There are annoyances. There are days when things don't go right. There are days when my co-workers (or me!) are cranky. But that is normal, in any avenue of life. I do NOT feel harrassed, or 'eaten' or whatever it is that is supposed to happen to new grads. I've been on my floor as a preceptee since August, on my own since December. My biggest complaint is with myself, there is soooooo much to learn, and I HATE it when I'm fumbling. But that is me, and that will improve with experience.

So...yeah...I'm happy

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Specializes in Emergency.

I'm happy. I'm happy that I don't have to work at McDonalds or Wal-Mart. I'm happy that I make an excellent wage with a two year degree. I'm happy that I can go any place in the country and make a good living.

And I'm especially happy on those rare occasions that I truly make a difference in someone's life.

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Specializes in OB, House Sup, ER, Med Surg.

I am VERY a happy nurse. I work for a small rural hospital which is part of the Saint Lukes Health System in Missouri. I work full-time OB and am currently cross training for ER. Our OB department is a great team. Our manager is awesome, the staff nurses are awesome, and our doctor and midwife are aweseome. We are all dedicated to providing the best patient care, and we work together to make that happen.

The only thing I hate about my hospital is the facility itself. It is aging, and we have outgrown it. It is hard to draw patients to our facility when the others in the area have nicer rooms and birthing suites. But, we do the best we can with what we have.

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Specializes in cardiac/critical care/ informatics.

I am Happy! I work in a local hospital, as an Physician Informatics support person. I love it. Couldn't be happier.

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I am really happy. Seriously! Being that I came from a pretty bad situation, everything looks better already. Sure there are some people that are surly at times and not fun to be around, but I realize that is going to be everywhere. I will be even more thrilled once I get to my beloved night shift working 3 12 hour shifts...ahhhh. As it stands now, I have a variety of preceptors and one manager that teach me great things. I have a bunch of coworkers that actually treat me like a person instead of a warm body. I work for a small suburban hospital, but came from a giant facility. The difference is incredible. Those of you who hate your jobs, find something you like. Don't let someone try to talk you out of it, including yourselves. Just do it. You will be glad you did!

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Specializes in Med/Surge, Psych, LTC, Home Health.

Well, I won't tell you EXACTLY where I worked, but I used to work for a state psychiatric facility. I was actually PRETTY happy with my job in and of itself; except for the little "spurts" of highly stressful moments that you have in psychiatric nursing =).... it was a pretty laid back, non stressful job, and I worked with some pretty cool people too.

I unfortunately had to leave the job because it was too far from where I live, and the benefits there weren't very good. Now I have a stressful job that I don't like a whole lot; I'm hoping to possibly go back to psych soon.

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Specializes in Emergency & Trauma/Adult ICU.

Generally happy ER nurse here ... :specs:

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I may not like my job, but this song makes me happy:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_G_QpxZ-ShA

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