workplace BS

[Jackooboy]

Hello everyone. I am a new nurse (been working in the ER for 3+ months) and am getting the hang of things.

The hospital I am currently at is underfunded and understaffed. It has a very high amount of stress and turnover in staff as there aren't enough nurses for the acuity of pts. For instance, we may have 2 ICU pt holds and 3 other regular emergency pts. simultaneously for 1 nurse to take care of.

To compare, normal ICU staffing is 1 nurse to 2 pts. and normal ER staffing is 1:4 with studies suggesting best outcomes with 1:3.

On Friday, we received a request to fax some medical records to a doctor's office. I was with my preceptor and told him I would get the secretary to do this.

He responded by calling me a "lazy fucking piece of shit" and told me that I should fax the documents. So I faxed the documents.

1. I don't get paid enough to be verbally abused. (48,000 USD/year which includes working weekends with an extra dollar for night differential/hr. and a 401K of 3% annual salary contribution by employer)

2. What would you do in this situation?

I have thought and dreamed about leaving this hospital/job and perhaps even nursing because of the chronic under-staffing, stress, abuse, poor management, etc. Yet I feel trapped because if I leave I feel that it's career suicide. No doubt, I would be blamed by employers having left this employer after only a short time -- no one will invest in training someone who has such a small amount of time at an employer... Essentially, if I leave I'll look like a bad investment.

 

[Pyropyro]

Suck it up... for a while. I don't know how long one should get work experience in your area of expertise but at least a year should do. Anyways, you'll need all the extra time and money to do another thing...

Grit my teeth and find professional or license exams that can be used to bolster my resume to give me an edge compared to other job hunters. I've found that the lower jobs tend to be crowded while higher ones have lesser or even non-existent competition since only very few people actually go the distance and get better qualifications.

 

[Base groove]

Don't announce your plans again and don't make small talk with people and don't ask permission to do anything.

Maybe they will leave you alone and you can focus on your job.

 

[Duxwing]

*hugs* I'm sad to hear of your trouble. Verbal abuse is not OK, and if it is a pattern then you should consider filing suit for workplace harassment while finding work elsewhere. Neither seeking damages nor quitting will necessarily harm your odds of placement because your prospective employers know and think nothing of you and will hear your story first (briefly note why you quit) and you can even collect damages for lost work if your employer should fire you when you declare suit. The laws of math and man behind you stand, ready to fight beneath your banner.

-Duxwing

 

[Spocksleftball]

Depending on which state you live in, you may need to start documenting these events. In Florida if you can show a pattern of abuse, it is considered a hostile work environment. There are tons of lawyers that will take your case if you have good documentation. The whole will lose his job and you will be bullet proof at that job. Downside is no one wants to hire a person who looks like a financial risk, so just be sure you want to proceed thusly.


And don't quit! We need good nurses more than anything in this country.

 

[Cherry Cola]

Try to sabotage that piece of shit cunt who verbally abused you. Get someone to hack his comp he's probably bad mouthed a ton of people in mails. Get that out and his ass will be long gone.

 

[BigApplePi]

On Friday, we received a request to fax some medical records to a doctor's office. I was with my preceptor and told him I would get the secretary to do this.

He responded by calling me a "lazy fucking piece of shit" and told me that I should fax the documents. So I faxed the documents.

1. I don't get paid enough to be verbally abused.

I would like to hear more about the situation. Suppose he has said, "It would help me a great deal if you would fax the documents." What would you have said and done?

Yes you could sue but then you would have to enter a new area in your life. Is that okay with you? What I'm looking for is intermediate steps.

Does this guy have a supervisor? Can you go to that person and quote what he said to you? Can you threaten to file for harassment/ abuse as others said before you actually do so ... or is this too heavy duty for you?

What kind of stress was this guy under? Could you have said semi-humorously, "Well yes. That's true. I am a lazy fucking piece of shit, but guess what? You say that to me and you will have to fax it yourself. I won't do anything when talked to like that. I want your apology. I'm under plenty of stress as it is."

 

[Vrecknidj]

2. What would you do in this situation?

Immediately I would do whatever needs to be done and separate how I feel about the verbal abuse from the task that required accomplishing.

Ultimately, I can't really advise about the other topic (whether to stay at the hospital or in the field). I was a phlebotomist for three years (I was young) before leaving that side of the medical field. The pressures are indeed crazy.

 

[kaelum]

2. What would you do in this situation?

I have thought and dreamed about leaving this hospital/job and perhaps even nursing because of the chronic under-staffing, stress, abuse, poor management, etc. Yet I feel trapped because if I leave I feel that it's career suicide. No doubt, I would be blamed by employers having left this employer after only a short time -- no one will invest in training someone who has such a small amount of time at an employer... Essentially, if I leave I'll look like a bad investment.

Do you have experienced co-workers or a mentor to reach out to? How about the person who interviewed you and has a stake in whether you are successful? The more you know about the workplace culture and what has worked or not worked in the past, the better the plan you can come up with (like who not to ask for help, or be pointed to the direction of someone who can help you). I grew up with a relative who is still a nurse (nurse manager now) and I've heard lots of bullying stories in hospitals. At one point, she was driving her boss to and from work and home and was calling it "carpooling." She was able to get beyond the stupidity of the situation and get promoted, so I hope you can find a way to make your situation better too.

Edit: make sure that if you talk to anyone at work, that you can trust them to be discreet...and I didn't say it earlier, but a career isn't worth your sanity---but try not to do anything drastic before exhausting all reasonable options that can make your current job better.

 

[Jackooboy]

I don't think people at work trust each unless you've been there for a long time. I think the culture is toxic at this place. I should probably start looking for new hospitals, but I think making it off orientation would help. Additionally, this hospital was taken over by a larger system, and I can transfer to a much better hospital at the 6 month mark...

 

[Variform]

Hello everyone. I am a new nurse (been working in the ER for 3+ months) and am getting the hang of things.

The hospital I am currently at is underfunded and understaffed. It has a very high amount of stress and turnover in staff as there aren't enough nurses for the acuity of pts. For instance, we may have 2 ICU pt holds and 3 other regular emergency pts. simultaneously for 1 nurse to take care of.

To compare, normal ICU staffing is 1 nurse to 2 pts. and normal ER staffing is 1:4 with studies suggesting best outcomes with 1:3.

On Friday, we received a request to fax some medical records to a doctor's office. I was with my preceptor and told him I would get the secretary to do this.

He responded by calling me a "lazy fucking piece of shit" and told me that I should fax the documents. So I faxed the documents.

1. I don't get paid enough to be verbally abused. (48,000 USD/year which includes working weekends with an extra dollar for night differential/hr. and a 401K of 3% annual salary contribution by employer)

2. What would you do in this situation?

I have thought and dreamed about leaving this hospital/job and perhaps even nursing because of the chronic under-staffing, stress, abuse, poor management, etc. Yet I feel trapped because if I leave I feel that it's career suicide. No doubt, I would be blamed by employers having left this employer after only a short time -- no one will invest in training someone who has such a small amount of time at an employer... Essentially, if I leave I'll look like a bad investment.

How to be in the world. Will you be part of the problem or the solution? No one gets paid enough to be abused.

The problem in the world is largely based upon the 'sucjing it up'. Too many people take too much shit before they rebel.

Do you really think that compromise leads to happiness? Answer that for yourself and then you know how to be in the world.


If the answer is no, find other work. Apply for it. Then leave the other work. Maybe your nurse diploma can be applied to other areas of expertise or maybe you can work as a nurse that goes into peoples homes that need care. I dunno what you call such people over there.

To live with a job that will constantly burn you out... The same issue takes place here. Imagine that more and more responsibilities are put on the shoulders of nurses. A doctor-assistant will not even inject anything anymore which they used to do. I know these things because my gf was a nurse.

 

[King_Be_Us]

Me: "What's stuck up your ass?"
Him: "Just stop being lazy and do it your goddamn self."
Me: "Then why don't you help me?"
Him: "I'm fucking busy."
Me: "Then take your dick out of her ass and get to work."

I figure he'll either flip or laugh. Either way you win because you'll get his emotion. Make someone reveal their true emotions and you can never lose.

 

[walfin]

You can try finding a new place to work before you quit. Keep that a secret, of course.

I hear nurses are always in high demand.

I assume that you still have some passion for nursing and it's your workplace which is killing it.

 

[EditorOne]

Is there a human resources department? In 2014, calling a subordinate a fucking lazy piece of shit is just not on. You getting it on the record by sitting down with human resources to discuss what you are expected to endure will actually protect you, not hurt you. Assertiveness done calmly and politely is the way to go, especially since if called upon to explain the reasoning for why you decided this was a paperwork job suitable for a secretary as opposed to a medical skills/patient care job suitable for a nurse, you've got the answer. I mean, we all figured it out.