Nurses would you choose to nurse if you had your time again?

[Hairytangerine]

Ward manager here, qualified 20 years. Really struggling. Feel role hardest it’s even been. People are really unwell. No rescources,

Just can’t see a way out, no side step that I can see.

Would I choose to nurse again? Probably not 😩

I have been a mental health nurse for 14 years. Sometimes I wish that I had tried something else but to be honest I probably wouldn't change it.

I have been able to move jobs when I have got fed up and have managed a number of very different jobs in my mental health speciality. Now I have small children I work 3 days in a very flexible job with a brilliant team and flexibility to do school runs etc.

I will say that I haven't worked on a ward for about 9 years and wouldn't go back on a ward. I'm happy to be community based where I can manage my diary and work from home to get my admin done.

Qualified 25 years now and work in general practice which was the most 'family friendly' hours I could find. How anyone can work shifts with young children I have no idea. I couldn't.
We are pushed to do more and more in less and less time, and unfortunately patients' demands and expectations are increasing. One elderly chap had quite a rant today as he was 8 minutes late being seen, I stepped in to help the nurse who should have been seeing him as she was delayed due to sobbing in her room about other work related stresses.
Will keep going, I can take half my pension early in seven years and then I'm out.

Never - it has ruined my life. I would never encourage my kids to do it.

Qualified 37 years ago and now an Advanced Nurse Practitioner in General Practice,
As much as l love my patients l would never encourage anyone to take up nursing as a career, it is becoming increasingly money and target driven. patient care is at the bottom of the list of priorities.
I wish l had become a lawyer.
I took my pension as soon as l could and have gone back 16 hours a week until l can afford to leave or until l get my state pension.

Just backtracking (sorry ) on my comment about doing a Masters slightly florence... I suppose I could have done a Masters combined with advanced clinical stuff (when I had time pre-kids) and taken some kind of advanced route. At the time those pathways were all quite new and I didn’t have the experience to get that kind of job. Now I have the experience but not the time or the ability to do the hours required for those kind of posts. Plus all the problems with working as a HCP in the NHS would still exist.

Been a nurse for 31 years and counting down the years until I can retire
I'm now chronically ill and classed as disabled (got a blue badge now- at least I can park near hospital entrance!) and had to reduce my hours as can't cope working more than 20 hrs week...
no way could I work on a ward anymore ...
the staffing levels are unsafe and burn out is massive, lack of career progression for many staff...and if you do progress it's often to a management role with no patient contact .
Have worked in some very intensive specialist areas over the years and loved the work and ( most) of my colleagues and patients ...I've been lucky to have had mon-fri 9-5 jobs for the majority of my career
Originally had an MA from an Ancient University before studying nursing...often wonder what life pathway I would have had if I'd stuck to that!

I've been a nurse for a grand total of 20 months and I wish I had done something else. I feel like a glorified waitress when I am on the ward.
I am thankful I am not in the UK and nursing though.

What is the Australian lift you all talk about? Im Australian and want to know.

The Australian lift is a way in which you would move a patient up the bed. I learnt it at uni in the 90s (in Australia) luckily "no lift" came in before I finished uni and never had to actually do it on a patient.
It involved something like leaning on the bed with the patients arms over your shoulder and your arms around their back and under their legs and lifting them up the bed. Google it I really don't know how these lifts were done for so many years.
I don't know how anyone nurses on an nhs ward it looks horrific. I thought it was bad on 2003/04 which was the last time I worked in a nhs hospital. I'm now in a hospice and only ever have a maximum of 6 patients and a much better pace. We even manage to sit down and have a tea break most days.

Forgot to add that while I quite like nursing I would NEVER encourage anyone to begin nursing now.

An Australian lift was used to hike people up the bed.

A nurse each side of the patient faces the way the patent needs to travel and puts their shoulder nearest to the bed into the patient's armpit and their hand under the patient's thighs.

The nurses grasp their hands together, the patient puts their arms down the nurses backs (with their hand on the nurses arses) and the nurses lift the patient up the bed. 

Can't imagine why it was banned. 

There are a few emojis missing from the above post....

No. After 22 years I've had enough. I'm letting my registration lapse. For the sake oc my family, my health and my sanity I'm walking away from the job I loved. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone now.

Anyone remember the illegal Australian lift we where taught in nursing school?

Yes!! I started out as an Auxillary nurse before starting my training. I remember this lift. My back remembers this lift. One Laminectomy, and two other bulging discs later...

No. I left after 6/7 years and went self employed doing something completely different. Haven't regretted it.

No, it's an awful job full of stress, pressure, unrealistic expectations and not at all rewarding anymore. I desperately want out of nursing and I only work 16 hours but even those 2 days make me so stressed and unwell. Every nurse I speak to wants to leave.

No I don’t think so. I’ve been nursing almost 20 years and have left the clinical side to work as a bed manager and I hate it.

The pressure is immense. The worry when we have no beds, trying to prevent patients breaching the 4 hour wait in a&e. Sorting out no end of staffing problems that no one else can be bothered to as it’s easier to ask me. Intervening with any conflict amongst staff/patients/families. I get bleeped constantly and have no time to have a break.

I would really like to get into specialist nursing or a similar role but they are few and far between.

I do wish I’d studied something else.