Another NHS casualty

[Gotnopokerface]

I've worked so hard for years. I've 3 postgraduates and countless clinical hours under my belt. I've hugged hundreds of bereaved family members, I've held the hand of God know how many dying people, I've been covered in every bodily fluid, I've been hit, I've been threatened with death, equally I've had hundreds of thank you cards, more boxes of chocolates than I can count and trained hundreds of new staff. I've worked thousands upon thousands of hours looking after people and their families, many of them free of charge.
I can't do it anymore. Or rather I've finally realised I'm not willing to. I've just finished an 80 hour week as I work 2 people's jobs. Not take on extra responsibility, I mean I do my own clinical role, lead it, and manage an organisational change on top of that with nothing tangible to show for it except black bags under my eyes, a destroyed immune system and a family I barely see.
The NHS and their "transparent" system of recruitment is the reason I can't be awarded at least another band up without an actual job description etc being put out. Which is fine, there's obviously no sign of it as I'm doing the work at no extra cost. This same "transparent" system is how a guy I work with has been floating through the system from job to job as a manager even though I know he only interviewed for one acting up temp post. They keep on coming for him. I can't ask for a raise, it's all about the banding, and asking to be rebanded was a flat no.
Basically got told I'm doing a great job (I am. I have results, I have increased patient satisfaction, I have tangible evidence of change and improvement) but I'll have to continue at what I'm at.
So I quit. I'm off to the private sector to become an educator, and be given bonuses when I do well, have a family friendly employer, an opportunity to develop myself and have the chance to feed off some enthusiasm from undergrads who have yet to have their will to live sucked out of them.

Yes the NHS is struggling to get new recruits, but the harsh reality of is it's rapidly losing its highly trained clinicians to the private sector.

I'm sad about this. I grew clinically through the NHS. I've given more than a pound of flesh and I've been willing to keep giving, but it's not viable anymore. This is entirely a rant, but I know I'm not alone.

Thank you for your service

So instead of working 80 hours for the NHS you will now still work 80 hours and be paid 100k+ in for private / nhs combo work. Don’t pretend it’s the working hours or the conditions that’s prompting the move - if you were that fed up with either you would move out of the field (or the NHS). All you are doing is making a move that will pay you more money to benefit you. Nothing wrong with that but you don’t get my sympathy.

The problem with the nhs seems to be management

@teddybear45 I'm taking a paycut actually. I'm more than happy to work, but I'm not going to work the jobs of 2 or sometimes 3 people for less pay.

And I don’t blame you one bit OP! I gave 26 years service before I realised that working for the NHS was killing me not just physically but also mentally- partly due to how undervalued I felt.
Good luck in your new job it sounds great and you deserve a great job

@slipperywhensparticus I agree. A health service needs to managed by clinical staff. Also, I feel I need to clarify, I'd only get 100k in the educational sector if I ran the university, I'll certainly not be getting it to teach on a 40 hour week, but the money isn't the main point. It's the management or lack thereof that causes all this.

Thank you @missyB1 and @TheQueef

teddybear clearly doesn’t have a clue. Lots of people in the NHS are in OP’s situation and are voting with their feet. The public need to wake up about this because they need experienced NHS staff and those staff are leaving in droves.

Thank you for everything you and everyone in the NHS does

That wasn't very helpful Teddybear45

Good luck in your new role 🍀 it is heartbreaking "turning your back on your patients/clients" but after years of increased expectations, stress-related poor health and watching incompetence being celebrated with promotion I'm left with no other option but to do exactly the same as you.

Good luck and thanks for your care over the years . I know how you feel , completely different industry but the same basic lack of care or appreciation from managers .

Why are nhs staff supposed to work for free when in any other role if you said “I can do 1/2 the job for twice the money somewhere else” people would be cheering you on???
Run you’ve lasted longer than most people would.

Your post reminds me a bit of the hours that NHS staff who volunteer themselves (according to an autobiography I read) to work on the air ambulances up and down the country. I often wonder how on earth they find the time to work AND volunteer AND have a family and whatever else they do, yet on camera (I watch all them documentaries) they appear so calm and happy.

In 2005 I did my nurse training, quitting on my management placement. Long story & irrelevant. It was my dream job from 13 years old to work in coronary care. It hurt for years me having to quit. With the things I read about, I often wonder whether the circumstances in which I quit was one of them 'things happen for a reason' but I've been too stubborn to believe that.

If you haven't already, you do sound at risk from burn out. This your career and your life. If this feels the right thing to do, you go for it. A fresh start in different surroundings may just be 2hat u need. You don't know anything til you try it Good luck with it!

Teddybear45. What a nasty response. You obviously haven’t a clue.

Well done. IV been a HCA for 12 years and IV just about had enough so IV just applied for a cleaning job....also taking a pay cut but I need to concentrate on me and my family!! Mental health does exist working in the healthcare industry.

I don’t blame you , best of luck in your new job

Good luck Gotnopokerface.

My mum and my SIL, both very experienced nurses, left the NHS last year for the same reasons. My mum was 6 months away from pension but said she'd rather live on beans on toast than do those six months and that was after more than 40 years service. It's heartbreaking to see what's happening.

All you are doing is making a move that will pay you more money to benefit you. Nothing wrong with that but you don’t get my sympathy.

^^

Will we sleep easy in our beds tonight or not? No sympathy from Teddy? Yikes.

@Joyce2014
Well done. IV been a HCA for 12 years and IV just about had enough so IV just applied for a cleaning job....also taking a pay cut but I need to concentrate on me and my family!! Mental health does exist working in the healthcare industry.**

Was also a HCA, not as many years as you. I left last November and am now working for my local council. I am so much happier

@Gotnopokerface do what makes you happy. It's not nice doing 3 people's job and only get paid for one.

We were always short staff for HCA roles and have to be doing double and sometimes triple work to cover, but never got bonuses or anything else to make us feel valued. The agency hca's would come and they got paid more per hour than us permanent staff. I had to leave , wasn't going to burn myself out anymore.

Why are people being so horrible.

My aunt was a nurse for her whole adult life and was married to a prison officer. They were both in senior positions and worked very hard, looking forward to their retirements. Within a year of retiring, they’d both died.

Life’s to short and too precious for you to stay where you are, and I’m glad for you. The NHS will miss you, but you’re too important.

OP poor you, you sound absolutely burnt out and who can blame you.

However, you say you are going to work in a university? Are you going to be PT there? Because if you are FT you will not be working 40h, believe me! Unless you are doing hourly paid demonstrator roles or similar, maybe.

Thank you nurses for all your sacrifices
I’ve had brilliant ones over the years
I worry for my son..he’s choosing a nhs as his new career.

I dont blame you. I've always said that the day I go to work for the money is the day I leave. the NHS takes so much of my time, I have to get satisfaction from my role or else what's the point.

Although I disagree to some extent about the health service being managed by clinical staff. Like it or not the NHS is a business and as such there is a place for business managers in the ranks because in my experience the nurses that have worked their way up to the band 8 and 9s have struggled with the business and budgeting decisions that have to be made.

I do however think there are far too many layers of.management and feel your frustration at the recruitment processes and the rigidity of working within agenda for change. I now offer far more than my current role requires due to post grad qualifications yet I cant go ask for a raise and have to wait for post to open up in a band above.

Another one coming to say thank you so much for all your hours of work and sacrifices.

I have a question for people who have left the NHS - would you feel concerned if you needed treating in the current situation?

Not at all passing comment on the abilities or commitment of the people still there, but I wondered if having left and knowing there are not people to replace you it would worry you being treated.

@TheDragonFromDreams there remains a high quality of super hard working staff. I'd never think my treatment would be substandard. I would have concerns about the long wait it is to see some of those staff though. Some parts of the outpatient sector have many months of a wait for review appointments.