If you are a nurse in the latter part of your career how you feeling?

[Nightnurse53]

Im thinking those that trained late 80’s what are you thinking. Can you go at 55? Will you go at 55?

How is the ward generally? Ive noticed alot of the nurses in their twenties are so different to how we were. Not necessarily in a goid way. Lots of anxiety around shifts. We have three point blank refusing to ho on days because its too “stressful” so us oldies are having to pick up the flack and yes its twice as busy as nights for less money.

Weve also has alot of nurses leaving knowing full well they will be back on bank choosIng their own Shifts the very next month.

Is this a thing everywhere?

I left at 57 after 38 years...it got too much and after a spell in hospital due to ill health I decided to retire. I felt sad and like I'd let people down(no idea why) and it took a while to get my head around no longer being a nurse. You are right with the newer nurses though, I remember one wanting to leave early for a dental appt. Too much time spent in university and not on the wards during training is my view

I think they have unrealistic views of the job. I had two refusing to look after contagious patients the other day due to the mask giving them headache. Like my mother says “if you want owt doing, do it yourself” which it what it seems to be like, the older ones doing the donkey work. You wouldnt dare ask them to stock up these days never mind emptying sputum pots 😂😂😂😂

I am winding down to retirement.
I’m not going to bash the newer generation of nurses though because I work with some belters.

I’ve had enough personally now.
I can no longer perform well or recover from the 12 hour slog of a shift.
I’m in a non clinical role now but I’m dragged back into the clinical area at a whim if they decide that they need an extra pair of hands. Depending on the nurse in charge influences how my work day is going to go.
I’m supposed to cheerfully role up my sleeves and get on with it.
I’ve done that for over 30 years, now my heart sinks when told to shelve my plans for the day to get PPE on and get in the middle of it all.
Being menopausal it’s like torture too.
I can’t wait to finish.

I know Im surprised theres no menopause support groups at work considering how much of the work force is women. Since I hit fifty Ive stopped doing nights and I dread anyone asking me to go on them again.

Hows your pension looking?

I’m struggling.

I miss doing early, lates and nights. My trust has switched across to 12 hour day/night shifts in the last two years, and I’ve always thought that staff who were on long days in the past would pace themselves and so many jobs would go undone, like sorting the store rooms/keeping things organised.

The stress of being menopausal/generally slowing down and management who are on your back whatever you do or don’t do.

I’m 57, in nursing since I left school at 16. Took 8 weeks maternity for my two kids and that’s it. My whole life has been being a nurse. I dream of winnig the lottery!

I am 60 and can retire whenever I want. I choose to carry on working though, because I love my job, I work with a fantastic bunch of people and I really enjoy it. I work 30 hours, so 2 long days and 1 half day, so I'm at home more than I am at work. I guess if the light has gone out in your nursing career, though, it's time to go. I've worked with burnt out nurses and it's not pretty.

It’s the PPE and mask during a hot flush...horrendous.

Pension I’m not sure, need to look into it but I’ve been paying into it since 1989 and made no changes to it so assuming it will be good.
I need to look into it in more detail.

@MaelyssQ

I am 60 and can retire whenever I want. I choose to carry on working though, because I love my job, I work with a fantastic bunch of people and I really enjoy it. I work 30 hours, so 2 long days and 1 half day, so I'm at home more than I am at work. I guess if the light has gone out in your nursing career, though, it's time to go. I've worked with burnt out nurses and it's not pretty.

Have you ever thought about retiring and going back two days? Wouldnt you break even? Most people at our place take the pension and come back.

Ive been paying in since 1992 with no breaks so it should be ok.

I'm not ready to retire and do bank work, I get holiday pay, sick pay, automatic study updates.

Im not talking about bank. Even our manager is taking the retirement and coming back on a two day a week contract. 90 percent of our staff do that.

Yes, I’ve heard of a new scheme, lots of friends and colleagues have taken it up. Is it called ‘retire to return’? They’ve tried something catchy like that. They’ve all returned on contracts, not on the bank, quite often on the same ward as they ‘retired’ from.

I don’t know about the scheme. Our nurses have been doing it for years.

I wonder at what point the pension is worth taking out? 50’s or 60’s? I’m single and part of me thinks sooner rather than later. I wonder how much it goes up by in the end