Trapped in a profession I both love and hate (NHS)

[yellowbridgebang]

I've worked in an AHP profession in the NHS for nearly 20 years and worked my way up to specialist band 7 role. I love what my job should be and I'm bloody good at it. I've worked so hard at it.

But I hate what the NHS has become. The devaluing, the misery olympics, sick patients receiving poor care, the broken equipment, crap computers, nowhere to eat lunch or have meetings, poor offices and no base, told to wfh to get round previous issues when you actually can't, unhappy patients, always apologising, staff off sick or leaving, endless covid restrictions that will never end.

I'm so exhausted and I feel really panicky at the prospect of doing this for another 20 years. I feel trapped. Not sleeping. Tearful and snappy.

But I'm in such a niche area, extremely specialist, no private work or lecturing, minimal job changes around and tbh, it's same shit, different doorstep.

How do you leave when you've got nothing else to offer and you don't really want to leave because you'd still be really happy if you could just do the job in the right circs.....

I'm a band 5 nurse with many years of clinical experience and spent a few months working in the community whilst on a phased return. I normally work in a very different hospital based area which requires years of training up to do the job safely. I agree with the comment up thread about AFC and have become increasingly cynical.
I was gobsmacked that all the nurses were band 6s with a sprinkling of 8bs too. In terms of responsibility/stress nowhere near the same league. I wished I'd plucked up the courage and moved years ago but sadly too late now. Band 5s are leaving acute care in their droves. We bear most of the stress frontline whilst the many of the 6 and 7s are becoming more clinically distanced. At one time our 6s would take a patient and co ordinate, often working with a band 3 or 4 HCA, our 7s would also do a clinical shift here and there. Now they are very much management roles.

I hear you. I work in a specialist role but within paediatrics so even more limited in trying to get out. I haven’t been able to perform my usual role during covid due to being redeployed, yet with the constant pressure to still carry out my usual role, which has just left me feeling demoralised and demotivated.

The majority of my colleagues are burnt out and tired. There is no appreciation and a few yoga sessions in lunch breaks (who attends those from the shop floor anyway?) won’t fix the problem.

Paeds is so niche I have no idea what I could move into. I can’t afford to take a pay drop which is the main problem. Ideally I would quit altogether.

Fordian it's so crap isn't it.

I only work nights and they are so much busier than the day shifts. Higher volume of patients, longer waits for triage, longer waits to be seen.
I'd love to have the 4 hour target back again. Some of our poor patients aren't triaged within 4 hours.
I've been signed off today for 4/52 with stress and anxiety and I don't even feel bad about it.

I’m doing a front end developer bootcamp free funded by the government.

Computers do as you ask. As long as you put the right code in & link stuff to other stuff.

22years in healthcare has really changed who I am and I need to get back. I used to be happy.

Is really difficult, could you reduce your hours? It does make a lot of difference coping with the difficult conditions but still get to do the job you love

Have you considered working in NHS England? They are always looking for people with operational experience to work in policy teams.

@dalmatianmad

Fordian it's so crap isn't it.

I only work nights and they are so much busier than the day shifts. Higher volume of patients, longer waits for triage, longer waits to be seen.
I'd love to have the 4 hour target back again. Some of our poor patients aren't triaged within 4 hours.
I've been signed off today for 4/52 with stress and anxiety and I don't even feel bad about it.

I'm glad to hear you are taking steps towards regrouping the shards of your mental health via 4 weeks off.

I've just had 11 days off (3 days A/L as a part timer) and I'm very seriously thinking of stepping sideways into a different, strongly related role. (I'm sorry I can't be more specific but I got a stalker on here a few years back who caused me a lot of grief).

I need to do something; I can't carry on like this.

Midwife here and I feel you!

The NHS has absolutely destroyed my passion for a job I used to love and I am desperately making steps to leave as soon as I can.

I’m a B7 clinician/manager/supervisor in mental health - also been struggling since the pandemic.

Am also a single mum and the main wage earner, have no idea what I would do to earn equivalent money in another profession.

However, I have been a patient of the NHS a few times over the last few weeks - it wasn’t a perfect experience as they were clearly short of resource, but overall I was really happy with all the staff and with how I was treated.

Just wondering how many of us are being treated for our mental health whilst coping in difficult jobs ?
I’ve been in antidepressants for years and work in mental health team. I just take it for granted that I need medication as opposed to thinking I need a different job !! I’m only just realising this - bonkers !!

NHS here. What really angers me, is the number of non clinical staff with no healthcare experience that work in roles like transformation. Which is another stick to beat clinical staff with as the problem is really us stuck in our ways and not being caring enough ! What would be transformational would be sacking probably 50 % of the managerial 7s and 8 and employing more nurses, ahps and support staff and equipment so we can do out jobs, that would be transformational

OP it sounds like you would really benefit from talking to a careers advisor.

A thought - apprenticeships are often supported by tutors/coaches who work remotely, so you could wfh rather than relocate. I don’t know what your area is but could be worth exploring.

I went into the private sector, with my job, as the NHS didn’t want the contract anymore.
It’s worse out of the NHS. Sickness, pension and mileage are less, and the standards are lower. Also, the contract ends every 3 years so we are concerned for our jobs every 3 years.

There’s private as an employee of a private healthcare organisation and private as in going it alone self-employed, maybe with a small group of colleagues. The latter is definitely preferable if you can cope without a regular reliable income stream, which I appreciate a lot of people can’t