To say thank you to Mumsnet?

[Mamtorr]

I wasn't going to join a union for my job but I saw an ama about a union rep and I happened to read 3 threads where the OP was told to contact their rep.

16 months of membership later and I find myself in an untenable position in my job. I contacted my local unison rep and she has been incredible. My manager is trying to get rid of me for whistleblowing in the nhs and now I'm 'medically suspended' so I'm not using sick pay, I'm just off work on full pay until they find me somewhere else to go.

My union rep is so good and shutting down my horrendous manager, she's also gone above the hr person who is copied into my managers emails to me.

If you're not in a union and you work in the NHS.. JOIN ONE!!!

I've been a nurse for 14 years and lve never felt more supported than now. My union rep asked if I wanted her to come and join me at my house to be with me during the zoom meeting.

I will probably have to be redeployed because of my disclosures but I know my rep will force my trust to find a suitable position.

I was given a formal written warning for ordering 2 x meals a day for the family parents of a child who was on end of life care because 'they're not the patients' we're talking would probably pass that day and the parents hadn't eaten in 3 days. I then got another warning for making the parents of a child just diagnosed with cancer (like literally that day) a cup of tea because I should have told them that there was a parents kitchen and had them make their own tea..

I stood up to my managers and now I'm facing disciplinary action for 'wasting ward resources'

So thank you Mumsnet for giving me the kick up the arse to join a union because if I hadn't and I'd disclosed to hr my concerns alone I wouldn't be in a job right now.

I too have been very grateful for my union membership a couple of times. Admittedly I have been a member since before MN existed, but those two occasions more than made all the years of subs worthwhile.

I have other pieces of knowledge I've gained thanks to MN, not to mention some RL friends who are awesome, and I'd have never met were it not for this place.

@EBearhug so true! I definitely should have been a member before now but it's always been 'oh yeah I'll do that tomorrow' and then never did until I saw an op who was really up shit creek and she couldn't join a union because it was too late.

My sister's job was saved ny her being in a union too - she said even she was scared of her rep who was absolutely fantastic! NHS.

Just read your full op and am absolutely disgusted you have been reprimanded for making parents of a dying child a cup of tea and got them something to eat. Truly shocked.

Yeah it's been hideous but I'd do it again tomorrow. I didn't become a nurse to care about budgets over people. I stand by what I did.

@Justrolledmyeyesoutloud so glad your sister had a good rep!

What sort of sociopathic clipboard wielder could possibly criticise those actions? You were showing compassion and caring. Which was eminently appropriate in the circumstances. Thank god for your union rep, but it should never have reached that point.

You sound like a wonderful nurse, caring, compassionate and client-centred. Someone who does the right thing in the service of her families. Keep doing what you are doing

Your new department will be lucky to have you. Best of luck with your future. Wish there were more like you x

With regards to feeding parents of children in hospital there's a campaign to sort this.

https://www.sophieslegacy.co.uk/parentstobefed

I think that nhs England has endorsed this campaign and trusts are expected to roll it out.

Hope you get redeployed somewhere you enjoy.

Nurses are not 'client-centred'!! We care for patients and their family/friends
Maybe in MH, they are clients, which is still wrong imho, but most general nurses do not see the people they care for as 'clients'!

This was never an issue when I was in clinical practice.
But then again, we didn't have bean-counters scrutinising every penny and sucking the life out of care and compassion to reach a target

Budgets are squeezed tight, catering gets given enough to feed patients, not the families of patients.

It's good that it's being addressed

People remember nurses.
Thank you, and all the nurses like you, from the bottom of my heart , for being there when I needed you. xx

I appreciate things are tighter, but it doesn't mean compassion has to fly out the window. Or that someone is punished for an act of kindness

I've been in the RCN over 20 years. Only had to use them once but they were great.

You know exactly what she means.

How much NHS resources have been wasted with this ridiculous over-escalation?

I'm sure budgets are squeezed but has anyone been a patient and NOT urged to order a meal when they are likely not to eat it ?
Because of imminent discharge, scheduled surgery etc ?

You sound a wonderful nurse and your union rep sounds great ❤️.

Thank you for being so supportive. When mum was dying we always knew when the hospital thought it was imminent because the nurses would offer us meals. It was very much appreciated. So caring and it meant we could stay with mum.

I’m coming back to this thread as am annoyed about it.

What sort of idiot manager thinks this is an appropriate escalation? I’m assuming OP is not running a soup kitchen on hospital meals.

• there’s being a decent human and showing compassion for people in an incredibly difficult situation
• almost no tax payer cares about this. We’re all seeing the bigger picture and potentially know someone in this situation

This is not why you did it but I know several people who talk about the care their loved one received and fundraise for the hospital.

As a senior leader (not NHS) if a manager in my team came with this complaint about someone I’d be wondering about their own performance. WTAF have you been doing such that this has made the ‘important things to address list’. In fact a cost saving exercise would be to make the manager role redundant such that we can afford extra meals occasionally and simply to stop pissing off staff.

As you know, unfortunately this is punishment for whistleblowing. Been there.

Don’t back down OP 💪

Thank you. I stand by my actions. I have a meeting on Friday about my formal warning and my union rep is being incredible

I wouldn’t be surprised if you told me you work at GOSH

Saw this exact kind of thing happen there

@Mamtorr

Ask them how much this ridiculous escalation is costing.

im sorry they're making virtually impossible to be the kind of nurse patients & families want in their time of need.

if they're cost cutting there are some people's salaries that could go..

I hope Friday goes as well as it possibly can 🌷