“The Nurse Will Do It”

Yikes! How many times have you come to work just to find out the tech called off or was pulled to another floor and guess who was available to fill in…YOU…the nurse. Let’s talk about it…

At this point you can just call me “Nurse Switch it Up” because it took me quite a minute to find a position in which I felt valued as a nurse. However the underlying clinical aspect of my job continues to categorize me as “the help” and “filler”. Well at least that’s what it feels like.

As nurses, we ARE the backbone of the healthcare system, and yet, we often find ourselves taking on 90% of the workload. Seriously, if someone’s absent? The nurse will do it. If someone can’t do it? The nurse will do it. If someone doesn’t want to do it? Yup, the nurse will do it.

Every single day, I’m not just the nurse—I’m also the secretary, IT support, manager, psychiatrist and so much more. I mean seriously, I once got an email when I was working as a Case Manager that one of the members of the MDT team was overwhelmed with their workload and that WE (nurses) had to pick up the slack until they caught up.

Huh?!

I walk into work ready to care for patients, but I often end up juggling a multitude of roles that go way beyond my job description. It’s exhausting and can feel overwhelming.

As a nurse and a genuine, caring human being…I do it because I care. We (nurses) aim to please our patients and provide the best care possible. But recognizing that this daily state of exhaustion is taking a toll is important.

For me…I found it very beneficial to set boundaries and allow myself time to breathe. I am not available for every role just because someone else can’t do it. We have to be vocal in our needs as well and say NO. We got this!

What other roles have you found yourself taking on at your job other than that of the nurse?