#8 was “being treated like a waiter/waitress.” “Nothing warms a nurse’s heart more than being sent to get a turkey sandwich,” explained Ryann. “I couldn’t make it in the fast food industry, so at least I found a way to contribute to society.”
#7 was “getting yelled at by patients to bring narcotics.” Nurse Suzy Cicero at the Monticello Regional Medical Center explained, “we know it’s their inalienable human right , and I feel so patriotic when they ask for their Dilaudid!”
#6 on the list was “taking online education modules,” up from #8 in the previous Survey.
#5 on the list was a perennial contender, “cleaning out bedpans and running code browns,” though it dropped one place from the 2014 Survey. Ryann reminisced, “how the adrenaline flowed when they announced ‘Code Brown’ overhead! I almost want to give up administration when I remember those.”
Just ahead of handling bodily fluids was “mandatory staff meetings” at #4, which Melissa B. Puffington, RN, of Mudville Medical Center said, “are the reason I get up in the morning every day.”
“Getting yelled at by the doctor” was a surprise at #3, not having cracked the top 3 since the 1970s. Perri Meekins, RN, OCN of the Jacksonville Cancer Center, related that being yelled at by physicians was almost as fulfilling for her as being yelled at by patients. “Isn’t that why a lot of us went to nursing school in the first place?” she asked.
Taking the top two spots yet again were the perennial favorites “putting in orders!” at #2 and “charting!!!” at #1. E.M. Rimmer, RN of the Community Regional Medical Center in Mudville, Tennsessee, explained that “nothing saves more lives than my time on the computer. Without the charting, I’d have a psychotic break!”
