In these days of distressing news about nursing shortages, inadequate staffing, nurse burnout and compassion fatigue, moral injury, and the ongoing corporatization of healthcare, nurses and their healthcare colleagues continue to find their pathways to solace, healing, and perseverance despite the odds.
On the flip side, for those nurses who feel they’ve reached their limit and need to exit stage left in search of greener pastures, how do we reconcile ourselves to that highly understandable choice?
Nurses deserve to feel whole, well, and fulfilled, with some finding their way within a robust profession with an illustrious history and others eventually moving on beyond bedside care and perhaps beyond the profession entirely. All choices are valid, and all deserve to be honored.
Nurses are powerhouses of human will, determination, grit, and dedication. Whether they remain in the profession long-term or eventually find other pathways to personal and professional fulfillment, the average nurse’s character and make-up are worthy of admiration.
Of Lifeblood and Hardship
Nursing is hard work. Death, suffering, and the frailty of human life surround us. Our work is largely built upon the need to assuage others’ pain.
Brokenness can be found anywhere you look in healthcare. This brokenness can lead to despair and collapse. We see depression, PTSD, distress, and even suicide, and some do indeed leave nursing for other career paths.
No justification is needed when a nurse decides to move on. Everyone has their capacity for toil and struggle, and leaving the profession is not a cause for criticism or blame. Suppose a nurse sees the necessity to find a new avenue in life and career. In that case, we should be able to offer unconditional support and positive regard, rejoicing for that person’s strength to carve their way forward, even when it means leaving their scrubs and stethoscope behind.
Our profession has seen its share of hardships (e.g., racism, sexism, homophobia, misogyny, etc.) throughout its long history, and the coronavirus pandemic did us no favors. Yes, citizens banged pots and pans in our honor, and hospitals strung up “Heroes Work Here” banners, but once the crisis was over, we went back to business as usual, namely short-staffing overwork and the ignoring of nurses’ all too apparent struggles.
Despite it all, we’ve provided care for our patients, held the hands of the sick and dying, entered the homes of those in need of our expertise, and continued to function as the lifeblood and connective tissue of a system that’s often such a challenge to be a part of. The hardship is real, but so is the triumph of a fulfilling and successful nursing career.
Powerhouses of the Highest Order
Even amidst the existential challenges, many agitate for change, using their voices to speak the truth of what they see and experience each day. Through articles, advocacy and lobbying, labor actions and collective bargaining, nursing organizations, social media, videos, and podcasts, nurses identify and use their favored platforms to push back against the forces that attempt to keep them silent and complacent.
For those who stick it out, fight the good fight, and strive to improve things for themselves, their colleagues, patients, and their loved ones, there’s much to be done in the ongoing struggle. Fantastic work is being done out there, and nurses are tapping their innate advocacy and diplomacy skills every day.
We can be broken, but we can also be healed and whole. Some of us find that we need to exit stage left from the profession and never look back, and that’s fine — we all have choices we make for our reasons. But for those who stay the course, we need to support them in their work and amplify their voices however we can.
Nurses aren’t superheroes with unlimited capacity for suffering, but we do have the capacity to be powerhouses of the highest order. In fact, being such a powerhouse is the default setting for nurses the world over.
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