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How Can a New Grad Say "No" to Prevent Burnout?

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by Nurse_Marijke @ June 17th, 2010 RSS Link Tweet

Question:
I’m a new nursing school grad working in the intensive care unit of a hospital. We’re so understaffed that I’m always working overtime and picking up extra shifts. I love working in critical care, but I’m worried I’m going to burn out working so many hours in a high-pressure situation. I just don’t feel like I can say no when I know the patients need me. Help!

Answer:
Welcome to the world of nursing, where people are needed 24/7 and many of us feel too guilty to say “no” when we’re asked to help out. I often wonder if we’re subconsciously taught how to feel guilty while we’re studying nursing.

Seriously though, this is an issue that you need to deal with before it starts to affect how you see your work and your life in general. The good news is you have already recognized this is an issue and you want to deal with it before it is too late. And, there’s no bad news – you can manage this.

There is one important rule I recommend nurses follow to avoid burn out: Look out for yourself! If you don’t look out for yourself and care for you own needs, you will find that you can’t look out for anyone else. And, it’s rare that someone will look out for you. So, here are some tips that will make the number one rule possible:

1. Learn how to say “no.”
Nurses are generally hired to work a certain number of shifts per pay period. While some are very happy to pick up extra shifts for overtime, not everyone is. If you find that you are doing too much overtime, you must refuse the extra shifts. The facility will find a way to cope. As much as we like to feel irreplaceable, we’re not.

2. Don’t apologize or give excuses.
When you are turning down an extra shift, do not apologize or say why you don’t want to work. Practice saying:

No, sorry, I can’t.
No, sorry, I have plans.
No, sorry, I’m busy.

The plans you have could be to read a good book you bought the day before, you have to get home to walk your dog or you are going have dinner in front of a movie – anything. Plans don’t have to be a date or taking a child to a sports event. If you don’t make excuses, the people asking can’t counter them with solutions.

3. Focus on out-of-work activities.
If you have other activities to focus on outside of work, either scheduled activities such as classes or unscheduled ones like jogging, painting, crafts, you can spend your time decompressing while you do something you like.

This doesn’t mean not to ever do extra shifts – do as many as you would like, but that’s the key phrase: “as many as YOU would LIKE.” Pick a number of shifts you are comfortable with and stick with it. The more you stand up for yourself, the less you will feel as if you have no control.

California’s Web Site Overwhelmed by Visitors Downloading Tax Forms.

Daily News (Los Angeles, CA) April 16, 2003 Byline: Rachel Uranga Apr. 16–Last-minute tax filers trying to download California tax forms overwhelmed the state’s Web site Tuesday, blocking access for hours as procrastinators facing a midnight deadline fumed.

Despite the online shutdowns, the state won’t be waiving any penalties for those who owe tax and file late.

“There is no ‘my dog ate my tax return, I couldn’t download the form,”‘ said Denise Azimi, spokeswoman for the California Franchise Tax Board.

Forms were available at regional tax offices as well as print shops and some libraries, she said. Those awaiting refunds would not face penalties, she said. see here california tax forms

On Monday the site had 2.7 million visitors, with 2.2 million of them downloading forms without a glitch. That’s more than double the amount of visitors during the same time last year.

Tuesday, the Web site hit its capacity.

“Today is knocking our socks off,” Azimi said, unable to give an estimate of how many Californians used the site but noting that an estimated 5 million taxpayers had yet to file by Tuesday.

Missing the filing deadline can result in penalties ranging from 5 percent to 25 percent of your tax liability, tax experts said.

Victor Omelczenko, a spokesman for the Internal Revenue Service in Los Angeles, said the IRS did not face similar problems.

Anxious taxpayers wandered into the Van Nuys branch of the Los Angeles Public Library on Tuesday hoping to download California’s standard tax form along with a slew of other forms from the stalled site, said senior librarian Lupe Canales.

“It had been working fine for the past two weeks and then it went out,” Canales said. this web site california tax forms

Explaining the situation to a few of the patrons, Canales said some became frustrated.

“We gave them the Web site so they could try later,” she said. “I am sorry to say that some don’t have computers so I don’t know what they are going to do.” The “e-services” address, through which Californians can pay taxes online, operated without problems Tuesday, Azima said. Only downloading tax forms gave online users difficulty, she said.

“We will be looking at this, why we have this bubble and what we can do,” Azimi said.

Already, the board has doubled its traffic capacity.

Tags: extra shifts, intensive care unit, nursing burn out, shift overtime, working in critical care