From The Blog

Undercover Boss | Love Your Nursing Life | Bobbi McCarthy

I was watching the show Undercover Boss the other night and it made me a little emotional. The show has a wonderful concept, the CEO of the company goes undercover and becomes a worker in 2 or 3 different areas of the company to find out how the company is really functioning…and to see how the employees function in their positions. In this episode, 3 exceptional employees of the company, 7 eleven, were highlighted and awarded for their excellent service.

What struck me about these employees was their true love of the job…they brought their A game every day and they didn’t bitch and moan while performing their job. These people did not have cushy positions with a window overlooking the ocean!! These people had the menial jobs that make companies run smoothly…an elderly woman who works the coffee machines…She knew every customers name and served them with a smile…a night delivery man, who is an immigrant—smiling and so happy to have a job that supports his family and an ex-military man who works on a dessert assembly line…who was smiling and encouraging to the “new” guy. All of these people were given this “new” guy to train. Not one of them bemoaned their job or their employer…they were encouraging to him and didnt make him feel like he was bothering them…

This brings me to the thought…What would the CEO of my company see if he went undercover in the ER? The nurses, techs, secretaries, docs and lab techs that work in our ER do an amazing job everyday! We serve anywhere from 60-120 people and their families in a 24 hour period. We work 12 hour shifts and sometimes do not get a break. Our environment is noisy, smelly and oddly lit with bright lights. At times we work short staffed and sick. We work with patients that are at times hard to please and critically ill…we see things that most people would never know or believe existed! We see death. We also get sworn at on a daily basis! BUT we also have patients that are sweet, caring and thank us for a job well done.

What I gleaned from last nights show was this…I know that I go to work and give 100% to my patients and their families…BUT do I always have a good attitude about what Im doing (away from the patients of course)??? NO. I’m going to watch myself this weekend when I work and see just how grateful I am for my job and for the service I provide. Do I hold pride in being a nurse??? I think Ive lost some of that…Do my co-workers like working with me??? I hope so, I think so…But Im sure I could improve with my attitude….