North Bay nurse on why she quit her profession

As many front-line health care professionals face burnout due to COVID-19, a former North Bay nurse is sharing her story on why she quit her job.

Katelyn Boulet is a former registered nurse of six years from northern Ontario who quit her dream job in critical care and now works in retail.

THE BREAKING POINT

"It was many reasons, but eventually I just started feeling a lot of anxiety going to work every day and some of the effects of nurse burnout and I just thought it was better to step away than to continue with how I was feeling," Boulet said.

As we come to the end of the second year of COVID-19, the issue of burnout among front-line health care workers continues to be talked about.

The Ontario Nurses Association said it's losing members who are quitting their jobs because of the toll the pandemic is taking on them and their mental health.

"As time went on and as the pandemic continued, the nursing shortages kind of got worse as the patient loads got higher. We had limited (personal protective equipment). I went from throwing a mask out after I had seen a patient, to having to wear the same mask all day and I don't know just getting to be a lot," she said.

COVID-19 FATIGUE

Boulet said the nursing profession caused her some anxiety before the pandemic, but it started taking a toll on her physical and mental health.

"I wasn't like eating as much, I just wasn't sleeping well at night," she said.

"The night before my shift, I wouldn't sleep too great but it started being two or three nights before my shift I wasn't sleeping well. Just really not doing the things I love to do and not loving nursing anymore. Being nauseated before my shift was a frequent thing as well."

Boulet said she wanted to be a nurse her whole life, but started to feel really unmotivated.

COLLEAGUE REACTION

Everyone she worked with seemed to have an opinion about her decision to leave, she said, with most supporting her decision.

"There's actually a lot of people who thought I was really lucky that I had the chance to leave. Because I do work for a family business. So then I had the opportunity to leave. Not everybody has this opportunity; they have bills to pay and things to do," Boulet said.

Some of her colleagues thought she "was a little bit crazy" for leaving a profession she had gone to school for and couldn't understand.

FINDING HAPPINESS AGAIN

It has been two months since Boulet stepped away and she said her happiness has returned.

"I was just saying like 'I've been sleeping so well through the night,' like I just sleep solid, I wake up like I'm happy. I haven't once thought about calling in sick for work or not wanting to go to work and I don't know really, it's just been a great time," she said.

With less stress, she has been able to find joy in things like cooking more and has gotten into plants as a hobby.

"It's improved greatly just in the last two months," she said.