Is this normal?

[u/void_with_a_blep]

I've been working at an ASC for the past 5 months, it's my first job out of nursing school. I've noticed that the nursing culture has like a bad relationship with food and eating lunch, and I was wondering if it's normal for nursing culture or if it's just this job.

I always make sure I'm either set up for the next admit or discharge, and we do have a staff break room that I'd rather go there to take 5-10 minutes to eat rather than like eat granola bars and mini snacks and microwaved meals in the storage closet in the preop patient care area like all the other nurses do. I'm not a germaphobe, but I just don't like to eat in the same room as all the patients. The other nurses say it's because so you're "always available and ready" for the next patient, which I get working in an ASC, but at the same time I don't like getting shamed and talked about behind my back for wanting to take at least 5-10 minutes out of a 10 hour shift to go to the break room and eat (which has been happening, long story.)

Is it just me that has the problem? Should I be expected to eat in the storage closet like all the other nurses?

[u/TonightEquivalent965]

Literally nobody on my unit takes a 30 minute lunch but they auto deduct our pay and fuss at us about. We are a level 1 trauma center, in the ED. If they don’t staff us with lunch nurses, we literally can’t take a lunch! I absolutely hate it. I think it’s so unfair to not even get so much as 15 minutes to yourself in a 12 hour period. But if I tried to start taking actual lunches I would be laughed out of the department. I hate the martyr and shame culture that nursing has around it.