Considering leaving hospital after new grad internship - Page 2

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  1. Aug 27, '12 by
    Quote from GypseyGirl
    The hospital setting is really different for me from the home health setting because I feel like the focus is more on time management, charting, monitors, equipment, procedures, versus actual one on one talking with patients and having that connection. I feel the role of the nurse in the hospital is so important though. I just don't know if I'll be able to handle the pressure and provide enough patient care. I worry with having so many patients and still being a new nurse that I may miss something and lose a patient because of it. It's not just my own feelings of being stressed. I also worry about having so many acutely ill patient's lives in my hands and wondering if I'm capable of that kind of responsibility. Maybe with t(
    Im sorry but i have one more question.....What did you think hospital acute care nursing was all about?
    joanna73 likes this.
  2. Aug 27, '12 by
    Like I said, sorry if I offended anyone. I know hospital nursing is more intense than home health, but I did my clinicals at a small hospital in California where the patient ratio was a lot smaller than at the hospital I'm currently doing my training at. I felt stressed out during clinicals in school, but didn't feel overwhelmed or like I couldn't handle it. Maybe it is also different when you are a student doing your clinicals and only responsible for 2 patients at a time.
  3. Aug 28, '12 by
    I graduated in May 2010 and started to work at local hospital in med surg. I got a 6 week orientation and the whole first year was really stressful, but I only had 5-6 patients most days and 6 evenings, nights would be 7-8. It sounds to me like you are not in a good learning environment and miserable. I would try to find a better position where the staffing ratio is not so high. There always seem to be some openings at hospitals in Southern Indiana and better staffing ratios. Good luck.
    felle442 likes this.
  4. Aug 28, '12 by
    Gypseygirl, have you tried anything to help you with time management? For example, some nurses use "brain sheets" so they don't forget to do important things for their patient. You can't remember everything at the top of your head.
    Cute♥Nurse♥Unleashed and turnforthenurseRN like this.
  5. Aug 28, '12 by
    At three weeks in, you can't know whether you'll like your new job or not. It's just too soon to tell. Actually, I would be shocked if you did feel comfortable. Only you can make the decision to stay or not, but I would bet my next paycheck you'd be just as miserable at your next job. It's hard because it's unfamiliar.
    turnforthenurseRN, GeneralJinjur, and joanna73 like this.
  6. Aug 28, '12 by
    3 weeks is too soon. You actually sound like most of the new graduate nurses here. It really is just too soon. You are supposed to feel overwhelmed, and stressed out. If you didn't you would be missing something. Clinicals are not like nursing, so you are really just experiencing what many many new grads experience.

    The move has not helped make this an easy transition for you, but...I'd go for it. I worked as a traveler, and have worked some contracts that were, shall we say, Unfortunate. (As in I will never ever return to the state of New Mexico, hate that place!) But I learned to tough it out, and to look for unique things to do on my off time that helped me see it as an experience, rather than a chore.

    Google "Roadside America" and your new current area...You'll find tons of the wierd and unusual to go and see. Invite some people to with you, and have a good time. You will never be where you are again, so you might as well buck up and try to find the fun in it.
    turnforthenurseRN, GeneralJinjur, and joanna73 like this.
  7. Aug 28, '12 by
    IMO quitting now is the worst idea ever, like in the history of the world (lol). Not only would the hospital internship not count as experience, but it will actually make it harder for you to find a new grad job than a new grad who has never worked as a nurse before because from an HR/Management standpoint, who the heck wants to take a gamble on a flaky employee who takes a job and then quits within weeks? Going back to CA for an LVN job is also a terrible idea, it's a short term gain with long term loss. You became an RN for a reason, not to be stuck in the same job with the same pay you had before. Stay where you are, get at least a year experience, THEN go back to CA and get a hospital job. The pay will be better, as will the career trajectory. Don't do what sounds good in the short term just to handicap yourself in the longer term. The pigs who built their house out of sticks or straw had it easily blown down, the pig who built his house of out bricks reaped long term rewards.
    Cute♥Nurse♥Unleashed, Ruby Vee, turnforthenurseRN, and 3 others like this.
  8. Aug 28, '12 by
    Think of the work as an investment in your career. With a year of experience you will be in a better position to find a job you really want versus one you settle for.
    joanna73 likes this.
  9. Aug 28, '12 by
    Try to find somethings to meet people on your days off. Try to hang in there you get more organized the more you work. Everyone was disorganized when the started. Good luck you eilldo fine.
  10. Guide
    Aug 28, '12 by
    Not an easy situation, and I can relate because I also relocated. However, you should either leave now, and quit the internship, or, decide you are going to give it your all, and put in the internship time PLUS one year minimum. Otherwise, employers will view your leaving negatively, which will hinder your immediate future job opportunities. An internship alone will not count as experience. Given this economy, I would just suck it up, learn all you can, and commit for at least a year. I'm homesick also, but I'm staying put for 2.5 years, because really, anything less than that (in my view, anyway) isn't really acceptable. You can hang in there a year
    Cute♥Nurse♥Unleashed and RockinChick66 like this.