Warning this rant is long and likely something you hear too much about but here it goes...
I am a displaced automotive engineer, passed my state boards 03/2013 and started last April on a step down cardiac unit. I was let go after being told repeatedly that I was doing great then one day called in and let go during a low census after I struggled with a direct admit from a nearby smaller hospital. Since it was only a four weeks from when I began solo so I was taking my time and asking for help with this difficult admission.
I work 11-7 and that night the admission came at start of shift (SOS). As fate would have it the clinical educator (CE) was overseeing the handoff to me. Ultimately it was that handoff that I was called out on. The nurse handing off to me was talking to me like I was slow and the report went 45 minutes into the shift with the CE hawking us. I was told I was not getting it and that by this time should be getting through report quicker.
The transfer involved a former CABG w/ uncontrolled angina. He arrived with no orders entered and without med-reconciliation and I later discovered needed nitro for chest pain STAT. I needed to resolve his medrec and VORT/TORB w/ a cranky physician using a portion of our Cerner Powerchart/PowerPlan I was unfamiliar with because I had only a few admissions and they were all from ER or had been processed through ARTC. So the guy may have been in pain longer than he needed to be, I asked for help on what I was "supposed" to be up to speed on, I riled up a physician, and it all started with a handoff where I was treated like forest gump.
I was told that if I voluntarily resign they will keep me as an employee for a week or so to transfer as a current employee to a Gen. Med-Surg. floor. So I did and have completed the transfer applications.
When I started on this floor I decided ....no new car or new expenses and no 401k roll-over until I have 6 months in. My gut feeling was that I may not pull this off. I wanted Med-surg but ended up where the turnover is high providing my opportunity. However, things were starting to click and this came as a bit of a surprise especially when the CE who should know better witnessed the SOS and was familiar with my exposure to that point.
My world took a big hit. This is a multiple top 50/100 magnet hospital and our communities largest employer. I landed a job in the seven floor "Heart Center" on a Beacon awarded floor with the highest acuity attained by anyone in my nursing school cohort.
One side of me is dissed that they would bale on me after my (and their) investment and the other is relieved to not be where I might say they "eat their young". In the last few weeks I noticed that nursing pods with 3 stations were full while I was alone with a whole station to myself and I was always in the break room alone. I suspect I never hit it off being a non-traditional employee working among much younger females. At times I had to interfere with their facebook and tablet video entertainment to ask a "dumb question".
I can acknowledge that part of my problem is a "me" issue, not having the gift of gab with the other staff, however I came from an environment where we did not treat work like a social club. Being 50+ years old and making this change late in life I also found that I was retaining less information than I used to as well which put me behind the younger new hires even when I would show up early for work to dig into H&Ps, labs, vitals, etc. prior to shift.
If anyone out there has any suggestions, similar experience, or has some perspective from a UM or traditional nurses point of view I will be real interested to hear from you...I'll be dipped ?