To the newbies, from the Big Newbie

[Tait, MSN, RN]

Ok, so I love these forums because, well I have been going through a lot of these situations in my year of nursing.

I have a simple piece of advice that has made my nursing experience pure joy.

Ask questions.

Complicated medication pass? Call the pharmacy.

Pt not looking quite right? Find a friend in the ICU or, like our hospital, call your Rapid Response member and pick their brain. It's better to be overcautious and have a safe pt than to let something "not quite right" slip by. (and then document it!)

I call RRT every now and then because they love to help out! They often come up to chat and will peek at vitals and listen to lungs if something seems a little off to me.

Nurse giving you the cold shoulder? Ask her for some advice on your pt. Say hey, do you have time for a quick question? If she doesn't then you know your ground, and ask her if she needs any help? Call light, IV bag hang etc. If she does have time she will most likely appreciate that you want her opinion and realize that you respect her. (That is if she is worth her salt as a nurse )

When I first started my new job there was a nurse I never thought I would get along with. However one night I was pretty stressed and she was the only one outside of her room. I asked her a question and she was so helpful! Now we often help each other out and support each other's pts!

In conclusion my point is, don't be afraid to ask for help. It will make you look resourceful, keep your pts safe and help build relationships with your hospital. Just remember to make sure you ask if the person has a moment for a question and lead on!

Taitter

[Piki]

Great advice, ITA. I do much the same things. I try to be as helpful as possible and ask as many questions as possible.

[RoyalNurse]

Good advice, thanks!

[nursemike, ASN, RN]

Did you mean RRT--Rapid Response Team, or RT--Respiratory Therapy? My facility doesn't have an RRT, yet, but RT can be my bestest buddies, at times.

I do agree with your general point, though. One of the cool things about humans in general is that most of us enjoy the chance to show off our expertise. Of course, along with asking questions, you want to be learning which resources are available to look up your own answers.

A couple of my mentors were pointing out to me, recently, that sometimes they now come to me with questions. What's even more freakish and bizarre: sometimes I know the answer! How in the world did that happen? (Doesn't happen a lot, but still...)

PS BTW, docs, believe it or not, can be an excellent source of info, too.

[Tait, MSN, RN]

I was speaking of RRT-Rapid Response Team in this post, but at my previous hospital that didn't have RRT I used RT and the ICU nurses a lot.

At my first job they had just implemented an all electronic charting system, being a child of the computer age within days of starting I was managing more questions about the computer system then I was asking about nursing!

And as far as the docs go I agree, however I work nights so I don't often get time to ask them "in the heat of the moment" questions, but they are great for procedural things. (During my third week of orientation at my current hospital I pestered one of the cardiac docs to let me assist with a cardioversion and I even got to do the winning shock!)

Taitter

[BullyLoveRN]

I appreciate your advice greatly! It sometimes scares me when I read a post where the person claims to be someone who "appears calm on the outside" but is feeling entirely overwhelmed on the inside! It takes a lot of courage to admit when you need help, or to admit that you don't know something! It also takes a lot of courage to go ahead and admit you're drowning and feeling overwhelmed.... but once you DO, others will help! No one wants you to fail, especially when patient safety is at stake!

I, myself am a new nurse... I've been off orientation for about a week now... and when a fellow nurse asks me if I need help (and I do!) of course I really want to save face and say "no" so that the others think I can handle it... but then I think about the "big picture" and accept the help, if it's needed! The people on my unit all know I am new, and they don't expect me to know everything... however, they DO expect me to keep my patients safe, which to me... is the bottom line.