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| No. 20 | 
Nov 13, 2008, 07:08 AM
 Re: Support Stickie for New nurses who are not coping
I too, am at the 6 month mark and quite discouraged. I am on a busy med/surg unit, night shift. We are going to team nursing where the RN (me) is responsible for 10-13 patients while the LPN gives meds to these patients. The LPNs have quite a negative attitude toward a brand-new RN "supervising" them...most of whom have 15-20 years experience. I feel that I will be putting my license in jeopardy.
I am thinking of trying to find another job where there is no team nursing. What do you think?
 | | Advertisement Sponsored Links | | | | No. 21 |
Nov 13, 2008, 10:20 AM
Re: Support Stickie for New nurses who are not coping
Go to this website and read the proposed legislation on safe nurse  atient ratios.
At this rate, I would welcome 4-5 patients on Acute Med/Surg,,as opposed to 6, 7, or 8!
The ANA proposed safe nurse/patient ratio legislation does take into consideration the acuities, too.
If you have questions, contact them, as I don't have the answers.
But, PLEASE,,, take the poll on this website!
And, pass it on to all of the nurses you know and have them take the poll, too! The A.N.A. really needs this information to present to the legislature, to establish the root of the problem so they can lobby to legislate effective changes; http://www.safestaffingsaveslives.or...rinciples.aspx
If someone else has a similar or better idea,,,PLEASE let me know!
I think we would all breath a sigh of relief if we could get our nurse/patient status lowered. Just think of how many nurses could be retained, and not burn out or leave nursing.
I've already presented the evidence based practice statistics to my hospital's Nurse Supervisor to present to the COO, because it actually drives up the hospital's earnings, which should push this thing over for us, unless the bean counters really dig their heels in.
| | No. 22 |
Nov 14, 2008, 09:02 AM
Re: Support Stickie for New nurses who are not coping
Thank goodness for this topic! I graduated in May, and I've been on a cardiovascular surgical unit since June, so I'm coming up on my 6-month anniversary in December. I work nights, and I feel like I'm starting to get the hang of things... but then I have a night like last night. I followed the advice of my charge nurse on something, and the day nurse I gave report to chewed me out, and... it's just frustrating. She's probably right, but I'm so tired of always feeling stupid. I'm trying so hard to do everything I'm supposed to do, and I feel like I'm supposed to be perfect and know everything ... but I'm not, and I can't. Why can't things be a learning experience (okay, do this differently next time), instead of a chance to make the new grad feel small?  | | No. 23 |
Nov 14, 2008, 11:24 AM
Re: Support Stickie for New nurses who are not coping
Exact same situation here. Every chance to take a shot and it is taken.
I'm a second-career nurse and I've had the opportunity to mentor new hire computer programmers (my previous occupation for 20 years). I never made them feel small, only encouraged then to try a different way in the future when mistakes were made.
Anyone who has mentored previously, or raised children, or trained a dog knows that slamming, terrorizing, and belittling is counterproductive. So why is that the story on nursing units?????????????
| | No. 24 |
Nov 14, 2008, 05:38 PM
Re: Support Stickie for New nurses who are not coping Originally Posted by marilynmom 
What I hate is I can't sleep before my shift and am sick to my stomach and get diahrea--so I go into work already worn out from being up alllllll night. I can't even really relax and enjoy my days off! I've gone on Buspar for my anxiety which I'm not sure if its helping or not. I usually have a drink or two to relax and that has helped me get to sleep.
I'm almost at my 6 month mark (december) and I keep telling myself to stick it out for a year (which would be June) and then reevaluate but there are times when I leave work crying that I can't imagine being able to make it to the year mark. I'm just taking it day by day, week by week.
I feel the same exact way!!! If I could just make it that to that one year mark, maybe everything would be ok, or if not I could find something else! I have the same sleeping problems, I sleep just fine, until the night before my first day back, and then the anxiety hits, and I worry so much about the next three days at work. It was so bad last night, I cried all night, threw up, didn't sleep at all, that I had to call in sick to work. I feel so bad, but I was in no shape to go to work like that. I feel like my lack of sleep before work is causing me to make stupid mistakes at work... is there anyway to break this cycle?
| | No. 25 |
Nov 14, 2008, 05:45 PM
Re: Support Stickie for New nurses who are not coping Originally Posted by pandora44 I, too, am thankful for this post. I graudated in late June and started on a med-surg floor in September. I've been off orientation for two weeks and its been kinda dreadful. I had a few really good nights right at first, then everything has been awful. Thankfully, I great co-workers, and great managers, and a wonderful assigned mentor. Without their support, I don't know what I'd do. Usually I get through the shift ok, or at lease without crying. Then when I give report to the day shift I discover three or four major things I either forgot to do or didn't know that I needed to do at all. That's when I lose it. I run myself ragged all shift just trying to survive only to discover at the end of the shift that I failed.
Ditto on the running yourself ragged all shift and the oncoming nurse bringing up all this stuff that you didn't do. I feel the same exact way, I work my butt off all shift, bearly sit down, trying so hard to get everything done, only to find that there's something that I missed, everytime, it makes me feel like a complete idiot!
| | No. 26 |
Nov 14, 2008, 07:58 PM
Re: Support Stickie for New nurses who are not coping
Another new nurse here. I graduated in May, took boards in June and started working on the floor I was a Nurse tech on in July. The pluses to that were that I knew all the staff and I was familiar with the hectic pace of the unit. The downside: some days it's overwhelming. It seems just when I have a "good" day, I'll come back the next and it will be horrible. I work on a Neuro unit with patients who have had strokes, seizures, and TBI's. Many of the patients are total care, meaning they must be bathed, fed, and put up in a chair 3 times per day. We have a 28 bed unit and on a good day we have 9 nurses and 3 CNA's. On a good day. Some of you may think that sounds reasonable and, sometimes I think it does too, but on the days one or more people call in sick it's awful. You don't know how many times I went home, feeling guilty because my patient did not get very clean (if at all), had no oral care done, let alone put up in a chair (requires at least two people and a sliding board). The things about nursing I find the most challenging are not the special skills (IV starts, blood draws, catheters, etc) because people don't expect me to know how to do those things well yet, it's the simple, basic things I'd damn well want for my family member. I cannot get these things done in a 12 hour day, even if I skip my breaks and don't pee (which I have done). I knew what I was in for when I agreed to work here and, if it weren't for amazing co-workers, I'm not sure I could keep doing this, but I would like to be encouraged by some seasoned nurses who tell me they can relate. Am I expecting too much? Is it too much to hope that I can clean, feed and properly assess my patients? Really?
This sucks.
| | No. 27 |
Nov 16, 2008, 02:33 PM
 Re: Support Stickie for New nurses who are not coping
This is a great thread. I just passed my boards in October and started working last week. My first two days on the Mother-Baby (postpartum) unit were crazy and really fast paced. I thought I knew what I was getting myself into, but I guess not. There's so much to do in such little time. Thankfully I have a pretty good preveptor, but sometimes I feel so rushed to do everything for my patients. We only had 3-4 patients at a time, but had to prepare for discharges, new admissions, teaching, and of course making sure that the newborns were doing okay as well. I really wanted this job and fought for it and now I'm having some doubts. I already feel so anxious and queasy thinking of going back to work again. But then again I know it was only my first 2 days so I need to just tough it out for the next year at least and see what happens. My preceptor says I'm doing a good job so far and that when I feel so overwhelmed and feel like crying that I just need to take a deep breath, calm down, and do my best. I cannot even imagine how it will be like when I am on my own. I have 12 weeks to be with a preceptor. I plan to read this thread to get any advice and get some support since I am not the only one that feels so stupid and doesn't know everything about nursing. If only this first year could hurry up already like everyone else has said.  |
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