[AllieRat]

Per day or week? Man I've had one hell of an orientation.. my original preceptor got put with an extern whose in her last year. I get whoever wants me which means I'm doing their job and learning on my own instead of them showing me how to do things. So far I've been yelled at by a doc for a midnight nurse not following the proper prep and the patient went down at the start of my shift so somehow it was my fault. Been yelled at by the manager for not making sure my aides have charted the weights and have been struggling with doing both nurse and aide work as my aides are either on extended breaks, off smoking, or doing god knows what.. SIGH on Friday I just about broke down at work and wanted to give notice and leave. Right now I'm looking for another hospital and or requesting a transfer off the floor so that I might have proper orientation. I start my third week of orientation tommorrow I just hope it goes more smoothly.

[SoundofMusic]

I cried the other morning after my night shift. And I hadn't cried in a long time. I just sat in a pretty park near my house with no one around and just bawled.

It had just been a hard and busy night. We're "short" now supposedly on nights, and I've gone from 3 to 5 patients most every night now -- but somehow, the sweet little charge nurse and her "buddies" never seem to have more than 3, maybe 4. They seem to have all the time in the world to sit at the nursing station and joke around while looking at wedding shoes, dresses, etc.

THIS is the most upsetting thing there is. To run your butt off all night, while your little nasty colleagues give you looks while you're running, yet never offer to help. It's the worst, not to get support and to not be at least offered a friendly smile or anything during the shift.

Now, I WILL say, two nurses on shift did help me to get through it all at the end, offering help and doing little things to get me through. They were busy also, but found the timeto help me. Without them, I would have been there until 10 a.m. the next morning!

So, never underestimate your own ability as a staff member to offer someone help, particularly at the end of the shift, as they're trying to finish up a heavy load. You could be the one that enables that nurse to stay one more day as a nurse and not to totally lose it and just walk out.

[crunchymomx3]

I've only been at my job for a week but I made it through nursing school without crying and I doubt I'll cry due to work, even when I have a bad day. I've had bad days during school and didn't cry. But I am not a crier at all.

[tarapom]

there are other places that will hire new grads. home care for example. also i looked at a place called kids peace, it's a facility for children with social/psychiatric issues.

[tarapom]

short on nights and you have 5 pts, are you in an ICU? Im on a neuro medsurg floor with lots of stroke patients and we always have at least 6, sometimes 7 or 8. I am interviewing for a perdiem position on another neuromedsurg and they said it can... go up to 10!

[citygrl646]

Hey all,

so far after starting orientation on the actual floor i haven't cried -it's more like frustration...I'm still learning (i.e. we weren't allowed to start IV lines at school) but I succeeded in starting my first one-we also use this annoying computer system to chart, addition to paper charting. there is no plebotomy team-the nurses basically do everything....

7 pts per nurse is typical-to the above poster who mentioned 5 at most,i'm guessing that's not medsurg, 'cause 5 pts max would be great. I still feel incompetent even tho i'm progressing and have been handling my own pt. load but pts are totally over medicated with unneccesary and dangerous "prophylactic meds."

I can't stand how some of the staff is disrespectful (IMO) to pts and how most pts have NO CLUE WHAT MEDS they are getting and what they're for!!!!!

Short staffing sux and while I know leaving before a year or even 6 months may not look so great-I'm strongly considering it. Don't waste your time and life being unhappy----who cares what other people think,seriously, i'm trying to change my mindset into what canido to be happy NOW.

[LuvBNanRN]

I have just started orientation and have not cried yet, but even when I just had clinical I would be driving home crying from that and I wasn`t even doing much. I can`t imagine what it`s going to be like when I really start working in the next 2 weeks!!!

[MassED]

Originally Posted by tarapom

I do think there is definately something wrong with crying! That isn't to say I have not cried, or that people who cry over work have something wrong with them. I think that a profession that is so stressful that can cause you to lose your wits and break down and cry, well that is just not something I am interested in. I am quickly making plans to find another kind of job in nursing, so I never have to cry about work's stresses again.

I would have to say anger is my response to stress, whatever form of stress. When someone or something isn't going right or something is just plain stupid, my response is anger. That goes for workplace hostility or "lateral violence." It's just stupid, so I quietly vent in my head. It's easier to cope with than sadness. I've only broken down once at work and it was with a 3 year old boy that drowned. That was the last time, and all of us working were a mess. It was awful. I felt like I was out for the count and unable to move on to the other patients. Once those flood gates go, kiss all sanity goodbye.

Ya know, other jobs I worked in prior to becoming a nurse had me feeling the same emotions that I do as a nurse. The issues are basically the same wherever you go. You just have to have thicker skin in this profession. Makes you a stronger person, anyway...