What kind of orientation did you have? Am I expecting too much?

[Old and New]

I just quit my first nursing job today. I was hired on the orthopedic floor on a temporary license, passed my NCLEX on the first try and really want to be a good nurse. The problem? I was given a preceptor who worked with me for four days and then our schedules diverged. After that, I was assigned, off the cuff, to whichever nurse agreed to take me on any given day. I felt completely lost and I could tell my constant questions were irritating to them. I'm still having problems with routine tasks, not to mention figuring out what to do in a crisis, and I was terrified of making a mistake. I asked that I be scheduled on the same days as my original preceptor, but last week she went on vacation, and the nurse who was assigned to me took two rooms, gave me five, and I never saw her again. That night I made a med error and ended up totally swamped. My nurse leader called me in for a chat today and told me that I wasn't getting things done in a timely manner and he didn't think I was making progress. He thought I should be ready to go off orientation and manage seven patients on my own by now. It's been two months. He said if I quit and worked at a nursing home for a couple of years I could come back and try again. So I quit, because I knew it was a matter of time before I got into a situation that would cost me my license or hurt a patient. Now I'm looking for employment and feeling like a failure. This whole situation has really cut into my self-esteem. How long a time is reasonable to expect to work with a dedicated preceptor before being "cut loose"?

[elprup, BSN, RN]

Gabrielle - I am so sorry. I had a similar experience, (new BSN grad at 38, zero exp) but I was not smart enough to quit.....I "failed my orientation", and it was 3 months of disjointed angony! I envy you that you knew when to call it quits. I wish I had! The hardest thing was when they told me, "if you can't learn everything you need to know (about medsurg) in 3 months, then you weren't meant to be a nurse". I told them they were wrong. But looking back I am soo glad I am not working there! I wish you the best. I am also in a tiny town and just keep looking.

check any indian reservations near you. clinics, dr's offices, etc. Even hospice - I was so close to being hired at hospice here (manager said I had a ton of potential) but of course they had to go with a nurse with more experience. But it was so nice for somebody to say something positive about me! It'll happen for us, it has to!

[sistasoul]

I am sorry this has happened to you. It sounds like the hospital was looking for the cheap way out and not giving you the orientation that you needed. Plus, it sounds like you were with preceptors who did not want to be bothered teaching you.

I had 3 weeks of floor orientation with different charge nurses as a new nurse. I have only made it as far as I have because I work with supportive nurses. I worked in LTC on a long term stay unit for 5 months when I first graduated. This is in no way easy but it is not as scary as the hospital. Most times if a patient goes downhill it is expected and they are usually DNR/DNI. It is so easy to get attached to these old peeps too. LTC is fast paced with passing meds. Some of the patients had dementia too which made the pill passing a little difficult at times. I decided to go to a hospital because I was rarely doing assessments in LTC and was basically just passing medications. Keep looking I am sure you will find your niche and someone who appreciates you. I am still in the process of looking for my niche too.

The hospital was definitely unfair with you. I think the expectations of new grads is too much sometimes.

[RNperdiem, RN]

The floor you were on was not prepared to orient a new graduate.

The orientation you got was the kind more experienced nurses get. "The linen room is there, charts are over there, here are your patients, and come find me if you have questions."

[ZooMommyRN, ADN, RN]

as a GN and post NCLEX on a med/surg floor I had 12 weeks with 1 preceptor, then my first month on my own I mirrored her schedule with her as a "safety net" after a year there, a night slot opened in ER and I had to jump on it, still liked my med/surg gig so if I didn't get the position I wouldn't have been disappointed, I got it and did the first month on nights with 1 person learning the basics and getting some book work out of the way, then I went to days M-F 9-5 (my god how to normal people working that shift get ANYTHING done at home? My house was in shambles at the end of 2 mos lol) so I worked with several preceptors but since we're a small unit it wasn't a bad set up, so I got 3 months with my transfer as well. Keep searching for a job, a good one will give you a solid orientation with one MAYBE two (as a backup) preceptors. Good Luck!

[Guest296136]

I hate to hear these stories, I am so sorry some of you had bad experiences. I was fortunate to have a great orientation, my hospital really spent the time and effort to make sure we all were capable of being on our own and we still had back up for the first year, the educators were always avaliable if we needed help.

I am now taking a preceptor class so that I can orient new grads, I want to make sure they get they foundation needed to become a confident and safe nurse without running out of the building screaming.

I wish everyone the best of luck.