Advice For The New Nurse Entering Med-Surg

Specialties Med-Surg

Published

You are reading page 17 of Advice For The New Nurse Entering Med-Surg

mystic33

84 Posts

Wow!! This thread is a confidence booster and stress reliever. " Open your eyes,Close your mouth and REALLY Listen and you will learn alot", PRICELESS.

newrngrad

18 Posts

wow thanks a lot! I just finished a new grad program and am starting off on a medsurg unit ALL BY MYSELF.... when i go home I try to think of things I should be reviewing and I get really overwhelmed with what to start off with...

Its like I cant even prioritize the list of things I need to review! I can definately say I want to learn more on time management and ways to help me not forget to do things.... but also meds, insulins, ect....

Does anyone have some very specific advice to the "new rn coworker, no-longer-a-student?" lol

I have GREATLY appreciated all the posts so far! Its crazy to think I am reading posts 6 years old...

thanks!

newrngrad

18 Posts

Its like I wrote your post myself! I was an aide too, and being assertive/delegating is still something I work at too! I would do ANYTHING for more organization!!! lol

mom2sam

69 Posts

Specializes in Med-Surg.

Hello,

I am a new Nurse and start my orientation in Med-Surg on Monday 11/15/10. I am nervous but I love nursing. I have worked at this very hospital for 3 1/2 years as a Nurses Aide then Psych Tech. Thank you all for the wonderful posts. Our fellow colleagues are our support and it's nice to know that they are willing to share their experiences with us. Thank you. Any additional suggestions for a newbie? :) And are there any med surg books that anyone could recommend for a handy reference? Also I have a PDA and wanted to know if anyone knows of free programs for nurses. Thank you

Nurse Nunes

newrngrad

18 Posts

Hey how has orientation going? Just a question, how are the meds mananged @ ur hospital m/s floor; a pixsis or scancode bar system?

mystic33

84 Posts

Orientation for me has its ups and downs. Med-Surg, in my opinion, is one of the scariest places to work as a new grad initially. At least it is for me. You feel like you are being torn in so many different directions:eek:. This is my 7th week of orientation and I definitely see improvement from day one to now, but I don't know when the scary feeling will go away. Day is SOO busy, and you truly have to pray to God to give you the strength to keep going back to work. The only consolation is that everyday is a learning experience and a year from now, I won't be the same new nurse. Repetition is a great thing! Also, everyday I have to work on improving time management skills:crying2:.

We use a pixis system for med admin.

Hey how has orientation going? Just a question, how are the meds mananged @ ur hospital m/s floor; a pixsis or scancode bar system?

I am a new LPN. I was a CNA for 5 years before I entered the world of Nursing and felt like I could handle this "nursing" stuff. I though to myself all the time, " Man if I can make it through this year of hell I know I am going to be the best nurse ever". I graduated school, was the first in the class to pass by boards, and had a job 4 days later on a MedSurg floor. I was ready to take on the world of nursing. I wasn't a nursing student. I was a NURSE. Well thats when reality struck and struck hard. I was not some super invinsible nurse. I was a new nurse. I made mistakes, I cried, I felt sorry for myself on the way home, and learned I didn't have this thing called Nursing beat. I was still learning everyday. I learned to ask questions, and to carry visine close by for when those tears struck. I started to feel better just about a week ago. I was getting my basics down and people noticed. I got told I was doint better. Then what happens two mistakes in one day. I at this point am so uterly frustrated and so scared. I wanted to take a position on a med-surg floor over a nursing home to learn. As LPNs you can make at least 5 more dollars an hour at a nursing home, but the scope of practice is so much more narrow. Now I am wondering if I am even cut out for this. Maybe I should just go back to the nursing homes where I worked as an aide. The stress is so much less. I am just so lost right now. :confused:

newrngrad

18 Posts

hey listening to your post was like reading my own thoughts at times.... mistakes just KILL us inside.... I had a big "ah HAH" day where I felt like i was getting it done well, you know with my head just above the water. and then BAM, the next shift nurse asked if i was going to be on the next night (after just talking about how many surgeries we were going to be getting) and when I said "yes" I thought I saw her roll her eyes.... like she thought I couldnt handle it.... and that TORE ME UP.... I cried the drive home, and even cried to my hubby, which I NEVER do about work. then finally, i realized that all nurses and people say crappy things about one another, just like we do about our own husbands,wives,kids... and that if we want to survive, we have to let THE WAY WE FEEL OTHERS THINK ABOUT US ROLL OFF OUR SHOULDERS..... we DESERVE TO BE NURSES BECAUSE WE GRADUATED! WE LANDED THE JOB! WE MADE IT THROUGH THE WEEDER COURSES..... WE PASSED THE NCLEX!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

NEVER give up.... its going to get better.... it has for me, and I truly didnt think I was going to make it... I was waiting for the day when my manager called and said that i needed more orientation time.... I even went as far as asking my manager if she had heard of anything bad so that i could fix it!

my manager, coworkers, other staff like pt/rt and my preceptors when I float all say that Im doing fine! to give myself some credit.... sounds like what you need to do too!

DONT LET AN INCORRECT VIEW OF YOURSELF DESTROY HOW FAR YOU HAVE COME. JUST FIND A WAY TO FIX/PREVENT THOSE MISTAKES..... I ALMOST GAVE THE WRONG MEDS TO THE WRONG PATIENT..... NOW I CHECK AND DOUBLE CHECK..... I AM CONSTATNLY RECREATING MY CHEAT SHEET FOR REPORT AND KARDEX INFO, THEN FOR GIVING REPORT... I MAKE A LIST OF TO DO THINGS BY TIMES IN THE MED ROOM AND CROSS THEM OFF WHEN I NEED TO, AND IF I HAVE A QUICK SECOND, I WILL THROW ON THE PAPER WHEN I GIVE ANY PRNS SO THAT I CAN JUST GLANCE AT THAT FOR GIVING REPORT AT THE END......

MAKE YOUR MISTAKES AREAS FOR CONCRETE LEARNING.... YOULL NEVER FORGET THAT FEELING, SO NOW ASSOCIATE THAT BAD FEELING WITH LEARNING, SO THAT HOPEFULLY YOU WONT EVER DO IT AGAIN!!!

GOOD LUCK!

Specializes in Hospital Education Coordinator.

don't pretend you know it all. You will never know it all. Always think safety first, just like Maslow said.

sugarloaf98

22 Posts

Specializes in Med/Surg, Orthopaedics,.

My advice is when you get handover for a "difficult" patient make it your challenge to ask him/her what is the one thing that you can do for them to make them feel better. Quite often it is something minor to us, like keeping the curtain pulled around the bed, or a hot cup of tea in the middle of the night. To someone lying in bed feeling ill, it's the little things that mount up in their mind and become big things.....which reflects in handover as "difficult" :nurse:

rn.avnurse

3 Posts

Thanks vivalasvegas. I really appreciate your advice.

Specializes in New PACU RN.
I feel the same way I'm going on my 3rd and last month.and I do not feel ready... not even with my routine. My preceptor doesn't really tell me I'm not ready, I'm the one who tells her I'm not ready. I don't think that 3 months of training on a Med-Surg floor for a new grad is enough. I feel stressed everyday. I feel like I try my hardest to do my best...but I still need my preceptor to help me out because I end up getting behinde. I have alot of trouble just carrying out the orders in a timely manner... and when I know I have an admission coming it throws me off. I really hope and pray I can get through this because I just feel like it is alot to learn in so little time.

3 months? Are you serious? I just graduated this december and I started my first job as a casual float and only got 12 shifts - 8 shifts on one floor and 4 shifts on another as a new grad. THat was the maximum allowed. I even asked for more but they said no. 3 months on one floor seems like a pretty sweet deal to me. I haven't finished my orientation yet and I really don't know how I am going to survive.

But I have no choice. Beggars can't be choosers in this job market.

+ Add a Comment