I had recently done the nurse refresher program to get my license again, and worked in a vaccine clinic. more recently working in a sub acute area; i was fired after a few months. told i'm not able to focus, making too many errors, not able to retain new info, not able to assimilate with co workers, not high enough standards.
Yes i made errors. yes, i do see now my brain was not focusing at times, and i felt overwhelmed with reams of paperwork, lack of organization (both mine and unit)..but i'm a decent human being and was very warm with my clients, and was developing good rapport with my co workers. I'm just not very good at getting organized and have my own methods of getting things done, although it is not the protocol. I feel lost, desperate, very down, and am not super young anymore. I could go work at a clinic or as a step down from where i'm at; a long term care center (they didn't want me back at their organization due to 'poor organizational skills, and low standards'..allegedly. i had a few mishaps with staff too, as it was a bit cliquey and i didn't find a lot of the staff willing to hear my questions. no union there either.
I would love to hear some suggestions before i blow my brains out! (not really but feeling very very very down)
I empathize. The fast pace of acute and sub-acute care seems to be designed for the younger crowd. The requirement to "hit the ground running" seems to be the required moto. I came back from retirement and decided to do LTC. The shift you pick can make all the difference too. I wanted 8 hr shifts, and luckily I found one. 12 hour shifts take too much out of you in spite of having more time off. 12 hours shifts easily turn into 13 hour shifts without you realizing it.
Hang in there. I was devastated after I failed my first job....I was told if I could not get everything I needed to know in the first 3 months on med surg then I'd never get it. Boy did I feel like a failure. Then, not being able to find another job as a new grad for over a year was totally disheartening. It has to get better. It just has to. Hang in there.
I do not agree with the ADD or Adhd "route" necessarily. If you are a bit older, new learning make take some time. With that said, there is an added bonus of accumulated wisdom with older folks (i.e. am referring to myself as I refer to someone 'older'). There is way too much multi-tasking out there in my opinion anyway,taking the nurse away from what is crucial. Would you consider a field such as hospice,where the demand is for compassion rather than speed, rote performance (that should be done by a secretary anyway).?
I work as a consultant and frankly the horizontal violence and low level conceptualization of much management is worse than I've ever seen it. With rare exception, LTC is a losing battle these days.
I empathize, Pookie. Yes, it happened to me as well. This profession is not the one I went to school for, over 30 years ago. Back then, the RN supervised the floor, prepared and gave all the IV's and IVPB's, and made rounds, checking the essentials like counting drops per minute on the IVs, checking dressings, circulation, mental status, etc., but did not do a complete assessment on his or her 30-35 patients. There were at least 2-3 LPNs to pass regular meds and/or do dressing changes, for a unit that size, and five or six CNA's. The RN charted a few sentences on each patient. But I went into critical care and learned EKGs, assessment skills, and ACLS; when I went back to med-surg units, I found that I was assessing up to 12 patients, with only one CNA or LPN to help. And now, the RN is on his or her own, providing total care to 5 patients, with no extra help at all.
Being organized in a way that works with rapid changes in census and/or patient condition is essential. I'm not good at it. Also, I recently discovered that I have something called "chronic disorganization", which is not a diagnosis, but a characteristic of some folks with depression (that's me), ADD, ADHD, bipolar personality, and other problems. Some of us just organize differently, that's all. It's not that you're unintelligent or a bad nurse. But you'll want to study this and see if it fits. Rather than recommending a web site or a book, I suggest you do a web search for "chronic disorganization", and also search a well-known online bookstore for the topic. You will find support websites, literature and books on the topic, and it's fascinating.
Some of us have to color code everything. Some of us organize by categories of time, tasks, locations - we're all different. And out in home health, or in school nursing, or in teaching, you may find that you excel in an area you didn't expect! Hats off to you, for being brave enough to go in the water again. Keep swimming!
Specializes in Labor/Delivery, Pediatrics, Peds ER.
Even back in the 70's, there was a motto at our hospital: "Once a nurse leaves hospital work for more than a year or so, she can't return." Things change so rapidly with technology alone, not to mention practice and procedure. I witnessed a couple people who'd been ace nurses attempt a return after being away and it didn't work for them.
Then it happened to me. I had left the hospital to work for a physician, and when staffing became bad, the hospital was looking for people who were willing to work even short shifts and no weekends. So I jumped. Still working for the physician, in my off hours, I went back right to my very own place, L&D. Everything pretty much looked the same, but nothing was the same! Even the places where things were stored were completely reorganized. I could barely find a sheet without thinking twice. The monitoring equipment had all changed and most of it didn't work, only adding to the tension, because since I was unfamiliar with it, I didn't know whether it was me or the machines at first. I just wasn't the same as I had been when I left, either, even though I was only in my early 30's, I just didn't function the same. All the residents were different and all treated me like an imbecile - they didn't know me, so they assumed I knew nothing. And they figured they were proven right when I couldn't find anything nor get the broken machines to work. It was a totally humiliating experience. Prior to an emergency c-section, I had to quick-cath a patient, (one thing that hadn't changed, LOL) and the resident, who'd been saying, "Now, now, now, minimal prep, don't waste the time!" said, "Wow, that was a GREAT job!" like I was a complete numb-skull of whom nothing was expected, so she was bowled over with surprise.
It was a relief to just go back to the physician's office and bag the rest.
So don't beat yourself up over it; I think your experience is the norm for the situation. Just consider the great suggestions others have offered and find something that's a fit for you where you are now.
Keep swimming!
BackfromRetirement
258 Posts
I empathize. The fast pace of acute and sub-acute care seems to be designed for the younger crowd. The requirement to "hit the ground running" seems to be the required moto. I came back from retirement and decided to do LTC. The shift you pick can make all the difference too. I wanted 8 hr shifts, and luckily I found one. 12 hour shifts take too much out of you in spite of having more time off. 12 hours shifts easily turn into 13 hour shifts without you realizing it.