Discouraed and about to give up on Nursing

[kendel]

I have 8 months experience in nursing in NY at a local hospital and i recently relocaed to durham nc, i got a job at a magnet hospital in a med surge unit and i was so overwhelmed, i was given a tracking device to wear at all times to keep tabs on my every movement, my preceptor felt i wasnt fast enough to keep up so thats what she told the nurse manager but told me i was doing great, i was followed around all day like a child and that was the most humiliating month i have ever had......and so i resigned having bought and closed on a a house in nc a week before i resigned. i was so depressed until i cried on a public bus on my way to work while a stranger tried to comfort me .

i found another job in a nursing home and now i have to give meds to 30 pt 2 times for the night.....i feel like giving up it took me3 hours to give the meds and i am finding that i am not liking nursing and feel like walking out

i am lonely in nc with no family

help...i am still trying to find wherei fit in nursing but still havent found it..i wish there was an area in nursing with not so much overwhelming work

may god help me before i give up

[Scrubby]

A tracking device are you serious! That's just disgusting, why are they treating nurses like animals? If they tried to make me wear it i'd probably flip out and throw it back in their face!

If bedside nursing is not to your liking (it isn't to mine either) why not think of the OR or recovery nursing? You can focus on one person at a time and it gets you away from the dreaded relatives. It's also pretty interesting and you get to see stuff you normally wouldn't.

[Virgo_RN, BSN, RN]

My facility has been using "slacker trackers" for years. I personally like them. I can find help quickly simply by checking the monitor to see where my coworkers are. If anyone needs me, they can easily find me. Ours also have a "panic button" on them, in case you need help right away, but cannot press the emergency button in the room. This button helped a fellow nurse recently, when a confused and very strong patient grabbed her and wouldn't let go. She was able to reach her button and get help in there.

I'm sorry you're feeling so discouraged with bedside nursing. It is an extremely difficult job, and certainly isn't for everyone. I can honestly say that if not for the support and camaraderie of my coworkers, I would not have stuck with it past the first month or so. It does get better as you become more efficient and more confident, provided you have a supportive environment to work in.

[flygirl43]

I went trhu the same thing. I don't know what to say......nurses eat their young and make your first few years a nightmare. Sell your house, take the hit and move home to work. At least you will have a life outside of "hell"

[flygirl43]

Tracking devices are usually used for hunting and criminals!

[bonesrn]

Sorry you are having such a hard time. I am in Raleigh, NC and the hospital I work at is so great! I work at Rex and love it! They give new employees great orientation. As a new nurse, I would not suggest a nursing home..that is hard work and as you have quickly discovered, you are pushing pills all day long. I have never heard of the 'slacker tracker' but it seems like a bad idea all around. It is usually pretty evident who is slacking and who isn't. I wish you the best of luck..don't give up!! You will find what your looking for.

[medsurgrnco, BSN, RN]

Sounds like the last 2 jobs you've had were really bad situations. Could you return to your first nursing job, if you wanted? Keep looking for a better position - they are out there. And if you have to sell your house and take a loss, then do it so you can move. And don't buy another house until you are absolutely sure you want to stay in an area.

[kendel]

Thank you all for the support you have given me i appreciate all your advise and encouragement..........i was just thinking and reflecting on the pas t months experience i had and this is the conclusion i came to based on my experience...

I got the job at the prestigious magnet hospital where i was treated like dirt , followed around all day long and was so humiliated to the point of no return until i could not bring my self to return to work so i quit...applied for a job in a local nursing home..and its beat up and kinda ghetto.. i s the best way to describe it...but the nurses there are the most supportive..can you believe it.. the ghetto place is more supportive and i am sooo greatful and i am learning not every thing prestigious and has or seem to have the best name is necessarily the best...i am going to try to hang in there

and thanks again for all your support and advice i am emotional now as i express my gratefulness to all of you

[kendel]

A nurse on the floor had told me that i should hurry because they can see how long i stayed in the bathroom with the tracking device i was wearing

[medsurgrnco, BSN, RN]

Watch out for those tracking devices. Sometimes they don't work, and then management thinks they are proving you are not checking on patients!

[MaritesaRN]

Thank you all for the support you have given me i appreciate all your advise and encouragement..........i was just thinking and reflecting on the pas t months experience i had and this is the conclusion i came to based on my experience...

I got the job at the prestigious magnet hospital where i was treated like dirt , followed around all day long and was so humiliated to the point of no return until i could not bring my self to return to work so i quit...applied for a job in a local nursing home..and its beat up and kinda ghetto.. i s the best way to describe it...but the nurses there are the most supportive..can you believe it.. the ghetto place is more supportive and i am sooo greatful and i am learning not every thing prestigious and has or seem to have the best name is necessarily the best...i am going to try to hang in there

and thanks again for all your support and advice i am emotional now as i express my gratefulness to all of you

Life indeed is a great teacher. I am continously practicing to be open minded and try not to label people and places........it is amazing what you can learn if judgement & stereo typed thinking is taken out from us.

[Bill E. Rubin]

I too am horrified by the idea of a "slacker tracker." I'm sure doctors don't have to wear them at these hospitals. I have a text pager and am generally easily located since I never leave the unit without asking someone to cover my patients anyway. As a general rule I rail against any and all "big brother" tactics. I would find it insulting.

One would think that a magnet hospital, which gets its magnet status by its treatment and support of nursing, wouldn't do such things. :angryfire

[caliotter3]

When it comes to nursing I am not Speedy G. myself. Each day you will become more familiar with your residents and the routine. Don't give up on yourself. It will come with time. You might try to go into home health. You can start with a shift or two on your days off. Although hh takes some getting used to, believe me, just having one client at a time does wonders for time management. Whatever you do, just don't give up. You will get it in time, just like others have done.