This vile expression implies that experienced nurses do not treat new nurses kindly. My first problem with the statement is that it’s a generalization implying that all nurses are like that. Interestingly, whenever I hear someone utter the expression, I always say, “I don’t do that. Do you?” The person making the statement always says, “Oh no, I don’t, but many others do.” I’ve never heard even one nurse own up to doing this, although some nurses are willing to indict the entire profession. Every time that statement is repeated, it causes harm and casts a dark shadow on every nurse. Say anything enough, and it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Please note that by moderator consensus some of the "Nurses Eat Their Young" posts will be referred to this thread where there can be an ongoing discussion, rather than several threads saying the same thing.
To students and new grads that are having problems with nurses, please take a moment to read the above link. Is it really the entire profession, every single nurse, or do you need help with one or a few nurses? We will be glad to help you in dealing with those people, but let bury the phrase "Nurses Eat Their Young".
To experienced nurses who claim our profession eats it's young, please take a moment to read it as well and think about it. Also take time to teach, be friendly and nurturing to the new nurse and students on your unit.
foxc..hey dee, glad you came back and posted on this thread. And glad that your outlook is more positive this month! i think last month you were having a hard time, but you seem more settled.
Your experience with the ICU nurse is not uncommon ~ These nurses are a completely different "species", as are the OB nurses, etc (sorry Danissa, I don't mean to insult ~ I truly don't know what we would do without nurses like you). They are wonderfully unbelievable at what they do, in their own environment, but once taken out of their comfort zones, they are somewhat lost and depend greatly upon those of us who feel that having 5-6 pt's/shift is a cake-walk assignment.
I remember instances as you've described when I was a new nurse very vividly. The information I provided to the float nurse kind of came from no where. I instinctively new the answers to their questions, sort of like channeling the dead!!
This experience you've described is just the start of you gaining self-confidence. There will be many, many more of these instances to come; trust me.
Katie..honey, I know you are not insulting, I have read your posts! You made a valid point, certainly struck a cord with me. I'm a Midwife, trained for 3 years to be just that. That was my passion..until I met the preemies in the NICU that is! Now, nearly eight years after going to the NICU, if we have low number of babies, and L&D is busy, its always a fear that we will be sent there! And I was trained to deliver babies. just haven't done so for near on 8 yrs now, and that terrifies the bejesus out of me. Give me a 23 weeker anyday, I love the ventilation stuff, love the adrenalin rush, just don't ask me to do normality!
After the week I have had with Experienced/charge nurses. I am voting this week nurses eat their young. Does anyone know of any books to encourage nurses to remain in the field?
After the week I have had with Experienced/charge nurses. I am voting this week nurses eat their young. Does anyone know of any books to encourage nurses to remain in the field?
Discouraged once again.
:o:o:angryfire:o:o:o
Chicken Soup for the Nurses Soul seems to a popular one.
Also you might want to check out some books like Crucial Confrontations, or other books on how to constructively assertively deal with people.
I was hired along with 3 others into a new grad RN program. My colleagues complained that they'd been reduced to tears by a nurse, etc.. One said, don't you think those med students/residents snobs, I said no. Long story short, I got tossed out with the trash just after 2 mos. into the program and I'm sure my colleagues are still there. So I guess a little nimble isn't so bad, not even being worth a taste is worse!:hhmth:
The thing about nursing, or the medical field in general, is that there is no much at stake. You need to be good at what you do and you need to learn your job quickly. Some patients don't have time to wait for you to make the same mistakes over & over again. I had several different preceptors-- some mellow, some hard-core. The hard-core preceptor cared about my success just as much as the mellow preceptors, but had a different style.
There are posts from real caregivers here. The newbie who knew but really didn't know she knew and learned through her willingness to "help and be there" for another peer that she was "worthy" of the title of NURSE, not newbie, to the post that honestly expressed the fear we all will experience when we are pulled out of our comfort zone to an area we may have had familiarity in but have been pumped by the adrenalin rush of our passion. The bottom line is we all need someone at some time to support us as we grow and maneuver in our chosen field. And to answer the question, do I personally intervene, the answer is YES, YES, YES. I then go to the "newbie" and offer encouragement and additional support which includes the "talk", you are a nurse, you have skills, speak up, redirect, refocus those who will denegrade you, it is not being disrespectful it is the professional thing to do. Then I say call me if you need stand by assist. I am an encourager, a coach, a mentor and I believe in nursing as a profession. nana
There are posts from real caregivers here. The newbie who knew but really didn't know she knew and learned through her willingness to "help and be there" for another peer that she was "worthy" of the title of NURSE, not newbie, to the post that honestly expressed the fear we all will experience when we are pulled out of our comfort zone to an area we may have had familiarity in but have been pumped by the adrenalin rush of our passion. The bottom line is we all need someone at some time to support us as we grow and maneuver in our chosen field. And to answer the question, do I personally intervene, the answer is YES, YES, YES. I then go to the "newbie" and offer encouragement and additional support which includes the "talk", you are a nurse, you have skills, speak up, redirect, refocus those who will denegrade you, it is not being disrespectful it is the professional thing to do. Then I say call me if you need stand by assist. I am an encourager, a coach, a mentor and I believe in nursing as a profession. nana
Wow, after reading a lot of these posts about new nurses and students, I am scared to death to get started in my clinicals. Hope my experiences are good ones. I know there will be good days and not so good days and there will be so much to learn. I just hope when I ask for the help, it's available and that I will have the intuition to know who to ask and when. :uhoh21:
After reading these post........I apologize! I HAVE used the phrase! your wisdom shines through. It was not ALL of the nurses on my unit who were unkind and watched my every move and jumped on every tiny thing that MAY not have been done HER way....There were a few nurses that were exceptionally unkind to the newbies, unfortunately they were the resource people! Thats what makes it hard. THEY were the ones we were told to go to with our questions...they were the PNCCs and did not take on a patient assignment, they did paperwork........The problem is...if you don't feel comfortable going to your resource with questions or help.......then you are told you need to ask questions.........so we (the newbies) would find a nurse we thought would be kind and ask our questions of them.........BUT...they inturn went to the director and informed her of this...which in turn came back on us as....we dont want the responsibility and by asking other nurses our questions..we were passing on responsibility. In truth...what we were doing was looking for a confirmation on what we thought we should do..such as a doc on this lab, or would you hang this first? It was a los/lose situation. We were damned if we did and damned if we didnt. As a result we were never confident and a nervous wreck...always waiting for the other shoe to drop. When discussing this situation with the director..she sided with the experienced nurses! so....in a matter of 2 months...6 nurses quit...only 3 were newbies.....I apologize for using the phrase. Women do have a hard time working together, dont they? Again...some, not all! Newbie nurses need a support system that truly nurtures and teaches in a positive way. Also, we NEVER heard a positive thing..only the negative. We received no positive encouragement...until we were called on the carpet for some mundane thing and became upset...then all of a sudden, we were a "baby nurse." And mistakes were expected...youre doing a great job.....until the next nurse reported someone leaving their medcart (locked) to answer a call light.......with no meds on top..all locked up! Nurses do this all of the time!!!!! Apparently, the newbies were on a different protocol??? VERY frustrating and draining. It was very difficult to learn in that environmnet...so I QUIT!
Thank you. i am currently looking for a nother job.........praying it won't hurt me too badly, quitting after 4 months. Thats the only experience I have since I'm a brand new nurse! Please tell me...does better critical thinking come with time? as well as organization? As a new nurse it seems like we have so much to learn and we cant learn as fast as what they would like or is expected of us........I have heard many nurses say give it 6 months minimum and everything will start coming together...like magic...it just clicks. Others say it make take up to a year. At least I will be better prepared going in to my next job, wherever that may be! thank you for the encouragement!
:o:o:angryfire:o:o:o
danissa, LPN, LVN
896 Posts
foxc..hey dee, glad you came back and posted on this thread. And glad that your outlook is more positive this month! i think last month you were having a hard time, but you seem more settled.
Keep the smiles going, you will get there!