should i even bother with nursing

[LookForward]

im an rn-bsn student and havent really worked. today i was doing a clinical rotation. I walked into a patients room, and i guess one could tell right away i was a 'new nurse' by the manner I carried myself... good thing, my preceptor finally came in....so, i got a comment from a family visitor "how many patients have you killed?" He said in a joking tone, but im sure his wariness of me was clearly conveyed. I felt really offended, and it caused me to look down on myself as well. This really shattered my confidence and made me brood what i am doing in nursing anyway.

i dont have the 'gift' for nursing, and i admit that while i am book smart, i am not the best 'hands on'...i am the type who needs to practice a lot...its just a shattering comment. i already am unsure about my nursing future, then i get this comment.. im wondering if this is a sign i should try something away from the bedside.

[R!XTER]

Rude comments can be extremely hurtfuly, especially when you are already doubting yourself. From the way you describe yourself, I think your self-awareness can take you very far. Knowing where your difficulties lie is half the problem...at least you are well aware of where you need to make improvements! You are leaps and bounds ahead of those who have no clue what they are doing yet think very highly of themselves...(which as a nurse can be very dangerous)

There is nothing wrong with needing a lot of practice, as long as you are willing to put in the work to get where you need to be. With the right attitude and hard work anything is possible :)

Don't sweat the small stuff... You will meet all types of people in this job, it's too early in your career to let it get you down!

Good luck!

[jchatlpn]

Definitely don't base your experience on this one person. Maybe he did point out a weakness, but it's definitely not something you can't change. Just get in there and get your hands dirty. Maybe you did make him feel uncomfortable because you were new. That's definitely not something you want to pass on to your patients so it's good he exposed this so you can work on it. When I was doing clinicals I had a young girl with me who had no medical experience. I went into a room she was in and the pt was giving her grief about moving his stuff around. I walked in and tried to alleviate the situation and the pt immediately stated that he could tell I had experience and that the young girl was too new and had a lot to learn. She didn't really feel bad because she knew it was true, she just didn't know what to do. So I took her under my wing and always went in with her for her first few patients and eventually she understood what her role was and how to execute it.

But I've been insulted many times. As a nurse, you just work with sooooo many people, you're bound to have some bad interactions. Just being black, sometimes a pt doesn't want to work with me or is real rude to me. And sometimes men can be so inappropriate. But there are ALWAYS those pts who touch your heart and that's who you do it for, because they are always there. I hated school nursing so much because of the parents but those little kids were my angels and they made it worth it. There are people out there that really NEED you, they really NEED us nurses. Definitely remember that you can't let one pt take you away from so many others who really need you.

Also, you can move around in so many areas with nursing that eventually you can end up in a position where you have real limited pt care or steady pt care where you work with the same people. Once you get to that stage, you get great bonds and it's all finally worth it.

[anotherone, BSN, RN]

get used to these rude comments. I just completely ignore them most of the time and keep talking about whatever I went into the room to address.