As a new grad BSN, I worked for six months in a SNF in 2010 before being terminated (long story that I could elaborate on but is not really the point of this post). I have been looking for a new job for about 2 months, have had several interviews with hospice agencies (which I would really like to get into), but no job offers; I don't have as much experience as they would like. I signed up for a home health agency that a friend recommended and went for my first day of training the other day. The child had a trach, a vent, and a feeding tube. My only previous experience with a vent and trach was one of my clinical days in nursing school over a year ago. After one 8 hour training session I was supposed to work independently on children with vents/trachs, but I did not feel comfortable being on my own after just one day. I asked for another training day and they are going to set me up with one. My question is, what kind of training is reasonable in this situation? I felt after one day that I was getting it, but needed more time. For example, I did not yet know where everything was in the home, as well as the documentation requirements of the agency (I studied the forms ahead of time but I feel like I need more practice), and wanted more practice with the new equipment. Is having just one day of training when you have not done this kind of work before the norm? One problem that contributes to this is that I find that adjusting to new environments takes me longer than other people (i.e. I am kind of a slow starter) and do not know what to do about it. I have overcome this in the past in other (non-nursing) jobs and been an excellent worker, but so far my nursing career has not gotten off to a very good start and I am discouraged. Any feedback and advice would be appreciated. Thanks.
